Chapters five and six will probably be the most appealing to readers of Dyer’s and Watson’s work. If we recognize how natural law can be the life-blood of the polis’ success at flourishing, “we see that Lewis’ writings brim with political themes,” Dyer and Watson write. It is in these two chapters where we learn about the most of the details of Lewis’ political thought. If the government fails in its duties, the citizenry is justified in revolting. What was the sense in saying the enemy were in the wrong unless Right is a real thing which the Nazis at bottom knew as well as we did and ought to have practiced?”. “Unless human reasoning is valid no science can be true. Mankind is so fallen that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his fellows.”. This platform and all of its content are owned by Extensive Enterprises Media. These themes are found in The Screwtape Letters, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Abolition of Man, and other books by Lewis. Lewis summed up the idiocy this way. Bacon effectively persuaded many that final causes are not discernible, i.e. He understood the effect of the Fall upon man and believed a democracy the only viable option to obstruct political tyranny. The life support for this new morality was the re-orientation of language, which Lewis fervently argued against. Other changes include “an emphasis on practical knowledge over wisdom,” and “an increasing skepticism toward reason.”. – Lewis Grizzard. But his fourth and last wife seemed to be his kind of woman. Lewis Grizzard (October 20, 1946 – March 20, 1994) was an American writer and humorist. Lewis contends the roots of the rejection of natural law were formed by the ideas put forth in the 16th century. If you eat something, but no one else sees you eat it, it has no calories. On the road with Lewis Grizzard full. The Oxford don who dispensed Christian philosophy with astounding clarity also foretold of current political trends with frightening accuracy. Only through this method would society possibly be renewed and righted. The obituary was featured in Atlanta Journal-Constitution on March 19, 2004. His writings can be found at TPScheiderer.com. Lewis would ascribe the shift to key changes that began in the mid-nineteenth century and continued for about one hundred years. The person (the matter) void of any metaphysical objectivity determines what is good and what is evil. This was a monumental shift Hobbes built upon and used it to “construct a theory of politics and human nature without reference to final causes.” The result was the fluidity of the labels “good” and “evil.” Seeing the metaphysical has been dispensed with, only matter remains. Lewis contends this occurs because we will “conquer our own nature” and become subject to the whims of “material nature.” As the authors put it, “… nature regains the upper hand over man at the very moment of nature’s seeming defeat.”, The outcome is devastating education and propaganda. “The philosophic naturalist insists that each is an attribute of nature, and nature is an eternal whole.” As a Christian, Lewis believed matter was created by God and contingent on eternal reason. There is no reason for supposing reason yields truth.” The authors point out this is a critical part of the scientific enterprise. This totalitarian state shrouded in democracy made possible by the degradation of education and the de-evolution of language caused by sixteenth-century philosophy. All Rights Reserved. N.I.C.E. Lewis Grizzard, the writer and columnist who recalled the mythic South with folksy humor and nostalgia, died yesterday in Atlanta. This was antithetical to his philosophical foundation carved out by Plato, Augustine, and others. Lewis Grizzard. By Lewis Grizzard; Jan 18, 2016 Jan 18, 2016; Editor’s note: The following is a lifestyle column by the late Southern columnist and humorist Lewis Grizzard. If they were not, then all the things we said about the war were nonsense. If there is no moral objectivity, but only moral subjectivity, then the Germans have every right to claim their ideology is just as valid as another country’s. At the beginning of that century, “eternal verities” were abolished and by the end, man was abolished himself completely ruled by his passions and void of reason. If reason is worthless, it is unknown whether the assumed effect of the Fall on reason is accurate. In regards to Barth’s contention of no objectivity in moral law, Lewis feared the worst if objectivity in morality was disregarded. I still miss him. He re-defined the word nature to mean primitive, unmodified, or spontaneous. The noticeable contradiction in his thinking was ironed out by Wilhelm Frederich Hegel, the early nineteenth-century Prussian philosopher and theologian. For instance, many more enjoy greater health, longevity, and leisure than at any other point in history. With UGA football season in full