Goodreads | Mere Christianity

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Luke rated it:

(review of isbn 0684823780)

07/14/08

Read in July, 2008

Man!

I really didn't like this book.

I've been going through an atheistic reading phase (Richard Dawkins mainly) and I made the mistake last month of trying to delve into the good book for the Unification Church that goes by the title The Divine Principle. (The Unification Church followers are called Moonies and it's largely regarded as a cult.) Oh boy was that reading wacky but somehow eminently uninteresting. That takes almost enough talent to make me a believer.

So anyway, I decid...more

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Callista rated it:

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06/19/08

I can definitely understand why people call C. S. Lewis one of the best Christian thinkers of all time. For a while, I had been toying with reading this book and now that I did, I am yet even more certain of my faith. This book is frankly a gift from God for me, because without it, I'd probably not have been able to get through the events of the past few days. Even though it was a short book—less than three hundred pages—it has more truth and wisdom than any other book about Christianity tha...more I can definitely understand why people call C. S. Lewis one of the best Christian thinkers of all time. For a while, I had been toying with reading this book and now that I did, I am yet even more certain of my faith. This book is frankly a gift from God for me, because without it, I'd probably not have been able to get through the events of the past few days. Even though it was a short book—less than three hundred pages—it has more truth and wisdom than any other book about Christianity that I've read so far.

C. S. Lewis lays out the main doctrines of Christianity in an easy, laidback manner that absolutely anyone can understand. It doesn't start with "Jesus died on the cross for our sins"—instead, it talked about the Moral Law that all of us are aware of subconsciously and gradually got into the idea of their being a Supreme Being, then a god, then the Christian God. And only then, after he had established those facts, he started explaining the basic doctrines and beliefs of Christianity. It was a logical progression of events and, as you read farther into the book, you gradually got into more complex topics.

Those complex topics are hard for some people to understand, especially non-Christians, and they were even hard for me to understand. However, C. S. Lewis laid them out in a very understandable manner so that, although I can't understand them entirely, I understand them enough to explain them to someone else. A lot of the things I didn't quite understand as I read this book gradually made more sense to me and even with the topics I already understood, I came to understand them even more than I already did.

Not only than that, C. S. Lewis laid them in a... well, profound way. I found so many things to quote in this book, but I'm only going to point out two that really affected me. One is in the chapter, The Shocking Alternative, and the other is in the chapter, Nice People or New Men. There are many other quotes, especially in the Sexual Morality and the Christian Marriage chapters that I enjoyed, but these two affected me the most. In case you don't have a copy on hand (which I suspect many of you don't), here they are:

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall as His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." (The Shocking Alternative)

"But if you are a poor creature—poisoned by a wretched upbringing in some house full of vulgar jealousies and senseless quarrels—saddled, by no choice of your own, with some loathsome sexual perversion—nagged day in and day out by an inferiority complex that makes you snap at your best friends—do not despair. He knows all about it. You are one of the poor whom He blessed. He knows what a wretched machine you are trying to drive. Keep on. Do what you can. One day (perhaps in another world, but perhaps far sooner than that) He will fling it in the scrap-heap and give you a new one. And then you may astonish us all—not least yourself: for you have learned your driving in a hard school." (Nice People or New Men)

Those of you who know me understand why those quotes affected me. They really spoke my truth, why I believe in Jesus Christ as Lord, why I'm so dedicated to bringing the people closest to me to Christ, why I am, at my heart, a Christian. Other sections in the book did this, but these were the ones that made me blink with astonishment at how C. S. Lewis put them and how true they were.

So, although this book was short, it packed so much into it. C. S. Lewis didn't sugarcoat anything or make it more "politically correct." He set out to explain and defend Christianity, and that's exactly what he did. I truly understand why this was called "one of the most popular and beloved introductions to Christian faith ever written." I am so glad that I read this book and even happier to know that I own it—I just know that I'll be reading it a lot over the years, and that I'll be marking up and making the book one of my most beloved and most recommended books about Christianity. It's that good....less

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Darknightdestiny rated it:

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12/18/07

Read in January, 2003

recommends it for: Anyone looking for an honest representation of Christianity

I read this for the first time a long while ago, and then again in December of 2007. Each time I read it I find something new. It's fairly amazing to be able to point to a page and say, "That was me a year ago, a month ago, a day ago!"

