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The Inside of the Cup — Volume 07
Pondering over Alison's note, he suddenly recalled and verified some phrases which had struck him that summer on reading Harnack's celebrated History of Dogma, and around these he framed his reply. "To act as if faith in eternal life and in the living Christ was the simplest thing in the world, or a dogma to which one has to submit, is irreligious. . . It is Christian to pray that God would give the Spirit to make us strong to overcome the feelings and the doubts of nature. . . Where this faith, obtained in this way, exists, it has always been supported by the conviction that the Man lives who brought life and immortality to light. To hold fast this faith is the goal of life, for only what we consciously strive for is in this matter our own. What we think we possess is very soon lost."
68 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1913
5 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
Winston Churchill
323 books109 followers
This is not the British Prime Minister, Sir Winston Spencer Churchill. This is the American novelist, Winston Churchill.
Churchill was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Edward Spalding and Emma Bell (Blaine) Churchill. He attended Smith Academy in Missouri and the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated in 1894 and became an editor of the Army and Navy Journal. He resigned from the navy to pursue a writing career. While he would be most successful as a novelist, he was also a published poet and essayist.
His first novel was The Celebrity (1898). (Mr. Keegan's Elopement was published in 1896 within a magazine. In 1903 it was republished as an illustrated hardback book.) Churchill's next novel—Richard Carvel (1899)—was a phenomenon, selling as many as two million copies in a nation of only 76 million, and made Churchill rich. His next two novels, The Crisis (1901) and The Crossing (1904), were also very successful.
Churchill's early novels were historical but his later works were set in contemporary America. He often sought to include his political ideas into his novels. Churchill wrote in the naturalist style of literature, and some have called him the most influential of the American naturalists.
In 1899, Churchill moved to Cornish, New Hampshire. He became involved in politics and was elected to the state legislature in 1903 and 1905. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for governor in 1906. In 1912, he was nominated as the Progressive candidate for governor but did not win the election. He did not again seek office. In 1917, he toured the battlefields of World War I and wrote about what he saw, his first non-fiction work.
Sometime after this move, he took up watercolors, and also became known for his landscapes. Some of his works are in the collections of Cornish Colony Museum in Windsor, Vermont, Hood Museum of Art (part of Hopkins Center for the Arts Dartmouth College) in Hanover, New Hampshire, and Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire.
In 1919, Churchill decided to stop writing and withdrew from public life. As a result of this he was gradually forgotten by the public. In 1940, The Uncharted Way, his first book in 20 years, was published. The book examined Churchill's thoughts on religion. He did not seek to publicize the book and it received little attention. Shortly before his death he said, "It is very difficult now for me to think of myself as a writer of novels, as all that seems to belong to another life."
Churchill died in Winter Park, Florida in 1947. He is the great-grandfather of Albany, New York, journalist Chris Churchill.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston...]
Churchill was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Edward Spalding and Emma Bell (Blaine) Churchill. He attended Smith Academy in Missouri and the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated in 1894 and became an editor of the Army and Navy Journal. He resigned from the navy to pursue a writing career. While he would be most successful as a novelist, he was also a published poet and essayist.
His first novel was The Celebrity (1898). (Mr. Keegan's Elopement was published in 1896 within a magazine. In 1903 it was republished as an illustrated hardback book.) Churchill's next novel—Richard Carvel (1899)—was a phenomenon, selling as many as two million copies in a nation of only 76 million, and made Churchill rich. His next two novels, The Crisis (1901) and The Crossing (1904), were also very successful.
Churchill's early novels were historical but his later works were set in contemporary America. He often sought to include his political ideas into his novels. Churchill wrote in the naturalist style of literature, and some have called him the most influential of the American naturalists.
In 1899, Churchill moved to Cornish, New Hampshire. He became involved in politics and was elected to the state legislature in 1903 and 1905. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for governor in 1906. In 1912, he was nominated as the Progressive candidate for governor but did not win the election. He did not again seek office. In 1917, he toured the battlefields of World War I and wrote about what he saw, his first non-fiction work.
Sometime after this move, he took up watercolors, and also became known for his landscapes. Some of his works are in the collections of Cornish Colony Museum in Windsor, Vermont, Hood Museum of Art (part of Hopkins Center for the Arts Dartmouth College) in Hanover, New Hampshire, and Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire.
In 1919, Churchill decided to stop writing and withdrew from public life. As a result of this he was gradually forgotten by the public. In 1940, The Uncharted Way, his first book in 20 years, was published. The book examined Churchill's thoughts on religion. He did not seek to publicize the book and it received little attention. Shortly before his death he said, "It is very difficult now for me to think of myself as a writer of novels, as all that seems to belong to another life."
Churchill died in Winter Park, Florida in 1947. He is the great-grandfather of Albany, New York, journalist Chris Churchill.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston...]
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 6, 2012
At times, I found it difficult to believe this book was written a century ago. A common theme through out the book is how the church was being used by the ruling classes as an instrument of opression, and how little of church doctrine was able to stand up to careful scrutiny based on an honest reading of scripture. That was then, but it sounds suspiciously like a criticism of today's churches, the churches of Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Rick Warren, Pat Robertson, Al Mohler, James Dobson, et al., people who cheerfully lie to their flocks, while at the same time keeping them ignorant and impoverished, all to the benefit of a wealthy minority, who are, not incidentally, filling the pockets of said august clergy. I always find it comforting to be reminded that, "plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose". I get this same feeling from reading Psalm 10. To paraphrase Jesus, "the rich scoundrels you will always have with you".
