Today the world remembers Charles Dickens, born on this day two hundred years ago. I have a great fondness for Dickens’s works, especially David Copperfield and Hard Times.
Here’s violinist Lindsey Stirling with a beautiful medley of music from Lord of the Rings:
Though National Vocation Awareness Week has ended for this year, the working out or living out of our vocations goes on. Jeffrey Langan, Associate Professor at Notre Dame, delivers a fascinating lecture in which he uses Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings to illustrate the dynamic of vocation. Though he seems to be speaking mostly about the ordained or religious life, many of his remarks could also be applied to marriage and other vocations.
Image from TolkienLibrary.com
Today is J.R.R. Tolkien’s 120th birthday. Known, of course, mainly for The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, one of his most under appreciated works is a gem of a short story called “Leaf by Niggle.” This simple story is a beautiful allegory for the creative life and for the transition into eternal life. Similar to C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce, “Leaf by Niggle” is much more subtle. It is also deeply spiritual and rooted in a solid Catholic theology of art and afterlife. “Leaf by Niggle” complements and brings to life Tolkien’s essay “On Fairy Stories,” in which he expresses his philosophy of creation and sub-creation.