swing and his 70th birthday approaching, beloved Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Lewis Grizzard was kind enough to read from one of his classic columns. Quotations by Lewis Grizzard, American Writer, Born October 20, 1946. The real reason for democracy is just the reverse. The political columnist and humorist Art Buchwald has been dead for nine years. Lewis’ defense of the reliability of reason was crucial for reason was an integral part of his moral reality framework. His declination of the honor, however, did not mean that Lewis did not have strong beliefs about political systems. Rousseau believed true freedom becomes a reality when all submit to the state and uniformity is achieved. My dog Catfish, the black Lab, died Thanksgiving night. From the astrologer came the philosophical materialist who believes man is nothing but a slave to nature, his animal instincts. Hence, he saw a deadly combination in liberal democracies: technological advancements, moral nihilism, and power. The porch swing is empty. Lewis fortified his argument with two key points. I don't own the rights to this. Enjoy the best Lewis Grizzard Quotes at BrainyQuote. Mill delineated thusly, “He [a person] cannot rightfully be compelled to do or forbear because it will be better for him to do so, because it will make him happier, because in the opinions of others, to do so would be wise or even right.” Yet, this is the path Lewis saw modern government going down. believes it can solve or correct all of nature’s problems with the application of science. Lewis Grizzard was a masterful storyteller and now, more than ever, we need his funny stories. A closer look at Lewis’ life shows his engagement with politics from a young age. Lewis Grizzard left this world a less funny place for his absence in 1994. [Lewis felt Christians were just as susceptible to abuse of power because of mankind’s fallen nature.] A few weeks after the election, the Prime Minister’s office wrote C.S. Dyer and Watson believe Lewis’ view of politics was different from others because he focused on the Aristotelian aspect of politics, the polis. He was just less interested in the politics. Lewis pushed back against Barth by addressing the threat which emanated from Barth’s own country. He considered these two claims to be the basis “of all clear thinking about ourselves and the universe we live in”: there is a natural law and mankind naturally rebels against it. [Secondly], they do not in fact behave in that way,” Lewis declared. Chapter four begins in earnest with an examination of Lewis’ thoughts on politics and the effect of his belief in natural law and fallen man upon the subject. Lewis Grizzard was born on October 20, 1946 in Fort Benning, Georgia, USA as Lewis McDonald Grizzard Jr. Lewis termed these people, “men without chests,” an apt description for many politicians driven more by their passion for power and popularity than by reason. Rousseau followed Hobbes and provided more intellectual kindling to the bonfire, which was burning down the tower of classical medieval politics. / Lewis Grizzard -- Don't sit under the grits tree with anyone else but me / Lewis Grizzard -- Elvis is dead, and I don't feel so good myself / Lewis Grizzard -- Shoot low, boys - they're riding Shetland ponies / Lewis Grizzard Charles R. Wilson, "Lewis Grizzard," Encyclopedia of Southern Culture (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1989). He once wrote, “many acts which are sins against God are also injuries to our fellow-citizens, and must on that account, but only on that account, be made crimes.” The implication being if the sinful act does not harm a fellow-citizen, it should not be made illegal. Not only did the doctrine of Creation construct Lewis’ view of reason’s reliability, but so did the doctrine of the Fall. This blog offers original work on and about C. S. Lewis from scholars who have written far and wide about his stories, his theology, and his world. The major change being an educational revolution. Yet, Lewis believed totalitarianism could take over liberal democracy just the same albeit in a different form: “a benevolent scientific bureaucracy, which destroys or damages mediating institutions such as the church and the family, and makes genuine freedom … difficult to achieve.” The leaders in such a government will “take charge of the destiny of others. At the end of chapter three, Dyer and Watson begin showing how Lewis’ writings reflect his philosophy. To Lewis, a prerequisite for good governance is an acknowledgment of a “natural superior.” Hierarchy is a built-in component. Grizzard goes off on Yankee actors playing the roles of Southerners and then tells the story of some Yankees pulled over by a Southern policeman. Lewis Grizzard, Actor: Designing Women. “It will certainly end our species … if it is not crushed,” he said. The magician “sought power over nature,” Lewis said. More specifically, it would protect the common goods of citizens as such from the inevitable bungling and potential tyranny that would result from a government that deliberately engages in soulcraft.”