C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity: A Biography

by George M. Marsden

Overview

The life and times of C. S. Lewis's modern spiritual classic

Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis's eloquent defense of the Christian faith, originated as a series of BBC radio talks broadcast during the dark days of World War Two. Here is the story of the extraordinary life and afterlife of this influential and inspiring book. George Marsden describes how Lewis gradually went from being an atheist to a committed Anglican—famously converting to Christianity in 1931 after conversing into the night with his friends J. R. R. Tolkien and Hugh Dyson—and how his plainspoken case for Christianity went on to become one of the most beloved spiritual books of all time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691202471
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	02/25/2020
Series:	Lives of Great Religious Books , #24
Pages:	280
Sales rank:	396,805
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

George M. Marsden is the Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame. His books include Fundamentalism and American Culture, Jonathan Edwards: A Life, and The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 War Service 19

Chapter 2 Broadcast Talks 35

Chapter 3 Loved or Hated 58

Chapter 4 A Classic as Afterthought 84

Chapter 5 Into the Evangelical Orbit 97

Chapter 6 Many-Sided Mere Christianity 116

Chapter 7 Critiques 139

Chapter 8 The Lasting Vitality of Mere Christianity 153

Appendix Changes in Mere Christianity Compared to the Original Three Books 189

Acknowledgments 193

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A superb study of C. S. Lewis's greatest work. Marsden succeeds both in illuminating the success of Mere Christianity and enriching our own reading of this seminal work."—Alister McGrath, author of C. S. Lewis—A Life

"This is a match made in heaven: C. S. Lewis, modernity's most influential Christian voice, interpreted by George Marsden, leading historian of Christian intellectual culture. Mere Christianity has taken on a life of its own, winning converts by its peculiar blend of rhetoric and reason. In unveiling the life of this book and taking the measure of its influence, Marsden has given us an indispensable key to the mind and stature of its author."—Carol Zaleski, coauthor of The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings

"A significant contribution to Lewis scholarship. No one has surveyed the reception history of Mere Christianity as well as Marsden has done here, and given the enduring popularity and influence of the book, this is a task well worth doing."—Alan Jacobs, author of The Narnian: The Life and Imagination of C. S. Lewis

"Though there have been analyses of Mere Christianity before, none has been so comprehensive or serious as this one. Marsden has subjected Lewis's book to an assessment more searching and satisfying than anything so far in print."—Michael Ward, University of Oxford, author of Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis

Editorial Reviews

01/11/2016
C.S. Lewis (1898–1963) remains most famous for his novels, but he also maintains an enduring influence on Christian theology (he was even named “the hottest theologian of 2005” by Time magazine). Marsden, professor emeritus of history at the University of Notre Dame, traces the history of Lewis’s most famous work of popular theology, Mere Christianity, originally compiled from a series of BBC broadcasts during the height of WWII. This study is packed with information about Lewis, the evolution of his beliefs, and the humble beginnings of his popular book. In exhaustive detail, Marsden describes Lewis’s unlikely rise as a BBC radio broadcaster, the theological wisdom he propounded, and the public reception of the broadcasts, cataloguing Lewis’s admirers as well as his many detractors. Marsden also chronicles Lewis’s rise as “a champion among evangelicals,” especially throughout America, due to his bestselling book, explaining how and why it has managed to outlast its era and become a classic of Christianity. Admirers of Lewis as well as those interested in the origins of recent Christian thought will be happy to dive into this densely packed volume. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Books on Lewis abound. Marsden's belongs on the top shelf."

Booklist

"Marsden's ‘biography' of Lewis's Mere Christianity is an excellent commentary on a classic of modern Christian literature on spirituality."

Choice

"If Marsden's biography of Mere Christianity encourages his readers to read or reread it for themselves, it may in its own way be an antidote for the attention to self that so dominates our culture."—-Gilbert Meilaender, Commonweal

"Marsden's book is fascinating and well-written and researched. It makes one want to go back to read Mere Christianity itself."—-Frank Freeman, University Bookman

"George Marsden provides a splendid account of the book's evolution . . . and its reception."—-Jonathan Wright, Catholic Herald

"Marsden's work is a terrific exemplification of the contribution to knowledge which can be made by study of the reception history of texts. . . . Fascinating insights emerge."—-Peter Anthony, Church Times

"[A] fascinating exploration of one of the most influential religious books of modern times."—-Ryder Miller, San Francisco Book Review

From the Publisher

"[A]n insightful historical sketch"

The Gospel Coalition

"Books on Lewis abound. Marsden's belongs on the top shelf."

Booklist

2016-01-05
A scholar of religious history rehearses the story of C.S. Lewis' influential disquisition on the commonalities among all Christian believers. In the latest entry in the Lives of Great Religious Books series, Marsden (Emeritus, History/Univ. of Notre Dame; Jonathan Edwards, 2003, etc.) follows a fairly conventional map. After identifying his perspective and approach and sketching Lewis' life (including his striking conversion to Christianity), the author takes us directly to the horrors of the Blitz in London during World War II and describes how Lewis, teaching at Oxford University, accepted a request from the BBC to do a series of radio programs about the fundamentals of Christianity. Commencing on Aug. 6, 1941, the talks (15 minutes long) were later published as three separate paperbacks; other radio series would ensue for him. Marsden notes that Lewis' audiences, though substantial, were much smaller than for entertainment programs. We also learn that no one really knows who suggested he combine his broadcasts into a single volume, but when he did, Mere Christianity (1952) sailed into publishing history. Controversial from the outset—Roman Catholic reviewers tended to be harsher than others—the book was adopted by evangelicals, including Billy Graham, and remains in print today. Marsden analyzes the enduring effects of the book, identifying people whom it altered. Among them was Watergate figure Chuck Colson (the authenticity of whose conversion Marsden does not question). The author also quotes liberally from the various reviews of Mere Christianity, both positive and negative; these passages, essential for scholars, occasionally slow the flow of Marsden's otherwise fluid narrative. He ends with a chapter about what he sees as the "lasting vitality" of the work. Lewis' friend J.R.R. Tolkien has some cameos. A clear and deeply informed account of a religious work that seems to have no expiration date.

Kirkus Reviews