The Everlasting Man

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Summary: Polemical Comments on World History
Review: Chesterton explains his interesting and unique views on world history, mainly showing how world history has affected Christianity. I felt his views were more polemical and not so well founded on fact or research because he has only the barest of references to sources. Lots of interesting ideas, but I'm not sure how far I can trust his analysis because he doesn't put them in the context of the intellectual debate on the topics he surveys..

Rating:
Summary: Polemical Comments on World History
Review: Chesterton explains his interesting and unique views on world history, mainly showing how world history has affected Christianity. I felt his views were more polemical and not so well founded on fact or research. Lots of interesting ideas, but I'm not sure how far I can trust his analysis.

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Summary: A Great book in the Chesterton Tradition
Review: Chesterton is one of the great authors of our time and this book is no exception to the rule. Though I prefered the book St. Thomas Aquinas: the Dumb Ox, by him, The Everlasting Man is none-the-less a fantastic book.

As an answer to G.B. Shaw and H.G. Wells, Chesterton skillfully defends the Catholic and Christian against the modernist attacks which claim that Science and Religion are in conflict. Aquinas would be proud himself of Chersterton's use of Aristotle, who even Darwin claimed to be "the greatest biologist in history".

I highly recommend any Chesterton book to any reader interested in the history of philosophy, theology and man's origens. Also, you don't need a doctorate or a thesaurus to read Chesterton's witty writing.

Adam

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Summary: Everlasting Brilliance!
Review: Chesterton traces the development of religion from cave man to Christian in this comprehensive and compelling work of Catholic apologetics. He begins by convincingly (if somewhat repetitively) taking apart the theory of evolution, demonstrating that the evolutionist's coldly secular, sociological explanations of prehistoric man's religious development have no basis in fact. He next turns to the pagan world with a mesmerizing analysis of the supreme conflict between the Romans, who represented the best of paganism, and the Carthaginians, who represented the worst. A victorious Carthage would have plunged humanity into an abyss of devil-worshipping inhumanity; Rome, by fighting against all odds for an ennobling vision of man, family and society, established a civilization human enough to receive Jesus Christ. Upon turning to our Lord, Chesterton elegantly dismantles a variety of arguments against His divinity, showing how all interpretations of Jesus that are less than the Gospels are, in the end, less believable and less rational than the Gospels. The Church is then compared and contrasted to Hinduism, Confucianism, Islam, and Buddhism. In Chesterton's view, Islam is "militant but no church", and these other belief systems are essentially pagan mythologies; the critical point is none of these systems rises to the level of Christianity in terms of spiritual relevance and truth. He then delves deep into the Eastern mind, rooted in a changeless, cavernous past, contrasting it to Western mind, profoundly and utterly recast by the relatively recent Incarnation. His analysis culminates with magnificent insights on Christianity as a story: philosophies are static and circular, ending where they begin, whereas Christianity stands alone as a philosophy that moves, initially with the journey of Christ, and then with the spiritual journeys that we ourselves must make. Thus Christianity alone can inspire us and teach us how to move forward and upward, spiritually and in all other ways. It is a greater philosophy than all other philosophies for this reason, and it is a greater story than other stories because it is true. Great ideas and historical insights abound in this work. I can't imagine anyone, regardless of his religion or non-religion, reading this and not being moved somewhere, somehow.

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Summary: See Your World New
Review: Here is the book that inspired C.S Lewis to become a Christian. It is basically a poetic attempt at telling the story of the Catholic Church. Chesterton succeeds. Perhaps his greatest achievement is how his work makes the world seem new. He approaches the story as a human who had lived in this world and never known the Catholic Church. From this perspective, the reader is ennobled to see the Church for what it is - one of, if not the most, amazing institutions ever to exist upon the earth. Though at times I think he over-praises the Church, Chesterton does the impossible - he makes the obvious obvious.

