Mere Christianity
by C.S. Lewis
Reviewed by Ray Notgrass
C. S. Lewis is my favorite author, and Mere Christianity is my favorite book by him. You may be familiar with Lewis through his Chronicles of Narnia series. He wrote extensively for both adults and children.
Lewis was born in 1898 into a typical Anglican family, but he fell into atheism as he grew up. After he began teaching medieval literature at Oxford, he came to faith in God and Christ, through the influence of J. R. R. Tolkien among others. Lewis continued to be a respected scholar in literature, but he also directed his considerable writing talents to explaining and defending Christianity to a culture that was quickly abandoning the faith. He later taught at Cambridge. He died in 1963.
Mere Christianity began as a series of radio talks that Lewis presented on the BBC during World War II. His purpose was to explain the essential elements of the Christian faith, that is, "mere" or basic Christianity, without getting into the particular beliefs of various denominations. Since Lewis presented this material on the radio for the general public, he used everyday language, dry British humor, and vivid illustrations.
The book begins by presenting what has often been called the moral argument for the existence of God. Humans have a moral oughtness within us which proves that right and wrong exist. This standard is not something we developed ourselves or that evolved in human society, so it must come from outside of us; namely, from God. However, we fail to live up to this standard, so God sent a Savior to make us right.
Lewis then deals with various moral issues, such as sexual morality, forgiveness, and pride (the last is one of my favorite chapters). He concludes by presenting the case for Christ and the need everyone has of deciding whether to put one's faith in Him or not.
Lewis appeals to our logic and common sense. Of course the Christian way is right, I think as I read it; the alternatives are foolish. When he describes how a Christian should live, he writes humbly but firmly and helps us see how the Christian way is best. His presentation of the gospel is convicting. The claims that Jesus made about Himself leave us with two choices, Lewis writes: either He was crazy or He is Lord. We do not have the option of concluding that Jesus was just a nice moral teacher, which is the pigeonhole where many people want to put Jesus without admitting His Lordship over our lives. Although Lewis wrote this material sixty years ago, his insights into life and society are amazingly relevant.
Mere Christianity may be the most influential Christian book of the twentieth century. Outside of the Bible, it has had the most profound influence of any book on my faith and life. I have quoted it in many sermons and Bible lessons, and it is quite likely that the preacher you most often hear has done the same. I will warn you that you will probably not agree with everything Lewis says, but for me this does not detract from the value of the great majority of what he says.
Mere Christianity is one of those books that I think every Christian person high school age and older needs to read at least once, not only for the good that it will do you but also so you will know a major influence on conservative, evangelical Christianity over the last fifty years. I believe that if you give Mere Christianity a chance, you will be abundantly blessed and strengthened in your faith. You might even be moved to investigate the many other gems in Lewis' writings. I suggest The Screwtape Letters, The Abolition of Man, The Great Divorce, The Problem of Pain, and Miracles as starters.