December 16 Meeting of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society

Andrew Thurston was the single attendee at last night's Chillicothe Chesterton Society Meeting. Andrew is always there because he works at Schlegel's on Wednesday nights. That means Andrew also won the membership to the American Chesterton Society. We didn't even have to draw names out of a hat! I'm not positive, but I think Andrew would attend the meetings even if he were not working. He has been reading the Chesterton books I've left at Schlegel's and has printed one off the Project Gutenberg web site.

Andrew also introduced me to Father Rick Terry, of the Chillicothe Anglican Fellowship (AMiA/Rwanda). Father Terry's church is just up the street from Schlegel's. (Father Terry had just stopped in for coffee) Father Terry and I talked a bit, he has read Orthodoxy, and I invited him to attend future Chesterton Society meetings if he has the time.

Before the meeting, I stopped in Book World, our local mom and pop book store. The Chesterton books they ordered in are still there. Unless there is a great rush to buy Chesterton books for Christmas presents, it would appear my library will be increasing some time in mid January.

And finally, I went Googling for "Chesterton on hope" and found this, from Heretics, Chapter XII, Paganism and Mr. Lowes Dickinson:

It is somewhat amusing, indeed, to notice the difference between the fate of these three paradoxes in the fashion of the modern mind. Charity is a fashionable virtue in our time; it is lit up by the gigantic firelight of Dickens. Hope is a fashionable virtue to-day; our attention has been arrested for it by the sudden and silver trumpet of Stevenson. But faith is unfashionable, and it is customary on every side to cast against it the fact that it is a paradox. Everybody mockingly repeats the famous childish definition that faith is “the power of believing that which we know to be untrue.” Yet it is not one atom more paradoxical than hope or charity. Charity is the power of defending that which we know to be indefensible. Hope is the power of being cheerful in circumstances which we know to be desperate. It is true that there is a state of hope which belongs to bright prospects and the morning; but that is not the virtue of hope. The virtue of hope exists only in earthquake and eclipse. It is true that there is a thing crudely called charity, which means charity to the deserving poor; but charity to the deserving is not charity at all, but justice. It is the undeserving who require it, and the ideal either does not exist at all, or exists wholly for them. For practical purposes it is at the hopeless moment that we require the hopeful man, and the virtue either does not exist at all, or begins to exist at that moment. Exactly at the instant when hope ceases to be reasonable it begins to be useful.

Advent and Christmas Wisdom From G. K. Chesterton

In searching for Chesterton commenting on Advent, I came across this book. The site I found it on has a pdf file with the book's introduction. I clicked it and started to read it. As I read, I said to myself "at the end, I'm going to find Dale Ahlquist's name." But no, it's not by Dale, it's by Robert Moore-Jumonville, another Chestertonian who has spoken at the last three Chesterton Conferences.

If you're new to Chesterton, this is a great introduction. If you've read a little Chesterton, you'll probably just nod your head in agreement and smile.

Here's Robert's Introduction to the book.

If Gilbert Keith Chesterton came striding across the threshold of your fire-crackling Christmas party, you would most likely gape in wonder, then laugh, listen, and come to love him. He might remind you of Father Christmas grinning from ear to ear, except for the cigar clenched in his mouth.

At a towering six-foot-four and weighing three hundred pounds, Chesterton was energetic and alluring, a daunting giant,whom strangers soon realized possessed the heart of an elf. He played Christmas games with children, requesting colored tinsel to paste on his own cutout cardboard figures. His contagious laughter invited others to join him in his wit and repartee, his childlike innocence, and love of life. In him was a humor akin to humility: a humor that delighted in life but refused to take the enigma of being human too seriously, a joyous humor with a sane estimate of itself and others, a holy humor that lived lightly because it trusted God for maintaining the universe.

Born in London in 1874, and dying there in 1936, Chesterton seemed a comic figure to some, but his towering intellect matched his physical height. This was a man who could write a longhand essay while simultaneously dictating another to his secretary. Having studied art at the Slade School in London, Chesterton humbly claimed his main craft as journalism. But in addition to writing a weekly article for his entire adult life, Chesterton authored more than a hundred books and contributed essays to many more. Furthermore, he wrote capably and Christianly on almost every conceivable topic in almost every imaginable genre: literary criticism, poetry, novel, short story, biography, theology, apologetics, mystery—and the list goes on. Rather than journalist, he could be better dubbed a Christian cultural critic in the English “man of letters” tradition.

Chesterton delights many of his readers as a gracious person who fights for Christian truth, but never arrogantly, rather as a genius with an open mind, as a grateful person with deep devotion to God and commitment to stand alongside the common citizen. Perhaps you will come to find, as others before you, that Gilbert Keith Chesterton has walked into your life to make you laugh and think, to serve as your friend and mentor.

Robert Moore-Jumonville
Spring Arbor University
2007

Thanks to Fr. Hahn of St. Peter Catholic Church

When seeking Father Hahn's support for the upcoming (March 2010) Old Thunder: An Evening with Hilaire Belloc presentation, I also asked him if he could put a notice in the Weekly Bulletin about the upcoming Dec 16 Chillicothe Chesterton Society Meeting. He has done that, and I thank him. We'd love to see one or two additional members of St. Peter's parish at the meeting!

Uncommonsense Podcast 12 Now Available

The new Uncommonsense Podcast is now available. In it Nancy discusses Chapter One of William Oddie's Chesterton Biography. Just click on the icon to the left to listen. There is one copy of the book available at Book World, if you're so inclined.

Chesterton Books Arrive at Book World

Book World has received most of the Chesterton Books I requested they order. So if you've just been waitng to be able to thumb through a Chesterton book before you buy it, you now have the opportunity do to so. Book World is located at:

16 West Water Street
Chillicothe, OH 45601-2421
(740) 772-5732

Support your local book store and other downtown businesses. Practice Distributism!

