Tag Archives: Spiritual Autobiography

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’ Accidental Autobiography: An Update

Posted on October 15, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

C.S. Lewis tried a number of times to write his spiritual autobiography. When in 1930 he had come to a philosophical belief in God, but was not yet a Christian, he gave a start to the story. It has finally … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, Reflections | Tagged Alan Jacobs, books, C.S. Lewis, Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Pilgrim's Regress, Spiritual Autobiography, Surprised by Joy, the Narnian, The Problem of Pain, theology, writing | 37 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 | 29 Comments

“Locking Horns With C.S. Lewis” by Antony Flew

Posted on April 8, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

In There is a God (2007), Antony Flew tells the story of his philosophical conversion from atheism to deism, and finally to theism. Flew became famous as an atheist with this little paper, “Theology and Falsification” (1950), where he argued that … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Memorable Quotes | Tagged Antony Flew, apologetics, atheism, autoenthnography, biography, controversy, Elizabeth Anscombe, Miracles, Oxford, philosophy, Socrates, Socratic Club, Spiritual Autobiography, theology, There is a god | 6 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 | 48 Comments

C.S. Lewis’ Accidental Autobiography

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

Lewis tried a number of times to write his spiritual autobiography. When in 1930 he had come to a philosophical belief in God, but was not yet a Christian, he gave a start to the story. It has finally been … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Alan Jacobs, books, C.S. Lewis, Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Pilgrim's Regress, Spiritual Autobiography, Surprised by Joy, the Narnian, The Problem of Pain, theology, writing | 19 Comments

“Exegesis of the Soul” A Reflective Response to Frederick Buechner’s Memoirs

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

C.S. Lewis was part of a WWII-era literary group called the Inklings that included authors like J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, and Roger Lancelyn Green. Among those that I might consider “Honourary Inklings,” Frederick Buechner has, for me, pride of place. … Continue reading →