14 November 2021 | VI Resumed Sunday after Epiphany | Menlo Park, Calif.

This week on the podcast, we catch up with Bilbo and company at the Lonely Mountain and discuss some key differences between The Hobbit and the rest of Tolkien’s legendarium, as well as one controlling theme which unites this work and the Lord of the Rings. We consider the question: is courage determined by your Tookish blood? Also: musings on sacred art and beauty, the earthly liturgy as a living image of the heavenly liturgy, and one way altar servers are like angels!

Opening music: “De profundis,” composed by Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, sung by Capella Amsterdam, dir. Daniel Reuss, 2020. All rights reserved.