Add to ORKGIncludes bibliographical references (p. 189-200).The unorthodox theology of nineteenth century British novelist George Eliot resulted not in a dispassionate avoidance of Christianity in her narratives but in an existential engagement with the faith she had once embraced. Prior to writing her first novel, Eliot, already recognized as a leading literary critic and translator, had adopted the empiricist and positivist philosophies of the elite intellectual circles of British society. Like many of her contemporaries, Eliot adhered to a liberal Christology advocating Jesus Christ as a moral exemplar whom humanity should imitate. A change in Eliot's religious viewpoints, however, emerged as she began writing fiction. Although she never return...