Written and delivered during World War II, the essays/sermons of The Weight of Glory respond to contemporary anxieties about violence, loss, and the future of civilization. This is particularly true of “Learning in War-Time,” “Why I Am Not a Pacifist,” “The Inner Ring,” and “Membership.” These essays are consistent with Lewis’s work as a whole, engaging with urgent social and personal concerns of his day in a way informed by his Christian faith.

In “Learning in War-Time,” Lewis speaks as a scholar addressing fellow scholars during wartime. Lewis initially delivered the speech in the fall of 1939—weeks after World War II began with the Nazi invasion of Poland. Though Britain had yet to experience the bombings and rationing that would characterize much of the war, this was a period of intense uncertainty; the rapid and devastating conquest of Poland raised questions about how other countries would fare against the German war machine. Thus, learning seemed an extravagance to some observers. Lewis meets this objection head-on, arguing that human beings cannot stop the quest for knowledge, even (perhaps even especially) during times of turmoil, because this quest is consistent with human nature and the survival of civilization. 

“Why I Am Not a Pacifist” speaks to another topical concern during the war: opposition to Britain’s involvement. While showing respect to the pacifists in his audience, Lewis rejects pacifism after a lengthy argument invoking themes of conscience, tradition, authority, and social reform. Civilization is better served, in Lewis’s view, by smaller-scale reforms than by the utopian attempt to abolish war. Lewis allies himself with the consensus view of the patriotic duty to participate in World War II, sacrificing personal well-being for the sake of defeating existential threats. The speech, first delivered sometime in 1940, can also be understood in the context of Britain’s increased conscription, which saw 1.5 million men called up by the end of 1939 alone (“Conscription Introduced.” BBC).

“The Inner Ring” and “Membership” evoke pressing sociopolitical themes of the mid-20th century. “Membership” confronts issues of collectivism versus individualism, finding in the Christian church the ideal form of social belonging that avoids the pitfalls of the other two extremes. While the conflict between these two ideologies would be a defining theme of the Cold War era, it was also a significant concern during World War II, as the fascism of WWII-era Germany and Italy constituted a right-wing form of collectivism. “The Inner Ring” discusses a more subtle concern of modern urban society: the human desire to belong to the “in-crowd” of an institution. Treading similar ground to his novel That Hideous Strength, Lewis sees “inner rings” as an insidious element of modern life. Less visible than the overt brutality of totalitarianism in either Nazi Germany or the USSR, inner rings threaten to corrupt the human soul under an innocuous social façade. This is consistent with Lewis’s criticism (e.g., in The Abolition of Man) of “benevolent tyranny” as the defining danger of the coming age.

In dealing with these issues, Lewis takes a conservative moderate position, emphasizing the importance of natural law in defining universal moral values and the need for individual liberties as well as for individuals to belong to a larger whole. His suggestion that democracy and equality must be preserved to restrain the abuse of power reflects Lewis’s broader belief in human fallibility. In a time of great conflict and anxiety, Lewis in The Weight of Glory presents a reassuring voice of moral reasoning for his fellow citizens and Christians.