As I mentioned in a previous post, I had four conferences, including six talks, cancelled or postponed this year–as well as a research trip to the Marion E. Wade Inklings archive in Wheaton, IL. Thanks to some creative work of Joe Ricke and others at the Lewis and Friends centre at Taylor University, some portion of these cancellations are being recovered–both in the postponement to the main conference to 2021 (which I will truly miss, see here and here) and in hosting some free Zoom events. A couple of weeks ago, Charlie Starr and I presented our material on the Archangel Fragment, which was great fun.

Starting tomorrow (4-6pm EST) and Saturday (10-12pm EST), the Center for the Study of C.S. Lewis and Friends is having a free “Nolloquium”–a digital conversation covering some of the great events and papers we would have seen in Uplands, Indiana this weekend if we could have been there live.

I was slated to present a paper where I work with Monika Hilder’s trilogy of books on Lewis and gender, and I hope to do that next spring, live at Taylor. Tomorrow I will be presenting on the PhD research that went into my thesis, “‘The Great Story on Which the Plot Turns’: Cruciformity in C.S. Lewis’ Narrative Spiritual Theology”. Here is the abstract of what I will present in a tight, 15-minute format tomorrow:

The Shape of the Cross in C.S. Lewis’ Spiritual Theology

While C.S. Lewis is probably the most famous apologist of the 20th century, by reading him only has an apologist we narrow the possibilities for understanding the diverse bookshelf he has given us. By changing our frame of reference, by tilting from apologetics to writing about the spiritual life, we discover the theological centre of C.S. Lewis’ Christian thought–an image spiritual death and resurrection that is sometimes noted but has never been thoroughly studied.

If anyone wants my thesis in whole or the powerpoint of my talk, email me at junkola[at]Gmail[dot]com. The details to sign up are below and I hope I can see you there!

Event Announcement

Join us this weekend for a Zoomed Lewis & Friends mini-conference in lieu of the 2020 Colloquium that never was and in anticipation of Colloquium 2021. From scholarly papers to our “new work roundtable” to creative pieces to remembrances of things past and wishing for what might have been, the “Nolloquium” will celebrate both the ongoing work and the biennial gatherings of our Lewis & Friends community. Friday’s session (4-6 p.m.) features papers by Brenton Dickieson, Fiona McClanahan, and Grace Tiffany, as well as creative work from Crystal Hurd and Cassie Dale. Saturday morning’s session (10-11:59 a.m.) includes a nostalgic tour through Colloquia past with John Stanifer, a “new work roundtable” (a slight revision of our popular “new books roundtable” from the Colloquium) in which participants get three minutes to give the “elevator speech” version of their ongoing projects (books, articles, creative work), and some concluding remarks and a special presentation by Joe Ricke, the Director of the Center for the Study of C. S. Lewis & Friends.

Please contact cslewiscenter@taylor.edu for Zoom information.

Due to the current circumstances, this will be a Zoom session. Arrive early because the group is limited to 100.