Uncommonsense Podcast

Check out Uncommonsense podcast number 11. Nancy Brown spends a minute or so talking about the "Chill i coeth" (Chillicothe) Chesterton Society. A very nice notice for us! She mentioned Kevin O'Brien and his upcoming "Old Thunder" presentation. I sent her an e-mail thanking her and providing the correct pronunciation of Chillicothe. If you'd like to listen to the podcast, just click on the title of this post or click on the start button on the moving Uncommonsense Podcast icon.

Chillicothe Gazette Writes About the Chillicothe Chesterton Society

I met Jona Ison, a reporter for the Chillicothe Gazette, by accident when I was substitute teaching at Paint Valley High School last week. I invited her to our (then) upcoming Wednesday night Chesterton Society meeting at Schlegel's. She was unable to attend, but did call me and invite me in to the Gazette for an interview. I spoke with her last Tuesday. Today, Friday, Nov 27, an article about the Chillicothe Chesterton Society appeared on the front page of the Gazette. I certainly hope it generates a little more interest in Chesterton and we get one or two new folks to attend our December meeting.

Great News

I spoke with Fr. Hahn of St. Peter Catholic Church yesterday. He is willing to provide a venue for the Theater of The Word's presentation of Old Thunder: An Evening with Hiliare Belloc. The presentation is scheduled for March 23, next year, 2010. The exact time will be announced at a later date. Right now, we just want folks to get it on their calendar so we can have a good turn out for a great show!

Here is a preview of how Kevin O'Brien presents Hilaire Belloc. I'm not sure it's part of his Old Thunder presentation, but it gives you the flavor of it, I'm sure! The first man you see in the clip is Dale Ahlquist, the President of the American Chesterton Society. The guy (at minute 2:41) in the cape and holding the walking stick is actor/professor Chuck Chalberg. He portrays G.K. Chesterton on the EWTN series, G.K. Chesterton: The Apostle of Common Sense.

Selected Chesterton Books to Be Available at Chillicothe's Book World

Chillicothe's Book World, located at 16 W. Water Street (740) 772-5732, will be ordering several books about Chesterton and several books written by Chesterton. They should have them available within a couple of weeks. I'll put up a post on the blog when they arrive. We're hoping that having them available for review, on the shelf, will generate some interest. We'll see.

Books about Chesterton:

G.K. Chesterton - The Apostle of Common Sense
by Dale Ahlquist

Chesterton and the Romance of Orthodoxy
By William Oddie

Books by Chesterton:

Orthodoxy

The Everlasting Man

Tremendous Trifles

Saint Thomas Aquinas / Saint Francis of Assisi

Father Brown of the Church of Rome

The Man Who Was Thursday

November 18th Meeting

Well, another successful meeting. It's always a success when someone joins me for the meeting! In the picture above, it's me, Jim Maimone, and Tim Binkley. Andrew Thurston was gracious enough to take the picture. While Andrew has to work during the meetings, he is a member of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society, so maybe I'll never attend a meeting by myself, at least as long as Andrew continues to work at Schlegel's.

Jim Maimone attended his first meeting last night. When I asked Jim how he found out about the meeting, he said he had read about it in St. Peter's church bulletin. The notice in the bulletin was quite old, but Jim had saved it and finally had the opportunity to join us. I'll be asking St. Peter's to run the notice again. I may get yet another member!

We talked about Distributism. All of us are new to the concept so we've decided it will also be the subject of our December meeting. We'd like to know more about it. We've got lots of reading to do.

Since both Jim and Tim are new to Chesterton, I showed them some links we have on this blog. Using one of those links (YouTube) we listened to one of the few recordings of Chesterton. We all enjoyed it. Chesterton's self deprecating humor is refreshing.

And, finally, the big announcement. See the post below. Hilare Belloc will be visiting Chillicothe, Ohio in March of 2010.

An Evening with "Old Thunder" aka Hilaire Belloc

Here's the announcement made last night at our monthly meeting. We're really excited about this!

While it's a way off at the moment, The Chillicothe Chesterton Society will be sponsoring Old Thunder: An Evening with Hilaire Belloc in 2010. Save the date. It will be Tuesday evening, March 23 at a venue which is yet to be determined. To learn a bit about Hilaire Belloc, just click his name.

Old Thunder: An Evening with Hilaire Belloc is a one man show presented by actor Kevin O'Brien, who is the founder of Theater of the Word, Incorporated.

Here's what G.K. Chesterton had to say about Belloc: [Belloc is] "the man who has made the greatest fight for good things of all the men of my time."

As the date approaches we'll make up flyers and provide some advertising for this event.

Exciting Announcement Due at Wednesday's Meeting

What is it? Come to the next meeting on Wednesday at 7 p.m., November 18th at Schlegel's and find out! As usual we'll be talking about everything and, eventually, Distributism. The discussion will not be too deep, because I'm just learning about Distributism. I'll have a copy of Chesterton's The Outline of Sanity, and Belloc's The Servile State available for review. These two books were recommended to me by the President of the Society for Distributism. I'll also have my laptop and we'll take advantage of Schlegel's Wi-Fi so we can check out the sites providing information on Distributism.

Here's something else we might discuss. It's a quote from Chesterton.

"The free man owns himself. He can damage himself with either eating or drinking; he can ruin himself with gambling. If he does he is certainly a damn fool, and he might possibly be a damned soul; but if he may not, he is not a free man any more than a dog." - Broadcast talk 6-11-35

Hmm! Was my recent vote against casinos consistent with Chestertonian thinking? Based on the above quote, I guess it wasn't.

Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874-1936)
“Who is this guy and why haven’t I heard of him?”

