The history of the higher criticism of the New Testament

The aim is to make clear to non-professional readers the nature of the Higher Criticism and its divine right within the churches. To do this the history of Bible study must be followed far into the history of Christianity, even as far as the time when, by the cooperation of the Catholic Church with the moral forces of pagan antiquity, the foundations of modern life and culture were laid, and the Bible was taken to the heart of Europe. Criticism can defend itself before the people only by showing that the history of our religion has made it inevitable. And to do this with any measure of success, the historical causes and conditions of criticism must be treated at greater length than would be seemly if the book were designed for professional readers. The aim of the book is not to give a detailed account of the movements of opinion in the field of Introduction. The aim is rather a philosophy of the history of Criticism. - Preface.