Grant Allen

The Evolution of the Idea of God Grant Allen

Originally published in 1897, The Evolution of the Idea of God is a study of humans' belief in God from primitive tribal religions to what Allen considered the more advanced Christian view. The main question explored here is "How did we arrive at our knowledge of God?" Rather than trying to prove or disprove any claims about the divine, Allen's method simply traces the psychological processes that led humans to religious belief, and further, from a belief in polytheism to monotheism. Students of religion, mythology, and human psychology will find this an intriguing work. Canadian writer GRANT ALLEN (1848-1899) attended university in the United Kingdom and taught at Queen's College in Jamaica. His many published books include mainly scientific books and popular novels, and in 1895 he published one of the first Canadian science fiction books, The British Barbarians. .. Charles Grant Blairfindie Allen (February 24, 1848 - October 25, 1899) was a Canadian science writer and novelist, and a public promoter of Evolution in the second half of the 19th century. Early life and educationAllen was born near Kingston, Canada West (known as Ontario after Confederation), the second son of Catharine Ann Grant and the Rev. Joseph Antisell Allen, a Protestant minister from Dublin, Ireland. His mother was a daughter of the fifth Baron de Longueuil. Allen was educated at home until, at age 13, he and his parents moved to the United States, then to France, and finally to the United Kingdom. He was educated at King Edward's School in Birmingham and at Merton College in Oxford, both in the United Kingdom. After graduation, Allen studied in France, taught at Brighton College in 1870-71, and in his mid-twenties became a professor at Queen's College, a black college in Jamaica. Despite being the son of a minister, Allen became an agnostic and a socialist.