Ebook What Is Christianity? A Study of Rival Interpretations

The aim of this work is to assist the intelligent Chris tian layman and the minister of the gospel who have felt the need of revising their doctrinal inheritance to reach' a more satisfactory interpretation of the Christian faith. Everyone who has taken the pains to acquaint himself in any tolerable degree with the effects which the adop tion of the methods of modern science in many fields of theological investigation has produced in the minds of great numbers of students for the ministry must be aware of the imperativeness of thinking through afresh the essential problems of theology. In no department of Christian thought is this imperativeness more evident than in the subject of apologetics. The older works on this subject, notwithstanding the splendid philosophic ability exhibited in many of them, demonstrably fail to meet the most insistent questions of our times. The discussions presented in this volume are, in the mind of the author, preparatory to a statement and vindication of the truth of the Christian religion. They do not con stitute a formal introduction to such a task, as anyone can easily see. But it is hoped that a survey of the best known types of the Christian faith will assist the inquir ing reader to reach at least a point of view from which his work of formulating a theology for himself may begin.