Weltanschauung and Apologia: A Study in C. S. Lewis

by Elias Hofer; Paul Chamberlain

Publisher:

Wipf and Stock

, 2022

This book allows us to accompany C. S. Lewis on his intellectual and spiritual journey from atheism to pantheism and eventually to Christianity. It analyzes key elements of Lewis's Christian worldview and identifies challenges leveled against it from alternative worldviews. It examines Lewis's apologetic methodology, highlighting how it was shaped by his worldview, and provides an analysis of Lewis's specific responses to a number of objections. The project also serves as a comparative analysis of worldviews, particularly as they relate to truth claims of the Christian faith. The notion of worldview is critical to the formulation of views. One's worldview determines how reality is perceived. It's characterized as a set of glasses through which we view our surroundings and interpret experiences. It accounts for the perspective we bring to every event in life and helps explain why different people "see" things differently when looking at the same data. The same evidence may lead one person to reject a particular conclusion, while moving another to embrace what the other rejected. Lewis's major works are explored at length in this book. Although much has been written about Lewis, Hofer's examination of the influence of worldview on his work is unique.

Praise for Weltanschauung and Apologia

“With this book, Hofer has done us a huge favor. . . . He gives insight into Lewis’s honest wrestling with several of the most important questions that can be asked—and then, as a word artist, conveys his apologetic answers in a way that appeals to Christians and atheists even today. This is what Hofer was able to capture and share with us in this inspiring and instructive book.”

—Henk Stoker, North-West University



“Hofer investigates key challenges to contemporary Christianity presented by alternative worldviews like naturalism, pantheism, and various versions of non-supernatural Christian belief. . . . He indicates how Lewis’s approach can fruitfully be employed in a present-day practice of Christian apologetics.”

—C. J. Wethmar, University of Pretoria, emeritus



“Hofer has written a fascinating book that gives real insight into the development of Evangelical Christianity in North America. It is well researched and documented and adds to our knowledge of a topic that is often dismissed with superficial clichés. Anyone teaching on the topic of contemporary religion ought to consider it as a possible textbook. Ministers and laypeople should read it to keep abreast of the way Evangelicalism is constantly adapting to an ever-changing society.”

—Irving Hexham, University of Calgary



“Hofer’s work is carefully documented and written with clarity and succinctness. It is an important contribution to the manner in which the concept of worldview affects the discipline of Christian apologetics. In that regard, it can be a valuable resource for the curricula of Christian colleges and seminaries.”

—Ronald Galloway, Greenwich School of Theology



“Hofer allows us to accompany C. S. Lewis on his intellectual and spiritual journey from one worldview to another. This work analyzes key elements of that worldview and identifies several challenges leveled against it. . . . Hofer does an excellent job of presenting comparative analyses of worldviews as they relate to key Christian claims. The reader will appreciate Hofer’s very informative and analytical presentation of a great Christian thinker.”

—Beat Mertz, Swiss Association of Pharmaceutical Physicians (SwAPP)

Product Details

• Title: Weltanschauung and Apologia: A Study in C. S. Lewis
• Authors: Elias Hofer, Paul Chamberlain
• Publisher: Wipf and Stock
• Print Publication Date: 2022
• Logos Release Date: 2022
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Ebook
• ISBNs: 9781666739541, 9781666739534, 9781666739527, 1666739545, 1666739537, 1666739529
• Resource ID: LLS:9781666739541
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-12-22T07:28:37Z

About the Authors

Elias Hofer spent his career in the financial sector while serving in lay ministry in his church. He is the father of three grown children and lives in Victoria, British Columbia. By taking advantage of an opportunity for early retirement, he completed a three-year master’s program at Trinity Western University near Vancouver, majoring in Christian apologetics, subsequently completing a five-year PhD at North-West University focusing on worldviews, combined with an in-depth study of C. S. Lewis’s methodology.