All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death." What eventually resulted, therefore, were numerous lists of especially harmful sins. There is a sin leading to death I do not say that he should make request for this.
Early church father (Hermas, Tertullian, Augustine), while never actually listing specific "deadly" sins did suggest some sins were worse than others, perhaps with 1 John 5:16-17 in mind: "If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. The development of a list of seven especially damning sins is shadowy. Let me begin by briefly summarizing the history of the seven deadly sins in the church and then go on to illustrate Lewis' knowledge of them by referring to several non-Narnian works. Thus, it has fallen to me in this paper to explore the nature of this relationship. I did not realize then that most were ill-equipped to tackle such a task. I remember suggesting that someone ought to study the relationship between the tales and the sins, intending of course that one of my students do so. As I was giving an overview of the seven Narnian tales, it struck me that Lewis, a medieval scholar, had an intimate knowledge of the seven deadly sins. Several years ago while teaching a fantasy literature course, I discovered an interesting relationship between the seven deadly sins and C. King ‐ Department of English (Montreat College)