Project Gutenberg's God The Invisible King, by Herbert George Wells

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org

Title: God The Invisible King

Author: Herbert George Wells

Release Date: May 3, 2006 [EBook #1046]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GOD THE INVISIBLE KING ***

Produced by Donald Lainson

GOD THE INVISIBLE KING

by H. G. Wells

CONTENTS

PREFACE

1. THE COSMOGONY OF MODERN RELIGION

2. HERESIES; OR THE THINGS THAT GOD IS NOT

3. THE LIKENESS OF GOD

4. THE RELIGION OF ATHEISTS

5. THE INVISIBLE KING

6. MODERN IDEAS OF SIN AND DAMNATION

7. THE IDEA OF A CHURCH

THE ENVOY

PREFACE

This book sets out as forcibly and exactly as possible the religious
belief of the writer. That belief is not orthodox Christianity; it is
not, indeed, Christianity at all; its core nevertheless is a profound
belief in a personal and intimate God. There is nothing in its
statements that need shock or offend anyone who is prepared for the
expression of a faith different from and perhaps in several particulars
opposed to his own. The writer will be found to be sympathetic with
all sincere religious feeling. Nevertheless it is well to prepare the
prospective reader for statements that may jar harshly against deeply
rooted mental habits. It is well to warn him at the outset that the
departure from accepted beliefs is here no vague scepticism, but a quite
sharply defined objection to dogmas very widely revered. Let the writer
state the most probable occasion of trouble forthwith. An issue upon
which this book will be found particularly uncompromising is the dogma
of the Trinity. The writer is of opinion that the Council of Nicaea,
which forcibly crystallised the controversies of two centuries and
formulated the creed upon which all the existing Christian churches are
based, was one of the most disastrous and one of the least venerable of
all religious gatherings, and he holds that the Alexandrine speculations
which were then conclusively imposed upon Christianity merit only
disrespectful attention at the present time. There you have a chief
possibility of offence. He is quite unable to pretend any awe for what
he