. The difference between the two lies in the origin point for the two realities. St. Petersburg, Florida 33704. And I believe they were right. – Lewis Grizzard. The overarching principle guiding him was “God has written the law of just and reasonable behavior in the human heart.” From this, followed “a just civil law is simply a particular application of the principles of natural law to the political life of a community,” write Dyer and Watson. The polis is the “comprehensive community, which combined spheres and identities [of] … religion, government, family, school, and business.” Aristotle advocates all this is held together properly with “a view to some good.” This focus is different from the business and machinations of politics, which receive most of the ink or occupy most of the thought-space in a community. He explained elsewhere materialism considers reason only synaptic activity in one’s brain, which is the result of “a blind evolutionary process. For those so inclined, this became their roadmap to revolution. In protest for what I consider to be recent unfair attacks on beef, one of my favorite meats, I went out and had myself a thick, juicy T-bone at Longhorn Steaks the other night. It is not the creation of a supernatural mind. In The Abolition of Man, Lewis zeroed in on the deficiencies of modern education. Editor’s note: The following is a column by the late Southern sports columnist and humorist Lewis Grizzard. At age 10, he wrote an essay “about the future relationship of Ireland and the British crown.” When he reached adulthood, Lewis read, taught, and wrote about numerous political philosophers ranging from Plato to Rousseau to Lenin. As a matter of application, Lewis believed the issues of marriage, divorce, homosexuality, and religious education are not to be regulated or prohibited by government. One must have reason in order to ascertain truth. Lewis termed these people, “men without chests,” an apt description for many politicians driven more by their passion for power and popularity than by reason. F or a man who spent so much time recovering from so many operations; a man who had so many close calls before the last one, Lewis Grizzard never seemed very interested in 'The Great Beyond.' Lewis Grizzard : biography 20 October 1946 – 20 March 1994 Lewis McDonald Grizzard, Jr. (October 20, 1946 – March 20, 1994) was an American writer and humorist, known for his Southern demeanor and commentary on the American South. … [Hence], nature must either possess a mind or result from a mind.” Of course, he argued that the latter is true and the former is false for naturalists believe “matter predates mind.” He placed the onus on the naturalist to explain how rational thought came from nonrational matter. Good ol' Lewis Grizzard.The comedian (1946-94) was set in his ways about Georgia football and many Southern traditions, not the least of which was our food. To support his premise, Lewis articulated nature’s capabilities and its incapabilities. This intertwining enabled one to “think and argue intelligibly about moral reality.”. This is an interesting point of agreement between Lewis and Mill. Lewis Grizzard offers his views on everything from politics, religion, sex, and golf to the largest condom heist in history, wittier and more outrageous than ever. He was 47 and lived in Atlanta. How did we get here? The advancements paired with an “omnicompetent state” used by the societal influencers of the day will enable them to “make man” in their own image. In some ways, the “modern Enlightenment project” turned out to be less about insight and discovery through reason, and more about a path to justifying an overreach of power. The protection of the citizenry is based upon the belief that human life has value. This was the “permanent in the political,” the truth upon which law and order are founded and continually substantiated. According to this morality, no man is to harm another. Chapter four begins in earnest with an examination of Lewis’ thoughts on politics and the effect of his belief in natural law and fallen man upon the subject. The astrologer “proclaimed nature’s power over man.” The former thought led many to think man can do everything. Your email address will not be published. They come from Lewis’ ancient mindset and invade our age with perspective and wisdom. “[Government’s] business is to enforce something that is already there, something given in the divine reason or in the existing custom. The government is to protect and permit its citizens to live out their God-given rights according to their individual preferences, and the citizenry is to live harmoniously without causing harm to any member of society. Many of us are