The Book of God : In the Light of the Higher Criticism With Special Reference to Dean Farrar's New Apology

"The Book of God: In the Light of the Higher Criticism" by G. W. Foote is a critical examination of the Bible and its claims of divine inspiration, written in the late 19th century. The text engages with the controversies surrounding the interpretation of the scriptures, particularly in the context of rising skepticism and rationalism during that time. Foote tackles various theological arguments, emphasizing self-contradictions within the Bible and the discrepancies between biblical accounts and modern scientific understanding. The opening of the work sets the stage for a thorough critique of biblical texts and church interpretations, particularly addressing the implications of Dean Farrar's views on the Bible's authority. Foote argues that both Protestant and Catholic positions reveal inherent contradictions and that the Bible, rather than being an infallible document, is a collection of writings from diverse authors over time. He critiques how these texts have been selectively interpreted to support varying doctrines, thereby leading to confusion and division within Christianity itself. Foote's analysis involves exploring how cultural and historical contexts have shaped scriptural interpretations, setting up a broader discourse on the reliability and role of the Bible in the face of modern thought. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

George William Foote was an English radical journalist, writer, editor, publisher, and prominent secularist. He was a leading advocate of freethought, founding and editing notable publications such as The Freethinker and The Secularist and co-founding the British Secular Union. Additionally, he ran a publishing business known as the Pioneer Press. Foote was convicted of blasphemy in 1883 for his satirical attacks on Christianity published in The Freethinker and sentenced to a year in prison. He authored over eighty works, mainly polemical pamphlets, with his editorial essays from The Freethinker compiled into Flowers of Freethought (1893–94).