Most recently added: GKC, Man Who Was Thursday; CSL, De descriptione temporum; GKC, Manalive
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Letters to Children
C. S. Lewis: Letters to Children, ed. Lyle Dorsett and Marjorie Lamp Mead (1985) March 31, 2023 “Letters to Children” w/ Marjorie Mead Long before the internet was invented people wrote letters to C.S. Lewis and he wrote back, sending them meaningful, insightful, and compassionate letters. In this week’s episode Drs. Crystal and David C.…
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Silmarillion
Silmarillion (1977) Apr 15, 2022 Introduction to The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien Upon completion of The Lord of the Rings, new readers often turn to The Silmarillion. But J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic collection of mythopoeic stories—covering everything from the creation of Eä (the Ainulindalë), the Valar and Mayar, the creation of the Elves as well as the events…
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God in the Dock
God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics (1970); 1940’s. Part 1: “Dogma and the Universe,” “Christian Apologetics” Aug 5, 2022 “Dogma and the Universe”—God in the Dock, Vol. 1 Between writing best-selling books, C.S. Lewis published hundreds of essays. Many of them were collected and published after Lewis’s death as God in the Dock in 1970.…
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Smith of Wootton Major
Smith of Wootton Major (1967) Oct 14, 2022 Tolkien and Allegory w/ Graham Shea Tolkien fans, you don’t want to miss this episode! As Graham Shea notes, “Critics have long debated whether, and to what degree, J.R.R. Tolkien writes allegorically. Any answer to this question must attempt to reconcile Tolkien’s numerous comments about allegory, which…
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Christian Reflections
Christian Reflections (1967) Part 1: “The Seeing Eye” and “De Futilitate“ Sep 16, 2022 “The Seeing Eye” & “De Futilitate”—Christian Reflections, Vol. 1 When Yuri Gagarin returned from mankind’s first trip into space, he declared, “I looked and looked and looked, but I didn’t see God.” In an essay written in 1963, C.S. Lewis retorted, “Those…
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The Discarded Image
The Discarded Image (1964) Aug 7, 2020 The Neglected C.S. Lewis w/ Jerry Root If you are a serious C.S. Lewis fan, you likely know and love The Chronicles of Narnia, the Ransom Trilogy, and apologetics books such as Mere Christianity. But have you readThe Discarded Image or An Experiment in Criticism? In this week’s episode, Dr. Jerry Root…
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Letters to Malcolm
Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, Part 1; Part 2 (1964) Part 1: Mar 4, 2022 Love, Pain, Grief, and Joy: Vol. 5, Letters to Malcolm by C.S. Lewis “Creation seems to be delegation through and through. He will do nothing simply of Himself which can be done by creatures.” Those words were written by C.S. Lewis in Letters…
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An Experiment in Criticism
C. S. Lewis, An Experiment in Criticism (Cambridge University Press, 1961) April 28, 2023 “An Experiment in Criticism” by C.S. Lewis These days everyone is a critic. The internet is filled with—some might say “fueled” by—criticism of movies, books, art, society, everything. Over six decades ago, C.S. Lewis recognized and warned us that the wrong…
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A Grief Observed
A Grief Observed (1961) Feb 18, 2022 Love, Pain, Grief, and Joy: Vol. 4, A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis “What reason have we, except our own desperate wishes, to believe that God is … ‘good’?” Phrases such as these in A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis have caused many fans and critics to assume that…
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The Four Loves
The Four Loves (1960) Jan 7, 2022 Love, Pain, Grief, and Joy: Vol. 1, The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis Over the course of his life, C.S. Lewis wrote several books addressing the most complex and universal human experiences—love, pain, and grief. In this week’s episode, Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing sit down with scholar…
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Reflections on the Psalms
C. S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms (1958) January 27, 2023 Reflections on the Psalms by C.S. Lewis Even though he constantly reminded readers that he wasn’t a theologian or a biblical scholar, C.S. Lewis wrote an entire book on how to read and reflect on the Psalms. In this week’s episode, Drs. Crystal and…
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Till We Have Faces
Till We Have Faces (1956) Jan 15, 2021 Till We Have Faces C.S. Lewis’s last novel, Till We Have Faces, is nothing like the Chronicles of Narnia. It is perhaps Lewis’s most complex, profound, and misunderstood work. Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing discuss this uniquely modern and meaningful novel with Producer Aaron Hill. How are we to…
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Narnia 7 – The Last Battle
The Last Battle (1956), vol. 7 of The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) May 7, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 7, The Last Battle “Come further up and further in.” After telling us of first things in The Magician’s Nephew, Lewis finally reveals the last things—the end times—of Narnia. Join Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing as they conclude a…
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De descriptione temporum
C. S. Lewis, De descriptione temporum (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1955) May 26, 2023 How to Read History or “De Descriptione Temporum” by C.S. Lewis How should we read, interpret, and apply history? How can historical misconceptions doom us to repeat the mistakes of the past? Is everything always getting better, or is it possible…
