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Why "Man or Rabbit?"
Man or rabbit. What in the world? Well, Man or Rabbit is the name of a former blog of mine, and we decided that the name would work well for this site too. It comes from the title of an essay by C.S. Lewis found in a collection of his essays called God in the Dock. Lewis is one of our absolute favorite authors and “Man or Rabbit?” is one of our favorite essays.
“Can’t you lead a good life without believing in Christianity?” Before answering this primary question of the essay, Lewis goes after a frame of mind that he thinks would lead someone to ask such a question. “I don’t care whether Christianity is in fact true or not . . . All I’m interested in is leading a good life.” His answer to that question gives the essay its title.
"One of the things that distinguishes man from the other animals is that he wants to know things, wants to find out what reality is like, simply for the sake of knowing."
Animals are geared for survival and run off instinct; however, humans do much more than merely survive. We’re curious beings who crave truth. And Christianity as Lewis says, “claims to give an account of facts -to tell you what the real universe is like” This is important because it answers the bigger question of the essay.
"If Christianity should happen to be true, then it is quite impossible that those who know the truth and those who don’t should be equally well equipped for leading a good life. Knowledge of the facts must make a difference to one’s actions."
Without true knowledge of the world we live in, it’s impossible to live a truly good life. If we don’t know the truth about reality, we’ll be constantly smashing into it to our demise. Christianity is more than a Creed or doctrinal statement. It’s a comprehensive description of reality that speaks to all of life.
“Can’t you lead a good life without believing in Christianity?” Before answering this primary question of the essay, Lewis goes after a frame of mind that he thinks would lead someone to ask such a question. “I don’t care whether Christianity is in fact true or not . . . All I’m interested in is leading a good life.” His answer to that question gives the essay its title.
"One of the things that distinguishes man from the other animals is that he wants to know things, wants to find out what reality is like, simply for the sake of knowing."
Animals are geared for survival and run off instinct; however, humans do much more than merely survive. We’re curious beings who crave truth. And Christianity as Lewis says, “claims to give an account of facts -to tell you what the real universe is like” This is important because it answers the bigger question of the essay.
"If Christianity should happen to be true, then it is quite impossible that those who know the truth and those who don’t should be equally well equipped for leading a good life. Knowledge of the facts must make a difference to one’s actions."
Without true knowledge of the world we live in, it’s impossible to live a truly good life. If we don’t know the truth about reality, we’ll be constantly smashing into it to our demise. Christianity is more than a Creed or doctrinal statement. It’s a comprehensive description of reality that speaks to all of life.
