SAN FRANCISCO, September 30, 2002 – One of the 20th century's most notable literary figures, Hilaire Belloc left a higher legacy: the main business of his life was the defense of the Catholic faith. Belloc is virtually the only modern British literary figure who isn't a convert to Catholicism, but a cradle Catholic.
And Joseph Pearce's newest work, Old Thunder, published this month by Ignatius Press, presents an unparalleled picture of Belloc – an historian, politician, social commentator, renowned writer of prose and poetry, and apologist – as one of Britain's staunchest advocates of Roman Catholicism.
As a child prodigy whom his aunt called “Old Thunder,” Belloc became one of the most important, revered and reviled British writers of modern times. He stood for uncompromising Catholic belief and thinking in a land and era where much of that had been eroded.
In researching and writing Old Thunder, Pearce – who has become well-regarded for his writings on British literary greats like J.R.R. Tolkien and G. K. Chesterton – draws from a vast collection of hundreds of Belloc's previously unpublished letters and photographs. He presents Belloc in a way the world has never seen him: as a truly romantic, complex and solitary man committed to Catholicism and to revealing the truth about the dynamics behind the Protestant Reformation.
“I've always felt that Belloc was not known well, not as he should be,” says Pearce. “Through his well-researched writings, which I have read extensively, he shows the great bias throughout history against the Catholic Church.” Pearce specializes in writing on English literary authors who were Catholic or converted to Catholicism. “It's become obvious that historians who have written for our generations have an anti-Catholic, Protestant agenda, and much of what they've passed on has been pure propaganda.”
Belloc was, and still is, a much-needed antidote to all that, Pearce believes.
After living many years as a well-known commentator, historian, writer and apologist – through such works as The Great Heresies, A Path To Rome, and Characters of the Reformation – Belloc eventually died a poor man. It has been estimated that at the height of Belloc's influence in early 20th century England, conversions to Catholicism were occurring at some 12,000 per month.
“That was truly a 20th-century revival of Catholicism in England,” says Pearce. And it was catalyzed in part by two major factors. “First, there was a heavy immigration of Catholics from Ireland into England at the time, to work in the cities. And second, it was a time when it was intellectually fashionable to be a Catholic. It was the acclaimed era of the now-famous British Catholic convert, John Henry Newman, who was likewise revered for his great writing and preaching.”
As a younger man, Pearce was determinedly anti-Catholic, and even protested visits by Pope John Paul II to England. Through much reading, research and writing on literary subjects like Chesterton, Tolkien and Belloc, who were also staunch Catholics, Pearce was ultimately drawn to become a Catholic in 1989.
And today's Catholics and Christians have much to learn from Belloc, says Pearce.
“Not only did Hilaire Belloc write wonderful books on the history of the Church, and stands among the finest Catholic poets of the 20th century,” Pearce says, “but he is one of the greatest Catholic apologetics figures of modern times. Catholics need to learn about and be inspired by him, as they've been by people like Chesterton and Tolkien.”
According to Thomas Howard, well-known Catholic convert and apologist who wrote On Being Catholic (Ignatius Press) among other titles, “Joseph Pearce is, without question, a very bright light ascending the firmament of Catholic letters. This biography of Belloc is a tribute to both men. Belloc is a complex character, and Pearce's literary acumen and Catholic perspicacity serve us all very well indeed in this work.”
As well, Peter Kreeft of Boston College, prolific author of Love Is Stronger Than Death (Ignatius Press), says, “Pearce has written another fine, spiritually rich literary biography of an underrated Catholic writer and apologist who deserves to be much better known and appreciated.”
When there is a culture of reading among Catholics about great Catholics, Pearce says, then we will have the catalyst for a Catholic literary revival of our time. “And this is what I strive for.”
San Francisco-based Ignatius Press, founded in 1978 and currently the largest Catholic publisher in the U.S., is dedicated to publishing and distributing information on the Catholic faith. Ignatius is also the publisher of Catholic World Report and Homiletic & Pastoral Review. Ordering information can be found here, or by calling: 1-800-651-1531.