This is not a new set of instructions on how to be a Christian—it's a very straightforward explanation of the roots of the Christian faith, a naked package of easy to understand information which builds logically from the very beginning. It starts o...more I read this for the first time a long while ago, and then again in December of 2007. Each time I read it I find something new. It's fairly amazing to be able to point to a page and say, "That was me a year ago, a month ago, a day ago!"

This is not a new set of instructions on how to be a Christian—it's a very straightforward explanation of the roots of the Christian faith, a naked package of easy to understand information which builds logically from the very beginning. It starts off with an appeal to every man's human nature, then goes about covering every base as to why man's nature is the way it is. Lewis is careful to present each alternative path of question and then refute it using logic and reason which should appease the skeptic and the doubtful.

The book is full of good humor and amiable narrative, but Lewis doesn't compromise or sugar-coat the cornerstones of the Christian faith. It is what it is, and by the time one is through with the book, whether he decides it is something he wants to make the central part of his life or not, there is no question as to what is actually is. The lines of choice are quite cleanly cut, and there's no room left to meander in the middle without a good deal of trying to convince oneself that he/she didn't just read what he thinks he did.

It's a fairly short and easy read, considering the subject matter, though not for those who are looking for an easy way out. I'd recommend it to anyone, really. Christianity is so often misunderstood, mostly due to media coverage and misconceptions about the people in the Church themselves. I think that a lot of people, Christian and non-Christian, have the idea that when someone becomes a follower of Christ the whole of their behavior and attitude changes overnight; then when they foul up, it seems like everyone enjoys talking about it and seeing it. This book talks about matters of the heart like this business of being happy to find others in the wrong, or becoming proud with one's own "successes" in Christianity. Lewis talks about Christianity being a process of producing a particular kind of new man, instead of a group of people who follow a set of rules. Interestingly enough, it is also these actions created in us by God's Spirit, saying "yes" to His prompting and the way He wants us to live, which miraculously turn us into these new sons and daughters of God. Lewis also talks about how this process is worked through us, so that we have no room to be proud or think that it's of our own doing. His illustrations are useful and easy to understand, but he warns us not to substitute them for the Real Thing. Likewise, his book is not the Bible itself—it is merely here to help and to give a defense of what he calls "Mere Christianity", the beliefs which are common to all Christians, the things on which we do not differ. Where one is confused about what it means to be a Christian, how one is saved and changed, and what it demands of the individual, Lewis explains what it means to become a son or daughter of God.

I think that this book is useful for anyone who is a Christian, who is deliberating on whether or not to become one, or who has a Christian friend. Or, if one is interested in studying Christianity for personal enrichment, he's most likely to gain more understanding from this book than any humanities or civilization textbook. It's one of my favorites, because the misrepresentation of Christianity in the media and by people who hardly understand it has been a source of frustration for me throughout the majority of my life....less

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Danny rated it:

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10/21/07

Read in October, 2007

recommends it for: Militant Jihadists, their Enemies, Friends

Read it, even for the last chapter alone!

Most people have no idea about what Christianity is. That is the reason that CS Lewis' book exists.

If you are looking for a book that will convince you to take the leap of faith and become a Christian (like so many 1-star reviewers who said they were unconvinced) then don't waste your time. No book will convince you. However, if you are looking for the facts about real Christianity (not as a religion, but as a relationship) then you can't ...more Read it, even for the last chapter alone!

Most people have no idea about what Christianity is. That is the reason that CS Lewis' book exists.

If you are looking for a book that will convince you to take the leap of faith and become a Christian (like so many 1-star reviewers who said they were unconvinced) then don't waste your time. No book will convince you. However, if you are looking for the facts about real Christianity (not as a religion, but as a relationship) then you can't do much better than Lewis. Although his voice is rather formal (read: evidently British), seekers will give him some latitude on this. If you want the egg, get past the shell.

As an aside, I personally did not become a Christian because of the 'scientific facts,' although I did assure myself that I wasn't committing intellectual suicide by doing so. I used to be very fond of evolution. If you want this same validation, you can either talk to a Christian who knows the facts (as I did), or read something like what Lewis has presented. Simple.

