Mere Christianity: The Cardinal Virtues

C.S. Lewis was a well-respected professor of medieval literature. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that when discussing the idea of Christian morality, Lewis hearkens back to the wisdom of the medieval church. There has traditionally been seven virtues articulated by the church. The first four are called the “Cardinal Virtues,” and the next three are called the “Theological Virtues.” In this chapter, Lewis focuses on those four “Cardinal Virtues”: Prudence, Temperance, Justice, and Fortitude. Remember, the church said the key to living a moral life was to make a conscious effort to practice these virtues. So what are they? Here’s a brief overview from Lewis:

Prudence

Prudence means “practical common sense, taking the trouble to think out what you are doing and what is likely to come of it.” Now clearly, in this day and age in America, we as a people aren’t too good at this. Why? Because of the entertainment value of the loud-mouthed idiot on T.V. We thrive on this kind of immature, “Jersey Shore,” “Jerry Springer,” Cable News scream-fest. When celebrities say the most outrageous, obscene things, instead of calling them on it, we celebrate it.

What I find at the lack of prudent behavior is essentially immature foolishness, and lack of using your head. This isn’t limited to the sensationalistic TV culture, by the way. It also is prevalent in churches. The level of childish thinking in churches should be shocking. Just look at someone like Joel Osteen—sure, he seems like a nice guy, but what’s essentially his message in very sermon and book he writes? “Be positive, God wants to bless you, believe in the best!” Sure, all those are good things, but can you imagine Jesus saying these things? And why do so many people get conned by televangelists like Robert Tilton, the Copelands, and Mike Murdoch? Not to be too mean, but they’re idiots! They are so childish in their thinking that they get easily conned by charlatans.

Lewis makes this point was well. What he says should serve as a challenge to every Christian today: “[God] wants a child’s heart, but a grown-up’s head.” And later: “The fact that what you are thinking about is God Himself does not mean that you can be content with the same babyish ideas which you had when you were a five-year-old.” And then finally: “If you are thinking of becoming a Christian, I warn you you are embarking on something which is going to take the whole of you, brains and all.”

Those words challenged me as a 16 year old, and they still challenge me today. That’s why it can be so frustrating to see Christians who claim to love Jesus with their whole heart (which is obviously good), but neglect loving him with their whole mind. One of the things I hate the most is when I hear a pastor begin his sermon or his talk with, “Now let me tell you something! I’m not a smart man, but I luv Jeeesuz, and that’s all that matters!” I’m sorry, it sounds to me like that man is actually proud of being ignorant. I can think of nothing as pitiful as a Christian who arrogantly boasts of his ignorance, and thinks that somehow that honors Christ.

So to sum up Prudence: If you’re a Christian, use your head.

Temperance

The next virtue, Temperance, is not simply about not drinking alcohol. Lewis points out that temperance originally applied to all kinds of pleasures, and instead of saying “Don’t do them at all,” what temperance really means is “going the right length and no further.” If you like beer, then enjoy it, but don’t abuse it. The same principle applies to everything. At the same time, though, Lewis also points out that even though you as an individual might decide to abstain from something, it would be wrong to think that “thing” is bad in and of itself, or to look down on others who do enjoy that “thing.” The old Evangelical mantra of “Real Christians don’t smoke or drink” wouldn’t sit too well with Lewis, who clearly smoked and drank! That sort of judgmentalism is very easy to fall into, but really should be avoided.

Justice

Lewis spends the least amount of time on this, because he felt it was just pretty obvious. What is justice? It’s essentially practicing “fairness” and means being honest, trustworthy, truthful, and having integrity. It means keeping your promises.

Fortitude

Finally, Lewis points out that Fortitude is essentially “courage,” but he also points out that there is essentially two kinds of courage. First, there’s the kind that stands strong in the face of danger. That is the kind we mostly think of, and is pretty obvious. But Lewis points out there’s another kind of courage: the kind that “sticks with it” when the going gets tough, and the kind that perseveres and sees things through over the long haul.

Lewis points out that this kind of Fortitude is essentially if you are going to practice any of the virtues for any length of time. Why? Because getting good at something takes practice, determination…and that kind of courageous fortitude that sees things through. Any shmuck can hit a lucky shot every now and then, whether in tennis or golf or whatever. That lucky shot doesn’t make that shmuck an athlete. The true athlete is the one who practices and hones his craft, and who can routinely make that shot, not by luck, but because he was worked so hard at it that it just becomes second nature, as natural as breathing.

Conclusion

Lewis then points one more thing out about this second kind fortitude. It should remind us of three things:

(1) Morality isn’t just a matter of “doing the right thing,” without consideration of your motivation for doing it. Doing the right thing for the wrong reasons doesn’t build inner character; and it is the quality of our inner character that really matters. Training ourselves to do the right thing for the right reasons builds up our own character—and that is what God is aiming for all along. This leads to the next point…

(2) God isn’t interested in us just being obedient to a set of rules. He’s interested in us becoming a certain kind of people with a certain quality of character. In short, he wants us to truly become Christ-like in our character.

(3) Practicing these virtues isn’t just a requirement to “get into heaven,” and after we get there we don’t have to worry about them. No—practicing these virtues develops our character that we will take into the next life. The purpose of practicing these virtues is to be Christ-like, and we will continue being Christ-like, even more so, in the next world—and that means living out these very virtues we try to practice today.