G.K. Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday

I had listened to this book on my iPod as an audiobook and thought it was really good. I admit that I didn't fully understand some parts because this is a complex book that really challenges you to think. And audiobooks are sometimes lacking when it comes to books like this. You end up backing up and listening to certain parts over and over again. Don't get me wrong -- I love audiobooks and they are a great time saver. Also, sometimes I am just not in the mood for music (for instance, when I'm depressed) so being able to listen to a book is a godsend. However, I ended up buying a printed copy of The Man Who Was Thursday, because this is one of those books you need to read, not just listen to.

It was Dawn Eden* who got me interested in this book and in Chesterton's work. I have long been an admirer of C.S. Lewis and knew that Chesterton had a lot of influence on Lewis. But I had never gotten around to really delving into Chesterton's work. But knowing that this book started Dawn on a path that would lead her to where she is today made me interested. I have been reading Dawn's book as well, but I wanted to finish the Chesterton book first because I thought that it would help me understand her journey more completely. (Perhaps if Dawn's detractors put aside their preconceived assumptions, read The Man Who Was Thursday with an open mind and tried to understand it, they would get where Dawn is coming from a lot better. I assure them that it would be worth it.)

What this book does is that it completely turns the idea of rebellion on its head. The book's protagonist, Gabriel Syme, is a rebel against rebellion. He became this way because he was raised by a family that would be comparable to today's hippies and punks. Rebellion is seen as sort of a mindless game of trying to see how outrageous you can be...how much you can shock "the establishment". Rebellion such as this means nothing and amounts to nothing -- it is just nihilism.

I would like to quote one particular passage of the book that struck me. It is sort of a spoiler, so if you haven't read the book, would like to, and are annoyed by spoilers, skip the block-quoted part:

"Who and what are you?"

"I am the Sabbath," said the other without moving. "I am the peace of God."

The Secretary started up, and stood crushing his costly robe in his hand.

"I know what you mean," he cried, "and it is exactly that that I cannot forgive you. I know you are contentment, optimism, what so they call the thing, an ultimate reconciliation. Well, I am not reconciled. If you were the man in the dark room, why were you also Sunday, an offence to the sunlight? If you were from the first our father and our friend, why were you also our greatest enemy? We wept, we fled in terror; the iron entered into our souls -- and you are the peace of God! Oh, I can forgive God His anger, though it destroyed nations; but I cannot forgive Him His peace."

This struck me because I have often felt this way. The peace of God does seem like an offense at times. You have your own suffering and you see the suffering of others. You see loved ones and friends waste away and die of disease. You helplessly see unspeakable horrors unfold before you, like 9/11. You see those you love trapped in suffocating, miserable circumstances, not able to do a damned thing to help them. You see people who do their best and try their hardest to serve and do their duty and do what is right, only to be snarled at and spat upon by know-nothings. The "peace of God" seems almost like a mockery in the face of all these things.

Whenever my Pastor, during one of our services, prays for a family that has lost a loved one, he prays that God gives them "the peace that goes beyond all understanding". This sort of peace eludes me, because I don't understand it and I can't figure out how to find a place beyond understanding. I realize this is my flaw...my failing. Perhaps someday I will feel that peace and not resent it as the Secretary does.

* I have to also thank Dawn for leading me to discover a great band. Dawn has said that she first heard of Chesterton and The Man Who Was Thursday when interviewing Ben Eshbach of The Sugarplastic. I went to iTunes, listened to some stuff from this band, loved what I heard, and bought all of the available albums. I have also bought some older, out-of-print CDs by them. I still have some songs from them in my Radio Blog on the sidebar, which I have not bothered to change for about a year. Take a listen, because I may soon get around to changing the Radio Blog.