From the American Chesterton Society’s web site: Chesterton was equally
at ease with literary and social criticism, history, politics, economics,
philosophy, and theology. His style is unmistakable, always marked by
humility, consistency, paradox, wit, and wonder. His writing remains as
timely and as timeless today as when it first appeared.



Come learn a bit more about Chesterton at the next meeting of the
Chillicothe Chesterton Society. It will be held on Nov 18th at 7:00 P.M.
in Schlegel’s Coffee House located at 80 N. Paint St. Chillicothe, OH.
For more information call Bob Cook at 740-703-5651.

Theater of The Word Incorporated Coming to Washington Court House

I recently received word from Kevin O'Brien that his theater company, The Theater of the Word Incorporated, has been booked for March 22, 2010 for St. Colman Parish in Washington Court House, Ohio. The company will be presenting Faith of Our Father: The Story of a Priest.

Written and produced for the Year of the Priest, this humorous and touching tale tells the story of Fr.Mike, a young priest recently appointed pastor at the suburban parish St. Somewhere. Thrust into the midst of parish politics, fundraising fiascoes, and the day-to-day challenge of caring for souls, Fr. Mike’s faith begins to falter . . . until a visit by an angel, as well as examples of great priests of the past, show him the true way of love and sacrifice. A funny, profound, and heartwarming story dedicated to those who dedicate themselves to us—our priests.

I'll blog more about this as the date grows nearer.

The Wisdom of Mr. Chesterton

I've just pre-ordered a new book of Chesterton "Quotes, Quips and Cracks" edited by Dave Armstrong. Here's his blog and the associated press release. Per Dave:

I'm really excited about this. The title is, The Wisdom of Mr. Chesterton: The Very Best Quotes, Quips and Cracks from the pen of G. K. Chesterton. I selected all the quotations, and they are all single sentences. The material is copiously categorized and indexed in various ways, for ease of access.

G.K. Chesterton to be brought to life at MVNU

I know this is a little early, but..... when you're a Chesterton fanatic like me, it's never too early to plan a trip to see something Chestertonian, especially if it's only a couple of hours away.

April 6, 2010

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio – Educator and entertainer, Dr. John “Chuck” Chalberg will perform for MVNU’s Lecture/Artist Series on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 in the R.R. Hodges Chapel/Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Chalberg brings to life on stage several important historical figures and will portray G.K. Chesterton at Mount Vernon Nazarene University (MVNU).

The event is free and open to the public.

Mount Vernon is about 100 miles northeast of Chillicothe. If I can generate some interest in the Chillicothe area we could possibly get Chuck to perform here.

Distributism, Chesterton's "The Outline of Sanity" is a Place to Start

At the October meeting of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society we, both of us, decided we'd talk about Distributism at the November meeting. So I asked Richard Aleman, a Facebook Friend and the president of The Society for Distributism, to recommend a book to get us started. He and Sean Dailey recommended Chesterton's "What's Wrong With the World" and "The Outline of Sanity". They also recommended Hilare Belloc's "The Servile State". I've got the first two books and will have to order Belloc's. There are also a few blogs and web sites that have a lot of information. In fact I found it overwhelming, so I'm going to concentrate on the first two books as I get started learning about Distributism.

October 21st Meeting

(Pictured above are, from left to right, Tim Binkley, Andrew Thurston, and Bob Cook)
A small, but dedicated, group gathered to discuss all things Chesterton. We began with Lepanto. I had loaned Tim my copy of Christopher Check's CD presentation of "Lepanto: The Battle and the Poem". He was able to listen to it on his drive to work. He said he found it fascinating. Mr. Check's presentation added significantly to his enjoyment of the poem. I'd have to agree. I've listened to the CD several times and always found something new and interesting. The CD is still available from St. John Fisher Forum.

We then talked about many different things: Anita Dunn, White House Communications Director, whose favorite philosopher is Chairman Mao; Charles Krauthammer's latest article in The Weekly Standard, Decline is a Choice; Nancy Brown's facebook post of the Silent Monks Singing Halleluia; a little about Handel and his composition, The Messiah; why people ususally stand for the Hallelujah chorus; (an aside from Wikipedia -- There is another story told about this chorus that Handel's assistant walked in to Handel's room after shouting to him for several minutes with no response. The assistant reportedly found Handel in tears, and when asked what was wrong, Handel held up the score to this movement and said, "I thought I saw the face of God."); and finally, Distributism. I know little, if anything about Distributism. I did know it was related to the Catholic social doctrine of subsidiarity. So we agreed that at out next meeting we would educate each other a bit on Distributism. We'll be using information gleaned from the references on Richard Aleman's facebook info page. We should learn a lot!

Leaving Chesterton books lying around sometimes attracts new readers. (There are several on the bookshelf at Schlegel's.) Here, Julie, displays the Chesterton book she's currently reading. While she didn't join us Wednesday evening, she has found she enjoys the Father Brown stories.

September Issue of Gilbert Arrives

I found the current issue of Gilbert in my mailbox when I returned from work today. A nice way to end my workday and begin my evening. I noted a clever Clerihew on page 49.

Giacomo Puccini

Liked linguini

Had he filmed Tosca

He would have won an Osca.

I'll have this issue available for review at our next meeting, Wednesday, October 21, at Schlegel's Coffee House.

Remembering Lepanto

How did G.K. Chesterton come to write the poem Lepanto?

