There is no attempt in this book topresent a complete system of theology, though much of such a system ispassed in review, but only to study a special phase of theologicalthinking. The precise theme of the book is the relations of the socialconsciousness to theology. This is the subject upon which the writerwas asked to lecture at the Harvard Summer School of Theology of 1901;and the book has grown out of the lectures there given. In preparingthe book for the press, however, the lecture form has been entirelyabandoned, and considerable material added.
The importance of the theme seems to justify a somewhatthorough-going treatment. If one believes at all in the presence ofGod in history—and the Christian can have no doubt here—he must beprofoundly {viii} interested in such a phenomenon asthe steady growth of the social consciousness. Hardly any innercharacteristic of our time has a stronger historical justificationthan that consciousness; and it has carried the reason and conscienceof the men of this generation in rare degree. Having its owncomparatively independent development, and yet making an ethicaldemand that is thoroughly Christian, it furnishes an almost idealstandpoint from which to review our theological statements, and, atthe same time, a valuable test of their really Christian quality.
In attempting, then, a careful study of the relations of the socialconsciousness to theology, this book aims, first, definitely to get atthe real meaning of the social consciousness as the theologian mustview it, and so to bring clearly into mind the unconscious assumptionsof the social consciousness itself; and then to trace out theinfluence of the social consciousness upon the conception of religion,and upon theological {ix} doctrine. The larger portion of the bookis naturally given to the influence upon theological doctrine; and tomake the discussion here as pointed as possible, the differentelements of the social consciousness are considered separately.
It should be noted, however, that the question raised is not thehistorical one, How, as a matter of fact, has the social consciousnessmodified the conception of religion or the statement of theologicaldoctrine? but the theoretical one, How should