Lord of the World Audiobook By Robert Hugh Benson cover art

Lord of the World

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Lord of the World

By: Robert Hugh Benson
Narrated by: Simon Vance
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Secular humanism has triumphed. Everything the late Victorians and Edwardians believed would bring human happiness has been achieved: Technology has made it so no one needs to work for a living, the social sciences ensure a smooth-running social order, and, in the name of tolerance, religious beliefs have been uprooted and eliminated except for a single holdout - a largely discredited and rapidly shrinking Catholic Church. Yet people are unhappy.

What has been created is a sterile world of crass materialism, a world without spiritual dimension, a world where people daily choose legalized euthanasia over the emptiness of existence. Out of this culture of despair, there arises a charismatic leader: Julian Felsenburgh. Soon the masses are in Felsenburgh's thrall, and he becomes leader of the world. But in their eagerness for change, have the citizens of the world embraced the Antichrist and hastened the end of days?

Father Percy Franklin remains a bastion of stability, even as the Catholic Church disintegrates around him. Finally outlawed and driven underground, it is only this small and shrinking church that stands against the "Lord of the World".

Public Domain (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Classics Drama & Plays European World Literature
Prophetic Storyline • Cautionary Tale • Captivating Narration • Memorable Descriptions • Insightful Predictions
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This work is a product of its times and its writer. It contains concepts and moral lessons and cautions, to be sure, and can be enjoyed as a piece of distopian science fiction, but nothing more.

It is written in the classic literary style of the early 20th Century. At times, it waxes philosophical on subjects not readily known to non- catholics which tends to bog down the story.

There are many references to pre-Vatican II Catholic practices and prayers which seem more to showcase these than to reflect much on the story.

Despite the title, the story primarily theorizes how the Catholic Church might survive an adverse rise in socialism in politics and an atheistic culture, two noted concerns in the wake of the First World War. This is more the "antichrist" than Felsenburge, the human "antichrist". If anything, "The Lord of the World" could be either the "antichrist" or God. There was much more Benson could have done with this element, but he was a clergyman long before he was a novelist. Still, I give him credit as the story would make an excellent film. As a novel, it gets deep into weeds of religion and gets boring.

This novel will readily appeal to devotees of traditionalism as the hero is an early 20th Century priest, but I caution that this is not a prophetical book and should not be taken literally regarding world events.

Not A Religious Foretelling

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between the descriptions of prayer to the overall laying out of the situation of the end times, Robert Hugh Benson has etched into my mind moments is that are overwhelming and utterly memorable with this book.

A legendary work.

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Well written and thought-provoking story about the coming of the ape of God.
Events now taking place resonate with events in this story.
The scapegoat is an interesting idea to bear in mind while reading this tale.
I highly recommend this book.
The reading of it is very well done.
I’ve just finished for the second time and it was worth that close look-see.

Prophetic Tale

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this is almost creepy in its depiction of the end time. great book through and through. keep praying and watching

the future is now

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surprisingly prescient for being written in 1907. the reader's voice, however, was a bit irritating

worth a look

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How did Benson have such insight - this man was, sadly, a prophet for our times. Amazing and compelling listening.

Prophetic for our times

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amazing view of the coming end. Could this be the 21st century? Will it be soon?

Amazing and scary

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It was very good ... until the end. It made you think on how similar things are today. But the disappointing climax felt empty.

Engaging and profound

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It’s eerily prophetic. You will not end the same as you began this book, I’ll tell you that.

Amazingly insightful and arresting

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Compelling prophetic narrative brought to life by the amazing performance of the narrator. Father Robert Hugh Benson's work from 1907 is frighteningly spot on in comparison to 2017 secular society with relative morality.

Enthralling

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