That is a question asked at our recent Chillicothe Society Meeting. While I had read the poem Lepanto in the book of that title, edited by Dale Ahlquist, I had forgotten the explanation related by Dale in his discussion of the poem. Here it is:

The man who was the inspiration for Chesterton's most famous fictional character was also the inspiration for Chesterton's most famous poem. That man was Father John O'Connor, the priest who was the model for Father Brown. In the spring of 1911, both Chesterton and Father O'Connor participated in a debate about war. The two friends were apparently on the same side in the debate. Chesterton argued that all wars are religious wars, and Father O'Connor gave a description of the battle of Lepanto that Chesterton said was "magnificent". It obviously stirred his fertile imagination. Father O'Connor later recalled;

I told of how Phillip the Second of Spain had been assembling his Armada to invade England and could only spare two ships to face the hundred galleys of the Porte, and how Don John of Austria, the only commander under whom Genoa would agree with Venice, burst the battle-line on a sinking ship after fighting through all the hours of daylight. And the story of the Pope's prayer all that day and his vision of the crisis of the action at three in the afternoon, with his vision of the victory of the Angelus. Thus, I take it, came Chesterton to write the imcomparable ballad of Lepanto (Father Brown on Chesterton, p. 85)

Successful First Meeting

The September meeting of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society got off to a great start tonight, with three of us meeting at Schlegel's. We talked about Chesterton and everything else. Pictured above, from left to right, are Tim Binkley, Margaret Breidenbaugh, and Bob Cook. Tim is from Lancaster and Margaret resides, for the next few days at least, in Chillicothe. Tim is reading The Everlasting Man, Margaret is reading Orthodoxy, having recently completed reading several Father Brown stories. The subject for our October meeting will be Lepanto, the battle and Chesterton's poem. I'll post a bit more about Lepanto over the next few days.

Society Meetings to Resume September 16, 2009

After a several month's long Summer hiatus, the regular monthly meetings of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society will resume on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 7 p.m. in Schlegel's Coffee House and Art Gallery. I'll have the most recent Gilbert Magazines available, and the books I've left at Schlegel's will be available, too. We can use this first meeting of the year to learn a bit about G.K. Chesterton as well as each other.

Looking ahead to October, the subject of the meeting will be Chesterton's poem, Lepanto. Never heard of the poem or the Battle? Just take a moment and read Wikipedia's entry about "one of the decisive events in the world."

I hope to see you at Schlegels. The libations are on me!

Yet Another Title to be Added to the Schlegel Collection

In my continuing efforts to get Chillicotheans interested in G. K. Chesterton, I have left nine free copies of the Dover edition of Favorite Father Brown Stories on the bookshelf at Schlegel's Coffee House for taking/borrowing by interested readers. I have some Chillicothe Chesterton Society cards in them, so that if after reading the stories someone wants to join the Society (no dues) they'll have the necessary info available.

Dramatic Reading of Chesterton's "Manalive"

I had the good fortune to be able to purchase a copy of Kevin O'Brien's dramatic reading of Chesterton's Manalive at the recent Chesterton Conference. Also, as you can see, Kevin was kind enough to autograph the CD cover for me. The really valuable autograph, however, is on the back side of the box. It says "Whatever" signed Stanford Nutting.

Kevin O'Brien's Comments on The Chesterton Conference

Kevin O'Brien has some nice things to say, in the Saint Austin Review, about the recent Chesterton Conference held in Seattle, WA.

GKC Makes Cover of "The Weekly Standard"

Imagine my surprise when I checked my mail box and found my latest issue of The Weekly Standard had a caricature of Chesterton on the cover! I immediately posted the info on my Facebook page on and Facebook's Chesterton Fan page. The article on GKC is by Chuck Chalberg. It's a review of William Oddie's new book, Chesterton and the Romance of Orthodoxy.

Dr. Oddie spoke at last year's Chesterton Conference, noting that he was working on a book. We now have the book. I guess I'll just have to get Oddie's book, right after I finish reading Maisie Ward's biography of Chesterton.

Clerihews, What are They?

Per Wikipedia, Edmond Clerihew Bentley (10 July 1875 - 30 Mach 1956) was a popular English novelist and humorist of the early twentieth century, and the inventor of the clerihew, an irregular form of humorous verse on biographical topics. And of course a very close friend of G. K. Chesterton.

A clerihew is a whimsical, four-line biographical poem invented by Edmond Clerihew Bentley. The lines are comically irregular in length, and the rhymes, often contrived, are structured AABB.

Here's one I wrote:

Gier Hasnes
About Chesterton he does obsess.
The stories of his quests are legion.
What else would you expect of the world’s greatest living Norwegian?

I hope to write more during this coming year and submit them for judging at the next Chesterton Conference Clerihew Contest.

2009 Chesterton Conference, Seattle, WA

The 2009 Chesterton Conference was excellent, as expected. You can check out the Society Blog for great descriptions of each of the presentations. There are lots of pictures available, too. I've also posted my pictures of the conference on Facebook, so you can look at those, too. Among the many firsts at the conference, we had the World Premiere of The Honour of Israel Gow, A Father Brown Mystery, starring Kevin O'Brien. The Premiere was followed by a Q&A session with the cast and crew. And, of course, the DVD is available from the Chesterton Society, as well as EWTN.

New Title Added to Books at Schlegels

I stopped by Schlegel's this morning and the owner, Liz Corzine, was there. I mentioned that I had put a few books by Chesterton on the bookshelf, and she was OK with that. I also added Joseph Pearce's biography of Chesterton to the shelf. Who knows, someone else might be interested in this "Apostle of Common Sense"!

Selected G.K. Chesterton Titles at Schlegel's

In my continuing efforts to get Chillicotheans interested in G.K. Chesterton, I'm going to put seven of his less expensive paperback books on the bookshelf at Schlegel's. While I have not had this approved by Schlegel's owner, I suspect she will not object. All I ask is that the books be left at Schlegel's so that anyone wanting some light reading (except Orthodoxy) might have access to the books while they are enjoying a libation or one of Schlegel's delicious chicken salad croissants. Who knows, with the way things are going with the state budget, the books might not even be available in the Library. Finally, I've included my card in each book, so that if someone is interested in joining the Chillicothe Chesterton Society, they can get in touch with me.

