Proverbs 15:1

A soft answer turneth away wrath:

but grievous words stir up anger.

Proverbs 18:13

He that answereth a matter before he heareth it,

it is folly and shame unto him.

Proverbs 17:28

Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise:

and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.

James 1:19-20

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

When the apostle Paul had the occasion to speak with leaders of his day in Greece or in Israel, he did not rail about the politics of his day. He spoke to them of Jesus and the resurrection.

C.S. Lewis, the English professor and Christian author, wrote a book in 1942 called The Screwtape Letters. He dedicated it to his professor colleague J.R.R. Tolkien of Lord of the Rings fame. Lewis was converted to Christianity in 1931, and Tolkien is said to have helped convert him.

The Screwtape Letters is satirical fiction and primarily deals with temptation and the resistance to that temptation. The book is a series of letters written from Screwtape, a senior demon, to his young nephew Wormwood, a junior demon. Screwtape is mentoring Wormwood in the demon business, and it is Wormwood’s job to tempt a man they call the Patient. These two demons are trying to overthrow the Patient’s Christian faith and walk.

Wormwood tries to tempt the Patient to commit some obviously wicked and evil sins, but Screwtape’s approach and advice to his young student is to be more subtle. He tells him that the temptations that work the best are the ones that are not obvious, the gradual ones without sudden turns and without warning signs.

The following letter is not from The Screwtape Letters, but it is written in the style of the letters from Screwtape to Wormwood in the book. It has been making its way around the Internet on social media.

Many are passing this letter around as a quote from C.S. Lewis. It is not. Although it is not from his book, nor written by him, it is a pointed warning of the temptations of getting embroiled in never-ending political arguments. I do not know the author.

My dear Wormwood,

Be sure the Patient remains completely fixated on politics. Arguments, political gossip, and obsessing on the faults of people they have never met serves as an excellent distraction from advancing in personal virtue, character, and the things the Patient can control. Make sure to keep the Patient in a constant state of angst, frustration, and general disdain towards the rest of the human race in order to avoid any kind of charity or inner peace from further developing. Ensure the Patient continues to believe that the problem is “out there” in the “broken system” rather than recognizing there is a problem with himself.

 Keep up the good work,

Uncle Screwtape.

May God bless us all to resist the temptations that distract us from our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and in following His commandments.