Mere Christianity

One part of these chapters I found interesting was when Lewis talked about how everyone has two impulses when someone is in danger. The first impulse is what Lewis refers to as the herd instinct which basically means that you have the inclination to help that person in danger. The other impulse is that of self preservation, where there risk of injuring yourself is the thought that prevents you from helping. It would seem that the better choice would win in the end, but Lewis gives a third way of looking at it. He brings in the idea of moral law and how there are no bad or good impulses. It depends on the situation and I agree fully with this statement. If your house is burning down but your younger sister is still inside, the first impulse would be to go save her and to suppress the impulse of self preservation. Even though the danger is great, in that situation the act of saving your sister may be more important.

Throughout the chapters Lewis mentions the idea of the Moral Law. This is something that all humans have inside but cannot be externally recognized. It means that everyone has an idea of what is right and what is wrong and through that it greatly affects our decision making. I think this law is definitely present in every human being and is one reason that helps to prove the existence of a greater being (God). This law is instilled in us because that is the way God made us. There is no other obvious reason to explain why it is there. No other organism on earth follows this principle that is innate in humans. Of course we still make choices that are obviously wrong, but it is always in the back of our minds that we know what we are doing is not acceptable.