Mere Christianity is a theological book written by C.S. Lewis, author of the popular Chronicles of Narnia series and other known books in the field of apologetics and theology. What many do not know about C.S. Lewis is that he was a professor at the Oxford University and what’s even more interesting is that he first converted from Christianity to atheism and than back to Christianity again.
Mere Christianity is written and revised version of the three radio series C.S. Lewis gave on BBC radio, during the period of 1942 and 1944. This book is considered as one of the classics of Christian apologetics. In 1942, the transcript of this book first appeared in print in three different separate parts:
- The Mere Christianity (published in 1942),
- Christian Behavior (published in 1943),
- and Beyond Personality (published in1944).
What makes Mere Christianity the most popular account of the concept of faith, is the fact that the author defends the Christian faith on arguments based on people’s moral behavior. In fact it was this that persuaded him to convert from atheism to Christianity.
Everything in the book revolves around, as the author states: “rule about right and wrong”. He states that this rule is common to all people in the world, no matter of their origin and religion. To explain his point, Lewis gives the example of Nazism, stating that all people think that the actions of Hitler were wrong, no matter if they are Christians or atheists.
Lewis also states that the actions like stealing is a manner of violating the moral law that is same for all people. He compares the moral law with the law of nature. In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis spends most of his defense on Christianity by arguing the importance of the moral laws. He states that this law is of the same importance as the laws of the nature. He also provides reasons why he decided to return back to Christianity.
Throughout the book, the author goes over rival conceptions of God to Christianity. He points out that for a person to understand Christianity, he/she must first understand the moral law. The book should be read by every Christian, since it gives a clear insight into the most important concepts of the faith and Christ.