Sacraments and Sacramental Ontology: A (Very) Brief Introduction with Dr. Simon Oliver

Last updated on: August 15, 2016 at 8:50 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 13 August 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I’ve been putting some of the finishing touches on a class I’ll be teaching online in a few weeks’ time. The class is called Fundamentals of the Christian Faith and my take on it is to make it an introduction to theology. We go through all the “ologies” you might expect, Theology, Christology, Pneumatology, Hamartiology, Soteriology, Ecclesiology, Sacramentology, Eschatology, etc. We also cover... Read more

This Week on the Edge of Elfland: August 13th Edition

Last updated on: August 12, 2016 at 11:32 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 13 August 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, As always, I want to thank you for reading my letters. As an author in three different genre (at least; blogging, fiction, and theology), I often get asked, “Who is your audience?” I never know how to answer that because I usually just write for myself. I write about things I would want to read about, things I find interesting. That there are... Read more

Receiving the Proofs of My First Novel, On the Edges of Elfland

Last updated on: August 12, 2016 at 4:53 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 13 August 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I just wanted to share the news that I have received the proofs for my first novel, On the Edges of Elfland. The title page looks gorgeous. The proofs are due September 2, and Wipf and Stock is hoping to have it ready by the end of September. I’m humbled and over the moon. Next week, I’ll do a reading to whet your appetites... Read more

Working for Signum University and Tolkien and Tradition

Last updated on: August 12, 2016 at 11:54 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 13 August 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, Just yesterday I received some exciting news. I had applied a few weeks ago to work as a Preceptor for Signum University. Don’t know what that is? It is an entirely online university currently offering Master’s degrees in Literature and Tolkien Studies (this can be further subdivided). Signum was started by none other than Dr. Corey Olsen, the Tolkien Professor. Corey has been... Read more

Darkness in Elfland: Tolkien on Whether Fairies Are Demons and a (Hopefully) Fuller Account of Enchantment

Last updated on: August 11, 2016 at 2:37 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time St. Clare’s Day 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, You will no doubt be unsurprised when you read these letters to see references to things like Faërie, Elfland (which is in the title), Enchantment, etc. Careful readers will note that these words are always used positively. That is, I have not, up to this point, dealt with a different, often, though not exclusively, non-literary tradition which treats elves and fairies (mostly... Read more

Fungi in Elfland: The Wood Wide Web and the Interconnectedness of Creation

Last updated on: August 10, 2016 at 1:37 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 10 August 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, Yesterday I finally sat down and read the article “THE SECRETS OF THE WOOD WIDE WEB.” I will admit from the start that my reading of this article was based on a misreading of a single quotation. I thought the article had said: “The revelation of the Wood Wide Web’s existence, and the increased understanding of its functions, raises big questions—about where species... Read more

The Scene from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince that always Makes Me Cry

Last updated on: August 8, 2016 at 3:10 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time 9 August 2016 The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, Yesterday I finished my annual re-read of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. This book does not usually rate high in terms of my favorites, not because of any deficiencies, it just isn’t one I normally think of. This is likely to do with how much more recently it came out than the others (and possibly with how terrible––second only to Order of... Read more

How I’m Doing with C.S. Lewis’ Canon of Western Civilization

Last updated on: August 8, 2016 at 9:25 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time St. Dominic’s Day The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, Over at A Pilgrim in Narnia, Brenton Dickieson has gone through Lewis’s An Experiment in Criticism looking for every book referenced. You should certainly read his excellent post, but below is the list of every book or poem referenced in the book and a Yes listed next to those I have read. Take a look for yourself and see how many you have read.... Read more

John Milbank on Augustine and Nicholas of Cusa

Last updated on: August 5, 2016 at 2:08 pm By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time St. Oswald’s Day The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I’m not sure if there is a more controversial theologian living today than John Milbank, at least not in the circles in which I travel. People tend to fall in three camps: Pure hatred, pure love, and a general liking with caveats. There are other positions, of course. I for one really like John both as a person and as a theologian, but... Read more

Racism, Our Lady of Faërie, Narnia and More: My Most Popular Posts Since Joining Patheos Catholic

Last updated on: August 5, 2016 at 10:36 am By David Russell Mosley

David Russell Mosley Ordinary Time St. Oswald’s Day The Edge of Elfland Hudson, New Hampshire Dear Readers, I’ve now been with Patheos for over two months and I’m still reeling from how many more of you there are now than there used to be. That my little piece of the Internet garners any attention is still quite a surprise to me. Thanks to all of you I’m working harder on writing you more letters on various and sundry topics. Today,... Read more