Lord of the World
Lord of the World was written by Robert Hugh Benson, a Catholic priest, and published in 1907. Benson himself was a convert to the Catholic faith. He wrote this novel about a dystopian society centered around an anti-Christ figure, Julian Felsenburgh. This is a very packed and well-written novel! It shows one way that the Book of Revelations in the Bible and the loss of Christian faith could happen. The central theme is a growing belief in Humanism while denying Christianity and belief in God.
Throughout the book, Benson skillfully portrays Humanism as a counterfeit religion of Christianity. The narrative is rich with references to Christianity, but these are twisted and distorted in the context of Humanism. While Christianity is rooted in the divine and supernatural, Humanism is built on the belief that there is no supernatural God and that man is a god. Despite the rejection of God, there is a recognition of man’s need for worship. However, this worship in the new Humanism religion is a false worship that Christians cannot in good conscience partake in, leading to persecution.
Many times in the book, humanism is explained through logic and reason. However, I find that the arguments for Humanism are often based on Christian ideas (e.g. savior of the world, worship, titles of Mary, the body of Christ). Considering that Humanism is a denial of Christianity, if it were true, it would not need to make any arguments using Christian ideas or beliefs.
I see historical parallels in this book. The first is to St. Augustine in the 4th century, who became an orator. He witnessed an orator give a powerful, persuasive speech to the people to influence them and get them to want to pay taxes. He was so impressed that he wanted to become an orator himself. In the book, Mr. Oliver Bland is a skilled orator and a central figure in the government. He delivers powerful speeches, passionately arguing against Christianity as superstitious and pushing for widespread societal change toward humanistic values and peace.
The second historical parallel is Nebuchadnezzar in the Book of Daniel in the Bible. King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden statue and decreed that everyone worship the idol. Anyone who did not worship it was persecuted and killed. A similar event occurred in the book where compulsory worship was made into law. Those who did not attend would be imprisoned.
The third historical parallel is the French Revolution. In the revolution, the people revolted from the ruling aristocratic class. However, the people were immoral and killed aristocrats regardless of guilt. In the book, due to some bad-actor Catholics, the people raided and went after killing Catholics in churches, monasteries, and so forth, again regardless of guilt.
The fourth historical parallel is Roman peace. The Romans maintained peace through military power, strict governance, and an extensive system of roads. They would suppress revolts, heavily tax the people, and oppress the people. In the book, peace is a central theme of humanity. People want peace and not war. Now that they have peace, they want to keep it. Those who disagree or threaten that peace (believing something different – i.e., Christians who believe in God) are persecuted.
This is a very well-written book, which I enjoyed immensely. It was a page-turner that kept me wanting to find out what would happen next. Knowing my Catholic faith and theology helped me pick up on specific themes in the book. I recommend Lord of the World to those who enjoy reading novels, readers with a religious interest, particularly around end times, and those intrigued by the clash between Humanism and Christian faith.