One Another - Part 2

We all have a worldview, our take on reality, that helps us navigate life. Unfortunately, few of us examine our worldview and that is dangerous.  Freud and Lewis had similar lives that led to very different destinations. Over the next four weeks we will explore their worldviews and our own.  Freud saw the conscious and subconscious as continually in conflict. Lewis was more optimistic.  Freud was a materialist and an atheist. The spiritual was a delusion. No unseen reality. Belief in it is mere wish fulfillment. We create a father god in our image to fulfill our wishes. Freud not all that influential today but this argument stands - along with the new atheist view that people of faith have not evolved past the need for the "god delusion."  Materialism is a demanding worldview. The are many unanswered questions and no ultimate hope. We are always on the brink of disaster. We all die.  The presence of evil and suffering was the other reason Freud was an atheist. We will cover that in future weeks.  C. S. Lewis converted from materialism to Christianity. He commented on the shakiness of atheism. An optimist, Lewis grappled with the problem of good. Art, beauty and the appreciation of beauty point to a higher reality.  The spiritual worldview is also demanding. We have free will and that means we are responsible for our life. The Love of God is also demanding. God ultimately demands all of us. We cannot be miserly with God.  Many Christians don't hold either worldview. Materialism scares us but spirituality is too demanding, so they settle on a wish granting grandfather god who just wants us to be happy. This type of belief was criticized by both Freud and Lewis.