Uncle Chestnut

In reviewing the Chesterton Fan Page on Facebook, I came across a post by Paul Nowak, an author and freelance writer. Paul has written and published a book: The Inconvenient Adventures of Uncle Chestnut. The book, written at the 6th grade level, introduces children to the writings of G. K. Chesterton. As Paul says on his web site, "Uncle Chestnut draws primarily from Chesterton’s Tremendous Trifles and teaches the value of seeing everyday obstacles as exciting and unique adventures." Interestingly, I just finished reading Tremendous Trifles, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Call from "G.K. Chesterton"

What a great day! I'm having one of my "retired" days, just playing on the Internet and avoiding mowing the lawn, and I get a call from G. K. Chesterton (Dr. Chuck Chalberg.) He called me thinking that the Chillicothe Chesterton Society might like to have him make a presentation as G. K. Chesterton sometime next year. I explained that the entire Chillicothe Chesterton Society consists of only me. I'm not having a lot of luck enticing folks to join. However, he is going to send me some info on his shows and I'll work with the local churches to see if we can generate some interest in having him stop down here to Chillicothe when he visits Mt. Vernon in April of next year. I'll be working very hard to make a visit from Chuck/G.K possible for next year. Here is Chuck's web site, History on Stage, if you'd like to check out all his talents. You can also hear Chuck on EWTN's Apostle of Common Sense, with Dale Ahlquist.

2009 Chesterton Conferfence T-Shirts

Yesterday I received the 2009 Chesterton Conference T-shirts I ordered. They were only made possible by the assistance of Ted Schulenderfritz, Gilbert Magazine's art director. He provided the art work to Valarie Hornyak of HIGHPoint Outfitters located in Vermilion, OH.

A very limited quantity should be available for purchase at the Conference in Seattle.

What's Wrong With The World?

Today I read an article in Catholic Online, which is also the source of the picture below. The title of the article is: Self Worship: The 'Sin of ME'. In reading the article, I thought of Chesterton's response to an invitation by The London Times to write an essay on the theme of "What's Wrong with the World?" Chesterton's response?

Dear Sirs,

I am.

Sincerely yours,

G. K. Chesterton

As noted in Wikipedia: "Typically, Chesterton here combined wit with a serious point - that of fallen human nature and humility."


The point of this post is to try to get you to read the Catholic Online article. For Chesterton purists, the "Quotemeister" at The American Chesterton Society has this to say about the validity of the "I am." quotation.

Chestertoons

In reviewing the G K. Chestertons Fan page on Facebook, I came across a link to Chestertoons. As Nancy Brown says on today's ACS blog: "The audio, although it sounds old, is really Chuck Chalberg from the ACS tv show on EWTN (by permission), but I do think it adds to the presentation to have the graphics, and is another clever way to present Chesterton to the waiting world."

Hymns at Church

I never could resist piling on. When I read Hymns at Church in the current issue of Gilbert, my fingers started to tingle. I just had to add my two cents. (Full disclosure, I'm a convert from the Episcopal Church) In my youth I sang in a paid church choir for several years. The choir was directed by Mr. Clifford Balshaw. He was an accomplished organist and choirmaster. To this day when I hear a good organist play something by Bach, I get chills up my spine. (See some of the organ pipes in the picture at right. The picture is from St. Stephens Church, Wilkes-Barre, PA, in the 1960s. ) St. Stephen's choir consisted of about 10-15 boys (sopranos) 4 women (altos) and about 8 men; four tenors and four basses. (There are now girls in the choir.) My brother also sang in the choir. I remember that rehearsals were about and hour long, twice a week. What little I know about singing and music I learned from Mr. Balshaw. I know he said many, many interesting things. We occasionally sang in Latin, so I learned how to pronounce a very limited amount of Latin. However the day he told my brother to sit up straight and "get out of his Cleopatra slouch", is one I'll never forget. My brother was embarrassed and so was I. After that we both kept our feet flat on the floor and sat up straight in our chairs.

But, to the point. I occasionally sing in our local church choir (St. Benignus in Greenfield, OH). Usually there are only two or three of us. On a good day their might be five of us. We usually sing in unison. I really don't care for most of the newer hymns in the Heritage Missal. Now for my rant on the newer hymns. Since when does a hymn to be sung by a congregation, the majority of whom can't read music, count time, etc. start with a rest, have triplets, and multiple notes floating around in the measure to accommodate words that make the rhythm change on every verse? I call them "hokey hymns". The choir director is not always amused. I just remind myself that no matter what I think about the hymns, we are helping in the liturgy. And, I'll always get to sing Barbershop on Thursday nights. Barbershop songs, of course, are not "Hokey". By the way, the choir director sings with the Sweet Adelines in Columbus, so I cut her some slack!

New Issue of Gilbert Arrives

My new issue of Gilbert arrived yesterday. I, of course, immediately took it with me to Schlegel's. I relaxed with a decaf coffee and got to read several pages. I'm looking forward to reading the entire issue. I'm already planning to watch "The Maltese Falcon" again, after reading the movie review.

Saint Gilbert?

The Catholic Herald (UK) notes that: "G K Chesterton's reputation for holiness will be boosted next month when leading scholars meet in Oxford to discuss his Cause." You can read the article at the Catholic Herald link above, or see some additional information at the American Chesterton Society's blog.

