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Mere Christianity is an easy read. But not too easy; it definitely challenges your way of thinking about certain Christian topics, even as a Christian.
C.S. Lewis’ writing style is simple; it’s easy for the average person to understand. He does use a lot of analogies. And when I say a lot, I mean A LOT! But the book flows well, and even the order of the chapters works well.
Lewis tackles various Christian topics, from marriage and sex to sin and the origin of the universe. He puts a fresh perspective on these age-old discussions, offering new ways of handling questions from nonbelievers about each topic.
Would I recommend it?
Yes, absolutely!
What I loved about this book:
I’ve been wanting to read this book for years. I just never got around to doing it. When I finally got my hands on this copy, I was so excited! My biggest mistake is renting this book from the library. The moment I started reading it, all I wanted to do was highlight, highlight, highlight!
Lewis was a very practical and logical thinker. And this is apparent in his writing. He is direct with his meaning, breaks things down easily, and tries to cover every possible angle of a concept.
He even addresses counterarguments, diving really deep into a subject from all angles to challenge both the skeptic and believer.
He was an atheist turned Christian. One reason I love Lewis as a Christian writer and deem him as a trustworthy apologist is that he was not always a Christian. And not that being an atheist first somehow makes you more trustworthy. But his conversion to the Christian faith tells me that he had to do a lot of research, digging, and seeking to finally come to believe in God.
And this also means that after all his searching, he found convincing enough evidence to support the claim that Christianity is true.
Another thing I love about this book is it has amazing quotes. I literally wanted to highlight almost the entire first half of the book.
He had a way of illustrating things in such a way that makes you go “aha!”. There are a lot of mic-dropping quotes in this book that would make any atheist or skeptic second guess themselves. I love that.
…free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.
C.S. Lewis, “Mere Christianity
What will you get from the book:
- Complex Christian ideas simplified into reasonable interpretations.
- Bold and direct commentary on controversial Christian topics.
- Truth told unashamedly by an ex-atheist.
- A wide range of topics covered with a full chapter dedicated to each.
- A book that feels like a conversation with the author.
Some things I did not love:
As I mentioned, Lewis uses a lot of analogies to get his points across. In most instances, they work well. But there were a few instances where the analogy was too complex or lengthy, and I just couldn’t follow his meaning.
Additionally, this book was originally published in the 50s. So naturally, it is a product of its time. Therefore, Lewis occasionally makes assumptions about women that bothered me a bit.
Of course there are obvious physical and emotional differences between men and women.
However, when giving an example of how a woman would behave, he would often rely on stereotypes of the “typical housewife” or just allude to the idea that women’s only drive is to be with a man or be a mother.
That was a little irksome.
While I do believe God has specific roles for men and women, I also believe that women have way more to offer than child bearing and house cleaning.
However, these moments were few and far between in the book. There weren’t enough of them to deter me from reading it, and his commentary was not intended to offend. Just more of a nuisance to me.
Final Thoughts:
All in all, this was a great read!
Lewis was truly a great mind of his time. The way he breaks down some of the more complex ideas of Christianity and Theology was very refreshing.
If you are looking for a good place to start your apologetics studies, Lewis is a good place to start for sure.
“Mere Christianity” by C.S. Lewis
So…read the book, and comment below with your thoughts! I’ve included a link above where you can purchase the book if you’re interested.
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Sounds like a decent read. I’m actually kind of interested in his view of women and whether it aligns with the Bible.
Yep, it’s a good read. I feel like I got value out of it for sure. Some of his comments surrounding women are based on his assumptions about how women think, feel, and what women desire in relation to men. And that’s what bothered me a bit.
However, he does have a chapter in the book on Christian Marriage. He talks about the man being the spiritual leader and the head of the marriage (which is Biblical), and admits that he knows it’s an unpopular topic. So he tries to break it down and make it easier to swallow. lol
I recently read this one for the first time as well. I couldn’t believe it took me so long and there is no doubt I will read it again. Thanks for your honest review. This book has definitely stood the test of time.
Same! I can’t believe I waited so long to finally read it. It’s definitely worth a read and a re-read. 🙂