Orthodoxy

Written by G K Chesterton

Narrated by John Franklyn-Robbins

Orthodoxy was named as one of Publishers Weekly's 10 indispensable spiritual classics of the past 1500 years. It is the personal journal of one man's search for understanding culminating in his conversion to Catholicism. Written with wisdom and wit, G.K. Chesterton captures the very nature of faith

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 15, 2011
• ISBN: 9781461809814

G K Chesterton

Gilbraith Keith Chesterton (1874-1936) és un dels grans noms de les lletres angleses de tots els temps. Autor de la novel·la L'home que fou dijous (1908), de les biografies de Charles Dickens i de Sant Francesc d’Assís, d’una Història d’Anglaterra i dels llibres de reflexions Allò que està malament en el món i Ortodòxia. Chesterton ha exercit una forta influència en autors com Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene o Jorge Luís Borges.

Reviews for Orthodoxy

[Luther Wissa · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The best book I ever read about the defensive of our faith

[texsain · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Chesterton's "Orthodoxy" and Lewis' "Mere Christianity" are classics of contemporary Christian apologetics. Both write to a similar audience, namely, secular academics. Lewis' appeal was broader, however, for he was reaching out to those people influenced or educated by these academics. Consequently, these books are full of reason and logic but are devoid of Bible quotes. This might dismay some fundamentalists, but this type of apologetic is absolutely necessary. Just as a Muslim will not convince a Christian regarding Islam by quoting the Qu'ran, so, in most cases, a Christian will not convert a secular academic by quoting the Bible. The appeal must be made on common ground, in this case, reason and logic. In this regard, Chesterton succeeds.That being said, I give him only 3 1/2 stars because of his rambling, time-sensitive style. It is easy for an American reading in the 21st century to become completely lost in Chesterton's quips and references to late-modernity intellectuals.Lewis' broader appeal makes him more accessible to Chesterton, so I recommend "Mere Christianity" over "Orthodoxy" to the average 21st century American, whereas I recommend "Orthodoxy" to those who are educated in late 19th and early 20th-century intellectualism.Both books are useful for Christians in developing apologetic skills and for non-Christians, especially seculars, in understanding a traditional, intellectual, and non-fundamentalist brand of Christianity.

[sueincyprus · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A thoughtful and fascinating account of the author's move from agnosticism, in his teens, through to a profound faith in God, and subsequent adoption of the Christian faith.

GK Chesterton uses analogies to good effect, and describes his gradual search for meaning in life, looking at objections to God posed by atheists, and - one at a time - realising that they were all based on fallacy.

It took me several weeks to read this book; some of it was a bit long-winded, and there was much to ponder. I found his thought processes a bit convoluted in places, yet reassuring and often refreshing.

He wrote the book, apparently, to answer his critics... and in doing so produced an excellent apologetic for his beliefs. Recommended to anyone who is happy with a somewhat lengthy - and, inevitably, dated - discussion of faith from a fully rational and logical standpoint .

[Steve Longan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The book was 5 stars. The narrator occasionally drops out and it’s fairly obvious that they went back and re-recorded him. He sounds completely different on those patched in sessions and it’s a little jarring when it happens. But it’s still a great book and the narrator is excellent in the main.

[Camilo2104 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton is an essay published in 1908. The writer's purpose is to attempt an explanation, not of whether one can believe in the Christian faith, but of how he personally came to believe it. From what I read in his biography, he began exploring spiritualism and occultism, then gradually moved to the Christian faith, philosophically exploring the logics of life. It is always interesting to know what someone as intelligent as Chesterton thought.
I do not agree with all his ideas, obviously, in the end, he is a religious person who strongly defends the Catholic religion, but many interesting phrases I found in the book caught my attention on topics such as madness, thought, fantasy, and several other things. It is a book not very easy to read, but that does not make it any less interesting. (Translated from Spanish)

[José Luis Porras · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is an attempt to express the inexpressible. “Man is more masculine and resembles himself when what is fundamental in him is joy and what is superficial is sadness.” An essay of free thought with autobiographical tones where Chesterton seeks answers, approaching the truth while eliminating the constraints of the mind. “The land of fairies is nothing but the luminous kingdom of common sense.” He advocates for diligence, optimism, humility, and gratitude as weapons for the modern man in his battle against inner demons. The author confirms that human beings require constant revolution. “Everything human has its share of joy and pain; what matters is how these two things are distributed and balanced.” Because balance is not impossible. (Translated from Spanish)

[Fernando1962 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have a problem with Chesterton's essays. Beyond the fact that my atheism prevents me from agreeing with the defense of his religious convictions, sometimes the twists in his (brilliant) prose make me lose track and I don’t understand what he is trying to say. Nevertheless, it is a book worth reading. (Translated from Spanish)

[mrslee_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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.