Winston Churchill, the American author whose historical novels were wildly popular a century ago, and who made a pact with his British counterpart that the latter would be distinguished by using his middle initial, 'S.', used this book as a means of defining his own personal theology. As such, the book would likely have no interest to a modern reader who has little knowledge or interest in religious matters. For those still struggling to understand what it means to be a Christian, the book has much to offer. This book contains some ideas with which many of us might not agree, but provides much food for thought. Members of fundamentalist sects, for whom thinking is anathema, would not find this book meaningful, but for the rest of us, it provides a most profitable read.
I suppose it's worth mentioning that the version I read on kindle was full of typos and other mistakes. Several of the names changed back and forth from one page to another, e.g. the main character was mostly Hodder, but sometimes Holder. Interestingly, the basic typography was not so bad, in that there weren't the annoying line breaks in the middle of paragraphs which mar so many public domain works on kindle.
Winston Churchill, the American author whose historical novels were wildly popular a century ago, and who made a pact with his British counterpart that the latter would be distinguished by using his middle initial, 'S.', used this book as a means of defining his own personal theology. As such, the book would likely have no interest to a modern reader who has little knowledge or interest in religious matters. For those still struggling to understand what it means to be a Christian, the book has much to offer. This book contains some ideas with which many of us might not agree, but provides much food for thought. Members of fundamentalist sects, for whom thinking is anathema, would not find this book meaningful, but for the rest of us, it provides a most profitable read.
I suppose it's worth mentioning that the version I read on kindle was full of typos and other mistakes. Several of the names changed back and forth from one page to another, e.g. the main character was mostly Hodder, but sometimes Holder. Interestingly, the basic typography was not so bad, in that there weren't the annoying line breaks in the middle of paragraphs which mar so many public domain works on kindle.
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May 12, 2016This was one of the most rewarding novels I have ever read. The descriptions of the reality that the good Reverend finds himself in and the swirl of personalities he is surfing are illuminating.
The longish and understated method that he employs to show that the inner person is the worthwhile portion of humanity and the exterior is often a poor representation of that inner person is appreciated by the careful reader.
Because this novel is so old (published in 1913) it is too easy to overlook, but the readers will be well rewarded for the experience.
The longish and understated method that he employs to show that the inner person is the worthwhile portion of humanity and the exterior is often a poor representation of that inner person is appreciated by the careful reader.
Because this novel is so old (published in 1913) it is too easy to overlook, but the readers will be well rewarded for the experience.
December 27, 2020
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3543599.html
Winston Churchill was a well-known American writer who happened to have the same name as a well-known British politician, three years younger than him. Back in 1913 and 1914, this novel was the best-selling book of the year in the USA, and I acquired it for the centenary in 2014, but have only now got around to reading it.
The Inside of the Cup is the story of a clergyman who is hired to service the upper classes of a city that is probably St Louis, and comes to the realisation that to really implement Christianity he is going to have to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. The title comes from Jesus' admonition to the Pharisees in Matthew's Gospel:
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
Οὐαὶ ὑμῖν, γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι ὑποκριταί, ὅτι καθαρίζετε τὸ ἔξωθεν τοῦ ποτηρίου καὶ τῆς παροψίδος, ἔσωθεν δὲ γέμουσιν ἐξ ἁρπαγῆς καὶ ἀκρασίας.
You know what way it's going to go as soon as the richest parishioner's estranged and nobly minded daughter hoves into view. The scandalous bit of the book, which frankly is rather boring now, is that the protagonist decides that believing in the virgin birth etc is not as important as Doing Good. It's awfully over-written and seems to go on for a very long time. Still, I think I'd like to visit St Louis some time on the basis of this.
Winston Churchill was a well-known American writer who happened to have the same name as a well-known British politician, three years younger than him. Back in 1913 and 1914, this novel was the best-selling book of the year in the USA, and I acquired it for the centenary in 2014, but have only now got around to reading it.
The Inside of the Cup is the story of a clergyman who is hired to service the upper classes of a city that is probably St Louis, and comes to the realisation that to really implement Christianity he is going to have to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. The title comes from Jesus' admonition to the Pharisees in Matthew's Gospel:
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
Οὐαὶ ὑμῖν, γραμματεῖς καὶ Φαρισαῖοι ὑποκριταί, ὅτι καθαρίζετε τὸ ἔξωθεν τοῦ ποτηρίου καὶ τῆς παροψίδος, ἔσωθεν δὲ γέμουσιν ἐξ ἁρπαγῆς καὶ ἀκρασίας.
You know what way it's going to go as soon as the richest parishioner's estranged and nobly minded daughter hoves into view. The scandalous bit of the book, which frankly is rather boring now, is that the protagonist decides that believing in the virgin birth etc is not as important as Doing Good. It's awfully over-written and seems to go on for a very long time. Still, I think I'd like to visit St Louis some time on the basis of this.
January 29, 2021
I am a big fan of this Winston Churchill's books. I found this one a bit slow-moving and tedious. Still written well and the topic was current still today. Just didn't keep my interest for very long. Whereas with many of his other works, (Richard Carvel, The Crossing-- for examples) I did not want to put them down. With this book if I put it down I had a hard time to pick it back up.
I still love his writing style, word choice, descriptions and he remains a favorite author.
I still love his writing style, word choice, descriptions and he remains a favorite author.
December 23, 2023
Churchill was a liar and fraud.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews