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Survivals and New Arrivals: The Old and New Enemies of the Catholic Church

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Belloc describes and evaluates philosophies/movements/moods antagonistic to the Church. He divides them into three types--

"Survivals" are either discredited, like fundamentalism, or ever present but currently (1929) in disrepute, like materialism.

"Main Opposition" are the strongest of the hour--for Belloc nationalism, anti-clericalism, and most significantly, the "modern mind", a vague, passive resistance to faith and dogma built on ill-conceived, ill-considered ideas about the infallibility of science, the inevitability of progress, and the primacy of man. Of immense interest is Belloc's critique of compulsory state sponsored education--a fairly new thing in Britain at the time. He sees quite clearly that such an assembly line process leads to the weakening of parental authority, a deadening of intellectual acuity, and the development of a world view that prioritizes certain types of knowledge above a clear, rational sense of morality. All these effects, as Belloc prophetically observes, lead to social decay.

"New Arrivals" are developing enemies. With remarkable foresight, Belloc zeroes in on what he calls "Neo-Paganism", which is an attitude of despair, a flat rejection of absolute truth in faith and morals. Belloc accurately predicts the growth of this attitude in the West and the terrible damage it will unleash on our society and culture.

Belloc is enlightening as usual. He not only explains the nature of these movements, but sketches their historical roots, so that we get some sense of how these things developed, and why. It is easy to see that many of these oppostions exist today, although in somewhat different forms, described in different terms, and somehow jumbled up together in a vague secular attitude. The clear and thorough examination in this book helps us make sense of this jumble, and perhaps to formulate a response.

This beautifully written masterpiece stands as a sequel, more or less, to Belloc's masterful "Great Heresies". Here, Belloc describes the old and new enemies of the Catholic Church. As Mr. Schorr of Geneva observed, much of the corpus of this work seems very contemporary. Sadly, what may not be contemporary is the solution proposed by the great Catholic historian and social thinker.

Belloc wrote at a time when the Church and the Faith, though as always persecuted, were at least united. Were Belloc around now to comment on the post-Vatican II state of the Church, he would probably be more emphatic in his prescription for necessary Catholic action.

And yet, the truth Belloc states herein is eternal. Witness the following:

"Either we shall see the gradual permeation of mankind by the only body of truth to which the mind leaps in unison, rendering all as secure as it can be among a fallen race; or our civilization will sink to be a completely alien body, knowing even less of the Faith than do the distraught town millions of today."

As previously mentioned, the same truth obtains even today. The question is yet to be answered. And in the answer resides the fate of the human race.

Belloc's 1929 survey of "old" and "new" enemies of Catholic Church is not what you think. Attempts to pigeon hole Belloc with preconceptions usually don't survive your next reading of Belloc. Belloc's thinking style is never hidebound. Agree with him or not, it's entertaining thinking. Yet his writing style can be frustrating.

There are surprises in Belloc's survey. Some of his 'predictions' seem to have come about. Belloc foresaw a revival of islamic militancy as a future threat to the west. But there are flaws in his crystal ball too. He sees the more biblical fundamentalist versions of protestantism, and indeed Darwinism too, as more or less on their last legs. Belloc doesn't easily align with one side or the other to today's "culture wars", as such he provides an interesting circuit breaker to the battle hardenedviews of both sides. He sees novelty driven "the modern mind" (and the mass media that feeds it) as an "enemy", but so is "nationalism". Belloc sees atheistic rationalism, not as an enemy, but as a potential ally of the Church. (It's interesting to note Belloc was close friends with some of the leading agnostics and skeptics of his day and even dedicated some of his books to them.)

His writing often seems stuffy and long winded, but then, out of the blue, there is paragraph that is a sheer joy to read. His take on the press, as true now as in 1929, is a case in point and worth keeping your eye out for.