Customer Reviews

A Practical View of Christianity (Hendrickson Christian Classics)

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Even though I am not at all a fundamentalist and usually stay clear of books that take a more "evangelical" stance, at the advice of a friend I decided to read this book, and I am glad that I did. Wilberforce obviously spent a great deal of time deciding what to say, and in finding examples to support his arguments, which are from biblical, literary and real-life sources. One of the most refreshing things about his style is that (unlike other Christian authors I have read) he does not feel the need to "talk down" to the reader or condemn them for not instantly believing something when they have been given no proof of its validity or even logic. He appeals to an educated audience and methodically covers a variety of topics that (hence the title) have many applications to real life. Most of the things that he argues make perfect sense and cause the reader to wonder how it is that they hadn't thought of it before. I also appreciate his passion- once can tell in many parts how strong his belief was, and it's easy to see how he could have been such an eloquent orator. The only thing that I disagreed with was his condemnation of plays and the opera, but this is probably because I am myself in training to be a professional musician.

In sum, I would say that this is an excellent book, and a good choice for the Christian that is tired of the lack of erudition and reason in modern devotional literature.

"A Practical view of Christianity."
This is a book to be treasured and esteemed highly. It is written in a way which catures your attention and give rise to many challenging thoughts. It is the book which changed the course of history 200 years ago and save the downfall of the British Empire. Another remarkable feature of this 200 year old book, is that it is so applicable for the world today, and has a message for every one personally.
Read it thoughtfully and you will be challenged and inspired.
Treasure this book and reread it often.

1. Introduction
William Wilberforce (1759 - 1833) was a member of the English Parliament for the County of York who dedicated his life to abolishing the slave trade. He once wrote that "Almighty God has set before me two great objectives, the abolition of the slave trade and the reformation of manners." This great burden laid on his heart throughout his life, and gave him little leave for rest. He believed that the two were related, for without the reformation of manners through addressing cultural malaise, it would be nearly impossible to abolish the slave trade.
It was within this context that Wilberforce wrote A Practical View of Christianity (originally titled A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious System of Professed Christians, in the Middle and Higher Classes in this Country, Contrasted with Real Christianity). He hoped to challenge the nominal Christianity of the middle and upper classes of England and to inspire the nation with a fresh view of a religion whose goal was not empty ritual, but transformation through Christ. The book sent a shockwave throughout the nation, and has been crediting with helping to start the second Great Awakening of England.
Wilberforce was a saint in every sense of the word. He restlessly fought for the abolition of the slave trade, presenting motion after motion for abolition, each in turn being thrown out by Parliament, until at last in 1807, Wilberforce's bill passed. Yet he did not stop with the abolition of the slave trade. Wilberforce dedicated nearly two decades thereafter to securing the complete emancipation of the slaves in England. With a circle of trusted friends known as the "Clapham Circle," Wilberforce proved how a small group can change history.
That so recent a saint left to posterity a fine piece of literature that both warns us of religious nominalism and inspires us to greater depths of God-honoring conducts proves how blessed we have bene by Wilberforce. We have not only his legacy of freeing the slaves, but also, his words passed down to us with the same crispness and relevance that they had two hundred years ago. The entire book is riddled with so many scriptural citations that one cannot doubt that Wilberforce had the heart of a man who loved and sought to honor God.

2. Review
Wilberforce sets out to trace the "chief defects of the religious system of the bulk of professed Christians" in England. He points out that "their low idea of the importance of Christianity in general, their inadequate conceptions of all its leading doctrines, and the effect hereby naturally produced in relaxing the strictness of its practical system." He distinguishes these "nominal" believers from "true" believers, stating that the Christianity of the nominal believers "is not Christianity."
Wilberforce does not set out to "vindicate the Divine origin" of Christianity, but he continually touts the Christian faith, for whenever it has at all prevailed, Christianity "has raised the general standard of morals to a height before unknown" (p. 209). True Christianity transforms communities and individuals, but the England of his day had largely lost this true Christianity. English Christians were no longer interested in the truths of Christ, but rather, sought religious nominalism. It is no wonder that such a society was able to call itself "Christian" on the one hand while condoning slavery on the other hand.
The bulk of professed English Christians do not truly understand what Christianity means. Their understanding is at best superficial; Christianity to them is like other religions or like a mere set of moral principles. This becomes plain when we "[v]iew their plan of life and their ordinary conduct." It becomes difficult to discriminate "between them and professed unbelievers."
Nominal Christianity has arisen because professed Christians have failed to take scriptural teachings seriously. They overlook or deny, for example, the biblical reality of man's fallenness and corruption. Wilberforce exclaims of man: "How is his reason clouded, his affections perverted; his conscience stupified! How do anger, and envy, and hatred, and revenge, spring up in his wretched bosom! How is he a slave to the meanest of his appetites! What fatal propensities does he discover to evil! What inaptitude to good!" Yet then-contemporary Christians refused to believe this, thus depriving themselves of life in the Scriptures and in Christ. "What lively emotions are [the Scriptures] calculated to excite in us of self-abasement, and abhorrence of our sins; and of humble hope, and firm faith, and heavenly joy, and ardent love, and active unceasing gratitude!"
Wilberforce further comments that "They who hold the fundamental doctrines of Scripture in their due force, hold also in its due degree of purity the practical system which Scripture inculcates." Yet he goes on to accuse nominal Christians: "But they who explain away the [the fundamental doctrines of Scripture], soften down [purity of living] also, and reduce it to the level of their own defective scheme." This second group lowers the moral standards demanded of all Christians in the Scriptures.
Wilberforce closes with a call to all Christians to "strive in all things to recommend their profession, and to put to silence the vain scoffs of ignorant objectors. Let them boldly assert the cause of Christ in an age when so many, who bear the name of Christians, are ashamed of Him: and let them consider as devolved on Them the important duty of suspending for a while the fall of their country, and, perhaps, of performing a still more extensive service to society at large; not by busy interference in politics, in which it cannot but be confessed there is much uncertainty; but rather by that sure and radical benefit of restoring the influence of Religion, and of raising the standard of morality." Let true Christians be furthermore "active, useful, generous towards others; manifestly moderate and self-denying in themselves. Let them be ashamed of idleness, as they would be of the most acknowledged sin."

