David Russell Mosley generously shared Advent and Christmas reflections with us in 2014. Today, he begins a three part series exploring how human creativity participates in God's creativity, a subject he explores as a scholar of theology and writer of poetry. Tolkien fans will enjoy Mosley's exploration of the idea of subcreation, articulated in Tolkien's essay "On Faerie Stories." Tolkien argued that human creativity is a gift from God to those made in His image, and that when a human writer imagines something, that … [Read more...] about Scholar’s Compass: Creativity as Gift
Scholar’s Compass: Sir Gawain Seeks Christmas
David Russell Mosley delves into Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a poem that starts at Christmas. Mosley draws on an argument by Tolkien, not coincidentally one of the translators of Sir Gawain, that fairy tales and mythical figures point beyond themselves to the truth of the Gospel. David will share more about Faerie and the Gospel in future Scholar's Compass posts. Reading Quotations from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in this post. … [Read more...] about Scholar’s Compass: Sir Gawain Seeks Christmas
Scholar’s Compass: Learning From Father Christmas
In today's Advent post, David Russell Mosley reflects on the figure of Father Christmas. Drawing on Tolkien's argument in On Fairy Stories, that fairy tales and mythical figures point beyond themselves to the truth of the Gospel, Mosley describes how he sees the Good News in Father Christmas. David will share more about Faerie and the Gospel in future Scholar's Compass posts. Quotation Some of the pictures of Father Christmas in our world make him look only funny and jolly. But now that the children actually stood … [Read more...] about Scholar’s Compass: Learning From Father Christmas
Advent: The New Year Begins (Scholar’s Compass)
Reading Collect for the First Sunday of Advent, Book of Common Prayer (see below) Reflection We are arrived at the beginning of the New Year. Yes, to the world, the New Year is still a month and two days off, but for the Church, the year begins in Advent. It is initially odd to think that the Church Calendar begins in Advent. Advent, after all, is a time of waiting, waiting for the coming of Christ. It is as if the New Year begins only to stop suddenly in its tracks, sit down and wait for something. Yet, on further … [Read more...] about Advent: The New Year Begins (Scholar’s Compass)