Today one can take advantage of a free download of Alan Jacobs' "How to Read a Book," a chapter in Liberal Arts For the Christian Life (Edited by Jeffry C. Davis & Philip G. Ryken. Crossway. 2012). Below's the conclusion from which I raise the question, "How often do you read on a whim?" As I draw this essay to a close, let me turn to a matter that, in my mind, is very important indeed —but not nearly as solemn as what we've been talking about over the past few pages. Recalling Auden's warning that masterpieces of … [Read more...] about How often do you read on a whim?
Quotes
Kingdom Calling in the New Year
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? -- Micah 6:8 When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish there are shouts of gladness. -- Proverbs 11:10 When behind me arose such a clatter, I turned to see what was the matter. And what did I find? A little one eager to add Amy Sherman's Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good (InterVarsity Press. … [Read more...] about Kingdom Calling in the New Year
Quote: Simone Weil on Effort, Attention, and Unexpected Results
Hannah Eagleson's first guest blog series, which she wrote before joining ESN as a writer/editor in 2014. At the time Hannah was a musician, writer, and recent PhD recipient living in central Pennsylvania. The Summer Quote Series offers brief reflections on quotes that she found helpful when thinking about her academic work. Thank you, Hannah! I've always loved Dorothy L. Sayers' Peter Wimsey mysteries. There are many reasons, but two of them are Lord Peter's love of quotations and his affirmation of … [Read more...] about Quote: Simone Weil on Effort, Attention, and Unexpected Results
‘The Dying God Myth’ & the Inklings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt_rMtKhPuo&=300 Promotional Video for Looking for the King: An Inklings Novel. In Chapter 7 of Looking for the King: An Inklings Novel (Ignatius Press. 2010), David C. Downing (R.W. Schlosser Professor of English at Elizabethtown College, PA, & C.S. Lewis Scholar who has written several books for InterVarsity Press) provides a captivating, lively and creative envisioning of Inklings conversation. Last night as I was reading and discussing Chapter 7 with one of daughters, I … [Read more...] about ‘The Dying God Myth’ & the Inklings
A few minutes with Updike’s “Seven Stanzas at Easter”
Make no mistake: if He rose at all it was as His body; if the cells' dissolution did not reverse, the molecules reknit, the amino acids rekindle, the Church will fall. -- John Updike. Seven Stanzas at Easter. 1960. Accessed at http://www.iserv.net/~stpats/Updike.htm (4/21/2011). While reading Kent Annan's After Shock: Searching for Honest Faith When Your World Is Shaken (InterVarsity Press. 2011), I came across selections from John Updike's Seven Stanzas at Easter. On Easter, as he wrestles with faith in the … [Read more...] about A few minutes with Updike’s “Seven Stanzas at Easter”