[bness2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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.

[ivinela · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

brilliant!

[bottomofthepile · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I'm in the peculiar (and rather frustrating) situation of being a book lover living in a foreign country with no access to an English library and (temporarily, I hope) in a financial situation that prevents me from buying books. Therefore, I've had to fall back on the collection of books that I already own.

I've just recently finished reading G. K. Chesterton's Orthodoxy for the 3rd time. If you're familiar with Chesterton then you well know his penchant for paradox and mirth. This writer had a knack for showing familiar things in a startling new light.

Orthodoxy doesn't disappoint. It constantly amazes and stimulates from the first page to the last. It's as good as a book on religion and philosophy can get.

I won't write about this book what's already been written in other reviews below. I'll only add that in my 3rd reading of this book I came across a passage that somehow I had forgotten after my first 2 readings. This passage is a prime example of how Chesterton can astonish:

"All the towering materialism which dominates the modern mind rests ultimately upon one assumption; a false assumption. It is supposed that if a thing goes on repeating itself is it probably dead; a piece of clockwork. People feel that if the universe was personal it would vary . . . The sun rises every morning. I do not rise every morning; but the variation is due not to my activity; but to my inactivity . . . it might be true that the sun rises regularly because he never gets tired of rising . . . The thing I mean can be seen, for instance, in children, when they find some game or joke that they especially enjoy. A child kicks his legs rhythmically through excess, not absence, of life. Because children have abounding vitality, because they are in spirit fierce and free, therefore they want things repeated and unchanged. They always say, "Do it again"; and the grown-up person does it again until he is nearly dead. For grown-up people are not strong enough to exult in monotony. But perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony. It is possible that God says every morning, "Do it again" to the sun; and every evening, "Do it again" to the moon. It may not be automatic necessity that makes all daisies alike; it may be that God makes every daisy separately, but has never got tired of making them. It may be that He has the eternal appetite of infancy; for we have sinned and grown old, and our Father is younger than we. The repetition in Nature may not be a mere recurrence; it may be a theatrical encore."

That's from a chapter titled 'The Ethics of Elfland' and I think that's a good example of the flavor of the entire book.

[nmele_4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although Chesterton included many references to his contemporaries and to the issues of his day, most of them now obscure, the clarity of his writing and the force of his argument made this an interesting and surprising read for me.

[chriszodrow · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Brilliant. One to read again and again.

[nesum_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a wonderful exploration of one man's faith. Well thought-out, and yet passionate and personal, Orthodoxy shows how Chesterton explored the issues of faith, came to a mighty conclusion, only then to realize that his conclusion was what Christianity had been preaching for centuries.

The book is a heavy one, despite its short length, but should be studied carefully by anyone who might be looking seriously at the issue of religion.

[neverstopreading-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Chesterton's "Orthodoxy" and Lewis' "Mere Christianity" are classics of contemporary Christian apologetics. Both write to a similar audience, namely, secular academics. Lewis' appeal was broader, however, for he was reaching out to those people influenced or educated by these academics. Consequently, these books are full of reason and logic but are devoid of Bible quotes. This might dismay some fundamentalists, but this type of apologetic is absolutely necessary. Just as a Muslim will not convince a Christian regarding Islam by quoting the Qu'ran, so, in most cases, a Christian will not convert a secular academic by quoting the Bible. The appeal must be made on common ground, in this case, reason and logic. In this regard, Chesterton succeeds.

That being said, I give him only 3 1/2 stars because of his rambling, time-sensitive style. It is easy for an American reading in the 21st century to become completely lost in Chesterton's quips and references to late-modernity intellectuals.

Lewis' broader appeal makes him more accessible to Chesterton, so I recommend "Mere Christianity" over "Orthodoxy" to the average 21st century American, whereas I recommend "Orthodoxy" to those who are educated in late 19th and early 20th-century intellectualism.

Both books are useful for Christians in developing apologetic skills and for non-Christians, especially seculars, in understanding a traditional, intellectual, and non-fundamentalist brand of Christianity.

[mr_rhumba · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A great work by a great writer. I wish I could have his faith!

[ashdwyer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is simply amazing. I've already written a lengthy review of it, and i'll post that here soon.