Mere Christianity

No cover — C. S. Lewis: Mere Christianity (1997)

English language

Published Dec. 26, 1997

ISBN:: 978-0-684-84638-5

(1 review)

Mere Christianity is a 1952 theological book by C. S. Lewis, adapted from a series of BBC radio talks made between 1941 and 1944, while Lewis was at Oxford during the Second World War. Considered a classic of Christian apologetics, the transcripts of the broadcasts originally appeared in print as three separate pamphlets: The Case for Christianity (Broadcast Talks in the UK) (1942), Christian Behaviour (1943), and Beyond Personality (1944). Lewis was invited to give the talks by James Welch, the BBC Director of Religious Broadcasting, who had read his 1940 book, The Problem of Pain.

9 editions

Sean Bala reviewed Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis

Review of "Mere Christianity" on GoodReads

3 stars

"Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis is an engaging introduction to Christianity for any audience. Sometimes lacking in deeper intellectual rigor, the book is a well-written, easy to read and ultimately humane book that tries to lay out the Christian worldview in a clear manner.

Written as a series of lectures during World War II, Lewis interweaves theology, philosophy, and his own personal history together to present Christianity generally to a lay audience. The book improves as it goes forward, particularly in the sections on the ethics of a Christian life and oddly enough, in his explanation of the Trinity.

Lewis' thought as a Christian apologist has become very popular in the past eighty years and he is a thinker worth engaging, even only as a manifestation of a Christian viewpoint for the public sphere. I would put the caveat that this is indeed a book of apologetic written by an …

"Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis is an engaging introduction to Christianity for any audience. Sometimes lacking in deeper intellectual rigor, the book is a well-written, easy to read and ultimately humane book that tries to lay out the Christian worldview in a clear manner.

Written as a series of lectures during World War II, Lewis interweaves theology, philosophy, and his own personal history together to present Christianity generally to a lay audience. The book improves as it goes forward, particularly in the sections on the ethics of a Christian life and oddly enough, in his explanation of the Trinity.

Lewis' thought as a Christian apologist has become very popular in the past eighty years and he is a thinker worth engaging, even only as a manifestation of a Christian viewpoint for the public sphere. I would put the caveat that this is indeed a book of apologetic written by an unapologetically Christian author from the mid-20th century and reflects some factual, social, and intellectual biases reflecting his time and context.

That being said - I enjoyed the work and would recommend it to anyone interested in getting an understanding of the "implications" of the Christian worldview.