January 9, 2014 Meeting of the WPA Chesterton Society
Greetings WPA Chestertonians and Friends!
As we have just celebrated Epiphany, I hope that your Christmas
season was full of Incarnational Joy, and that you are ready for the gifts
that 2014 holds!
Schedule of upcoming WPACS
readings and discussions
From January through April we will be reading and discussing
Eugenics and Other Evils: An Argument Against the Scientifically Organized
Society.
In this book Chesterton tackles many of the foundational
anti-life philosophies and heresies that are unraveling our society today with
his usual charity and wit. When this book was first published in 1922, even his
opponents acknowledged the power of his argument. Before our eyes, he
masterfully wages battle with his pen.
Hopefully, by observing his mind and heart in action, we will hone our
own skills in defending Truth and Life. We need this as much now as ever!
If you intend to purchase a copy of the book, I recommend
the edition edited by Michael W. Perry and available from the ACS website
bookstore. This edition, published by Inkling Books, includes an extensive
appendix of articles written by Chesterton’s Eugenics and Pro-Birth Control
opponents. The contextual insights to be gained from these appendices
definitely contribute to a greater understanding and appreciation of
Chesterton’s brilliant arguments.
The basic text is viewable and printable on the internet if
you search the title, and is available (possibly for free) in an e-reader
format.
Reading the chapters
before the meeting is strongly encouraged!
We will discuss about one fourth of the book (about 30 pages
in the print edition) for each of the following meetings.
Jan. 9: Chapters 1-3
Feb. 13: Chapters 4-7
March 13 or 14*: Chapters 8-12
April 10 or 11*: Chapters 13-17
* (see the “change of meeting schedule” section below)
Looking ahead further
into 2014…
For May and June, we will read selections (to be announced) from
Chesterton’s biographical essay compilation Varied Types. In July we will have an undoubtedly
rollicking discussion of the novel The Ball and the Cross.
Mark Your Calendars… The American Chesterton Society annual
national conference will be held on July 31-Aug. 2, at Mundelein Seminary in
the Chicago area. Registrations will open on the ACS website some time in January, and are
expected to fill up quickly, as there is a limited number that the seminary can
accommodate.
Possible change of
meeting day
There has been some discussion about changing our meeting
times from the second Thursday of each month to the second Friday of each
month. We could begin our
once-a-month Friday night meetings as early as March 14, once I have gotten the
final approval for the change from the township supervisors.
The original thought behind this is that Friday evening
meetings may afford some of the working folk amongst us a more relaxed evening
without the need to work the next day. Please email me with your thoughts on this proposed change. I
realize that there may be a range of opinions, but I’d like to hear from you so
I can gauge a general consensus as to whether or not we make the switch.
StAR subscriptions
It is time to renew our group bulk subscription to the St.
Austin Review (StAR) magazine. If you would like to participate in this
bi-monthly subscription, the cost is $30.
This is a savings of 25% off the regular subscription price. We need a
minimum of 6 subscribers to qualify for this bulk pricing.
If you want to subscribe, please bring $30 to the Jan
meeting, or snail mail me a check made out to Victoria Darkey. My street
address is 104 Hazel Lane, Harmony PA 16037. (Send me an email if you are
mailing a check, so I can keep track of the number we have participating. If we
don’t get the 6 subscriptions we need, I will return your money to you. If we
meet the minimum, I will consolidate the funds and send them into the
publisher.) In order to not miss the Jan/Feb issue, the deadline for turning in the
subscription money will be our Jan. 9 meeting.
Lastly, a resolution
and an invitation…
In the coming year, I will be attempting to communicate with
the group more with email and less with Facebook. If you are reading this
letter on the blog site linked from one of our Facebook pages and didn’t see it
in your email inbox, it means I don’t have your email. If you’d like to be
included in the group email list, or removed from it, please email me. As
always, feel free to pass this onto anyone you know who might be interested in
the Western PA Chesterton Society. Email me
(wpachesterton@gmail.com) if you have any questions. I hope to see you at the meeting.
Meanwhile… keep warm!
Many Blessings,
Vicki Darkey
