crf@mace.princeton.edu (Charles Ferenbaugh) (11/09/90)
In article <Nov.5.22.09.46.1990.21182@athos.rutgers.edu> you write: >On a related note, Does anyone know about any other Christian novelists/ >Christian writers rather in the vein of C.S. Lewis? I'd like to have >*someone* else to cite! (I realize that Lewis was remarkable, but >there must be *someone*!) Jenni, A good person to try is G.K. Chesterton. Most of his stuff was written 20 or 30 years before Lewis, but the style is similar. Three of his works that I recommend highly are _Orthodoxy_ and _The Everlasting Man_ (both books of apologetics; the first a sort of spiritual autobiography, the second a thorough debunking of the idea "Christianity is just the same as all other religions"), and _The Man Who Was Thursday_ (a novel, sort of a detective story; it's hard to describe without giving away surprises, but I found it both entertaining and profound). I should note that in Lewis' autobiog., _Surprised by Joy_, he mentions Chesterton's works, and "Everlasting Man" in particular, as having influenced his own journey. I'd also be interested to see what sorts of other responses you get. Could you perhaps post a summary to s.r.c.? Many thanks. Grace and peace, Charles Ferenbaugh
cotner@oreo.berkeley.edu (11/10/90)
In article <Nov.9.00.17.11.1990.27216@athos.rutgers.edu> crf@mace.princeton.edu (Charles Ferenbaugh) writes: > >In article <Nov.5.22.09.46.1990.21182@athos.rutgers.edu> you write: > >>On a related note, Does anyone know about any other Christian novelists/ >>Christian writers rather in the vein of C.S. Lewis? > >A good person to try is G.K. Chesterton. Most of his stuff was written 20 >or 30 years before Lewis, but the style is similar. G.K.C. is my favorite author, and I highly recommend him, too. Two more of his best are the biographies _St. Francis of Assisi_ and _Saint Thomas Aquinas "The Dumb Ox"_. The noted Thomist philosopher Etienne Gilson said of the later, "Chesterton makes one despair. I have been studying St. Thomas all my life and I could never have written such a book." I have never read any other biography which make its subject come alive as much as these two do. Carl Cotner cotner@math.berkeley.edu
mmh@cs.qmw.ac.uk (Matthew Huntbach) (11/12/90)
In article <Nov.10.07.29.03.1990.24878@athos.rutgers.edu> cotner@oreo.berkeley.edu writes: >>>On a related note, Does anyone know about any other Christian novelists/ >>>Christian writers rather in the vein of C.S. Lewis? >> >>A good person to try is G.K. Chesterton. Most of his stuff was written 20 >>or 30 years before Lewis, but the style is similar. > >G.K.C. is my favorite author, and I highly recommend him, too. Two >more of his best are the biographies _St. Francis of Assisi_ and _Saint >Thomas Aquinas "The Dumb Ox"_. His principle philosophical work on Christianity is "The Everlasting Man" - well worth reading if you can get hold of a copy. His work is difficult to find however - he is mostly remembered today for his Fr.Brown detective stories, and these are the only thing of his still in print, though collections of parts of his works were published on the 50th anniversary of his death (1986). I am a member of the G.K.Chesteron society, though I can't remember the contact address at the moment. Chesterton is usually coupled with Hillaire Belloc, who is also worth reading, though with care. Belloc was somewhat anti-semitic, usually in a joky way, but he was rather obsessive about it - it all looks a lot nastier after Hitler. Chesterton seemed to be led slightly in this way by Belloc, and the result is that the reputation of both writers suffered badly after Hitler (when neither was alive to defend himself). Both Chesterton and Belloc's political comments show remarkable foresight. They attacked socialism as bound to lead to all the sorts of malpractices we have come to associate with it today, and which led to its downfall in Eastern Europe, this at a time when most of the intelligentsia were extremely pro-socialist, and not even its critics saw how it would develop. Again this led them to be dismissed as right-wing cranks, although their politics was almost equally anti-capitalist. Matthew Huntbach
kw1r+@andrew.cmu.edu (Kevin Whitley) (11/16/90)
Dorothy Sayers (of Lord Peter Whimsy fame) wrote a number of things worth mentioning. Plays (The Devil to Pay), a radio drama (The Man Born to be King) and an illuminating translation of Dante's Divine Comedy. She also wrote a collection of essays called "The Mind of the Maker" which has influenced me considerably. Speaking of Chesterton, I have always been particularly fond of the Father Brown detective stories. They are the only such stories I know of where a major criminal (Flambeau) is not chased and brought to justice, but is converted. A very refreshing, and properly christian goal. Kevin Whitley kw1r@andrew.cmu.edu
cotner@math.berekeley.edu (11/17/90)
> >His principle philosophical work on Christianity is "The >Everlasting Man" - well worth reading if you can get hold of a >copy. His work is difficult to find however - he is mostly >remembered today for his Fr.Brown detective stories, and these >are the only thing of his still in print... Actually, many of Chesterton's other books are still in print. Here's a sample. Press Title Last Copyright Notes ----- ----- -------------- ----- Image Orthodoxy ???? These are his reli- St. Francis of Assisi ???? gious works and can The Everlasting Man ???? often be found in Saint Thomas Aquinas ???? Catholic bookstores. Pengiun The Napoleon of Notting Hill 1985 Dover The Club of Queer Trades 1987 These each have Four Faultless Felons 1989 an introduction The Paradoxes of Mr. Pond 1990 by Martin Gardner. Wideview/ The Man Who Was Thursday 1980 It is up to at least Perigree the 16th impression. Carroll & The Club of Queer Trades 1987 Graf Dodd, Mead The Collected Poems 1980 of G.K. Chesterton Ignatius Collected Works 1986-present An on-going project. These are some of Chesterton's books which I have purchased since 1986 (when I discovered him). Except for maybe Image Press (a division of Doubleday) and Dodd, Mead & Company, each of the above publishers also has other Chesterton selections. Also, there are at least two or three anthologies in print, a book of his drawings, and many biographies (I doubt many of these stay in print long). Enjoy! > I am a member of the G.K.Chesteron society, >though I can't remember the contact address at the moment. It is: G.K. Chesterton Society 1437 College Dr. Saskatoon, Sask. S7N 0W6 Canada Be careful to put enough postage on correspondence with them from the U.S. Unfortunately I don't remember what it is (but I have had two letters to them returned because I forgot that it wasn't 25 cents). Carl Cotner cotner@math.berekeley.edu