GILBERT

THE MAGAZINE OF THE SOCIETY OF G.K. CHESTERTON

Be Not Afraid

by | Mar 21, 2025

From the May/June 2021 Issue of Gilbert Magazine

There are two ways of looking at the world.

We can focus on the decline of our civilization, the collapse of our institutions that are supposed to represent us, the loss of truth in politics and public discourse, the caprice of tyranny, the assertion of godless philosophies, the unreliability of information, the loss of control over the daily matters of our lives, and the accompanying widespread despair.

Even the materialists who believe we began as an agitation in primordial slop are horrified to think that we might now be the agent to destroy the whole vat. The earth cannot be saved. They are as sensational as the fanatics who are preaching essentially the same scenario that the fulfillment of the apocalyptic vision of Christianity is about to come to pass. Even the less cynical humanist can fret over the imminent collapse of the environment, and the less-feverish economist can legitimately worry about the supply chain falling apart, and the less fanatical Christian who believes in the Final Judgment (the idea that we are responsible for our actions) can settle into the view that the end is near. The Judge is...

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About the Author

Dale Ahlquist is the President of the Society of G.K. Chesterton.

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