If everybody read this book, I can imagine at least a few of the following would happen:
1. Most people in Western culture would stop calling themselves Christians, and would either become one or become a real athiest. They would at least be standing for something instead of falling for anything.
2. Other cultures would stop saying ignorant things like "America (or wherever) is a Christian nation." The facts in Lewis' work speak against this. They would stop saying that they have a holy war against these so-called Christians (who are in fact not Christians at all.)
3. Heaven forbid, some people might realize the inheritance and gift they could receive and actually choose to find out about God by taking an Alpha course or reading that "Bible" thing ;)

If you like reading novels, you'll probably find the book dry until the last chapter. But don't miss this book on that account. Even if you read only the last chapter (about the next evolution of humanity), you'll have captured a significant (and inspiring) picture of real (er, Mere) Christianity. When you do, you might just be tempted to go back and read the book and see what all the fuss is about (and how he could possibly make such an outrageous statement.)

Well , that was long and rant-ish. But I love you all and I hope you read this book.
Look at my Listmania for some ideas about other crucial books like Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas.

Feel free to contact me.

Cheers,
Danny...less

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Mark rated it:

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03/08/08

Note: I am reviewing the "Anniversary Edition pub. 1981"

C.S Lewis comes from a long line of Christian apologists that have relied upon emotion and hope to justify a metaphyscial existence of God. In other words the argument is: I feel that God exists, and so because I have this feeling that God exists, God must exist in reality. Another form of this sort of thinking is based in Anselm's ontological argument, later used by Descarte. My rating of two stars stems from my dislike of...more Note: I am reviewing the "Anniversary Edition pub. 1981"

C.S Lewis comes from a long line of Christian apologists that have relied upon emotion and hope to justify a metaphyscial existence of God. In other words the argument is: I feel that God exists, and so because I have this feeling that God exists, God must exist in reality. Another form of this sort of thinking is based in Anselm's ontological argument, later used by Descarte. My rating of two stars stems from my dislike of what Lewis does rather than how he does it. Even more so than William James, who's arguments remind me of Lewis' arguments, Lewis is a literary giant. His writing style is interesting, imaginative and entertaining. How he presents his argument would warrant (at least from me) a higher rating, but what he does is simply more of the same worn out arguments for the existence and the goodness of God.
For example, in Chpt. 3 he claims that humans are "haunted by the idea of a sort of behaviour [sic] they ought to practice", and that "they did not in fact do so." He points out that we have an idea of a better sort of behavior together with the acknowledgement that we do not in fact behave better than we do. We have an idea that is better than reality, and so the reality of that idea, being 'better' than just the idea, must be possible. Later on, Lewis states that his faith is based on reason and writes, "The battle between faith and reason on one side and emotion and imagination on the other." The important point to me is the separation of emotion and imagination from faith: that is the sticking point. To clarify his point he also writes, "Faith, in the sense in which I am here using the word, is the art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted." Here, Lewis seems to equate faith with reason (which is his goal in the book), but does so based on unjustified grounds. Lewis, and other religious apologists, rely upon the assumption that simply because I have faith in something better, that that "something better" must necessarily be a reality. There is nothing that justifes this proposition.
I respect Lewis as a writer, and this book while not one of his best in my view, is an example of his talent. That being said, I don't like when good writers use their talents to misconstrue words and ideas in order to accomodate their arguments....less

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Marty rated it:

