My dear Wormwood, I note with great displeasure that the Enemy has, for the time being, put a forcible end to your direct attacks on the patient's chastity. You ought to have known that He always does in the end, and you ought to have stopped before you reached that stage. For as things are, your man has now discovered the dangerous truth that these attacks don't last forever; consequently you cannot use again what is, after all, our best weapon - the belief of ignorant humans, that there is no hope of getting rid of us except by yielding. I suppose you've tried persuading him that chastity is unhealthy? ....
Your affectionate uncle,
SCREWTAPE
CS Lewis, The Screwtape Letters (originally 1942; this edition: Harper Collins, 1996) 105.
Technorati Tags: C.S. Lewis, Screwtape Letters, chastity
Another great pic from the Simpsons. That's how I found your blog and I love how you've found a way of using them to illustrate The Screwtape Letters. Well done!
ReplyDeleteI found what Screwtape said here to be very interesting: "the belief of ignorant humans, that there is no hope of getting ride of us except by yielding"
I'm afraid I identify with that. What a trick!
P.S. It should probably be "getting RID of us" ;)
Thanks for that spelling correction. I've changed it. Kinda odd as I use a scanner and OCR!
ReplyDeleteThe phrase you quoted made me think of the dilemma faced by those plagued with addiction. That craving for alcohol... the alcoholic comes to believe the only wait to quiet the urge is to give in to that first drink... and then Screwtape, I mean the addiction, takes over again...