The Religious Situation

Smith, Goldwin, 1823-1910Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.5

Word count: 21K words
Chapters: 3

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Religious Situation by Goldwin SmithAuthor: Smith, Goldwin, 1823-1910,Language: English, Class: BR: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Christianity, Release Date: Oct 17, 2006

Editor's review

This free English ebook from Project Gutenberg presents the Canadian-born British scholar Goldwin Smith's late-life observations and commentary on the religious situation. Smith wrote extensively on history, politics, and religion, and his prose carries the argumentative temper and rational scrutiny of a Victorian intellectual. The book examines Christianity's position under the impact of modern thought, touching on faith and reason, church and society, and religion and morality, and serves as an intellectual document for understanding religious debate in the late nineteenth-century English-speaking world. Its value lies not in systematic theology but in showing how a liberal scholar sought balance between traditional faith and modern knowledge. Read it as commentary situated in its historical context, mindful of its period limitations, rather than as settled conclusions for religious studies today. It suits readers interested in the history of religious thought and Victorian culture, and works as extensive reading in English to experience the style and rhetoric of the period's essays.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in nineteenth-century religious thought and the state of the churches
Learners who want to read Victorian English essays and practise extensive reading of primary texts
Readers of history and literature studying the relation between faith and reason, religion and society
Teachers and students needing free public-domain English etexts as course supplements

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a systematic theology textbook or an introduction to contemporary religious studies
Beginners with weak English reading skills who need Chinese translation and notes
Those seeking advice directly applicable to contemporary religious practice

Reading tips

Read the table of contents and opening chapters first to identify the author's scope and basic stance, then choose sections for close reading.
Keep a brief timeline of nineteenth-century European religion and intellectual history to check against the background the author addresses.
For long argumentative sentences, excerpt in sections and trace the author's chain of argument rather than parsing word by word.
After finishing, write a paragraph on the author's core judgments and your own objections to test your understanding.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English? Is it hard to read?

This is an English public-domain ebook released by Project Gutenberg; the original is in English with no Chinese translation. The text is nineteenth-century expository prose with long sentences and formal diction. Readers with university-level English and some familiarity with religious vocabulary will find it easier; beginners should read slowly with a dictionary and background material.

What themes does the book mainly discuss?

According to the available information, the book falls under Christian philosophy and religion and comments on religion's situation amid modern thought and social change. The author examines the relation between faith and reason and between church and society from a scholar's perspective; it is a discussion of religious issues in a specific historical context, not a systematic exposition of doctrine.

Is this book suitable as an introduction to religious studies?

Not really. It is a commentary by a scholar of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with a pronounced period standpoint, and does not cover contemporary academic methods or plural perspectives. For an introduction, choose a modern guide; this book is better used as a primary source in intellectual history to observe how the period conducted its debates.

What are the features of the Project Gutenberg edition?

Project Gutenberg was the earliest project to offer free ebooks, and this public-domain text is freely available to read. The edition mainly reproduces the original text and usually lacks a modern introduction or notes, so readers must supply their own background; when citing it, note that the electronic layout and page numbers do not match the original printed edition.

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About the author

Smith, Goldwin, 1823-1910 Author

Goldwin Smith (1823–1910) was a nineteenth-century British writer and commentator, with seven works held in this collection. Public information is limited, so biographical details are difficult to set out, but his works show interests spanning history, religion and portraits of individuals. He wrote Irish History and the Irish Question, which discusses Ireland's historical development and contemporary politics; Oxford and Her Colleges, which portrays the university from the vantage point of the Radcliffe Library; and Lectures and Essays and The Religious Situation, which reflect his continuing attention to questions of thought and belief. There are also biographical pieces such as Cowper and My Memory of Gladstone, as well as argumentative works like No Refuge but in Truth. His style tends toward discussion and commentary, addressing public questions from historical and moral perspectives.