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Summary: GK Chesterton at his best
Review: I have read most of Chesterson's fiction and only a few of his more theologically oriented books. I found this book to be an interesting cross between the two.
It is not meant to give a theological or apologetics style look at man and Christ, although it sometimes makes some very solid and profound points, but instead to place in the context of history and the world as we know it the amazing story of man, and the even more profound story of the Christ. It has enabled me to again feel the power of the gospel, and of our place in the world.
Best understood as a fireside conversation between friends, it is a well written book by anyone's standards, and well worth the time it takes to read it

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Summary: Somewhat verbose, but excellent
Review: I once heard that G.K. Chesterton's method of composition consisted of reading several books on a subject, then dictating his thoughts aloud to his secretary. Such a modus operandi, if true, would explain why Chesterton's works are sometimes a bit wordy, as though no one had edited them to prune the excess verbiage. The Everlasting Man is a loquacious monologue where the style is occasionally irritating, but if you can look past this minor shortcoming, The Everlasting Man is an outstanding apologetic for Christianity. It is a pleasure to recommend this book for consideration, because Chesterton had a real knack for revealing the truth in a surprising and often paradoxical method. His books are not "dry", but lively, full of wit, fun, good humor, and fine reasoning. C.S. Lewis thought highly of The Everlasting Man, and after reading it, I can understand why.

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Summary: Chesterton at his best
Review: I won't attempt so summarize this book, as other reviewers have done a very thorough job and anything I add will be superfluous. I can say that, having read HG Wells' Outline of History, it is thoroughly out of date, almost ridiculously so, while this book, equally old, is just as new in terms of ideas as the day it was published. Chesterton is simply the most amazing writer in terms of his originality that I have ever read. No wonder it has been so influentual over the years. Chesterton is extremely enjoyable to read just for the sake of reading. I remember having to read Chesterton in high school (St Francis of Assisi, I believe) and hating it, mostly because it was assigned work and not pleasure. If you read Chesterton, you have to enjoy great writing, as well as his great ideas and rather unique way of viewing reality.

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Summary: The Holy Curmudgeon of the Catholic Church
Review: I've reread this book after ten years and found it just as astonishing a work as I did the first time around. Chesterton is a consummate apologist, combining a sincere reverence for his subject matter with a devastating sense of humour and a true generalist's erudition. He has a wonderful ability of taking accepted secular dogmas, turning them completely on their heads, and in the process making Catholic dogmas, rejected for their lack of congruence with modernism, look sensible and enlightened. This polemical mastery is one of the enduring qualities of "The Everlasting Man".

Although much of the first part of the book may seem dated (it consists mostly of a friendly attack on H.G. Wells anti-Christian "Outline of History") Chesterton's points are still well taken. Many of his musings on evolution can be put to use today against the adherents of creationism as well as the scientifically arrogant. Although he takes 50 pages to say it (he IS a bit of a windbag, but his blustery style and curmudgeonly wit makes it enjoyable all the while), his point about the anthropology of his day is that it is inherently incapable of explaining the irreconcilable chasm between man and the critters he may have materially evolved from. And this difference is constituted by Mind, or by man's soul, as manifested primarily (for Chesterton) in art and religion. One could add science. His illustrations on this point are hilarious. He draws the silly images of cows writing sonatas, sheep practising an elaborate form of ancestor worship, and dogs in solemn procession wearing canine mitres and swinging censers smouldering with dog-appealing scents. All to show the gap that separates us from the animals.

When he moves to specifically Christian apologetics, Chesterton presents a theory of history that, though it bears an obvious resemblance to Augustine's philosophy of history, is remarkably unique and dramatically compelling. The chapter on the war of the gods and demons will assure that you never again think of the Punic Wars in the same way. It also puts to rest much nonsensical multi-culturalist cant.

And indeed this constant struggle, in history, between two supernatural forces permeates Chesterton's sense of history; another similarity to Augustine. However, he is not by any means a Manichean. He is constantly pointing out the marvels of the salvation story and falls prostrate in stricken awe at the very idea of the Incarnation being a fact.

And this is the point of the book; namely, to reinvigorate the awesomeness of that Idea and, more importantly, that Fact, by trying to tell it anew, and by asserting and demonstrating that nothing in modernity or before has ever been able to contradict it, nor to dissuade the millions who have pinned their hope to and derived their inspiration from it.

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Summary: One of the most helpfull books for my spiritual journey
Review: In my opinion, this is Chesterton's best non-fiction work. It isn't quite philosophy, and it isn't exactly theology. It is a unique type of apologetical writting; more like a conversation. Here we have the author, a ver well educated man, expounding truth, mixed with a little bit of his opinions, and alot of wit. Chesterton makes those who oppose Christianity look stupid. He also alerts the Christians who by choice are ignorante, by telling them to grow up.

This book helped me to grapple with some of the most important questions I could ask about my faith. I was also shown Christ in a new perspective.

I recommend this to anyone looking for an apologetic work with zest. This book will challenge and stretch your mind.