Wade Center

Latest Episodes:

Did C.S. Lewis Believe in Evolution? w/ Dr. John Walton May 05, 2025

Show notes

Did C.S. Lewis believe in evolution or not? Join co-hosts Dr. Jim Beitler and Aaron Hill for a bonus episode where we ask this question of Dr. John H. Walton, Emeritus Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. Dr. Walton is widely known for his Lost World Series books as well as his commentaries and teaching on the creation account in Scripture. Make sure to check out our main episode with Dr. Walton where we discuss how Lewis frame creation in his writings, particularly in Perelandra and The Magician's Nephew.

Creation in C.S. Lewis's Fiction w/ Dr. John Walton May 05, 2025

Show notes

C.S. Lewis fictionalized the creation account in several of his novels, most notably in Perelandra and The Magician's Nephew. Join co-hosts Dr. Jim Beitler and Aaron Hill as they explore Lewis's imaginative and expansive creation narratives with Dr. John H. Walton, Emeritus Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. Dr. Walton is widely known for his Lost World Series books as well as his own interpretations of the creation account in Scripture. You won't want to miss this week's discussion as we explore how Lewis's writings compare to the biblical account on a host of topics from sacred space, to the Fall, to creation ex nihilo, to the serpent, and so much more.

Books Worth (re)Reading, Part 2 Apr 14, 2025

Show notes

"At the end of all our exploring, we will arrive where we began and know the place for the first time." - "Little Gidding," T.S. Eliot

Listeners shared some amazing "Books Worth (re)Reading" in response to our first installment, so we are back with a sequel! Join co-hosts Dr. Jim Beitler and Aaron Hill as they revisit the books that we (and our listeners) love and continue to reread. If you are a regular listener, please email us your list of books as well as an explanation of how they've shaped your mind, imagination, and spirit. Below are the second set of books mentioned in this installment of the series.

Gilead, Marilynne Robinson
Being Disciples: Essentials of the Christian Life, Rowan Williams
The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming, Henri J.M. Nouwen
The Strength to Love, Martin Luther King, Jr.
What Are People For?, Wendell Berry
The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud Debate God, Love, Sex, and the Meaning of Life, Armand, Nicholi
Piranesi, Susanna Clarke
The One, The Three, and the Many: God, Creation and the Culture of Modernity, Colin E. Gunton
Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer
The Man Who Was Thursday, G.K. Chesterton (Print copy)

C.S. Lewis and Christian Witness w/ President Philip Ryken Mar 04, 2025

Show notes

Millions know him as a novelist and an Oxford Don, but C.S. Lewis's most lasting impact may be his role model as a Christian witness and evangelist. President of Wheaton College, Dr. Philip Ryken joins co-hosts Dr. Jim Beitler and Aaron Hill to explore C.S. Lewis's views about the witness of Scripture and what he can teach us about our own approach to Christian witness. How did Lewis approach Scripture, doctrine, and evangelism and how might that inform our own efforts to bear witness to the truth?

Books Worth (re)Reading, Part 1 Feb 03, 2025

Show notes

If this podcast is bound together by anything, it is a love of books—particularly, a love for books written by the Wade Center authors. Inspired by C.S. Lewis's habit and love of re-reading books, co-hosts Dr. Jim Beitler and Aaron Hill embark this week on an exploration of the books that they love and continue to reread. If you are a regular listener, please email us your list of books as well as an explanation of how they've shaped your mind, imagination, and spirit. Below are the first set of books mentioned in this episode.

The Magician's Nephew, C.S. Lewis
The Two Towers, J.R.R. Tolkien
Perelandra, C.S. Lewis
The Overstory, Richard Powers
Evocations of Grace, Joseph Sittler
For the Life of the World, Alexander Schmemann
No Future Without Forgiveness, Desmond Tutu
Creation and Fall, Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"The Word of Jesus on Prayer," Unspoken Sermons II, George MacDonald
The Great Divorce, C.S. Lewis

The Last Romantic w/ Dr. Jeffrey Barbeau Jan 06, 2025

Show notes

Sometimes the best way to understand an author is by exploring their conversation partners? Who are they responding to? In his recent Hansen lectures—now released in book form through IVP as The Last Romantic—Dr. Jeffrey Barbeau explores the ways in which C.S. Lewis is indebted to, influenced by, and fulfills the aspirations of Romantic authors such as Wordsworth, Coleridge, and even Schleiermacher. Join Dr. Jim Beitler, Director of the Marion E. Wade Center, and co-host Aaron Hill as they sit down with Dr. Jeffrey Barbeau to discuss how Lewis is The Last Romantic and how seeing him through this literary light can help us understand not just Lewis's writings but his legacy and applicability to modern life.

The Mythmakers w/ John Hendrix Dec 09, 2024

Show notes

In addition to creating myths themselves, the friendship of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien is the stuff of myth and legend. Join Dr. Jim Beitler, Director of the Marion E. Wade Center, and co-host Aaron Hill as they sit down with illustrator and professor John Hendrix to discuss his latest graphic novel, The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. We discuss the visual language that Hendrix created for The Inklings, his creative process, and the ways in which Lewis and Tolkien impacted the 20th and 21st centuries.

This Homeward Ache w/ Amy Baik Lee Nov 11, 2024

Show notes

In our anxiety-ridden age, we are all seeking a home where we feel safe, loved, and accepted. But what happens if no place on earth and no moment in time satisfies your deepest longings for home and community? Join Dr. Jim Beitler, Director of the Marion E. Wade Center, and co-host Aaron Hill as they connect with Amy Baik Lee, author of This Homeward Ache. Explore what C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and George MacDonald might teach us about the difference between home-sickness, nostalgia, and "this homeward ache;" how we should respond to Sehnsucht; and Clyde S. Kilby's resolutions for a life well-lived.

The Wilderking Trilogy w/ Jonathan Rodgers Oct 07, 2024

Show notes

We're back! Join Dr. Jim Beitler, Director of the Marion E. Wade Center, and co-host Aaron Hill as they connect with Jonathan Rodgers, author of The Wilderking Trilogy and host of the celebrated podcast, The Habit. Recently republished by our friends over at The Rabbit Room, Jim and Aaron discuss the first novel in Rodger's Wilderking trilogy, The Bark of the Bog Owl. Learn how to be a writer even if you don't feel like one, how to accept and embrace God's plan (and timing) for your life, and how Wade Center authors such as C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien inspired and helped shape Rodger's own fantasy stories.

Listening to Creation w/ Dr. Kristen Page Oct 07, 2024

Show notes

We're back! Join Dr. Jim Beitler, Director of the Marion E. Wade Center, and co-host Aaron Hill as they sit down with Dr. Kristen L. Page to discuss everything from how C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien portrayed ecosystems and environmentalism in The Chronicles of Narnia to The Lord of the Rings, to how studying ecology can help us understand our place in the order of Creation, to Dr. Page's recent Hansen lectures published as the book, The Wonders of Creation. Don't forget to check out Dr. Page's new podcast "about the stories we hear from the landscapes around us" called Listen Here.

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