Wormwood Letters: From tempting a modern man to a postmodern mother

A Note:

I would never dream to match the prose and wisdom of C.S. Lewis. But something I am learning is that if you want to improve, you imitate the masters you admire. Lewis was a master on spiritual matters at a psychological level. I would like to think that using the wisdom I have gained from reading his work will help me think of how to apply Screwtape's letters to my own thought life. For those unfamiliar with The Screwtape Letters, it is a book Lewis wrote of letters from a wiser, older demon named Screwtape, to his protégé and nephew, Wormwood. The letters discuss the spiritual and psychological battles we fight daily that shape us. I chose to use Wormwood as a wiser demon, who is now teaching a pupil, Belphegor. I chose Belphegor, as historically, he has been noted as the demon of sloth. Laziness and anxiety are struggles I have had throughout my life and I have only just recently become aware of how much anxiety plays a role in my laziness. I used to attribute laziness as a lack of care (which it can be). But in myself, it is often a result of caring too much for things I have little control over. Exploring the relationship between anxiety and laziness is the diving board from which I am exploring this topic. I highly recommend the book if you have never read it.

I also believe that C.S. Lewis was able to call out the flaws of a modern society in a way that has shaped current discussions in the church. For this reason, my letters will mimic the Screwtape letters in form and principles, but will be applied in a way that is particularly relevant to today's church and culture (that is my goal, anyway). I will give the same warning that Lewis did, "Readers are advised to remember that the devil is a liar. Not everything that [Wormwood] says should be assumed to be true even from his own angle."(1)

I

My dear Belphegor,

I note from your last letter that you have particularly celebrated your plan to drive your patient to no longer care about the opinions espoused by her friends on social media. I realize your strength is in the area of producing apathy and a lackadaisical spirit in your patients. A gift for which you have been named. But perhaps I may point out you are guilty of reproducing your own characteristics into your patient without full consideration of all the details of the human mind. You see, you overlook that humans have selective forgetfulness. As they were never intended to have knowledge of good and evil, they often spend much time sifting through information and letting go of it to form ideas on what they believe to be true. While apathy can be most fruitful in assuring a patient will serve Our Father Below, it must be the right kind of apathy.

You have stated with great confidence that apathy towards the opinions of others will secure the hatred of your patient towards others. What you must understand, Belphegor, is that opinions are not essentially what drives mortals towards those virtues which Our Father Below relies on to secure a soul. Virtues such as envy, strife, jealousy, and false witness. These virtues are essential to secure the soul of your patient and assure that they will be most effective for Our Father Below.

Tell me, dear Belphegor, how you can secure these virtues in your patient if their apathy is directed towards the opinions of other mortals? That apathy must be directed at much more dangerous characteristics such as fellowship, respect, concern, and the image of the Enemy in mortals (that horrendous element of the eternal that all mortals, most unfortunately, carry!)

You see, Belphegor, the opinions of mortals are subject to change very easily. Hence, if your patient is apathetic to the opinions espoused today, then your patient will be just as unmoved when those opinions change tomorrow. You also overlook that if your patient is apathetic towards an opinion expressed in a digital forum, she may be very likely to continue in the ways of the Enemy. She may continue to fellowship face to face with someone whose opinion she despises. This gives the enemy a foothold to increase those detestable vices of love and unity, in your patient. Thus, the apathy you have instilled keeps her in communion with those very eternal aspects from which you are trying to keep her!

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Foolish Belphegor! The trick here is to use the distaste of certain opinions in your patient to be of utmost concern! That anxiety will produce in her a belief that she is the only one who truly cares. The further the area of interest is out of her control (such as government actions, health, and approval of others) the more righteous she will feel for fretting over it! Remember, anxiety is a sure way to separate your patient from the vices mentioned above (fellowship, respect, concern, the image of the Enemy in mortals). The beauty of anxiety is that even if your patient meets face to face with companions whom she disagrees with, the anxiety will keep her from actual fellowship, as she will either seek to only address the disagreement or better yet, avoid any topic that could come close to the difference of opinion, so as to render the relationship useless to the Enemy entirely!

The best option is to keep her from confronting her friend over the disagreement. This allows no space for a response from her friend. Then, you are able to tell your patient what to believe about that friend's character. Be sure to elevate your patient's own self-righteousness and impress in your patient's mind the seeming lack of righteousness of her friend, based solely on that opinion. You must help your patient see that the opinion held by her friends is actually rooted in a deeper failure. Tell her that her friend is an attention seeker, lazy, gullible, biased, or ignorant. Ensure that the opinion expressed (and the mode in which they are expressed) are primarily what colors your patient's view of that friend’s character. This way, if her friend does change her opinion (which mortals are prone to do), your patient’s appraisal of her friends character will not change with the opinion. The friend's actions, words, and opinions will only act as evidence of the character you have convinced your patient her friend possesses.

Whatever you do, keep your patient from actually confronting her friend on the subject individually. If you see she must respond, try to do it as publicly as possible, so as to keep them from any sort of filthy reconciliation or sharpening (as the Enemy calls it) of one another. As long as the discussion is in public, both parties must be concerned for the perception of others, rather than a concern for one another. If she desires to address the friend individually, then remind her of all that could go wrong with a confrontation, so as to convince her that confrontation is useless and exhausting (your expertise will fit nicely in this idea). If she pushes past this argument, then tell her she is right, this is entirely too important and requires all of her attention, so as to make her wait for the “perfect time” which you can quickly assure does not occur when the very real tasks in front of her demand her attention. Stroke her ego by convincing her she needs a clear mind and a full belly before engaging in such a difficult task. This is relatively easy to do, and the comfort of a bath, some wine, or good food will dull the urgency of restoring her bond with her friend. This will solidify her anxiety, while distracting her from actually addressing it. As my affectionate uncle Screwtape would always remind me, humans are "enslaved...to the pressure of the ordinary."(2)

The other beauty of anxiety, Belphagor, is that it will naturally lead to apathy. But the correct form of apathy. Because her concern and anxieties will be so busy around the opinions of her friend, she will feel so exhausted just thinking about them, that she will be unable to see anything else. This is where your skill can be unleashed. Remind her that she has been working harder than anyone else on resolving this issue. Indeed, she will develop an apathy for anything they do, say, or demonstrate. Anxiety is the key to apathy!

Take this advice to and learn from it. That wretched conscience that the Enemy has bestowed on mortals may wake your patient from a lackadaisical spirit. But even the Enemy warns that an anxious spirit is a sure way to Our Father Below. An anxious spirit is our strongest defense against that conscience that mortals have.

Your Invested Professor

Wormwood

(1) Lewis, C. S. The Screwtape Letters: and Screwtape Proposes a Toast, IX. New York, NY: HarperOne, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2013.

(2) Lewis, C. S. The Screwtape Letters: and Screwtape Proposes a Toast, 2. New York, NY: HarperOne, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2013.