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02/06/08

bookshelves: front-room-bookshelf

Read in May, 2007

What an astounding, impressive, fulfilling read. I am not normally a non-fiction reader unless it is a good historical piece or biography ... those I will lap up. But a book on religion? As a pretty dedicated church goer myself, I must candidly say that unless the book is actual scripture itself, it might as well be one of those desperately snobbish self-help books full of zippy motivation quotes and the same principles you find in all other books of the same genre, just worded slightly differen...more What an astounding, impressive, fulfilling read. I am not normally a non-fiction reader unless it is a good historical piece or biography ... those I will lap up. But a book on religion? As a pretty dedicated church goer myself, I must candidly say that unless the book is actual scripture itself, it might as well be one of those desperately snobbish self-help books full of zippy motivation quotes and the same principles you find in all other books of the same genre, just worded slightly differently. Yet in Mere Christianity, I found none of the superficiality I've previously experienced with other books that delve into philosophic explorations of religion. This is a real study, a deep probe. There is nothing artificial about it. Thank goodness my wife is a huge C.S. Lewis fan or I might not have picked it up at all. But she recommended it to me, and I had it on a trip, and for hours and hours I read, mesmerized in a way that few thrillers can even achieve. What did I find? I found that in this work C.S. Lewis single-handedly legitimizes religion as a belief, lifestyle, and philosophy. And what makes Lewis most credible is that Mere Christianity is not designed to make any reader comfortable, from agnostic to new age believer to hard core Christian. His ideas and reasoning are solid and unavoidable. His ability to address concerns is acute and thorough. He is not pompous, but he is confident. Where he is unsure of something, he admits it, though I'd be careful to deviate from such a sound philosopher. Probably his greatest talent is his use of applicable examples and parallel images. Where a concept is vague, he has the ability to nail it down, to apply it to the known. C.S. Lewis rings of truth throughout. And probably the most important thing in his book, or in any book for that matter, is that when I put it down, I was determined to be a better person, to fix up deficiencies in my life. Mere Christianity is not "merely" another book on religion or Sunday School manual; it is a call to arms for every person who picks it up, regardless of their faith. Go to it with an open mind, and be prepared to act afterwards....less

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Micah rated it:

(review of isbn 0684823780)

12/01/07

Read in November, 2007

Mere Christianity is C.S. Lewis's attempt to explain the defining principles that all Christians share in common. It's also his attempt to justify, promote, and apologize for his religion. Although his approach is, in some ways, admirable (he genuinely seems to try to twist Christianity into some sort of soft, inclusive religion), I can't help but find so much wrong with this book. First, it's difficult to sell a concept/philosophy/religion as being compassionate and inclusive when the result of...more

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Steven rated it:

04/06/08

Read in March, 2008

My initial impression after reading the first few chapters of this book were that Lewis provided extremely compelling and logical arguments for the existence of a God, with brilliant analogies to illustrate his points. It was great food for thought, especially for skeptics or agnostics like me, introducing a number of arguments that I had never considered before.

His writing ability continued to impress me into the second book, where he described the basic tenets of Christianity, those which ...more My initial impression after reading the first few chapters of this book were that Lewis provided extremely compelling and logical arguments for the existence of a God, with brilliant analogies to illustrate his points. It was great food for thought, especially for skeptics or agnostics like me, introducing a number of arguments that I had never considered before.

His writing ability continued to impress me into the second book, where he described the basic tenets of Christianity, those which are common to any and all Christian denominations. I am particularly glad I read this second book, as I held many misconceptions regarding Christians and Christian behavior prior to being educating by Lewis’ down-to-earth examples.

Unfortunately, the third book was a huge disappointment – unlike the first two books, it was completely vague and difficult to understand, as it described the spiritual journey once someone had already begun to accept the spirit of God. Lacking this spirituality, the entire third book was gibberish in my mind. The only positive I can think of about this third book is the final chapter, where Lewis again showed his keen logical insight when postulating that since evolution transforms from one kind into something "different with a new kind of difference" (Lewis cites the example of the evolution of large, heavily armored creatures to little, naked, unarmored animals with better brains), Christianity could be the next step in human evolution – from “creatures of God to sons of God”. Putting aside the actual existence of God, the notion Lewis brings up is an interesting one to consider.

The quote in the back of book says the following: "C. S. Lewis is the ideal persuader for the half-convinced, for the good man who would like to be Christian but finds his intellect getting in the way." While I wouldn’t go so far as to call Lewis the ideal persuader, I would recommend this book to anybody who has had doubts regarding Christianity on rational grounds to gain additional perspective on why there in fact could be a God out there and use the ideas to decide for themselves....less

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Jason rated it:

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04/12/08

Read in November, 1992

Mere Christianity is such a classic work, and having been read by millions over the past sixty years plus years, it is difficult to say anything new about it. As the years have rolled on though, a different society, with different needs and expectations has arisen that sees the world a little different than the British society, in the midst of all the moral and spiritual challenges that happened in the World War II years.

Lewis' is more of a classic apologetic. He speaks of universal laws, th...more

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Lynn rated it:

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02/12/08

bookshelves: non-fiction, spiritual

Read in February, 2008

It's hard to give a review for a book that covers so much ground. It's such a tiny little volume, but it throws a lot out there in tidbit-sized pieces.

