This paper analyzes quotations from the four Gospels that were used by Michel Henry to develop his philosophy of Christianism, clarifying three characteristics of his book – Words of Christ. First, Words of Christ includes more quotations from the synoptic Gospels than his other books, I Am the Truth and Incarnation. These quotations are not solely used to try to overturn human nature; they are also meant to illustrate the theories Henry presents in I Am the Truth and provide a way to practice them. Second, in the preparatory notes for Words of Christ, Henry collates his own philosophy of Christianism with passages from the Gospel of St. John, while reading St. John repeatedly. This collation allows Henry to develop the fundamental idea of Words of Christ, a distinction between words of Christ as a human being talking about other human beings in their language and words describing Christ himself. Third, in Words of Christ which is the fruit of this repetitive collation, Henry endeavors not only to master the truth of Christianity, which he explained in his philosophy of Christianism, but also to get this truth across to his readers and lead them to a bouleversement of their human nature.
