Personal Religion and The Life of Devotion

by William Ralph Inge

Originally published in 1924.Contents Include The Hill of the Lord The Soul's Thirst Faith Hope Joy Self-Consecration The World BereavementKeywords: Faith Hope Consecration Bereavement Thirst Joy

96 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1999

About the author

Sir William Ralph Inge was educated at Eton and King's College, Cambridge. After taking a double first in Classics, he became a tutor at Hertford College, Oxford, and was made a deacon in the Church of England in 1888. After a time as Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at Cambridge, Inge was elected Dean of St. Paul's cathedral in 1911 by Asquith, a position he held until 1934.

During his life, Inge was President of the Aristotelian society, a columnist for the Evening Standard, a fellow of the British Academy, and a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery. He received honorary doctorates from Oxford, Aberdeen, Durham, Sheffield, Edinburgh, and St. Andrews. Inge received honorary fellowships from King's and Jesus Colleges, Cambridge, and Hertford College, Oxford.

Reviews

[B. Rule · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this hoping for some of Dean Inge's insights on mysticism, as he was known as a great popularizer of that topic in the early 20th century. There's a little material on it here, but most of this short book is pretty standard homiletic material. I was ready to write it off but the last chapter takes a drastic and heart-wrenching turn in examining his experience of bereavement over his deceased 11 year old daughter. While Inge doesn't give himself over to emotional personal testimony, his extensive accounting of the praises offered by others of his Paula, and of loving anecdotes of her "saintly" nature, are evidence of a deep river of emotion that was far more interesting and humane than anything else in this slightly fusty old religious book.