weary of politics and such (hence the reference to Nancy Pelosi). If a citizen fails in his, the government carries the authority to mete out the proper justice. If this happens, rulers are no longer rulers. We add new entries regularly and we encourage your comments and feedback so we can develop a helpful, thoughtful and entertaining resource for you. The latter strongly suggested he can do nothing. Lewis on Politics and the Natural Law, the two political scientists explain how C.S. Your email address will not be published. He … Address: 204 37th Avenue North #182 Despite the Fall, one must presume reason is reliable and this must be so in order to make an argument, even “an argument against reason.” Regarding the Christian critic, this person would contend reason is now fully depraved and hence “worthless.” But again, one must use reason to deem reason worthless. A scientific bureaucracy is now possible given the advancements in science, technology, and the intertwining relationship governments have with its citizenry. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. … The march of History … culminates in the creation of the modern bureaucratic state, which reconciles the apparent tension between law and freedom.” In a nutshell, Hegel sees “true freedom [as residing only] in the arms of the state.” His theory provided the justification needed for many on the Left and the Right who favored totalitarianism. Florida Politics is a statewide, new media platform covering campaigns, elections, government, policy, and lobbying in Florida. – Lewis Grizzard The New Georgia Encyclopedia has a page about Lewis, which expresses some of these contradictions. The New Georgia Encyclopedia has a page about Lewis, which expresses some of these contradictions. And what one finds is both quite helpful and also somewhat surprising. The sportin' life of Lewis Grizzard by Frank Hyland ( Book ) Lewis (M.) Grizzard, (Jr.) : (1946-1994) ... Grizzard's humorous account of coping with a changing world of sex, music, clothes, entertainment and politics in the 50's and 60's. Required fields are marked *. No longer were the educated being taught the works of “the ancients” like Plato, Aristotle, Virgil or Horace. Lewis saw modern scientists as the sons of the magician who believe every ill in the world can find a cure in science. At a time, when democracies across the globe seem less interested in being incubators of freedom and more so of bureaucracies, Lewis’ prescient wisdom helps us understand how and why such a promising form of government has been so easily corrupted. With the “extinction” of good and evil and the ascendant rule of one’s emotions, Lewis saw the product of these two realities, moral subjectivism, a singular force against democracy. Lewis labeled Rousseau’s proposal as an expression of “’deep hatred of personal freedom hidden in the heart’ of the … project.”. – Lewis Grizzard. Russia was consumed with Communism for the better part of a century. Despite natural law being embraced by Catholics and Protestants and affirmed by Luther and Calvin, Barth’s skepticism is summed up in his questioning of “who is to judge what use of nature, reason, and history is rightful and true.” When determining what natural law is he feared culture, history, and philosophy were over-sized influencers. But probably, most importantly, Lewis commented and wrote often about the underpinnings of politics, natural law. The law of nature is thus because “people thought everyone knew it by nature and did not need to be taught it. Email: Peter@FloridaPolitics.com Lewis saw them as part of a broader education needed by young people. Very few people could catch the essence of the South quite like Lewis Grizzard.The Atlanta-Journal Constitution writer delighted readers for decades with his anecdotes about life below the Mason-Dixon line, and most of the time, we could totally relate. Many do not view Lewis as a political thinker. Contributors & reporters: Phil Ammann, Drew Dixon, Renzo Downey, Rick Flagg, A.G. Gancarski, Joe Henderson, Janelle Irwin, Ryan Nicol, Jacob Ogles, Scott Powers, Andrew Wilson, and Kelly Hayes. Nor do most people who believe advertisements, and think in catch-words and spread rumors. If you fatten up everyone else around you, then you look thinner. For the naturalist, Lewis used a different argument for there is some commonality between Lewis and the naturalist: they both believe in matter and the mind, a non-material entity. The very leveling nature of democracy was seen as most unhelpful to a society for “no man [would be] wiser, or better, or more famous, or even handsomer than the mass.” Thus, Lewis believed “democracy always in the end destroys education.”