Mere Fundamentalism: The Apostles' Creed and the Romance of Orthodoxy

by Douglas Wilson

"There is a broad way that seems right to man but which leads to death and destruction, so also there is a narrow way that opens up into unbelievable glories. This is the romance of orthodoxy."

In this book, Douglas Wilson combines G.K. Chesterton-like prose with the Apostles' Creed, and explains such doctrines as the Trinity, creation, fall, salvation, Scripture, and the church with clarity and imagination. Rather than seeing fundamentalist doctrines as a narrow and confining straightjacket, Wilson sees them as the only way for people to find true freedom and joy.

Genres: Theology, Christian, Christianity, Nonfiction, Church History, Audiobook, Religion

138 pages, Paperback

Published October 2, 2018

About the author

I write in order to make the little voices in my head go away. Thus far it hasn't worked.

Reviews

[Ben Zornes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had the privilege of reading this book for CanonPress' audiobook version, and then read it again with the elders of my church. Both times through I was thoroughly blessed, edified, and enlightened as to how to rightly hold fast to the apostolic faith. In Pastor Wilson's own words, "Held the right way, narrow truths create the broadest of hearts."

Wilson aims to show how fidelity to the Apostles' teaching, provides the basis for true Christian fellowship across denominational lines. In essence, we need fundamentals of the faith to distinguish between Christian and non-Christian; but these fundamental doctrines are intended to unite Christians and provide them a basis by which to work through more tangential doctrinal issues. He does a wonderful job highlighting why creatio ex nihilo is such a vital doctrine to inform our understanding the death and resurrection story which God is telling. He covers mankind's fall, and why and how God set about to redeem us.

The final chapter is a simple and short commentary on the Apostles' Creed. Mere Fundamentalism is quite a useful book for even the simplest of theologians. It fortifies the faith, and points us to see that Scriptural foundations are vital for the furtherance of the Kingdom of god.

[Kofi Opoku · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good stuff. I liked his thesis about being made into something greater than Adam was in the garden. Also contains a helpful defense of young earth creationism, though he rightly points it out as a misnomer.

[Kyle Grindberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful, especially valuable for the section on God's transcendence and revelation at the beginning, as well as the section on epistemology, and the short section on hell.

[Jordan Teague · Rating 5 out of 5]

An easily consumable entry point to the basic tenants of orthodox Christianity. For those comfortable with the Apostles creed, a great reminder of what is at the core of the faith.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the book itself: I will probably need to reread it several times to get everything out of it that is there, but in this pass I can mark its strengths. It needles out splinters of foolish thought that get hurled at Christians all the time - from the idea of a musclebound God to an evolutionary mythos. The immensity of God's world and Word pound these issues into dust which this book does well instead of entertaining them as well thought out questions and not petulance. This book is comfortable with its place and laughs with joy and delight. It is at ease in who God is and not what we feel about Him.

Not really about this book, but this author as a father: I hear his children in this. ND Wilson's wonder and serious magic, Bekah Merkle's ease with the grace and dignity of created order, Rachel Jankovick's delight in Christ's blood covering all our sin and Puritanical (correct usage here) ardor to get every person you know to read their Bible for all they're worth. These people were raised on these fundamentals and you hear it over and over - enfleshed in their books, salting their encouragment, all throughout talks and conversations. Its like they have taken these things and each time sat down and said, "let's do it again, but different." It is a great thing - these mere fundamentals seeded to a generation now showing the fruit of them.

And me: I don't cry often as I read. Often I'm too busy taking the books apart at the seams and checking them for quality to have an emotional reaction until a second or third read. But when you reach the end of this book, and the Creed; the Church is triumphant, radiant and bridal heralding her coming Groom I dare you not to cry at the words from one of the last chapters of Revelation.

[Jonah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fine read.

[Timothy Nichols · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding exposition of the basics of the Christian faith, this short book would make a good follow-up to Mere Christianity.

[Phil Cotnoir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good. Pithy.

Enjoyable, concise, thoughtful, and - as always - Wilson knows how to turn a phrase. Best of all: true and edifying.

