Pardon, I'm a Christian: The classic by CS Lewis CS Lewis' BBC radio speeches in the dark days of World War II have become an international bestseller. This lecture sheds light on the history of its creation, the big ideas and seven success factors of one of the most influential religious books of the 20th century. Dr. Fabian Grassl is a theologian and philosopher of religion (https://fabiangrassl.org). After completing his doctorate at Queen's University Belfast on the Protestant ethicist and systematist Helmut Thielicke, he spent two and a half years researching at the International Academy of Philosophy in the Principality of Liechtenstein. Since 2020 he has been researching and teaching for the interdenominational Bamler-Gehret Foundation (https://www.bg-stiftung.org) based in the Bavarian Forest. Click here for the CS Lewis Summer Academy in June 2025 with Dr. Fabian Grassl and Dr. Norbert Feinendegen: https://www.bg-stiftung.org/angebote/... Chapter 00:00 Start 00:07 Invitation to the CS Lewis Summer Academy (https://www.bg-stiftung.org/angebote/...) 01:53 Aim and structure of the lecture 03:40 Introduction to the classic 06:02 The history of its creation 08:08 The religious starting point of the BBC 10:42 Topic of the first radio series and the first book: natural law 12:44 Speaking tour through the military bases of the Royal Air Force (RAF) 14:11 The first broadcast on August 6, 1941 15:53 ​​Book I: Right and wrong as the key to the meaning of the universe 22:20 Reactions to the first radio series 24:39 Book II: What Christians believe 28:27 How did Lewis come up with the term “Mere Christianity”? 30:39 Book II/Section I: Rival Conceptions of God 33:56 Book II/Section II: The Invasion 36:23 Book II/Section III: The Terrifying Alternative 40:07 Lewis' Famous Trilemma: Deceiver, Madman, or God 44:42 Book II/Section IV: The Perfect Penitent 45:31 Book II/Section V: The Practical Conclusion 47:04 Book III/Section I: The Three Aspects of Ethics 49:21 Book III/Section II: The Cardinal Virtues 50:30 Book III/Section III: Social Ethics 51:58 Book III/Section IV: Ethics and Psychoanalysis 53:05 Book III/Section V: Sexual Ethics 57:58 Book III/Section VI: Christian Marriage 1:00:37 Book III/Section VII: Forgiveness 1:01:00 Book III/Section VIII: The Great Sin 1:02:54 Book III/Section IX: Charity 1:03:16 Book III/Section X: Hope 1:04:01 Book III/Sections XI and XII: Faith and Works 1:05:20 Book IV: Beyond Personality 1:11:01 Seven Success Factors of the Classic Pardon 1:11:01 First Success Factor: Lewis as a Psychologist 1:12:10 Second Success Factor: Lewis as a Friend 1:13:42 Third Success Factor: Lewis as Lewis 1:14:52 Fourth Success Factor: Lewis as a Translator 1:17:07 Fifth Success Factor: Lewis as a Poet 1:20:31 Sixth Success Factor: Lewis as a Lay Theologian 1:21:44 Seventh Success Factor: Lewis as a Christian 1:24:45 Conclusion ______________________________________________________________________________________ believethinking is an initiative by... Tobias Becker, Community Pastor ESG (Ludwigsburg) Dr. Dominik Klenk, publicist and publisher (Basel) Konrad Schmid, filmmaker Daniel Wilken (Ludwigsburg) Prof. Dr. Dr. Roland Werner, theologian and linguist (Zinzendorf Institute, Marburg) Support Please transfer donations to support the believethinking project to the Zinzendorf Institute with the note “believethinking”. A donation receipt will be sent at the beginning of the following year. Thank you very much! PayPal: Link: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted... Purpose: believethinking Our account details: Recipient: Zinzendorf Institute IBAN DE36 5335 0000 0010 0057 44 SWIFT-BIC: HELADEF1MAR Purpose: believethinking Contact Zinzendorf Institute Steinweg 12 35037 Marburg [email protected]