Happy Birthday Mr. Chesterton

Today is G.K. Chesterton's birthday. What a gift to the world! Chesterton was born on this date in 1874. In honor of his birthday, and in order to prepare for this year's Chesterton Conference, I've been reading Tremendous Trifles. A thoroughly enjoyable collection of 39 essays on an arresting array of common subjects. So far the one that has reached out and really grabbed me is The Twelve Men. Specifically where Chesterton writes: "Now, one of these four or five paradoxes which should be taught to every infant prattling at his mother's knee is the following: That the more a man looks at a thing, the less he can see it...." I experienced that when I was working and living in Tucson, Arizona several years ago. I was renting a room in a house which, from the front steps, had a gorgeous view of the Catalina Mountains. For the first couple of months I really looked at the mountains each morning as came out of the house to drive to work. The view was inspiring. Eventually, however, I didn't see the mountains. They were, of course, still there, but not for me. After a year or so, as my work in Tucson was drawing to a close and I was leaving the house for the last time, I looked up, and for the first time in over a year, saw the mountains again. And I remember thinking, how could I have not seen this beautiful sight each and every day? Chesterton, of course, has the answer, or at least that's what I think he means: "That the more a man looks at a thing, the less he can see it..."

Holy Cow! April/May Issue of Gilbert has Arrived

The new issue of Gilbert has recently arrived in my mailbox. There are quite a few humorous comments about the cover on the ACS Blog. You might want to take a peek.


Last night I read this issue cover to cover. The ACS Blogmistress asked that readers send in any comments they might have to the Editor. Here's a copy of what I sent to the Editor.

On the ACS Blog, Nancy asked that Gilbert readers provide you some comments on the current issue. So here are a few of mine:

I always enjoy John Peterson's stories. I especially enjoyed "Mason is Shadowed". I did not see that ending coming. I suppose, somewhat like Mason and the bus. And was it planned or just serendipitous that the ending to the story started on a new page?

The Secret Constitution was timely, given that a new Supreme Court justice will be appointed shortly. Justice Scalia is one of my heroes, even is he is a bit acerbic in some of his dissents.

As a subscriber to First Things, I'm always glad to see anything related to the late Fr. Neuhaus/First Things mentioned in Gilbert, i.e. the review of Catholic Matters. Also the sidebar: Distributism is Everywhere from First Things letters.

Seeing Winkie. As a transplant to rural southern Ohio from the suburbs, I too was amazed the first time I saw a cow jump a 4 ft fence. And I, too, would not have had things quite as easy if it were not for some very helpful rural neighbors who showed us how to "capture a spring" for drinking water, identify trees so as to not cut down the wrong type for fence posts (you want locust), dig post holes with a spud bar and posthole digger, stretch woven wire fence, put up electric fence, give a cow an injection, and yes, bend the tail up to gain some measure of control over the creature. The other thing we had to learn was to listen carefully and translate words from the local dialect. We found that our electricity came from the PAR (power) company, if we had a brush fire and needed assistance we should call the FAR (fire) department. Also, if we were invited up for dinner, we had better be there at noon! Yes, Seeing Winkie brought back fond memories.

Reading Three Acres and A Penguin lead me to check out billpowellisalive.com and his several web sites. I've now got them in my Favorites and will visit them often.

Clerihew Corner. What can I say? I've finally been published. And now I'm really enthused about writing more Clerihews for the upcoming Conference contest. Also, I substitute teach occasionally. As it is the end of the school year here, the kids are not really into doing any more school work. So I sponsored an informal Clerihew contest in one of my classes. The prize was $5. I only got about half of the kids interested, but at least some of them now have heard of G. K. Chesterton (to paraphrase Rahm Emanuel, never waste an opportunity to proselytize for G. K. Chesterton and E. C. Bentley) and know what a Clerihew is. My task for next year is to convince the British/World Literature teacher to at least mention Chesterton along with his contemporaries such as Wells, Shaw, and Wilde.

And last, but certainly not least, I enjoyed the three pieces by Nancy Brown, our ACS Blog Mistress. Her interview of Dr. von Hildebrand and her review of The Privilege of Being Woman introduced me to a new author. Nancy's essay on Fatherhood is also timely, with Father's Day coming up next month. Also, I work part time in a facility that treats about 60 young men. Almost without exception they come from homes with no father present. I feel certain that if these young men had had good role models, they would not have ended up where they now are. Fathers are very important.

All in all, a very enjoyable issue.

"Debaptism"?

From the current (June/July, 2009) Issue of First Things, While We're At It:
• The National Secular Society of England has begun a campaign that promotes “de-baptism.” For £3 (about $5) a person can get a parchment de-baptism certificate, which claims the holder was a victim of baptism before the age of consent, and purports to revoke and renounce whatever church it was that did the baptism. Additionally, the newly un-baptized rejects all creeds and other such superstitions of the Christian faith. According to one de-baptizee, baptizing infants without their consent is a form of child abuse. So far, the National Secular Society claims, 100,000 Brits have applied for de-baptism.Baptism for those baptized is a biographical fact of life, no more erasable from one’s history than birth from one’s parents. Beyond biography, Christians assert baptism is an indelible claim from God upon the whole person. If God is likely to have any say in the matter, these de-baptizees, for all their petulance, might be in for a nice surprise come the other side of death. Of course, by then it will be too late to get a refund.

At first I thought this might be a joke, but I Googled National Secular Society of England and found that it wasn't.

What does G.K. have to say about this?

Certain new theologians dispute original sin, which is the only part of Christian theology which can really be proved (Orthodoxy, chap. 2).

Summer Hiatus for Chillicothe Chesterton Society

There will be no meetings of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society in June, July or August of 2009. Meetings will resume in September. However, if you'd like to learn more about G.K. Chesterton, feel free to contact me at 740-703-5651. I've got quite a few of his books that I would consider lending out. And, of course, you could always attend the 2009 Conference to be held August 6-8 in Seattle, WA. More information on the Conference is available here.

