Greg Maillet

A Subversive Gospel

Arts & Literature

“Michael Bruner's new book on Flannery O'Connor is as radical as its title suggests, showing that O'Connor is one of the most accomplished modern writers of Catholic theological aesthetics. Tracing this accomplishment not only to the familiar foundations of Thomism, Bruner breaks new ground in O'Connor studies by discussing in detail the influence of Friedrich von Hügel upon her work, showing how this early twentieth-century Austrian Catholic helped O'Connor understand the importance of the theological transcendentals in great art. Seeing O'Connor's work as an expression of the many subversive elements of the Christian gospel, Bruner's critical approach helps us understand how O'Connor asks us to reimagine what beauty, goodness, and truth might mean in the modern world.”

Letter to the Future

Fiction

“In this work, O’Brien does much more than simply bring Father Elijah into the 21st century; rather, he shows how and why humanity has continued on the destructive path begun in the Garden of Eden, ‘self-deification’. Most importantly, though, O’Brien here imagines what the living God might do to save humanity from its own self-destruction.”

Mariner

Arts & Literature

“Malcolm Guite's Mariner gives us insight into the growth of Coleridge's mind and a close reading of his greatest poem. In Guite's biographical and textual criticism, modern readers are reminded of the Christian foundations of Coleridge's work. Guite is both an accomplished Christian minister and poet and perhaps one of the few modern souls able to accompany Coleridge on the harrowing spiritual and psychological journey of the Ancient Mariner. Readers of this excellent book have the rare opportunity to take a similar voyage.”

The Messiah Comes to Middle-Earth

Arts & Literature

“In The Messiah Comes to Middle-Earth, Philip Ryken develops the notion that the presence of Christ in The Lord of the Rings follows a traditional tripartite form: prophet, priest, and king. Showing particularly how Tolkien develops this form through Gandalf, Frodo, and Aragorn, Ryken adeptly demonstrates that a knowledge of theology and Middle-Earth mutually illuminate Tolkien's texts. The plausibility of the book's thesis is also enhanced through responses from other notable scholars, including Sandra Richter, Jennifer Powell McNutt, and William Struthers. This book is recommended for all who wish to enhance their understanding of the Christian theology that undergirds the entertaining fantasy of Tolkien's Middle-Earth.”