Lux Mundi

A volume of theological essays edited by Charles Gore, principal of Pusey House, Oxford. It was published in 1889 in England. The collection was subtitled A Series of Studies in the Religion of the Incarnation, and it sought to interpret the doctrinal tradition of the church so that Christians could affirm new developments in scientific and historical studies. The purpose of the essays was expressed in the preface to the first edition which noted that the real development of theology is “the process in which the Church, standing firm in her old truths, enters into the apprehension of the new social and intellectual movements of each age.” Essays in the volume were written by young theologians associated with Oxford University, many of whom made significant contributions to theological scholarship later in their lives, including Gore himself, Henry Scott Holland, J. R. Illingworth, R. C. Moberly, and F. Paget. The volume provoked much protest, especially the essay by Gore on the inspiration of Holy Scripture. But for many Lux Mundi began a new theological development in Anglicanism, subsequently known as liberal catholicism. See Gore, Charles; see Liberal Catholicism, Liberal Catholic Movement.