American Spectator's Book Review

In an issue (April 2009) through which you don't have to root far to find something interesting, Midge Decter's review of Herbert London's new book, America's Secular Challenge: The Rise of a New National Relegion, is just a trough of references to our man, G.K Chesterton. She begins: "G. K. Chesterton once observed that people who cease to believe in God will not then believe in nothing but will rather believe in anything." Note that she did not quote Chesterton. Rather, she continues: "Who can offer better confirmation of what might have been Chesterton’s most brilliant aperçu than those of us living in the United States of America in the 21st century?" Aperçu? Over to The Free Dictionary -- (a discerning perception; an insight.) Perhaps Ms. Decter was aware of The Quotmeister's authoritative pronouncements on this particular Chesterton "quotation." To wit: "The Quotemeister has become convinced that the source of the fugitive quotation is Emile Cammaerts, whose ambiguous typography misled Christopher Hollis and through him others (including, at last, all of the rest of us) into the mistaken conviction that a thought repeated over and over by Chesterton had a specific epigrammatic form that Chesterton never precisely gave it."

And now, to quote further from the book review:

Herbert London’s catalogue of Chestertonian “anythings,” while brief, is impressively comprehensive. There is to begin with a seemingly everspreading conviction that unlike scientific truths, limited as every honest scientist recognizes they must necessarily be, the free-floating individual’s moral convictions are to be arrived at by no more humbling or instructive means than looking into his own conscience. Small wonder, then, as London points out, that this process so often results in an understanding not of what is good but rather of what is most convenient for him. And writ large, such a mindset (if one may for convenience be allowed to call it that) results with almost perfect directness in the idea that ultimately it is something called "the government" that must rightly be one’s brother's keeper of first, last, and ultimate resort. Now, apart from a long and sometimes very costly process of learning that government cannot satisfactorily serve as mankind's (or, for that matter, one's own) keeper, London reminds us that the very idea can be transformed from a mere refusal of responsibility into truly positive ugliness. He cites for an example the early 20th-century enthusiasm for that so-called science known as eugenics, which set out to improve mankind by manipulating the genetic stock of the world’s inferior peoples, especially but not exclusively people of color. Eugenics fortunately went the way of faith in séances (except of course in Auschwitz). Nevertheless the idea that to make men healthy, wealthy, and wise is first and foremost the responsibility of government has if anything become more firmly entrenched. By now, indeed, the philosophical as well as psychological refusal of individual moral responsibility has become no less than the founding credo of the new national religion referred to in London’s subtitle.

And now I have to order the book from Amazon!

28th Annual Chesterton Conference Logo

Ted Schluenderfritz, Gilbert's Art Director, has recently completed the Logo for the 28th Annual Chesterton Conference, to be held August 6-8 in Seattle, WA.

Here it is, for your enjoyment.

Miss America Contestant and Tolerance

Seems the so-called 'Celebrity Blogger' Perez Hilton wants tolerance to be a one way street. Those of us who find homosexual behavior immoral must be tolerant of that behavior, but homosexuals will not be tolerant of those who don't agree with them. Father Dwight Longenecker's Blog, Standing on My Head, has an entry on Tolerance which I found enlightening.

Likewise Peter Kreeft has written a book, A Refutation of Moral Relativism, which I can recommend reading. Along with the book, you can read or listen to a lecture he presented which covered the major points in his book.

Here is an excerpt from his lecture:

Moral practice has always been difficult for fallen humanity, but at least there was always the lighthouse of moral principles, no matter how stormy the sea of moral practice got. But today, with the majority of our mind-molders, in formal education, or informal education—that is, media—the light is gone. Morality is a fog of feelings. That is why to them, as Chesterton said, "Morality is always dreadfully complicated to a man who has lost all his principles." Principles mean moral absolutes. Unchanging rocks beneath the changing waves of feelings and practices. Moral relativism is a philosophy that denies moral absolutes. That thought to me is the prime suspect—public enemy number one. The philosophy that has extinguished the light in the minds of our teachers, and then their students, and eventually, if not reversed, will extinguish our whole civilization. Therefore, I want not just to present a strong case against moral relativism, but to refute it, to unmask it, to strip it naked, to humiliate it, to shame it, to give it the wallop it deserves, as they say in Texas, America's good neighbor to the south.

Demographics & Depression

I'd like to suggest you read the article Demographics & Depression in the newest edition of First Things. It really is a different take on our current economic situation. As much as I might like to hold people like Barney Frank and Chris Dodd at least partially responsible for our economic debacle, this article says we have a much bigger problem than the one those two contributed to.

Platitudes Undone

What would we do without Ignatius Press? We'd certainly not have as many of Chesterton's books and essays available as we currently do. I'm not sure how I stumbled upon it, but recently I discovered "Platitudes Undone". According to Amazon.com, "This little book is a facsimile of a personal copy of a privately published edition of Holbrook Jackson's Platitudes in the Making (1911), given to G.K. Chesterton by the author, and containing Chesterton's handwritten notes in the margins and between lines."

What fun to read. One platitude, among the many, that made me smile, given all the Relativists I know, is: "No opinion matters finally: except your own." and Chesterton's note: "said the man who thought he was rabbit." Perhaps this can serve as a discussion starter at the next meeting of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society. We'll see.

Objective Newsweek?

I knew there was a reason I stopped reading Newsweek! As I recently sat in a dentist's office, I searched for something to read (I had left my new copy of National Review in my car). I found the current issue of Newsweek. I read editor Jon Meacham's cover story, “The End of Christian America.” The more I read the article, the more upset I got. Then I wondered if I had simply moved further Right, or perhaps Newsweek had moved further Left? Maybe a little, or lot, of both! This morning, as I was trying to find an on-line version of "Demographics & Depression," by David Goldman (the article appears in the May issue of First Things), I came across Ryan Anderson's article in the First Things Blog, "The Decline of Christian America, or Objective Reporting?" Mr. Anderson takes Newsweek to task in his opening remark:

Here we are, getting ready for our big week, reflecting on our Savior’s death for humankind and celebrating the triumph and miracle of his resurrection, and then we get the news from Newsweek that we as a movement are now dead.

