Chronological Snobbery

If C. S. Lewis were with us today, we’d probably call him a Luddite. However, his very distaste for keeping current is what makes him so timeless, even 50 years after his death.

John Piper on Lewis’ lack of “chronological snobbery” and its impact on him:

Lewis’s unwavering commitment to what is True and Real and Valuable, as opposed to what is trendy or fashionable or current, has been another kind of liberation for me, namely, from “chronological snobbery.” He loved the wisdom of the ages, not the whimsy of the passing present. He called himself a Neanderthaler and a dinosaur. He didn’t read newspapers. He never wore a watch. He never learned to type. He did not own or drive a car. He cared nothing about cutting a good appearance and wore the same old clothes until they were threadbare. He was incredibly free from the addicting powers of the present moment.

The effect of this on me has been to make me wary of what he called “chronological snobbery.” That is, he has shown me that “newness” is no virtue, and “oldness” is no fault. He considered the present time to be provincial with its own blind spots. He said once: every third book you read should be from outside your own (provincial) century. Truth and beauty and goodness are not determined by when they exist. Nothing is inferior for being old, and nothing is valuable for being modern. This has freed me from the tyranny of novelty and opened for me the wisdom of the centuries.

Piper has also released a free ebook celebrating Lewis’ influence on him. Piper explains it thus:

In this fiftieth year since he died, I offer this little book as a celebration of the influence of C. S. Lewis in my life. I hope I do so in humility. I know I do so with profound thankfulness.

HT: Justin Taylor

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