Christendom College President George A. Harne, Ph.D., has released a new episode of the Christendom Conversations podcast, featuring a compelling conversation with Tolkien expert Dr. Daniel Spiotta. Together, they discuss storytelling—especially through Tolkien’s works—and how it can significantly influence personal and intellectual growth.
“As I’ve returned to this awesome story of The Lord of the Rings and the other myths that Tolkien created around it, every re-reading has unveiled new valences of the way God has made the world, inviting me to look more deeply into beauty and how beauty moves us in the world,” says Spiotta. “To see this not only in beautiful shapes that come to the eye but beauty as friendship, beauty as magnanimity of soul, as heroic activity — these lessons, these realities, unfolded themselves to me in many ways, of course, but largely through my engagement with Tolkien’s work.”
Spiotta is a professor of English Language and Literature at Christendom College, where he teaches courses on the literature of Western Civilization, poetics, and related subjects. He holds degrees from Hillsdale College and the University of Dallas, and his academic interests include Shakespeare, medieval English poetry, and genre theory. He lives near campus with his wife and children.
In his conversation with Harne, Spiotta highlights the importance of beauty in creation, emphasizing how poets and artists express divine inspiration. Together, they suggest practical ways to incorporate literature into daily life, such as reading to children and linking poetry to the seasons, encouraging a continuous pursuit of beauty through art, all making for an enlightening conversation.
This marks the eleventh episode of Christendom Conversations, following November’s episode with the Cardinal Newman Society’s Patrick Reilly, which delved into the challenges Catholic universities face today and how St. John Henry Newman’s vision for Catholic higher education offers a path forward.
Christendom Conversations is part of Christendom College’s expanding podcast network, which offers listeners and viewers rich engagement with the Catholic intellectual tradition. Through in-depth interviews with Catholic scholars and cultural leaders, the podcast explores timeless questions and enduring truths. New episodes are released monthly.
Watch the latest episode below:
