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The Great Heresies

hilaire belloc

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Here the great Catholic historian Hilaire Belloc analyzes 5 of the greatest heresies of all time: Arianism, Mohammedanism (Islam), Albigensianism, Protestantism, and "the Modern Attack," showing that the world would be vastly different today if Arianism or Albigensianism had survived--and how it is different because Protestantism survived. He predicts the re-emergence of Islam; explains how the Modern Attack is the worst threat to the Catholic Church ever.

161 pages, Paperback

First published January 1,1938

This edition

Format
161 pages, Paperback
Published
January 1, 1938 by TAN Books
ISBN
ASIN
Language
English

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About the author

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hilaire belloc

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Hilaire Belloc was a French-British writer, historian, poet, and orator, known for his sharp wit, extensive literary output, and strong political and religious convictions. Born in France to a French father and an English mother, he was educated at Oxford, where he distinguished himself as a debater and scholar. Throughout his career, he wrote prolifically across a wide range of genres, producing histories, essays, travelogues, poetry, and satirical works.
Among his best-known writings are Cautionary Tales for Children, a collection of humorous yet dark moral verses, and his historical works, which often reflected his staunch Catholicism and critique of Protestant interpretations of history. He was a leading advocate of distributism, an economic theory promoting small-scale property ownership as a middle ground between capitalism and socialism, which he championed alongside his close friend G.K. Chesterton.
In politics, Belloc served as a Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party but grew disillusioned with the political establishment. His polemical style and strong opinions made him a controversial figure, particularly in his critiques of modernism, secularism, and financial capitalism, which he viewed as threats to traditional Christian society.
Belloc's literary legacy is vast, and his influence extends into both historical and literary circles. His writing, characterized by erudition, humor, and a forceful rhetorical style, continues to be studied and appreciated for its intellectual vigor and unique perspective on history, society, and human nature.

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Rating(3.9 / 5.0, 100 votes)
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bobbyf77
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Belloc gives a solid overview history of Europe from a Catholic not the usual secular perspective. This text does not sugar coat mistakes and shows interesting effects of certain heresies up to the early 1900's. Good writing style, I will be reading more of his writing. Check it out.
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AlwaysAlone
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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A short and interesting take on several heresies, particularly Islam and the Reformation from a Catholic apologist who is rightly considered controversial. He tended to slip into redundancy a bit, though many lecture-style books tend to do precisely that. I don't like to see "again" or "as I said earlier" on a page. Even so, Belloc is formidable. He's no Chesterton, but he's formidable.
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NosyMuggle
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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This is a really good history book that talks about the major heresies that have existed and that still are alive. It gives a lot of information on each, though the author does spend a lot more on the heresies that are still alive and going. I liked it because it contained so much information, but it was also dreading. It was difficult to start and keep reading, but once you get to the interesting part, it becomes easier to read.
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Sadboy74
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Wow this book is quite an amazing read, the last chapter is indeed prophetic, we are living at an addendum to the last chapter of this book. I wish I read this book when I was younger. This book does a great cross-sectional analysis of the historical, socio-cultural, and politico-economic effects that Theology causes; yet it does this analysis in a manner that easy to read for all.

The author also sets out to show the various ways Heresies have related to the Church, the majority of which are emergent from within and spin off into their own deformed or parasitic entity later, but the last chapter shows essentially a new and perhaps even final Heresy which does not come from within but comes from without.

The book reads both like a non-fictional historical and philosophical text, yet has all the riveting adventure of a fictional saga or an epic. Indeed, the Battle here is an unseen battle, a mortal combat for the hearts and minds of all human beings individually and civilization collectively, indeed when reading this book one thought that came to my mind were the words of Jesus, "No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." (Matthew 6:24)

Highly Recommended Read for those who want the Church's View of History and are tired of the biases of Popular Cultures view of Religion in general, but in particular Catholicism.
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100percentOJ
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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This book presents as a theological discussion of heresy, but functions more as a historical account of the fallout from them. In that context, it would therefore be nice to have been provided a summary account of what motivated said heresies (the discussion on Islam was lacking in that regard). Nonetheless, what is provided is excellent - particularly the discussions on protestantism and modernism.

Required reading for Truth Seekers. Everyone else should probably avoid.

On the 'Must Have Books' version: the textual errors were so obvious and numerous that I've been convinced to never purchase a book from this publisher, regardless of subject.
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Ayumi_Sama
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Good insight

Bellow writes well about the nuances of heresies and is not afraid to talk about the scandals on his own side as well.
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Fantasiliam
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Look up a picture of Hilaire and you will be able to guess his writing style.

See this picture: http://www.famousquotesandauthors.com...
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catalyst33
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Interesting take on some of the heresies that ultimately changed the world. The book doesn't go too in depth about the different heresies as far as the Catholic Church is concered. It's a brief, yet informative synopsis.
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