Christianity and Liberalism by J. Gresham Machen

This classic book by Machen covers several topics that are fundamental to Christianity. He overlays those topics upon the worrisome threat of liberalism that was plaguing the Church in his day.

Introduction

This classic book by Machen covers several topics that are fundamental to Christianity. He overlays those topics on the belief-system of liberalism which he was experiencing in his day.

Rating

6 out of 10 – While I think that this book is foundational to a lot of other thought, it is dated. If you are simply looking for a concise coverage of the theological topics, I think you can do better. Mainly because all of Machen’s topics are overlaid upon the prime battles of liberalism that Machen was fighting against in his day. In other words, he takes timeless truths and binds them to his cultural moment. That is fine and good (and useful for historical purposes), but modern readers may want to better understand his topics with the context of their own cultural moment.

Genre

nonfiction; apologetic

Setting

n/a

Summary

[mostly taken from Amazon]

In his classic defense, Machen clarifies the basic understanding of the most fundamental Christian beliefs: doctrine, God and man, the Bible, Christ, Salvation, and the Church. Christianity and Liberalism . . . [exposits] the true difference between Christianity and the counterfeit religion called Liberalism.

Quotes

[taken from Goodreads.com]

“In the sphere of religion, as in other spheres, the things about which men are agreed are apt to be the things that are least worth holding; the really important things are the things about which men will fight.”

― Christianity and Liberalism

“The strange thing about Christianity was that it adopted an entirely different method. It transformed the lives of men not by appealing to the human will, but by telling a story; not by exhortation, but by the narration of an event.”

― Christianity and Liberalism

“Why should we be indignant about slanders directed against a human friend, while at the same time we are patient about the basest slanders directed against our God?”

― Christianity and Liberalism

Conclusion

Overall, since this is a seminal, oft-quoted work, it is worth a read; but I don’t know that I would break down the doors to get it done.