Tag Archives: Conversion

The Tolkien Letters that Changed C.S. Lewis’ Life (On Tolkien’s Birthday)

Posted on January 3, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Today is J.R.R. Tolkien’s birthday. Born on January 3, 1892, he would be 127 today if he had been a longliver or immortal. To celebrate the occasion I decided to reblog my most popular Tolkien post. Tolkien’s work has made many … Continue reading →

C.S. Lewis And J.R.R. Tolkien: The Unpayable Debt of Writing Friends (Throwback Thursday)

Posted on November 8, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

This year I introduced an occasional feature I call “Throwback Thursday.” This is where I find a blog post from the past–raiding either my own vault or someone else’s–and throw it back out into the digital world. This might be … Continue reading →

Posted in Creative Writing, Fictional Worlds, Lewis Biography, Throwback Thursdays | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Conversion, fantasy, J.R.R. Tolkien, literature, Lord of the Rings, Out of the Silent Planet, publishing dreams, The Desolation of Smaug, The Hobbit, Tolkien, writing | 12 Comments

Eucatastrophe: J.R.R Tolkien & C.S. Lewis’s Magic Formula for Hope by Tim Willard

Posted on December 21, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

What is it we feel when the eagles swoop in during the final moments of the battle of the five armies in Do our emotions reveal the true depth of the fantasy genre that has captured the hearts of pop-culture? … Continue reading →

Posted in Guest Blogs, Original Research | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Conversion, euchatastrophe, fantasy, film adaptation, g k chesterton, J.R.R. Tolkien, joy, lion the witch and the wardrobe, Lord of the Rings, myth, mythology, Norse Mythology, Peter Jackson, pop culture, The Battle of Five Armies, The Hobbit, Tom Shippey, worldviews | 38 Comments

The Hound of Heaven, Cat and Mouse: Stories of Conversion

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

When I was young, I had no idea that there was such a terrifying concept as an all-loving, ever-pervasive God who sought not intellectual precision or ritualistic elegance or even sheer human kindness, but who sought the elusive self-honesty that … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Aslan, Conversion, conversion to Christianity, George MacDonald, Hound of Heaven, lion the witch and the wardrobe, Spiritual Autobiography, Surprised by Joy | 30 Comments

The Tolkien Letters that Changed C.S. Lewis’ Life

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

This actually happened three times, though we don’t have most of the letters that J.R.R. Tolkien sent to his friend C.S. Lewis over the years. The first letters that changed Lewis’ life were more than letters. Throughout the 1920s Lewis … Continue reading →

Posted in Letters, Lewis Biography | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Conversion, Humphrey Carpenter, Inklings, J.R.R. Tolkien, Middle Earth, myth, mythopoiea, Out of the Silent Planet, Poetry, Ransom Trilogy, Spiritual Autobiography | 49 Comments

A Clash of Faith: What Happens When Punk Rocker Terry Chimes Reads “Mere Christianity”

Posted on February 13, 2014 by Brenton Dickieson

It’s hard not to love The Clash, though they started filling the stage with noise when I was still in diapers. That’s okay, since Clash headman Mick Jones said in his last performance, “This here set of music is now … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Augustine, C.S. Lewis, Conversion, conversion to Christianity, faith, Mere Christianity, music, Terry Chimes, The Clash | 34 Comments

The Unpayable Debt of Writing Friends

Posted on November 26, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

I have just read The Hobbit again and am about to finish The Fellowship of the Ring, reading aloud to my son. Again and again I am struck by how very good these books are. Not only are they wonderful … Continue reading →

Posted in Creative Writing, Fictional Worlds, Lewis Biography | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Conversion, fantasy, J.R.R. Tolkien, literature, Lord of the Rings, Out of the Silent Planet, publishing dreams, The Desolation of Smaug, The Hobbit, Tolkien, writing | 32 Comments

C.S. Lewis and The Inklings ‘Ideas’ on CBC

Posted on October 15, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

Originally posted on Malcolm Guite:
As part of the commemorations for Cs Lewis’s ‘Jubilee’ year the Canadian Broadcasting Company have commissioned two in depth programmes on CS Lewis and the Inklings for their Flagship ‘Ideas’ series. I was happy to…

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Alister McGrath, C.S. Lewis, CBC, Conversion, ideas, Inklings, J.R.R. Tolkien, literature, Malcolm Guite, religion | 13 Comments

The Forgotten Posts: Blogs that I Liked But Apparently No One Else Did, or An Encouraging Read During a Difficult Writing Period, or, Longest. Title. Ever.

Posted on October 9, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

I am writing a paper, and it isn’t going well. When writers face a losing battle, we often turn to little supports that we have surrounded ourselves with over the years. I know a writer who googles his name, to … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged books, C.S. Lewis, Conversion, imagination, Narnia, Shel Silverstein, Spirits in Bondage, Stephen King, writing | 4 Comments

Telling it Slant: The Problem With Writing Conversions

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

Oranges and Archie I never went to church much growing up. There was a little white church a mile or so from my house that gave out free oranges and Christian Archie comic books at Christmastime, so sometimes I would … Continue reading →