Lewis is unnerved from his encounter with the hard-bitten ghost and worried about whether this new country may be in fact impossible and dangerous to occupy. He then comes upon the ghost of a fashionable and well-dressed lady who is hiding for fear of being seen by the "Solid People." She is preoccupied only with herself and how she looks, and the Bright Spirit welcoming her seeks to help her ..read more

The focus of this chapter is the glorious beauty of Heaven, which Ikey (the entrepreneurial ghost from the bus) wants to exploit by taking a golden apple back to the Grey Town to sell. An angel and majestic waterfall are part of the overwhelming sensory experience ..read more

As the passengers from the bus are greeted by Bright Spirits, we overhear a dialog between the Big Man, who is determined to demand his rights and get what he believes he deserves, and Len, now a Bright Spirit but formerly a worker under the Big Man. Len had committed murder but through grace and the "Bleeding Charity" had come to the heavenly country. Lewis offers piercing insights into the bankruptcy of our own efforts to attain salvation based on our merits ..read more

A tale of woe from the misunderstood and underappreciated tousle-headed poet begins Chapter 2 as the bus leaves the grey town. We learn more about that town and those who inhabit it, as well as a difference of opinion about whether the town is moving towards light or darkness. Lewis also describes what happens when the bus enters the Light--how it reveals Beauty and exposes Sin ..read more

Chapter 13 concludes with a dialog on the power of Joy and whether it can be held captive by pity or manipulation, followed by a glimpse of the Sun rising to the refrain of “Sleepers Awake!”, referencing the Second Coming. The book finishes with Lewis’s being reminded that he has been in a dream and waking up at the table in his office ..read more

Lewis's preface to The Great Divorce does a masterful job of laying out some of the key themes he will address in the book. In this episode, we examine five of those themes and texts from Scripture that support them. Music link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jRGngeoilo ..read more

As we finish Chapter 12 and begin Chapter 13, we see the Great Lady, Sarah Smith of Golders Green, trying to help the disintegrating person who was formerly her husband to put to death those parts of his identity that were tearing him apart and keeping him from Heaven. It is a sad commentary on the huge price that hypocrisy and masks exact from us when we try to pretend to be something that we are not ..read more

As we begin Chapter 12, Lewis beholds a magnificent procession radiating with light in honor of a great personage who is at its center. He is surprised to learn who is being honored in the procession, and enters into a deep discussion about the difference between earthly fame and heavenly glory ..read more

As we finish up Chapter 11, the new Bright Spirit rides the magnificent stallion up into the high country, as the land itself breaks forth into Joy. Lewis and MacDonald talk about the necessity of putting to death whatever is earthly so that the more glorious Resurrection life may take root and flourish ..read more

As we continue our journey in Chapter 11, we meet the Ghost with the lizard on his shoulder, whose presence is preventing the Ghost from moving into Heaven. The Bright Spirit who meets him makes clear that the lizard must be killed if the Ghost is to enter the heavenly country. As always, Lewis's penetrating insights cut through our cultural veneer and show us that sin is not just unpleasant but deadly ..read more