The Catholic and the War

Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953) was one of the great Catholic authors and historians of the twentieth century. Born in France, and raised in Great Britain, Belloc later became a naturalised British subject and served in Parliament from 1906 to 1910. After his brief political career Belloc continued his writing, commenting on a large variety of topics throughout his lifetime. This essay, written shortly after the outbreak of WWII (February 1940), examines the state of the war from a Catholic perspective. Belloc explains why the Catholic has a moral obligation to support the war effort against the Axis Powers, not only because of the crimes committed against the Polish and Jewish peoples, but because a loss for the Allies would mean the end of Western Civilization. He also expresses his shock at the attitudes of appeasement, and sympathy, some of his fellow countrymen hold for the enemy.