. When Hobbes applied his theory to politics, his application produced this conclusion, “the ultimate source of right is the sovereign state.” Lewis argued against Hobbes in English Literature in the Sixteenth Century, and provided his basis for government. From grits to UGA football to the Atlanta Opera, legendary humorist and columnist Lewis Grizzard wrote about it all. Chili Dawgs Always Bark at Night shows why the South's most popular humorist continues to be America's most popular funny man. To close out the book, Dyer and Watson use much of the final chapter to provide excerpts from Lewis’ canon that show the application of his belief in natural law and his political theory. For example, in That Hideous Strength, Lewis tells the story of an organization, the National Institute of Coordinated Experiments (N.I.C.E. His honesty about the untrustworthiness of man’s ability to rule is jarring and needed in our day. Lewis Grizzard was born on August 5, 1914, in Snellville, Georgia. He was an actor, known for Designing Women (1986), Closeups (1986) and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962). If you’re a Southern male journalist of a certain age, you must retain a certain amount of respect and admiration for Lewis Grizzard. For that theory would itself have been reached by thinking, and if thinking is not valid that theory would, of course, be itself demolished. Francis Bacon and Thomas Hobbes are the next people to be examined in what is called “the early modern turn” by Dyer and Watson. HarperOne also posts updates about new products and promotions. Phone: (727) 642-3162 The German theologian, Karl Barth, is the critic-exemplar of Lewis’ belief in natural law and chapter three dives into this dissention. Germany was swallowed by Nazism for a time. In such a situation, moral nihilism fills the cultural vacuum of a country and not too far behind is totalitarianism. Grizzard, 47, had suffered what cardiologist Dr. Randy Martin said was extensive brain damage following the nine-hour operation Friday to remove a mass from his aorta and replace a faulty heart valve. Lewis Grizzard, who died March 20 at the age of 47, knew all about marital misfortune. Mill concurred that government had a responsibility to exercise its power over a person who would do bodily harm to another member of society. One of the most surprising beliefs by Lewis was his desire not to return to medieval political systems. He urged that students be taught “to love what is lovely and despise what is despicable.” For Lewis, Dyer and Watson write, “A rightly ordered human soul is one in which reason submits to the authority of God, on the one hand, and our emotions and appetites submit to the authority of reason.” With a lack of proper order based upon proper loves, moral subjectivism applied in education results in the ruin of our civilization, and, more importantly, our souls. Tim Scheiderer (M.Div., Southern Seminary) is a freelance writer living in metro Washington, DC. And the place for this to happen was not in the public school system, but he believed the Christian school to be the place for Christian principles to be taught. Also, legitimate rule and tyranny become one in the same. He went from being an aspiring student of newspaper writing at the University of Georgia (and sports editor for the local Athens, Georgia, paper) to sports editor of the Atlanta Journal by age 23. All reasonable thought on earth (natural reason) is a sense expressing this eternal reason. Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Lewis Grizzard died ten years ago, yet he still lives in the hearts of his legions of fans. Lewis Grizzard has 44 books on Goodreads with 12515 ratings. If love were oil, i’d be about a quart low. © Copyright by Extensive-Enterprises 2021. Secondly, … Lewis’ conception protects the realm of the political. If Grizzard’s humor revealed the ambivalence amid affluence of the Sunbelt South, it reflected its conservative and increasingly angry politics as well. Barth was a firm believer in all theological knowledge coming from Christ and Christ alone. And if, at any time, a country’s laws contradict natural law, the citizenry has the right to disobey. They are leaders. Dyer and Watson see this use of Mill’s principle by Lewis serving two purposes. For Rousseau, prerational sentiment like “pity and self-love” became king. By Tim Scheiderer – In 1951, Winston Churchill and the Conservative Party regained control of the prime-ministership and Parliament. Claims of truth being found in nature, reason, history, or culture were false and completely untrustworthy. He wrote, “Our papers at the moment are filled with nothing but politics, a subject in which I cannot take any interest.” Yet, he goes on to criticize the Labour government in a well-informed manner. Obedience is built upon it. He advocated reform of dangerous political systems would not be solved by a national education policy nor by the passage of legislation, but by an education built on Christian principles. Lewis’ argument begins with addressing the materialist. In Present Concerns, Lewis