Just the Facts

Our readings in this series are from the book, The Church Captive. Here is a brief excerpt from page 50:

“In [his book] Christianity and Liberalism, [J. Gresham Machen] confronted the wide-spread liberalism of his day [the early 20^thcentury], arguing that liberal churches and theologians were captive to a form of Christianity which, while attractive in many ways, was not true Christianity at all. Rather it was a form of what we might call near Christianity, using language familiar to followers of Christ, but leaving the Gospel of the Kingdom behind.

Instead of holding fast to historic Christian faith, liberals sought to rewrite it in terms more agreeable to the temper of the times: ‘When it is once admitted that a body of facts lies at the basis of the Christian religion, the efforts which past generations have made toward the classification of the facts will have to be treated with respect. In no branch of science would there be any real advance if every generation started fresh with no dependence upon what past generations have achieved. Yet in theology, vituperation of the past seems to be thought essential to progress.’”

Now, and for a limited time, you can order The Church Captive together with the next book in our Read Moore series, Revived!, at no cost. Order copies for yourself and for a study group or companion. A free discussion guide is available as well. For The Fellowship of Ailbe, this is T. M. Moore.