Practical View of Christianity (Hendrickson Christian Classics) [Hardcover]

Even though I am not at all a fundamentalist and usually stay clear of books that take a more "evangelical" stance, at the advice of a friend I decided to read this book, and I am glad that I did. Wilberforce obviously spent a great deal of time deciding what to say, and in finding examples to support his arguments, which are from biblical, literary and real-life sources. One of the most refreshing things about his style is that (unlike other Christian authors I have read) he does not feel the need to "talk down" to the reader or condemn them for not instantly believing something when they have been given no proof of its validity or even logic. He appeals to an educated audience and methodically covers a variety of topics that (hence the title) have many applications to real life. Most of the things that he argues make perfect sense and cause the reader to wonder how it is that they hadn't thought of it before. I also appreciate his passion- once can tell in many parts how strong his belief was, and it's easy to see how he could have been such an eloquent orator. The only thing that I disagreed with was his condemnation of plays and the opera, but this is probably because I am myself in training to be a professional musician.

In sum, I would say that this is an excellent book, and a good choice for the Christian that is tired of the lack of erudition and reason in modern devotional literature.

"A Practical view of Christianity."
This is a book to be treasured and esteemed highly. It is written in a way which catures your attention and give rise to many challenging thoughts. It is the book which changed the course of history 200 years ago and save the downfall of the British Empire. Another remarkable feature of this 200 year old book, is that it is so applicable for the world today, and has a message for every one personally.
Read it thoughtfully and you will be challenged and inspired.
Treasure this book and reread it often.

1. Introduction
William Wilberforce (1759 - 1833) was a member of the English Parliament for the County of York who dedicated his life to abolishing the slave trade. He once wrote that "Almighty God has set before me two great objectives, the abolition of the slave trade and the reformation of manners." This great burden laid on his heart throughout his life, and gave him little leave for rest. He believed that the two were related, for without the reformation of manners through addressing cultural malaise, it would be nearly impossible to abolish the slave trade.
It was within this context that Wilberforce wrote A Practical View of Christianity (originally titled A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious System of Professed Christians, in the Middle and Higher Classes in this Country, Contrasted with Real Christianity). He hoped to challenge the nominal Christianity of the middle and upper classes of England and to inspire the nation with a fresh view of a religion whose goal was not empty ritual, but transformation through Christ. The book sent a shockwave throughout the nation, and has been crediting with helping to start the second Great Awakening of England.
Wilberforce was a saint in every sense of the word. He restlessly fought for the abolition of the slave trade, presenting motion after motion for abolition, each in turn being thrown out by Parliament, until at last in 1807, Wilberforce's bill passed. Yet he did not stop with the abolition of the slave trade. Wilberforce dedicated nearly two decades thereafter to securing the complete emancipation of the slaves in England. With a circle of trusted friends known as the "Clapham Circle," Wilberforce proved how a small group can change history.
That so recent a saint left to posterity a fine piece of literature that both warns us of religious nominalism and inspires us to greater depths of God-honoring conducts proves how blessed we have bene by Wilberforce. We have not only his legacy of freeing the slaves, but also, his words passed down to us with the same crispness and relevance that they had two hundred years ago. The entire book is riddled with so many scriptural citations that one cannot doubt that Wilberforce had the heart of a man who loved and sought to honor God.

2. Review
Wilberforce sets out to trace the "chief defects of the religious system of the bulk of professed Christians" in England. He points out that "their low idea of the importance of Christianity in general, their inadequate conceptions of all its leading doctrines, and the effect hereby naturally produced in relaxing the strictness of its practical system." He distinguishes these "nominal" believers from "true" believers, stating that the Christianity of the nominal believers "is not Christianity."
Wilberforce does not set out to "vindicate the Divine origin" of Christianity, but he continually touts the Christian faith, for whenever it has at all prevailed, Christianity "has raised the general standard of morals to a height before unknown" (p. 209). True Christianity transforms communities and individuals, but the England of his day had largely lost this true Christianity. English Christians were no longer interested in the truths of Christ, but rather, sought religious nominalism. It is no wonder that such a society was able to call itself "Christian" on the one hand while condoning slavery on the other hand.
The bulk of professed English Christians do not truly understand what Christianity means. Their understanding is at best superficial; Christianity to them is like other religions or like a mere set of moral principles. This becomes plain when we "[v]iew their plan of life and their ordinary conduct." It becomes difficult to discriminate "between them and professed unbelievers."
Nominal Christianity has arisen because professed Christians have failed to take scriptural teachings seriously. They overlook or deny, for example, the biblical reality of man's fallenness and corruption. Wilberforce exclaims of man: "How is his reason clouded, his affections perverted; his conscience stupified! How do anger, and envy, and hatred, and revenge, spring up in his wretched bosom! How is he a slave to the meanest of his appetites! What fatal propensities does he discover to evil! What inaptitude to good!" Yet then-contemporary Christians refused to believe this, thus depriving themselves of life in the Scriptures and in Christ. "What lively emotions are [the Scriptures] calculated to excite in us of self-abasement, and abhorrence of our sins; and of humble hope, and firm faith, and heavenly joy, and ardent love, and active unceasing gratitude!"
Wilberforce further comments that "They who hold the fundamental doctrines of Scripture in their due force, hold also in its due degree of purity the practical system which Scripture inculcates." Yet he goes on to accuse nominal Christians: "But they who explain away the [the fundamental doctrines of Scripture], soften down [purity of living] also, and reduce it to the level of their own defective scheme." This second group lowers the moral standards demanded of all Christians in the Scriptures.
Wilberforce closes with a call to all Christians to "strive in all things to recommend their profession, and to put to silence the vain scoffs of ignorant objectors. Let them boldly assert the cause of Christ in an age when so many, who bear the name of Christians, are ashamed of Him: and let them consider as devolved on Them the important duty of suspending for a while the fall of their country, and, perhaps, of performing a still more extensive service to society at large; not by busy interference in politics, in which it cannot but be confessed there is much uncertainty; but rather by that sure and radical benefit of restoring the influence of Religion, and of raising the standard of morality." Let true Christians be furthermore "active, useful, generous towards others; manifestly moderate and self-denying in themselves. Let them be ashamed of idleness, as they would be of the most acknowledged sin."

3. Critique
Wilberforce's book is a prophetic splash of cold water on the faces of complacent Christians of his day. One may argue that the book comes off as condescending and judgmental, yet such a tone is necessary and appropriate when a nation that calls itself Christian and supported a State Church degraded basic human dignity through the institution of slavery in such a way that completely compromised the Gospels and the credibility of Christianity. Wilberforce was a prophet who called a nation to its senses, and one whose hopes and dreams were finally realized in a way that would change a nation forever.