C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity (Shepherd's Notes) (Paperback)

~ (Author), C. S. Lewis (Author) "Clive Staples Lewis, known the world over as C.S. Lewis, is the most famous defender of the Christian faith in the twentieth century..." (more)
Key Phrases: Holy Spirit, The Compact Dictionary, New Testament (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Mere Christianity is the most popular of C. S. Lewis’s works of nonfiction, with several million copies sold worldwide. Heard first as radio addresses and then published as three separate boo

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: B&H Books (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805493476
• ISBN-13: 978-0805493474
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #24,200 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't buy this unless you already own Mere Christianity, July 13, 2000

By A Customer

The reviews on this page are erroneously coupled with The Shepherd's Notes (like Cliff notes, but by the Shepherd, one supposes) to Mere Christianity, NOT the book itself. I bought this thing, and since I do my own reading and can generally keep up with Mr. Lewis' excellent writing style, this was the last thing I needed. The reviews posted here are good and accurate, but the book you're buying is not the one you think it is. Be careful!

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shepherd's Notes is not the whole book, March 20, 2007

By	Sunny in the Northwest (Bellingham, WA United States) - See all my reviews

If you are viewing the page for Mere Christianity (Shepherd's Notes), you are looking at a sort of Cliff Notes book. I'm glad I ordered it by mistake (I just put in my order for the actual book) because it looks like an extremely useful tool for understanding the context of Mere Christianity. Before you click Add to Cart, make sure you are buying the book you actually want.

17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Diamonds or coal, take your pick., November 13, 2000

By	David Marshall (Nagasaki, Japan) - See all my reviews

As a young man trying to decide whether or not to believe the things I grew up in, this book was very helpful to me. I remember reading the chapter on pride, "The Great Sin," one night at a camp in Alaska where I was counseling. The Holy Spirit showed me myself in that chapter. I poured over this book in those days, internalized it, even learned Chinese hoping to translate it.

I have since "moved on" to more detailed and empirically-oriented books by Christians, skeptics, and followers of other religions. Many of these offer interesting facts and insights. But the only place I have found as much wisdom as here (outside the Bible) was G. K. Chestertons's Everlasting Man, which influenced Lewis to faith. (As for Conversations With God, the innane "revelation" one reader recommends instead, a single paragraph of Lewis or Chesterton contains more wisdom than the whole first volume.)

Lewis has a marvelous gift for explaining things in simple terms without patronizing or talking down. Some may find his argument difficult, and others, too simple. In that case I recommend further reading; Lewis is not trying to be thorough.

I agree with the skeptic below that Lewis does not offer "proof" of God, or even logically-compelling evidence. He dismisses atheism with amazing abruptness. "Atheism is too simple. . . If the universe has no meaning, we would never have found out." (How does he know that? Does he have a control universe in his pocket?) But don't misunderstand. Lewis does not really offer "proof" of God. Notice he calls section one, "Right and Wrong as a Clue to the Meaning of the Universe." Lewis views our relationship with God not in scientific but in personal terms. God does not force faith on His wayward children, but drops hints for those who are seeking, is his assumption. Life is not an equation, but an adventure, even a romance with truth.

Some also suggest a loophole in Lewis' famous "Liar, Lunatic, or Lord" argument for the deity of Christ. Jesus' words were misrepresented by his followers, they say: he didn't really make the claims the Gospels say he did. Here again, remember that Lewis is trying to be concise. If you want his answer to that objection (still a very devastating answer, if you are familiar with Jesus Seminar material), you'll find it in his essay, Fernseed and Elephants. The argument is also more fully developed in the first chapters of "On the Man Called Christ," in part two of Everlasting Man, where I guess Lewis found it in the first place.

There are books with a more empirical approach to the existence of God; Hugh Ross' book on the Anthropic Principle, Creator and the Cosmos, for example, or Don Richardson's Eternity in Their Hearts, that shows how God has worked in cultures around the world. My new book, Jesus and the Religions of Man, argues for the existence of God from comparative religion and miracles. It also discusses the divinity of Jesus in relation to other religions. But I don't know any modern popular author of any viewpoint who can hold a candle to Lewis or Chesterton in terms of expressing deep truths in simple words. Reading Mere Christianity and finding only "a mess of holes," would be like going into a mine full of precious jewels and coming out with bucket of coal. There are truths here that will enrich you the rest of your life, if you lay hold of them.

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