admitted, “I don’t deserve a share in governing a hen-roost, much less a nation. Lewis’ logic is encapsulated in an analogy he provided: there must be a measuring rod independent of that which is measured else no measuring can occur. Peter Applebome, Dixie Rising: How the South Is Shaping American Values, Politics, and Culture (New York: Times Books, 1996). It was intertwined with goodness because of natural law. An odd way to demonstrate one’s disinterest. Lewis selected key aspects from John Locke’s and John Mill’s works to formulate a workable democracy: Locke’s social contract theory and Mill’s harm principle. In the book’s preface, he writes his desire is that the truth might be seen as if for the first time “stripp[ed] … of [its] stained-glass and Sunday School associations.” The thrust of this book and his other pieces of fiction were not “primarily to win debates, but … rather … shape emotional dispositions through moral education.”. So what does happen when man’s fallenness corrupts natural law and objective morality is no more or barely visible? Chapter six speaks of a limit, however, to the extent of government’s harm-preventing power. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers. In the name of doing good for people or making people good, government would eventually deny private rights via “technological power.”. … A theory which explained everything else in the whole universe but which made it impossible to believe that our thinking was valid, would be utterly out of court. The vet said his heart gave out. I don’t want to sound flippant about all those people getting killed in European soccer riots, but I honestly think I know part of the reason for the violence that surrounds the sport in other parts of the world. Thus, he fully eroded what natural law is. Lewis Grizzard passed away in Atlanta, Georgia. And in other personal letters, Lewis provides informed references to British elections, unions, communist advances in China and Hungary, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and other political topics of the day. “When you are arguing against [God] you are arguing against the very power that makes you able to argue [to reason] at all: it is like cutting off the branch you are standing on.”. For instance, The Abolition of Man teaches “political trends in the modern world are related, ultimately, to a philosophical rejection of the natural-law tradition.” Then in That Hideous Strength, Lewis illustrated the reality quite potently believing a fiction piece would be more impactful and receive fewer counter-arguments from society than a philosophical work. Oh, he wrote about illness and hospitals often enough in his books and columns; joked about it on hundreds of stages across the South. Dyer and Watson write, “Hegel appropriated the general framework of salvation history found in Christian traditions and applied it to world events. … If it tries to be original, to produce new wrongs and rights in independence of the archetype, it becomes unjust and forfeits its claim to obedience,” Lewis wrote. If soccer was an American soft drink, it would be Diet Pepsi. It is contradictory to believe a theory of origins wherein thinking is considered certifiably reliable, but there is no provided proof of the “certification” by theory. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on June 5, 1942, and after completing basic training and infantry training, he served as an infantryman with the 110th Infantry Regiment of the 28th Infantry Division. Or to put it another way, he felt it improbable to go from unreason to reason. It would have destroyed its own credentials,” Lewis wrote in Miracles. It does not give an explanation as to how reason came into existence and why it is reliable. Lewis Grizzard's Chicago: Bad Memories "I'm sitting in a limousine talking to you," Lewis Grizzard told us through the ether. Another change is the technological prowess of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries: machines are ever-improving. “If Grizzard’s humor revealed the ambivalence amid affluence of the Sunbelt South, it reflected its conservative and increasingly angry politics as well. ), which is a scientific technocracy hoping to control the whole country. Lewis believed two occupations in the sixteenth century assisted in dooming man philosophically: the magician and the astrologer. … [themselves] simply men; none perfect; some greedy, cruel and dishonest.”. Its leveling effect is anti-natural law. Philosophic naturalism is a term Lewis used to refer to an aspect of classical philosophy, namely, reason comes from nature. This is a deficiency of democracy. One could not simply Christianize public education. The authors call this a bit “puzzling” because he was also not a huge fan of the democratic form of governing. He contended these two secular worldviews “cannot account for the existence and reliability of reason.”.