I've always been a bit intimidated by C.S. Lewis. Even as an adult, there are parts of The Chronicles of Narnia I felt were way over my head. (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader felt like one big puzzle for me, the symbolism was so deep.) So, I was glad to discover, Lewis's prose in this book (which is actually several smaller books put...more

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Alec rated it:

07/18/07

Read in January, 2006

Lewis may represent a more "pop" philosophy/theology viewpoint, but even so, what I particularly like about Mere Christianity is his attention to detail. He presents a very firm philosophical, intellectual case for why Christians believe, carefully defining terms, building his argument from the very ground up, and addressing several common objections to his points. I disagree with Lewis's habitual presentation of Christianity as the only logical form of belief because I think ...more

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Chris rated it:

05/24/07

Read in January, 1993

recommends it for: nobody

Taking a quick glance over the reviews offered for this book, I see a lot of people expressing the idea that it convinced them that a Christian could be intelligent and still be a Christian, or that C.S. Lewis offers "logical" arguments for the Christian faith. I won't deny that C.S. Lewis was a brilliant man. But at the risk of being really unpopular (because criticizing Lewis is on par with criticizing Abraham Lincoln or Mother Teresa), I have to say that it would have been better ...more

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Skylar rated it:

(review of isbn 0684823780)

06/04/08

bookshelves: christianity, nonfiction, religion

As a now more mature Christian, this book does not impress me as deeply as it once did, because I don't see its arguments as being objectively persuasive to the non-Christian. (Some of them, which seemed to me compelling at the time, now seem too simplistic, admitting of only a few possible arguments.) Yet when I read it as a teenager, I had just read the Gospels for the first time in my life, and I had been deeply struck by Christ's words and sense of authority. I WANTED to be a Christian at th...more

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Andrew rated it:

08/16/07

This book shed the first signs of light toward my walk with Christ. This book is actually a compilation of a radio series Lewis gave during World War II when the Nazis were bombing London. His messages were meant to inspire and give hope during a time of horror and bloodshed.

His arguments are borrowed heavily from the Augustinian school of thought, but he makes those arguments relevant to the modern thinker. In my opinion, C.S. Lewis is the most important religious scholar of the 20th centur...more

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Jackson rated it:

(review of isbn 0684823780)

06/06/08

bookshelves: theological

I'd like to coin a new term, it's "exampletician." It's the only word I can use to describe C.S. Lewis's great and profound gift for allegory and example in his prose. Mere Christianity is one of the best primers to the Christian faith that I've come across.

First, Lewis establishes compelling logical reasoning for the existence of a God, appealing to innate human senses of justice, morality, and fairness. He transitions to arguing in favor of a benevolent and omnipotent Christian ...more

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Benjamin rated it:

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08/30/07

Read in August, 2007

An interesting book, particularly for those with at least a passing interest in the basics of Christianity across all (or at least, so Lewis claims) denominations. As a book of philosophy, however, it leaves much to be desired. He often starts from easily arguable premises and moves through a series of questionable steps of logic in order to prove the truth of Christianity. And some of the bigger - and perhaps, for some, more pressing - questions he leaves untouched, acknowledging that, at least...more

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Michelle rated it:

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05/30/08

Read in January, 2008

recommended to Michelle by: my Mom
recommends it for: those with questions about God

I finally managed to finish this book. My mother had recommended it when I was 14, but for some reason I was too intimidated to read it then. I received it for Christmas a year ago and started to read, but somehow it ended up getting buried under other things.... I'm so glad that I did finally finish it. Every chapter has at least one profound thought (and some have many) that you feel will change the way you think about the Church, or God, or your own relationship with God. And even though...more

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Amber rated it:

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03/14/08

Lewis is brilliant! Here's a quote from the book that's never left my head:

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with the man who says he is a poache...more

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Keely rated it:

(review of isbn 0684823780)

05/01/08

bookshelves: non-fiction, philosophy, religion

Read in May, 2008

It is no wonder that Christians should revere a miracle-working carpenter. I think one must be the son of a god to build an attic without a thought for the rest of the house.

The skill and intellect of Lewis are without question, but the way he meanders about duality, truth, social darwinism, pathetic fallacy, comparative anthropology, and scientific process tends more towards self-justification than any profundity.

There grew a steady and genuine question in my mind whether our self-impo...more

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