Orthodoxy (1908)

Logos Library

This book is meant to be a companion to "Heretics," and to put the positive side in addition to the negative. Many critics complained of the book called "Heretics" because it merely criticised current philosophies without offering any alternative philosophy. This book is an attempt to answer the challenge. It is unavoidably affirmative and therefore unavoidably autobiographical. The writer has been driven back upon somewhat the same difficulty as that which beset Newman in writing his Apologia; he has been forced to be egotistical only in order to be sincere. While everything else may be different the motive in both cases is the same. It is the purpose of the writer to attempt an explanation, not of whether the Christian Faith can be believed, but of how he personally has come to believe it. The book is therefore arranged upon the positive principle of a riddle and its answer. It deals first with all the writer's own solitary and sincere speculations and then with all the startling style in which they were all suddenly satisfied by the Christian Theology. The writer regards it as amounting to a convincing creed. But if it is not that it is at least a repeated and surprising coincidence.

I like this book. This is an easy and quick book to get a 'dose' of Chesterton's writing style - and his firm logic. Granted that he writes with a thickness and he is dealing with issues of his day in the words of his day, but his points are very much still relevant. To read Chesterton you must read slowly and with a pen in hand to mark his points. ( )

The first time I listened to this, it was with a computer generated voice reading it. Not very satisfactory, but enough good to make me buy the paper version. Then I saw that there was an Audible version read by Simon Vance, one of my favorite narrators, that's the one I just listened to.

I am still left feeling that this is a book I need to read in paper format. It is so full of meaty thoughts that I need to digest them slowly. I may have a bone or two to pick with him. Honestly, I may agree with Chesterton about everything, or I may not, but to hear his persuasive words in the lovely voice of Simon Vance, well, it was a pleasure and I kept getting lost in the pleasure of it but not being exactly sure I understood what was being said.

This is a book I think every "modern thinker," agnostic and atheist should read, along with those who call themselves Christians, if only because it clarifies the thought processes and causes one to dig a little deeper into why they believe what they believe, whether they agree with Chesterton or not. If they don't agree of course, they are going to be a bit miffed at his treatment of them, in that case, probably you should read the paper version so you can write angry notes in the margin. Otherwise, if you are walking and listening to the audio and making angry remarks, people will think you are mental. ( )

Chesterton at his philosophical best. He presents his personal arguments for the existence of God and skewers all the puffed up, empty-headed modern philosophers and worthless aristocrats and oligarchs. His wit is as fresh and sharp as Mark Twain's. ( )