I. The Psychology of Religious Experience: points emphasized in the discussion 92 1. The normality of religion 92 2. The power of religion in the individual and in society 96 3. The need of salvation 100 4. The way of salvation 102 II. The Metaphysical Implicates of Religious Experience 105 1. The Physical Explanation: religion the result of bodily conditions; religion and sex 106 2. The Psychological Explanation: religion and the subconscious 111 3. The Social Explanation: religion and society 114 4. The Theistic Infer enc 119 The Pragmatic Argument for Theism 119 The Mystical Argument: its strength and its weakness 120 The Evidence of Christian Experience 122 CHAPTER IV THE CHRISTIAN FAITH AND RECENT PHILOSOPHY The philosophical situation at the opening of the century 125 Leading representatives of present day philosophy 127 I. Bergson and Creative Evolution 127 Creative Evolution a drama in three acts 128 Features of Bergson's system: the vital impulse 129 His rejection of Finalism: is it compatible with Theism? 132 II. Eucken and the Truth of Religion 137 His critique of Naturalism, of Pragmatism and of Absolutism 138 Universal Religion and Characteristic Religion 140 Eucken's relation to Christianity: "Can we still be Christians?" 142 Bergson and Eucken as prophets of a new era 146 III. Ward and the Realm of Ends 146 His transition from Pluralism to Theism 147 His argument for Immortality 152 Pampsychism and Metempsychosis 153 Difficulties in the doctrine of Pampsychism 154 IV. Royce and the Problem of Christianity 155 Christianity as a Religion of Loyalty 157 "What is vital in Christianity?" 158 The Christian ideas of Sin and of Atonement or Grace 159 The Church as a source of salvation: its origin 161 Philosophical interest in Christianity and its significance 164 CHAPTER V THE CHRISTIAN FAITH AND OTHER RELIGIONS The Universal Mission of Christianity 165 I. Christianity and Ancient Religions 165 The resemblances and their significance 166 Clemen's "religious-historical" principles 168 1. The Virgin Birth and its alleged parallels 169 2. The worship of Christ and the worship of the Emperor: origin of the "Kyrios" title 172 3. Paul and the Mystery Religions 177 Pauline doctrine of the Sacraments and of dying and rising with Christ 180 The Pauline vocabulary: views of Reitzenstein 185 Why did Christianity conquer the Roman Empire? 192 II. Christianity and Modern Religions 193 The missionary propaganda 194 Dangers of compromise 195 The Christian _Plerosis_: the fulfillment of the great religious ideas of the race 197 CHAPTER VI THE CHRISTIAN FAITH AND BIBLICAL CRITICISM