[Kevin Godinho · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a great book. The whole thing is really good, but the chapter "Humanity Reassembled: The Church" was especially good. Doug talks about the maturation process all humans go through; maturation unto glory, or damnation. He talks about how the Church began as a seed; eleven men standing on a hill with a great commission.

Rather than looking at a particular church building or denomination and judging the Church as a whole, start from the beginning. Go back to the garden and look along the path of maturation. Go back to the first century and look at the apostles at Pentecost. Then, look up that thread, to the maturation that is coming. The Bride will eventually be without spot or blemish, but now, in the present, she is full of them. Seeds spend time in the dirt before they grow, but when she blooms, oh man!

If God gave the cultural mandate, be fruitful and multiply, take dominion of the world and subdue it, to Adam, then reiterated that mandate after the flood to Noah, then again reiterated to His disciples before ascending to make disciples of all nations, if this is true, and Christ sending the Holy Spirit provides His people with the power to accomplish it, then the future of this world is necessarily Christian. Why? Because God said so.

Doug discusses in this book what is at the heart of the Christian faith. If you are interested in knowing what a Christian worldview looks like, what the essentials of the Christian faith are, take a moment and read this short book.

---------------------------

Follow!
https://www.instagram.com/laymansprog...

[ValeReads Kyriosity · Rating 5 out of 5]

The word fundamentalism doesn't have to be an ugly one. This little book covers some of the basic Christian doctrines in an unugly way. I especially liked the chapters on the church and final things—bolstered my love of the saints and my trust about the future. I'd have more quotes, but some activities, like scribbling commonplaces and shredding chicken, just don't go together. Here are a few I did manage to catch:

"When we look along the history of the church, seeing the end result by viewing it in and through the promises of God, we become the instrument for bringing about that glorious culmination. If we love the church as she is now, we will love her into the church that has been promised us."

"That which defines the church is Word and sacrament. That which creates the church is everlasting life given by the Spirit. When it comes to sharing in this life, denominations are not really a barrier. They are a trifle, really. Believers from different communions routinely recognize one another, fellowship together, work together, and pray together."

"The body of Christ has no vestigial organs."

It's always weird to have one person you know narrating the book of another person you know, but Ben managed not to distract me, so kudos there.

[David Bruyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insightful

The ghost of C. S. Lewis haunts the pages. Except the postmillennial ones. Or the theonomic ones. The haunted pages are great.

[Thomas Carpenter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great book on the fundamentals.

[Jeremy]

Promo here.

[Josh Dockter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun little book with a refreshing take on some of the core doctrines of the Christian faith. Don't let the title deceive you-no, not that kind of fundamentalism:)

[Jonathan Lovelace · Rating 5 out of 5]

The GoodReads blurb uses the phrase "G.K. Chesterton-like prose"; I suppose I can see that, but what I noticed was passages that in phrasing or imagery reminded me of C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, or both. Taken as an homage to and expansion on Mere Christianity, bringing in more of the first-order unarguable implications of the "mere Christianity" "fundamentals" that all faithful and genuine Christians should be agreed on without digressing "into the weeds" of secondary and tertiary matters like the proper form of church government, I found it excellent. There was little to nothing new to me, between Lewis's original and various articles by Wilson I have read (and podcast episodes etc. I have listened to) over the years, but it's helpful to have it all together in a dense, coherent presentation.

[Samuel Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mere Fundamentalism was brilliant in that it contains the thoughts of a great thinker, Douglas Wilson. Wilson is like a modern-day C.S. Lewis as he follows his profound, rolling thoughts like a river and, somehow, they eventually come out to an organized point by the end each chapter. I really appreciate Wilson’s gift at thinking openly and differently and putting it to words.

I wish this book spoke more about the lines between Essential Christian Doctrine, Non-Essential Christian Doctrine and Heretical Doctrine somewhat like the Introduction (I am interested in the operation within orthodoxy whilst being able to have broad freedom in Non-Essentials as it helps with church unity). After finishing “Mere Fundamentalism,” I felt that the title and subtitle of this book should have been more accurately named, “The Fundamentals: A Summary of The Christian Faith.” The vast majority of this book is about exploring the Christian fundamentals, rather than the lines between orthodoxy and un-orthodoxy or orthodoxy and Non-Essentials.

Nonetheless, this was an incredibly profound and helpful read and I appreciated all of it!

Thank you,
Sam

[Josiah Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a real peace in being orthodox in our faith. It’s almost like a child flipping on a light switch in his house; he doesn’t understand how electricity works, only that flipping the switch gets the lights to turn on. This isn’t a call for naivety or for everyone to become electricians, but it is simply pointing out that whether we personally have all the answers or not, affirming that which is orthodox turns the lights on. What this means, practically speaking, is that we really don’t need to be coming up with new doctrines or denying doctrines that have been held for millennia. If anything, we need to return to those things. Certainly, we reform and keep reforming, but we are not doing so aimlessly - we reform through return. The old paths are still our paths.

A good summary of the foundational orthodox beliefs is found in the Apostle’s Creed. Christians should probably affirm more than this, but certainly not less than this. Wilson works through the creed and shows why Orthodoxy is eternal whether we like it or not. This is a good book to remind you of what you should be looking for, not only in your own life, but in others who call on the name of Christ.

[Matthew C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A spirited defense from Wilson of the tenets of the Apostles' Creed and other foundations of his Christian thought. This is a good lay of the land for anyone interested in reading further on the various topics, each of which is treated here with brevity and wit. This wasn't as much of an enthralling work for me, as I've read quite a bit of Wilson already. So while there were no big surprises, it was a refreshing booklet.

[Ron Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! All I can say is "wow". I grew up reciting the Apostles Creed every week in our Lutheran Church. Part of the Confirmation process involved extensive instruction in the meaning of the Creed, as well as the catechism and other documents.

But this book by one of my favorite writers explains the Creed in a way I've never seen before.

If you want a great introduction to that ancient document, one that will leave you in open-mouthed wonder, this book is for you.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

"This message of salvation is honey made by industrious celestial bees, and they work in fields of clover the size of Jupiter. There is more than enough for you."

A clear and refreshing summary of the basics of Christian faith, presented through the Apostles' Creed, under the influences of Lewis and Chesterton.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

As far as Wilson's books go, it has typical applications of the “serrated edge,” whity wordings of old truths, and some helpful apologetic retorts against prevailing unbelief.

As far as books on the Apostles Creed go, I am not a big fan. I think he does a good enough job, but overall it just seemed unstructured. I prefer Pierre Viret’s book on the Apostles Creed called Anchor of the Soul.

[Jonathan Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with all books by Doug Wilson this book was awesome! I am currently studying the Apostle’s Creed and this book set a high standard. His summary of the Apostle’s Creed for the penultimate chapter was worth the price of the book by itself! Highly recommended

[john atkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Challenge what do we believe

It tackles the real questions that so many today would hide away the reality creation of heaven and hell but most importantly the vast love of God and our faith

[Dan Wann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Particularly the last few chapters show the biblical and philosophical underpinnings of a view of eternity that echos Lewis at his best. Wilson is always a quick wit and turns a phrase that makes the turning of a page seldom without a chuckle.

[Rick Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing study of theology!

This is among the most amazing, delightful, and compelling surveys of theology that I’ve ever read. Wilson’s theology is sound, and his explanations are clear, but his illustrations are superb! This is a book to read, reread, and share!

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doug is always good, and he states these basic truths in such interesting ways, with lots of the romance of orthodoxy. I would disagree a bit on his epistemological chapter, but otherwise is really great.

Liked it.

[Josh Campfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exceptional book and an enjoyable read. There are bones in it, no doubt, but the overwhelming abundance of meat makes it worth sifting through. It's definitely a book you read not only once, but then come back to for further study. Loved it.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Audiobook)

[Douglas Gates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I think Wilson is becoming a better writer. Or I'm becoming a better reader. Or both. Wouldn't that be swell.