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Narnia 6 – The Magician’s Nephew
The Magician’s Nephew (1955), vol. 6 of The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) Apr 23, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 6, The Magician’s Nephew The Magician’s Nephew was one of the most difficult books for Lewis to finish in the Narnia series. Why? In this sixth Into Narnia episode, Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing explore the wonder and dangers contained within The Magician’s…
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Surprised by Joy
Surprised by Joy (1955) Episode on autobiography and Wade authors: C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Dorothy L. Sayers. Jul 2, 2021 Autobiography is “Dangerous Business” Dorothy L. Sayers describe autobiography as “dangerous business” in The Mind of the Maker. To write one is either “a mark of great insensitiveness to danger or of an almost supernatural…
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The Lord of the Rings
Lord of the Rings (1954-1955), six “books” in 3 vols. Book 1 Sep 24, 2021 Into Lord of the Rings: Book 1, Fellowship of the Ring The Wade Center Podcast’s six-part, in-depth exploration of The Lord of the Rings has arrived precisely when it was meant to—just in time for Tolkien Week and Hobbit Day! In this…
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Narnia 5 – The Horse and His Boy
The Horse and His Boy (1954), vol. 5 of The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) Apr 9, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 5, The Horse and His Boy Aslan lies at the back of every story in Narnia. In the fifth novel in The Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis weaves a tale of separated twins, mistaken identity, escaping…
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Narnia 4 – The Silver Chair
The Silver Chair (1953), vol. 4 of The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) Mar 26, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 4, The Silver Chair Rillian and Puddleglum and Glimfeather, oh my! The unique cast of giants, gnomes, knights, and witches sets The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis apart. Join Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing as they unpack the adventures…
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Narnia 3 – Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952), Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) Mar 12, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 3, Voyage of the Dawn Treader “Where the waves grow sweet, Doubt not, Reepicheep, There is the utter East.” This week Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing sit down with Producer Aaron Hill to explore the meaning and message…
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Mere Christianity
Mere Christianity (1952) Dec 25, 2020 The Grand Miracle Is the Incarnation, like other miracles, a suspension or a reversal of the natural universe? Or, as Lewis writes in “The Grand Miracle,” is it “the central chapter” of history such that “every miracle exhibits the character of the Incarnation”? Join Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing…
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Narnia 2 – Prince Caspian
Prince Caspian (1951), vol. 2 of The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) Feb 26, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 2, Prince Caspian—The Return to Narnia What can talking animals possibly teach us about evil, belief, and apostasy in this age of cynicism? Join Drs. Crystal and David C. Downing as the Wade Center Podcast continues to explore the meaning…
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Narnia 1 – The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950), vol. 1 of The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) Feb 12, 2021 Into Narnia: Vol. 1, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe Why did C.S. Lewis, an Oxford professor, write children’s books? And what is Father Christmas doing in Narnia? Join C.S. Lewis expert, Dr. David C. Downing…
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Weight of Glory
Apr 29, 2022 Lewis as Preacher: “Learning in War-Time,” “The Weight of Glory,” and “Transposition” “We always have to answer the question: How can you be so frivolous and selfish to think of anything by the salvation of human souls?” During World War II, C.S. Lewis preached three sermons which were eventually packaged and published…
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Miracles
Miracles: A Preliminary Study (1947, revised 1960) Jun 18, 2021 Miracles: Coherent Invasion or Disconnected Raids? Are miracles merely “a series of disconnected raids on Nature” or are they “the various steps of a strategically coherent invasion?” C.S. Lewis explores philosophical and historical arguments surrounding Biblical and contemporary accounts of signs and wonders in Miracles: A Preliminary…
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George MacDonald: An Anthology
C. S. Lewis, George MacDonald: An Anthology (1947) Jun 24, 2022 C.S. Lewis’s Greatest Debt—”George MacDonald: An Anthology” “My own debt to [Unspoken Sermons] is almost as great as one man can owe to another.” With these words, C.S. Lewis acknowledged the role the George MacDonald’s spiritual writings (as well as his novels) played in his own…
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Leaf by Niggle
Leaf By Niggle (1945) Sep 10, 2021 Leaf by Niggle by J.R.R. Tolkien During his labor to create The Lord of the Rings, an allegorical and autobiographical story came to J.R.R. Tolkien “like a dream.” Some have described this short story, titled Leaf by Niggle (1945), as the “the hidden nucleus of Tolkien’s work.” As the Wade Center…
Christine Colón Crystal Downing David Hooker David McNutt Graham Shea Jerry Root Laura Schmidt Marjorie Mead
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