C. S. Lewis is the most effective and widely-read Christian apologist of this century and a wonderful writer of fantasies for children and adults. His books (both non-fiction and fiction) continue to remain in print and many are "best-sellers." Some -- like Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, and The Chronicles of Narnia -- have sold millions of copies world-wide and have been printed and reprinted in many languages. Lewis was also known as an outstanding and acclaimed literary historian and medieval critic -- several of his works in these areas are studied today.

Thanks to the numerous biographies and other volumes devoted to his life and works, there is more interest than ever in Lewis as a writer and defender of orthodox or "mere" Christianity. The recent film Shadowlands has focused even more attention on him as a real human being who loved and grieved and triumphed after a great loss. His classic A Grief Observed, written after his wife's death, is universally acknowledged as a moving and poignant account of spiritual struggle and recovery.

But it is not widely known today that C. S. Lewis was a highly effective and skillful preacher. Very little has been written about this aspect of his career in the literally hundreds of books, articles, reviews, and scholarly essays that have been penned since the 1940's. Once he became a household name in the '40's -- with the publication of Screwtape and his "broadcast talks" (later Mere Christianity) and other popular works such as Miracles and The Great Divorce -- Lewis was often in demand as a "lay" preacher and speaker. His reputation in Oxford, and later Cambridge (in the 50's) as a brilliant lecturer and teacher also enhanced the demand for him as preacher.

Lewis preached mainly in the university churches of Oxford and Cambridge, and occasionally in London and other cities. It has been written that Lewis, B. L. Manning, and William Temple were the only preachers who could consistently "fill the pews to overflowing" when they preached in Oxford in the middle of this century.

Lewis considered preaching a form of spiritual mentoring or counseling and a "spiritual duty." He once said that if anyone had told him in his atheist days that he would someday step into a pulpit and preach, he would have considered that man raving mad. But he accepted invitations to preach and speak as often as his very busy schedule allowed, which was seldom. He did so both conscious of his duty to do whatever God asked, and with the knowledge that God often demands "about face" actions of his followers. As a former "cheeky" atheist he accepted gladly his duties as a preacher.

Lewis wrote little about preaching, but what he did write is noteworthy and reveals him as a preacher who cared deeply for truth and for those he spoke to. In writing about evangelism and preaching, he suggested that an ideal missionary team would consist of two people, one who "rationally" argues to break down intellectual defenses, and one who preaches and gives an emotional appeal for faith. He also suggested several times that preachers should have integrity and live the faith they preached. He strongly admonished preachers to not "accommodate to the world" and preach a watered-down Gospel of Jesus. He also said that too many preachers do this, and that many in the church are not authentic believers.