Deep Dive into Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis - Morality and Psychoanalysis

C.S. Lewis argues that creating a Christian society requires individuals to simultaneously learn how to apply the Golden Rule to modern life and become the kind of people who would actually do so. He makes a critical distinction between the medical techniques of psychoanalysis and the philosophical worldview of Freud, noting that while the philosophy contradicts Christianity, the technique of repairing the human mind is compatible. According to Lewis, a moral choice consists of the act of choosing and the psychological raw material, such as impulses and feelings, upon which that choice is made. Psychoanalysis seeks to normalize this raw material by removing abnormal neuroses, but it cannot influence the final moral choice of whether an individual puts themselves or others first.

Because God judges the central act of choosing rather than the psychological material provided by heredity or upbringing, human judgment of others is often inaccurate. A person with severe psychological baggage who makes a small effort toward kindness may, in God's view, show more courage than a naturally healthy person performing a heroic feat. Lewis explains that every choice transforms the central part of a person into either a heavenly creature in harmony with God or a hellish creature characterized by eternal loneliness and rage.

When the physical body dies, the psychological traits caused by health or complexes fall away, leaving the real central person to be seen as they truly are. Lewis emphasizes that even minor sins of thought are significant because of the mark they leave on this eternal self, which either straightens or twists the soul. He concludes that moral progress is like waking up; just as we understand sleep only when we are awake, only those striving for goodness can truly understand the nature of both good and evil.

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