The Warning and Witness of Eustace Scrubb

03-05-2017Weekly ReflectionSeminarian Sam McCarty

If you’ve read C.S. Lewis’ The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, then you’re familiar with the character Eustace Scrubb. He begins as really a terrible person: always complaining and making others around him miserable,believing himself to be the victim of circumstances, being arrogant and selfish. By the end of the story and in subsequent books, however, he becomes a man of great courage and self-sacrifice. There is an episode near the middle of the book that helps to explain this change. Eustace finds himself transformed into a dragon, and one night he follows the great lion Aslan to a spring in the midst of a garden. Although he longs to bathe in the cool refreshing waters, he is unable to shed the dragon skin that prevents him. At last Aslan himself peels off the foul scaly skin and allows Eustace to be renewed in the water. He describes the experience:

The very first tear [Aslan] made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I’ve ever felt. The only thing that made me able to bear it was the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off. (Lewis)

I think Eustace's story can be a helpful analogy for our journey as Christians, particularly as we enter into this season of Lent.

It is our sin that makes us into dragons which we are not meant to be. At times we are aware, even painfully so, of these sins. In other instances, we are blind to our own faults. Whatever the case, Jesus, the Lion of Judah, desires to restore to each of us the humanity that has been robbed from us by sin. We cannot accomplish this on our own. Part of the difficulty is that we become attached to our dragon ways and sin becomes rooted in our hearts, which in turn makes our healing painful. Do not be afraid to approach the throne of mercy for fear of hurt! The joy and freedom in healing is always greater than the pain.

What, practically speaking, does this healing look like? First and foremost, it takes the form of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I invite you to frequent the Lord's mercy in this way, and thus allow him to take the burden of sin and false self from your shoulders. Next, turn to the Scripture, which will help reveal our hidden faults and will provide healing through an encounter with the person of Christ. Try starting with healing stories in the Gospels such as Mark 10:46-52, Mark 2:1-12, or Mark 5: 21-43. Notice what Jesus does, who he is, and imagine that you're the one being healed – allow him to go right into your heart where you need it most. Finally, use this season of Lent as a time of fasting and prayer. Pick something to give up that is within your ability, but make it something that you will miss, and be faithful to the commitment. This strengthening of our will is one way to helpus become detached from sin and worldly things. Know of my prayers for you all.


Here's the song I mentioned in my bulletin article, called The Lament of Eustace Scrubb by the Oh Hellos. Notice how the song begins mournfully – he’s speaking about his sins and how they’ve hurt those around him. “Father, have mercy,” he says, and the music is light and hopeful, almost exultant. However, the song expresses the truth of the idea ‘already but not yet’ which says, yes, we’ve received the Lord’s mercy, but we will still sin and fall short until we finally meet God face to face as the last stanza says, “When I touch the water / They tell me I could be set free.” This reference to water refers to Eustace’s renewing bath and also to the waters of Baptism that the human soul longs for. The refrain "But I'll come around / Someday" recalls the hope we have in God's mercy and our ability to change. I hope you enjoyed the song, I can listen to it on repeat and not get tired of it.

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