WHERE FAITH BEGINS

Delivered as the James Sprunt Lectures at Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Va., in 1965, the argument of this book rests on the thesis that religion is seated in a person's sentiments which are imposed by the adults who care for him as a child. Non-rational as these sentiments may be, they take precedence over rational doctrine, and their inculcation depend less upon traditional agencies, such as the Church school or such means of communication as preaching or teaching, than upon the character of the adult community in which the child is reared. Professor Nelson supports this thesis by drawing upon a wide range of resources, from biblical studies to findings in the social sciences. The main thrust of the argument is directed at the question of the character of an adult community that will adequately provide the kind of nurture the author proposes. The development is clear, the style readable. This should be helpful reading to ministers of churches, and to students and leaders in the field of Christian education.