Theology & Fiction Book club
We had a great fall meeting. Stay tuned for announcements of future book selections and meetings.
What is the theology & fiction book club?
The club is an online gathering to discuss connections between two of the best things in the world: theology and fiction.
Bring your comments or questions to the Church Blogmatics Book Club chat.
I’m a big fiction reader—from classic to contemporary, popular to literary—and a big believer in the power of story to shape human beings, address deep questions in ways that can’t happen in other genres, and speak to the theological needs of life.
I use fiction in my own writing of theology, and talking theology and fiction with friends is my idea of big fun. In reading stories, I find comfort, exposure to ways of thinking that aren’t my own, and lots and lots of truth telling about a sinful world groaning for redemption.
Reading fiction is even an exercise in virtue formation, correlating with increased empathy and better understanding of other people.
Previous Selections
Fall 2023, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus
Spring 2023, Marilynne Robinson’s Jack
Winter 2023, Ted Chiang’s Exhalation: Stories
Who is your co-leader?
Dr. Christina Bieber Lake is Professor of English at Wheaton College, and if you ask me who in all the world I’d love to discuss theology and fiction with, she’s right at the top of my list.
Christina has special interest in theology and literature, and her publications certainly reflect that.
From Christina's faculty web page:
I've always believed we must learn to be good readers of fiction in order to enter our posthuman world ethically--and so I wrote a book about that. I've just finished a book arguing that story (as typically conceived in America) is inherently theological, and another one about how to remain inspired to teach.
Check out Christina’s fascinating books including The Flourishing Teacher, Prophets of the Posthuman: American Fiction, Biotechnology, and the Ethics of Personhood, and Beyond the Story: American Literary Fiction and the Limits of Materialism.
What do I need to do to prepare? Do I need to know anything special about theology or fiction?
Just read the book and enjoy!
No special knowledge of theology or fiction is needed to enjoy and participate in the event. Come for a life-giving discussion of this fabulous book, the theological questions it raises, and what all that might mean for the Christian life.
Click over to Redbubble to get your book club t-shirt:
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