Dorothy Sayers, Creed or Chaos? Why Christians Must Choose Either Dogma or Disaster (Or, Why It Really Does Matter What You Believe) (Manchester: Sophia Insitute Press, 1999 reprint), 176 pages.

There are many, even among the well-read, who have never experienced the joy of reading one of Dorothy Sayer’s books. You need not be embarrassed if you are one of those people. There are many very good reasons why you may fall into this category. However, I would recommend that you find a way to slip one of her books into your reading schedule in the very near future.

If you take a look HERE you will find a number of quotes drawn from Creed or Chaos? .The quotes do a great job of representing the creative wit and penetrating insight found in Sayer’s book Creed or Chaos?.

The book is actually a collection of seven essays first published during the 1940’s. They cover a broad range of content including the person of Christ, work and vocation, the value and essential nature of doctrinal formulation, the seven deadly sins, and much more. You might think that such an offering sounds unrelated and disjointed, however, Sayer’s consistent worldview and passionate writing style serves to pull them together in such a manner that there is a rational and logical progression to the volume.

This book is a quick enjoyable read (although it took me more than a month because I lost the book) and I would have no trouble recommending to almost anyone. However, I do not think that this is Sayer’s best work for a first time reader. The content was conditioned by the time and purpose for which it was written (WWII). It is still relevant to the human condition, however, I believe that a first time reader would be better off with one of her other books.

If you are looking for a work of non-fiction I would recommend The Mind of the Maker. If you are looking for one of her works of fiction…I am not sure which of her Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries I should recommend. But, based upon my own experience, I don’t think you can make a bad choice.

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You will find Kevin Stilley blogging daily at Silver and Gold Have I None.