The Holy War

Last updated

The Holy War
Author John Bunyan
CountryEngland
LanguageEnglish
Genre Novel
Publication date
1682
Media typePrint
Pages191

The Holy War Made by King Shaddai Upon Diabolus, to Regain the Metropolis of the World, Or, The Losing and Taking Again of the Town of Mansoul is a 1682 novel by John Bunyan. This early modern English novel, written in the form of an allegory, tells the story of the town "Mansoul" (Man's soul). Though this town is perfect and bears the image of Shaddai (Almighty), it is deceived to rebel and throw off his gracious rule, replacing it instead with the rule of Diabolus. Though Mansoul has rejected the Kingship of Shaddai, he sends his son Emmanuel to reclaim it.

Contents

Allegory

The Spiritual Warfare (c. 1623), a print by Martin Droeshout depicting the devil's army besieging a walled city held by a "Christian Soldier bold" guarded by figures representing the Christian virtues. It has been suggested that this print may have influenced Bunyan to write The Holy War. The Spiritual Warfare.jpg
The Spiritual Warfare (c. 1623), a print by Martin Droeshout depicting the devil's army besieging a walled city held by a "Christian Soldier bold" guarded by figures representing the Christian virtues. It has been suggested that this print may have influenced Bunyan to write The Holy War.

In the city Mansoul, there are three esteemed men, who have lost their authority due to admitting Diabolus into the city. The mayor's understanding is hidden from the light. The recorder has become a madman, sinning at times and condemning the sin of the city. But worst of all is "Lord Willbewill," who no longer desires to serve his true Lord, but desires to serve Diabolus instead. With the fall of these three men, Mansoul will need to turn back to Shaddai of his own free will, which seems impossible. Salvation can only come if Emmanuel is victorious. [3]

Characters

Main Characters: [4]

Locations

Some of the main places are listed below.[ citation needed ]

Reception

Critical reception to The Holy War has been mixed. Only two editions were published during Bunyan's lifetime, [5] indicating that the work was much less popular than his earlier Pilgrim's Progress , which had run to eight editions in its first four years. [6] Interest in The Holy War revived during the 18th century, [7] although the text suffered at the hands of its editors, who endeavoured to bring its ideas into line with the prevailing theological climate. [6] In 1854, Thomas Babington Macaulay asserted that The Holy War was the second-greatest allegory ever written, surpassed only by The Pilgrim's Progress. [8] [9] Other 19th- and 20th-century critics have been more dismissive, and in modern times the novel is little studied in comparison with Bunyan's other works. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allegory</span> Literary device

As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory throughout history in all forms of art to illustrate or convey complex ideas and concepts in ways that are comprehensible or striking to its viewers, readers, or listeners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Bunyan</span> English Christian writer and preacher

John Bunyan was an English writer and Puritan preacher best remembered as the author of the Christian allegory The Pilgrim's Progress, which also became an influential literary model. In addition to The Pilgrim's Progress, Bunyan wrote nearly sixty titles, many of them expanded sermons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Babington Macaulay</span> British historian and politician (1800–1859)

Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 1848.

<i>The Pilgrims Progress</i> 1678 Christian allegory written by John Bunyan

The Pilgrim's Progress from This World, to That Which Is to Come is a 1678 Christian allegory written by John Bunyan. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of theological fiction in English literature and a progenitor of the narrative aspect of Christian media. It has been translated into more than 200 languages and never been out of print. It appeared in Dutch in 1681, in German in 1703 and in Swedish in 1727. The first North American edition was issued in 1681. It has also been cited as the first novel written in English. According to literary editor Robert McCrum, "there's no book in English, apart from the Bible, to equal Bunyan's masterpiece for the range of its readership, or its influence on writers as diverse as C. S. Lewis, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Charles Dickens, Louisa May Alcott, George Bernard Shaw, William Thackeray, Charlotte Bronte, Mark Twain, John Steinbeck and Enid Blyton. The words on which the hymn "To be a Pilgrim" is based come from the novel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Giles-without-Cripplegate</span> Church in London, England

St Giles-without-Cripplegate is an Anglican church in the City of London, located on Fore Street within the modern Barbican complex. When built it stood without the city wall, near the Cripplegate. The church is dedicated to St Giles, patron saint of lepers, beggars and the handicapped. It is one of the few medieval churches left in the City of London, having survived the Great Fire of 1666.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Craven, 1st Earl of Craven (1608–1697)</span>

William Craven, 1st Earl of Craven, PC was an English nobleman and soldier.

