EBOOK
George MacDonald in the Age of Miracles
Incarnation, Doubt, and Reenchantment
Timothy LarsenSeries: Hansen Lectureship4
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About
The Bible is full of miracles. Yet how do we make sense of them today? And where might we see miracles in our own lives?
In this installment of the Hansen Lectureship series, historian and theologian Timothy Larsen considers the legacy of George MacDonald, the Victorian Scottish author and minister who is best known for his pioneering fantasy literature, which influenced authors such as C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, G. K. Chesterton, and Madeleine L'Engle.
Larsen explores how, throughout his life and writings, MacDonald sought to counteract skepticism, unbelief, naturalism, and materialism and to herald instead the reality of the miraculous, the supernatural, the wondrous, and the realm of the spirit.
The Hansen Lectureship series offers accessible and insightful reflections by Wheaton College faculty members on the transformative work of the Wade Center authors.
In this installment of the Hansen Lectureship series, historian and theologian Timothy Larsen considers the legacy of George MacDonald, the Victorian Scottish author and minister who is best known for his pioneering fantasy literature, which influenced authors such as C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, G. K. Chesterton, and Madeleine L'Engle.
Larsen explores how, throughout his life and writings, MacDonald sought to counteract skepticism, unbelief, naturalism, and materialism and to herald instead the reality of the miraculous, the supernatural, the wondrous, and the realm of the spirit.
The Hansen Lectureship series offers accessible and insightful reflections by Wheaton College faculty members on the transformative work of the Wade Center authors.
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Reviews
"Rarely, if ever, does a theologian grasp the essentials of luminaries such as C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, George MacDonald, G. K. Chesterton, and Madeleine L'Engle. But here, in this exquisitely argued, beautifully crafted, and elegantly written thesis, Timothy Larsen offers a beguiling meditation on incarnation, doubt, and reenchantment. With his careful and nuanced focus on George MacDonald,
Martyn Percy, dean of Christ Church, Oxford
"It is hard to imagine a better pairing of author and subject than George MacDonald, one of the essential Victorians and one of the deepest of Christian writers, and Timothy Larsen, one of our very finest historians. This book is truly a joy to read."
Alan Jacobs, distinguished professor of humanities in the honors program, Baylor Universit
"These lectures are steeped in a scholarly acquaintance with George MacDonald's writings. Their accessible style aims at bringing MacDonald's theological insights on such ever-pressing matters as religious doubt and the purpose of human suffering to a wider Christian audience."
Elisabeth Jay, professor emerita, Oxford Brookes University
"Larsen . . . writes about MacDonald with great sympathy and admiration, but also with a clear eye and deep sense of irony."
John Wilson, First Things, November 9, 2018
Extended Details
- SeriesHansen Lectureship