The Celestial Rail-Road

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By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Foreword by Os Guinness
(2003)

Discussion Guide Included

This story addresses the question of the truth-claims of religious faith in the face of the pressures of the modern world. 

Since the Enlightenment many religious leaders have attempted to “improve on” God, to make God “relevant” to the times. In his Foreword, Os Guinness makes a passionate case for truth in the face of the actions of the Episcopal Church (USA) in the summer of 2003. Hawthorne’s story, he argues, raises questions about the authority and public dimensions of faith that are vital not just for Episcopalians or even for Christians, but for all the citizens of the United States and the West at large. This selection is sure to provoke thought and discussion.

(This story was also published as a Reading in 1993, number 4, with a different Foreword.)

Category: Readings (No. 34)

Affliction is the school in which great virtues are acquired, in which great characters are formed.

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