Robert Lundy was a Scottish army officer best known for serving as Governor of Londonderry during the early stages of the Siege of Derry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monergism</span> Christian theology concerning the will in salvation

Monergism is the view within Christian theology which holds that God works through the Holy Spirit to bring about the salvation of an individual through spiritual regeneration, regardless of the individual's cooperation. It is most often associated with Lutheranism, as well as with the Reformed tradition and its doctrine of irresistible grace, and particularly with historical doctrinal differences between Calvinism and Arminianism. This position supposedly contrasts with what is pejoratively called Arminian synergism, the belief that God and individuals cooperate to bring individuals salvation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">El Shaddai</span> One of the names of the God of Israel

El Shaddai or just Shaddai is one of the names of the God of Israel. El Shaddai is conventionally translated into English as God Almighty, but its original meaning is unclear.

Regeneration, while sometimes perceived to be a step in the Ordo salutis, is generally understood in Christian theology to be the objective work of God in a believer's life. Spiritually, it means that God brings a person to new life from a previous state of separation from God and subjection to the decay of death. Thus, in Lutheran and Roman Catholic theology, it generally means that which takes place during baptism. In Calvinism and Arminian theology, baptism is recognized as an outward sign of an inward reality which is to follow regeneration as a sign of obedience to the New Testament; as such, the Methodist Churches teach that regeneration occurs during the new birth.

The Professor's Commencement is a short story by Willa Cather. It was first published in New England Magazine in June 1902

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Aarvold</span> English rugby union player and barrister

Sir Carl Douglas Aarvold,, was an English barrister who became Recorder of London. Among other cases, he presided at the 1965 trial of the Kray twins. In his earlier days, he was also an England rugby union international player

Sir John Knight was an English merchant and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1689 to 1695.

William Stewart, 1st Viscount Mountjoy (1653–1692), was an Anglo-Irish peer and soldier.

The Life and Death of Mr. Badman: An Analysis of a Wicked Man's Life, as a Warning For Others, Presented to the World in a Familiar Dialogue Between Mr. Wiseman and Mr. Attentive is a 1680 book by John Bunyan. It was designed as a companion to The Pilgrim's Progress and was published by Nathaniel Ponder. The two characters have a dialogue about sin and redemption over the course of a long day.

<i>Critical and Historical Essays</i> (Macaulay)

Critical and Historical Essays: Contributed to the Edinburgh Review (1843) is a collection of articles by Thomas Babington Macaulay, later Lord Macaulay. They have been acclaimed for their readability, but criticized for their inflexible attachment to the attitudes of the Whig school of history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Babington family</span>

Babington is the name of an Anglo-Irish and English gentry family. The Anglo-Irish branch of the family is still extant today.

The Ministry of the Chits was the government of the Kingdom of England from November 1679 to 1688. The administration was led by three young ministers, collectively known as the chits: Laurence Hyde, Sidney Godolphin and the Earl of Sunderland.

William Henry Leigh (1781-1818) was a merchant, slave trader and former colonial official in Sierra Leone during the early nineteenth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derry city walls</span>

Derry's walls were originally built by the Irish Society between 1613 and 1619, under the supervision of the London builder and architect Peter Benson. They were built with the intention of protecting the Scottish and English planters that had moved to Ulster as part of the Plantation of Ulster that had been established by James I. It was a direct consequence of the previous settlement being destroyed by Irish chieftain Cahir O'Doherty during O'Doherty's rebellion. As a result of the building of the city's defences by the Irish Society, which was a consortium of livery companies based out of the City of London, the city was officially renamed Londonderry in the 1613 royal charter. This is what has subsequently led to the naming dispute for the city and county of Derry/Londonderry.

References

  1. Jones, Malcolm, "The English Print", in Hattaway, Michael, A Companion to English Renaissance Literature and Culture, John Wiley & Sons, 2008, p.360.
  2. Zinck, Arlette, "Dating The Spiritual Warfare Broadsheet", The Recorder: Newsletter of the International John Bunyan Society, 2007, pp.3-4.
  3. "Holy War | Christian Focus | 9781845503949". www.rainbowresource.com. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  4. "The Holy War (eBook) | Monergism". www.monergism.com. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  5. Sharrock, Roger; Forrest, James, eds. (1980). John Bunyan: The Holy War. Oxford University Press. p. xl. ISBN   0-19-811887-2.
  6. 1 2 3 Lynch, Beth (1999–2000). "'Rather Dark to Readers in General': Some Critical Casualties of John Bunyan's Holy War (1682)" . Bunyan Studies (9): 25–49.
  7. Rosenfeld, Nancy (2018). "The Holy War (1682)". In Davies, Michael; Owens, W. R. (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of John Bunyan. Oxford University Press. p. 280. ISBN   978-0-19-958130-6.
  8. McKelvey, Robert J. (2011). Histories that Mansoul and Her Wars Anatomize: The Drama of Redemption in John Bunyan's Holy War. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. p. 11. ISBN   978-3-647-56939-0.
  9. Macaulay, Thomas Babington (1860). The Miscellaneous Writings of Lord Macaulay. Vol. 2. Longman, Green, Longman, and Roberts. p. 239.