Mere Christianity
by C. S. Lewis
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Book Reviews of Mere Christianity
Book Review: Lewis a heretic?
Summary: 1 Stars
I believe Lewis is a hugely overrated theologian; even a hugely overrated commentator. Here's one example:In Mere Christianity (Book 4, Chapter 10 'Nice People or Good Men') Lewis writes, "There are people (a great many of them) who are slowly ceasing to be Christians but who still call themselves by that name: some of them are clergymen. There are other people who are slowly becoming Christians though they do not yet call themselves so. There are people who do not accept the full Christian doctrine about Christ but who are so strongly attracted to Him that they are His in a much deeper sense than they themselves understand. There are people in other religions who are being led by God's secret influence to concentrate on those parts of their religion which are in agreement with Christianity, and who thus belong to Christ without knowing it. For example, a Buddhist of good will may be led to concentrate more and more on the Buddhist teaching about mercy and to leave in the background (though he may still say he believed) the Buddhist teaching on certain other points. Many of the good Pagans long before Christ's birth may have been in this position."
Certainly a Christian may cease to 'act' like a Christian; but Lewis wrote that a Christian could cease to 'be' a Christian, thus revealing his total misunderstanding or total disregard of John 10:28,29. "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand."
In addition, given Lewis' heretical comment that `good Pagans' could belong to Christ because of their concentration on Buddhist teachings about mercy, I now have serious doubts about Lewis' own spiritual regeneration.
I would advise anyone to skip Lewis altogether and read someone who understands Scripture. For starters I would recommend Matthew Henry or Samuel Davies (and as a bonus, they're both in public domain).
Book Review: Unconditional Love
Summary: 4 Stars
This is one of the most widely read books in the Christian world. I would consider myself to be a stand-up Christian; Christianity is the main focus of this book. Though many of my friends and family have read this book and told me to read it, I procrastinated until now and I regret that decision. It gives great insight into the beliefs of all Christians everywhere. The author's experiences in religion and writing come together in this book to give the reader a wonderful uplifting experience.
While reading the book I felt as if C.S. Lewis was reading it to me himself; it is very first person and written from a Christian's stand point looking out. If you are a Christian you may question what it is you believe or why it is you believe what you do. Though he does not dwell on beliefs of others, you may find that many of the truths he believes in, you also believe in, even if you have thought otherwise. The author takes himself and his opinions out of his writings and writes commonly know facts so that his readers can form their own ideas and opinions.
He shares many convincing thoughts in this book that I had never thought about, for example: "Christ suffers something for nothing he even offers everything for nothing. In a sense the whole Christian life consist in accepting that very remarkable offer. But the difficulty is to reach the point of recognizing that all we have done and can do is nothing. What we should have liked is that God count our good points and forget our bad ones." I believe that when we strive to do what is right we will find that God indeed does forget our bad points, just like we forget our own mistakes in time.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I would recommend it to anyone trying to figure out who they are and who they really want to be. It is a very in-depth book with wonderful insight, the only downfall I would say is that the chapters don't seem to have much to do with one another.
Book Review: A VERY WORTHWHILE BOOK
Summary: 4 Stars
Recently, I've run into several people who say they find reading C.S. Lewis difficult. What??? C.S. Lewis had the cleanest, most lucid prose style ever known to English (His poetry however is another case).I guess I am left asking--like the Professor in Lewis's The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe--"What are they teaching in schools these days?"
Now that that is out of my system:
Mere Christianity is a fine book. It played a huge part in my own acceptance of Christ as my Savior. Lewis's arguments for the presence of a universal standard of behavior, of the presence of conscience/the Holy Spirit met me right where my atheistic/agnostic self had been living. "If we do not believe in decent behavior, why should we be so anxious to make excuses for not having behaved decently?"
Lewis follows his opening argument by presenting what he sees as the basic Christian beliefs and the general characteristics of Christian living. In the chapter titled The Invasion Lewis states the position of the Christian in the world quite succinctly and eloquently:
"Enemy-occupied territory--that is what the world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage."
Lewis's arguments are chock full of such vivid passages. His real strength is in the boiling down of his arguments. Lewis gets to the absolute core of True Christian beliefs and traditional Christian living.
At the end of the last century the magazine Christianity Today called Mere Christianity the Christian book of the century. I personally think that this is a bit of an overestimation (the Bible speaks to all generations and is the book of every century), but Mere Christianity is indeed a worthy book.
I give Mere Christianity my full recommendation.
Book Review: Common Christianity, Uncommon Insight
Summary: 5 Stars
If famed atheist Christopher Hitchens suddenly embraced Jesus Christ, what would he write to explain and defend Christian belief?
It might look something like "Mere Christianity."
Beloved author of "The Chronicles of Narnia," C.S. Lewis was once an atheist who later embraced Jesus Christ. Lewis went on to become a passionate and articulate defender of classical Christianity. "Mere Christianity" is considered to be his magnum opus defense of Christian belief.
In "Mere Christianity," Lewis strikes at the core of what Christians - all Christians - believe to be true about God and the world God has created. The title, which sounds strange today, simply refers to commonly shared beliefs among all Christians: Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, etc. Lewis begins with the Moral Argument for God's existence, moving ever closer to the person of Jesus Christ. The latter half of the book addresses what Christians belief BECAUSE of who we believe Jesus to be. He touches on issues of sexuality, sacraments, virtues, etc.
Some of Lewis' language is a bit dated. His beliefs about gender roles and marriage may also rub some readers/listeners the wrong way. But none of these detract from the significance of this book.
You can "read" MC as a superb audiobook, available through [...]. Geoffrey Howard, the audiobook narrator, is fantastic. I'm so glad they found a British narrator to read a book by a British author. I read the book in print long before I listened to it, but I enjoy the book well enough to re-read it - and I assume that audiobook actually gets closer to MC's original presentation as a series of radio broadcasts.
Check out my earlier post on good books for non-Christians and new Christians. But don't miss out on "Mere Christianity."
Book Review: You better read this book.
Summary: 5 Stars
I like reading books on apologetics. It's one of my favorite subjects. I also really dislike buying a book and getting halfway through it and realizing it has nothing to offer me. To avoid this, I always get online and read book reviews. I also find top 10 lists very helpful. I will google something like "top 10 Christian books" or "top 10 books evangelism." After doing this for a while, I noticed something curious. "Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis is almost always near the top of any top 10 list. And it's usually number 1. I avoided reading this book of a while. I thought, "Well I know C.S. Lewis is a great writer. He wrote the Narnia series. But it's just so old, it's probably dry, high theology." Finally, I broke down and bought it, drudgingly. As soon as I began reading it though, I was immediately mad at myself for not reading it sooner. It is by far the best book on Christianity besides the bible itself. Lewis is so humble in his writing, but is clearly one of the most brilliant minds ever. You will find yourself following a line of thought and then suddenly he'll end it with something absolutely profound. He does it over and over again throughout the whole book. This book will bring you closer to Christ whether you're a beliver or not. If you're a Christian it will challenge you and help you to grow stronger in your faith. If you're an athiest or agnostic it will blindside you and cause you to question your logic.
Just go ahead and read it. I've read it three times in a row.