The Catholic Church and Conversion - Aziloth Books | Christian Faith & Religious Studies | Perfect for Spiritual Seekers & Bible Study Groups

Like Orthodoxy, which is arguably Chesterton's best non-fiction book, this is an exciting book with a dull title. Orthodoxy, however, had a somewhat better subtitle: "The Romance of Faith". In his 1936 autobiography, Chesterton admitted that he thought Orthodoxy was a bad title and had always meant to change it but never got around to it. He makes no such comments on this book.Until now, the only way to get this book was in Collected Works Volume III which collects the so-called and little-known "Catholic" books written after his conversion in 1922. Most have better titles like The Thing, The Well and The Shadows and Where All Roads Lead, but this is the book that knocked me out.I found out about these books through The Apostle of Common Sense, a book and video series that ran on EWTN by Dale Ahlquist, president of the American Chesterton Society. He briefly describes thirteen of G.K.'s non-fiction works (and the Father Brown detective series), and quotes from them. That last was the clencher, as this book seemed overflowing with bon mots and Chestertonian whimsey. Who but GK would list these as the three stages of conversion: 1. Patronizing the Church; 2. Discovering the Church; 3. Running Away from the Church?GK said of his brother Cecil that "we often argued but never quarreled". Like much of GK, this book may provoke some lively arguments. But it's not simply for those interested in Rome and conversion, title to the contrary. What Ignatius has done is given us a quick read (under 150 pages) at a great price (under ten bucks) of some nearly unknown Chesterton. And when GK enters the ring, it's certain to enliven any philosophical discussion.