Monday, December 01, 2008

The Internationality of Chesterton

I'm sure a lot of you know that Chesterton is popular the world over, not just here in North American.

There's even another "ACS"--not American, but the Australian Chesterton Society. There are societies in South America, Mexico, Canada, and all over Europe. I don't know about Asia, but I suspect not. However, there should be, and maybe that's coming.

I just had a funny thought. Maybe not so funny. But imagine in China, there being a Chinese Chesterton Society. The government gets wind of it, and they have to go underground, and the approved face of the group is now the Chinese Official Government Sponsored Chesterton Society. Well, it is that subversive, I can see it, can't you? And down in the catacombs of China, they have a secret handshake, password, and symbol (a cigar, don't you think?) to show they are members. Below ground, they risk arrest for smoking, beer-drinking, cheese-eating, and, worst of all, free conversation.

Anyway, it's one of the things I really like about Chesterton: his universality.

5 comments:

  1. Can you tell me anything about the Chesterton society in Canada?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hail Chesterton!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Info from chesterton.org only has the Toronto society, but I bet if you email, they'd let you know if there are more. Or perhaps you are living near Toronto?

    High Park Chesterton Society (Toronto)
    Based in the west end of Toronto, Canada, the High Park Chesterton Society meets the first Sunday of every month (the second Sunday in the event of a long holiday weekend). We begin with drinks and snacks at 7:00, and move on to our meeting at 8:00 (or so). We cover everything Chesterton wrote, from "Fr. Brown," to "Orthodoxy" to "The Ballad of the White Horse," through presentations, oral readings, and, just once, a debate between puppets. The group is informal, friendly and lively. We generally meet at the same house, but sometimes switch venues, so please contact us for details for the current month.

    E-Mail:
    gkc at ranalli.org or gkc at distributist.net
    or Hugh R.: 416-604-7232

    ReplyDelete
  4. +JMJ+

    Hmmmm. I should check if there is a Philippine Chesterton Society . . . =)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Is there a Cheseton Society in the
    Durham Region or at least in Scarborough??

    ReplyDelete

Join our FaceBook fan page today!