A Macat Analysis of C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity

C. S. Lewis may be most famous for his fiction, including children’s books like the Chronicles of Narnia series. But in his 1952 book Mere Christianity—originally printed as three separate pamphlets in 1942, 1943, and 1944—this eclectic and learned man documents his complex journey from atheism to faith. Lewis’s fresh, lively, and often humorous presentation of Christian doctrine saw some label him the greatest defender of Christianity of the twentieth century. Originally written as World War II raged, Mere Christianity is a groundbreaking text challenging the modernism and naturalism of Lewis’s day. It demonstrated that an “amateur” theologian, with his simple and straightforward style, could bring to life the fundamentals of Christian doctrine—even in a culture that increasingly dismissed the value of faith and the Church. In 2000, the magazine Christianity Today named Mere Christianity top of its list of the best religious books of the twentieth century. Accessible to people from all walks of life, the work remains as relevant today as it was during Lewis’s own time.