Mr. Anderson then goes on to challenge and refute many of Meacham's "facts." I'll have to redouble my efforts to remember my own reading material on future visits to dentists and doctors.

Next Meeting, April 15, 7:00 P.M. at Schlegel's

Gilbert Keith Chesterton (1874-1936)

“Who is this guy and why haven’t I heard of him?”

According to the American Chesterton Society web site: "Chesterton was equally at ease with literary and social criticism, history, politics, economics, philosophy, and theology. His style is unmistakable, always marked by humility, consistency, paradox, wit, and wonder. His writing remains as timely and as timeless today as when it first appeared."

Come learn a bit more about Chesterton at the next meeting of the Chillicothe Chesterton Society. It will be held on April 15th, at 7:00 P.M. In Schlegel’s Coffee House located at 80 N. Paint St. Chillicothe, OH. For more information call Bob Cook at 740-703-5651.

Come What May, A New Pro-Life and Family DVD

From the Christian Cinema.com web site:

The judges are stacked against them...but the greatest debate will happen before they ever enter the courtroom. Patrick Henry College and the Advent Film Group team up in a new film presenting arguments that one day could be used to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that found a right to abortion in the U.S. constitution. In the movie Caleb, a Christian student attending Patrick Henry, is caught in a moral tug-of-war as he challenges Roe v. Wade at the National Moot Court Championship. At the same time his mother, a feminist attorney, argues the case at the U.S. Supreme Court, but on the opposing side. This film is appropraite for the whole family and will be a conversation starter around issues that need to be discussed and dealt within the context of families. Choose what's right.

From the ACS web site: Only one writer wrote a book against Eugenics. G.K. Chesterton. Eugenics and Other Evils may be his most prophetic book.

The thing that really is trying to tyrannize through government is Science. The thing that really does use the secular arm is Science. And the creed that really is levying tithes and capturing schools, the creed that really is enforced by fine and imprisonment, the creed that really is proclaimed not in sermons but in statutes, and spread not by pilgrims but by policemen - that creed is the great but disputed system of thought which began with Evolution and has ended in Eugenics. Materialism is really our established Church; for the Government will really help it to persecute its heretics.

Manalive, The Movie

The filming of G.K. Chesterton's Manalive is almost complete. We look forward to viewing it. Maybe we'll get a sneak preview at the Chesterton Conference in Seattle, in August of this year.

Lunacy and Letters

On the ACS blog, Nancy Brown asked a trivia question which I tried to answer. While I did not discover the answer she was looking for, I did come across an interesting bit of Chestertonian trivia. The trivia question involved the art work associated with the Lunacy and Letters Column in the current issue of Gilbert. The art work consists of a couple of U.S. postage stamps with GKC's picture on them (fictional, by the way, as there are no U.S. stamps with GKC on them). I did discover that Czechoslovakia (1969) did issue a stamp with a caricature of Chesterton on it. And here it is.

Humor from Kevin O'Brien

Here are a couple of interviews with Stanford Nutting that I find quite enjoyable. Stanford is an author and adjunct at a local community college. I hope you enjoy them too.

"Authors Today" Kirkwood Derby interviews popular guest Stanford Nutting, editor of "A Compendium of the Best of Post-Modern Theology."

"Religion Matters" Again Kirkwood Derby interviews Professor Nutting on the Professor's views on religion.

March Issue of Gilbert Arrives

I received my March issue of Gilbert, the magazine of the American Chesterton Society (ACS), on Thursday, March 19. Another great cover by Ted Schluenderfritz. I've only read a couple of articles, so I'm not sure which will turn out to be my favorite. I'll post my choice in a week or so. I was pleased to see that Dale Ahlquist's (ACS president) upcoming speaking engagements were listed in the magazine. I've not noticed that before, but I think it's a first. I sent a note to the ACS suggesting that that add that feature to the Society's web site. That way any fanatics like me can decide if they want to drive to something that might be within a couple of hours and listen to Mr. Ahlquist. And if you do get to hear Dale, be sure your cell phone is off. (There is a hefty fine if your cell phone goes off during one of his presentations. Just kidding, I think!) I'm beginning to look forward to August 6-8, the dates of the upcoming 2009 Chesterton Conference in Seattle, WA. I'm also looking forward to receiving a book I recently ordered from the Society, "Paradox in Chesterton" by Hugh Kenner.

Notice I have not mentioned the last Meeting. There was a notice for it in the Chillicothe Gazette. But to no avail. I, however, was there and had a nice conversation with Erin, one of Schlegel's friendly barista's. I also enjoyed my decaf latte and a few pages of the "Flying Inn." Finally, as I departed thru the rear door, I viewed the beautiful art work of Gretchen Tippie. You folks don't know what you're missing!

Kevin O'Brien and Theater of The Word

I had the opportunity to see Kevin O'Brien live last night at St. Colman's in Washington CH. His theater company, The Theater of The Word Incorporated, presented The Journey of St. Paul. In the words of Kevin's web site:

This thrilling show will make you feel as if you've met the man himself - the most thrilling, outspoken, and courageous of the apostles. It's an encounter you won't want to miss!

I'm not sure how much advertising was done for the presentation, but it was pretty well attended.

After the presentation, I had the opportunity to speak with Kevin and I asked him about his dramatic reading of Father Brown. Specifically whose voice he meant Valentin, "the head of the Paris police and the most famous investigator of the world" to be. He confirmed, "Why inspector Clouseau, of course." I then asked him to autograph my CD box, and he graciously did so. Kevin also mentioned that he would be attending the upcoming Chesterton Conference in Seattle, WA. I told him I hoped to see him there.