Friedrich Schleiermacher reveals his philosophical attitudes to religion, and mounts a defense and justification for faith as an expression of human nature. At the time Schleiermacher authored this passionate and detailed account of faith, he was all too aware of the changes in the scholarly atmosphere of late 18th century Germany. The traditional, theological schools of thought were being rapidly supplanted by philosophy and the natural sciences, as discoveries multiplied and the earliest incarnation of modernity commenced to assume shape. The growing animosity among academics is reflected in the subtitle; indeed, this rise of such sophisticated anti-religious discourse worried the author. This work is divided into five speeches. The first is concerned with defending religion against common detraction. As a learned man who had also struggled with aspects of his Protestant faith, Schleiermacher is in a good position to counter the arguments levied against religious belief.