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).
