What Christians Believe

Georgia Harkness contributed much during the mid-twentieth century to the clarification of beliefs for people throughout the church. In this volume she summarizes the Christian faith so that the typical individual can find firm ground on which to stand during trying times. She summarizes what Christians believe about God, the Bible, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Church. She explains how these beliefs affect Christian life. Georgia Harkness was a staunch believer that religious faith of the right kind nourishes insight and stamina, which are both needed as much now as they were in the turbulent 1960s. “If [Christians] are not to live by community pressures and the persuasive forces that impinge on them constantly from business, politics, the television or the newspaper, they must have a perspective from beyond these forces and agencies by which to judge them.” Here is such a perspective! Georgia Harkness (1891-1971) Wherever the Protestant Christian struggled to understand faith during the 20th century, the name of Georgia Harkness was well known. She was one of the most respected interpreters of the faith for the laity and for pastors. Her previous books, Understanding the Christian Faith, Toward Understanding the Bible, The Providence of God, The Ministry of Reconciliation, and Beliefs that Count typify an unmatched capacity for clarity and directness. Georgia Elma Harkness was an ordained Methodist minister and a graduate of Cornell University. She earned two masters’ degrees and then the PhD from Boston University. She finished her teaching and writing career as professor emeritus of applied theology at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California. For more information, see the biography by Rosemary Skinner Keller, Georgia Harkness: For Such a Time As This (Abingdon Press, 1992).