He points out that, if there is a force behind this Moral Law, is that it is not lenient nor indulgent it instructs us to do the right thing regardless of how difficult or painful it is. Lewis notes here that he is not “within a hundred miles of the God of Christian theology” (25) he has merely arrived at the existence of “Something which is directing the universe” (25) and which seems to urge us toward morality.
If we find, then, inside ourselves a law that we did not create, then there must be some sort of power that exists above and outside of us. It is how we conclude that, “there is something above and beyond the ordinary facts of men’s behavior, and yet quite definitely real-a real law which none of us made, but we which we find pressing on us” (20). This, then, is how we know there is a moral law that we ought to obey even though our behavior alone indicates no such pattern. However, that we do have more inside information into mankind, since we are ourselves human, than we would have just by observation. Lewis points out that, between the two commonly held views of the universe-the materialist view and the religious view-neither can be proven or disproven by science. In order for there to be any comparison at all, there must be some true or correct morality to compare them to. We could not say that Nazi morality is inherently worse than any other set of morals. He also distinguishes it from social convention, arguing that, if all morality were truly subjective, then there would be no sense in arguing that one morality is better or worse than the other.
This Moral Law is not itself an instinct, but it helps us choose which of our instincts to act on. He distinguishes the Law of Human Nature, or Moral Law, from the herd instinct. Lewis points out that we all know how we ought to behave, and yet we constantly find ourselves doing the opposite. He calls our fundamental and universal understanding of fairness, or right and wrong, “The Law of Human Nature,” distinguishing it from other natural laws (such as gravity) by the fact that humans can choose whether or not to obey it. In Book I, Lewis explores the notion of right and wrong, which he argues is, at its core, an inherently human characteristic that is not, as some would argue, merely a social construct. Lewis argues for the existence of God, and then proceeds to outline what he believes are the fundamental tenants of Christianity. Written by people who wish to remain anonymous
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