3. Critique
Wilberforce's book is a prophetic splash of cold water on the faces of complacent Christians of his day. One may argue that the book comes off as condescending and judgmental, yet such a tone is necessary and appropriate when a nation that calls itself Christian and supported a State Church degraded basic human dignity through the institution of slavery in such a way that completely compromised the Gospels and the credibility of Christianity. Wilberforce was a prophet who called a nation to its senses, and one whose hopes and dreams were finally realized in a way that would change a nation forever.

I've read several different versions of this book, and this is the only unabridged edition of Wilberforce's original work. Arguments are well thought out and give an excellent glimpse into what gave this great abolitionist his compassion and perseverance to see the slave trade ended in Britain.

This edition receives four stars because it has poor editing. For example, Wilberforce quotes a great deal of scripture from memory and gives no references. The Biblical references have been added by the editor, but many are inaccurate.

I highly recommend this book as the best available, and not one to pass up!

It is great that a man like William Wilberforce, the great abolitionist, wrote that his determination to abolish slavery came from his Christian conviction.
Most of this book is a comparison between the hypocritical worship of the English middle class of his time compared to real Christianity. I was amazed to see that, even though this book was first published in 1797, many of the issues criticized by the author are still true today in many churches. Nevertheless, the situation in today's churches is much worse.
It is sad that very few Christians have read this book. This is a classic, the kind of work that everyone should read, the kind of book that really makes one think.
A must have in every Christian's library.

This book has opened my eyes in so many ways. William has done a great job describing Christianity not only through scripture but also through reasoning. I had checked out this book from the library and found it to be such a good book that I just had to have a copy for reference.

"I must confess equally boldly that my own solid hopes for the well-being of my country depend, not so much on her navies and armies, nor on the wisdom of her rulers, nor on the spirit of her people, as on the persuasion that she still contains many who love and obey the Gospel of Christ. I believe that their prayers may yet prevail."

I am grateful this this book was republished. After seeing Amazing Grace, overcome with a desire to know more about Wilberforce. Piper's "Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce" was a slim introduction, and (Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slaverybut needed to see how Wilberforce himself thought.

W. strategy is revival, his tactic is to critique superficial Christianity. This is the watered-down state of mind usually associated with mere religion, mere social comportment, or mere morality. W avers that Christianity is something deeper, but usually "confound the Gospel of Christ with systems of philosophers." (6) W's voice rhymes with Peter Kreeft comment that we reduce religion to ethics, ethics to social ethics, and social ethics to socialism (C.S. Lewis for the Third Millennium : Six Essays on the Abolition of Man)

The correct title is "A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious Systems of Professed Christians in the Higher and Middle Classes in this Country Contrasted with Real Christianity." The non-Christian should not this well: The Trade Secret of Christianity is that the current systems, churches, and denominations do not embrace or practice what Jesus Christ taught. The Great Schism, the Reformation, the Catholic Counter-Reformation, and the Puritan Movement all tacitly rest upon the idea that what we are doing now is not what He did back then. There are only two disagreements--what is the correct version of Christianity, and then, how do we fix the problem.

In this light, A Practical View of Christianity should be read in harmony with Thomas Paine's The Age of Reason - Thomas Paine. Wilberforce advocated personal revival, while Paine thought the whole superstructure should be junked. Wither way, their clashing viewpoints are what makes history (and formulating our own personal philosophies) so much fun.

As Chuck Colson noted, Wilberforce's book help start the Second Great Awaking (xv) So in addition to Paine, this book should also be read in the context of The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Instead of revival and reformation, Joseph Smith's mission was one of restoration Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling.

The motive behind the book is W's personal mission to end slavery. The theo-loigc is simple: If a person who really understand Christ and His Atoning Sacrifice, then slavery solves itself. This in interesting political and social strategy: Before we shake up the world, we shake up ourselves, and shake ourselves out of our complacent slumber.

Secretary of Agriculture Ezra Taft Benson phrased it this way:

"The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature."

But there is something unspoken. You see a bunch of rich, white guys who have no personal interest outside of Christina benevolence, who, at great personal professional and political cost, waste and wore out their lives to end slavery. You never hear this side of abolition told:

* Setting the Record Straight: American History in Black & White
* Shakedown: Exposing the Real Jesse Jackson
* Hating Whitey and Other Progressive Causes
* Black Rednecks and White Liberals

This book's only flaw is that it partakes of the 19th Century verbosity. As I read page after page of prolixity, I kept reciting Strunk and White's Incantation:

"Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all his sentences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his subjects only in outline, but that every word tell."The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition

This book is a forgotten classic, both in politics and Christianity. Thankfully we can both bridge the gap and stand in the gap by following W's ideals.