Tag Archives: George MacDonald

MacDonald’s Loving Vision of Christ

By Robin Bates | Published: July 8, 2023

George MacDonald’s Christian vision comes through clearly in “Sir Gibbie,” a wondrous tale of a mute boy.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged C.S. Lewis, Calvinism, Congregationalism, Sir Gibbie, theology | Comments closed

Thou Cam’st a Little Baby Thing

By Robin Bates | Published: December 3, 2022

George MacDonald’s “That Holy Thing” dramatically makes the point that God doesn’t show up in our lives as we expect or think we want.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "That Holy Thing", Advent, C.S. Lewis | Comments closed

Befouling America’s Future

By Robin Bates | Published: October 17, 2018

MacDonald’s “Princess and Curdie” has an apocalyptic image that captures how Trump is fouling America’s future.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged climate change, corruption, Princess and Curdie, Trump administration | Comments closed

With Many Tears I Went in Search of HIm

By Robin Bates | Published: February 19, 2017

Spiritual Sunday I know George MacDonald as the author of various fantasy novels but didn’t realize that he also wrote poetry. Here’s a lovely sonnet about looking for God after suffering a crisis of faith. The poet doesn’t find his “friend” when he searches in the wilderness or in cities, in cathedrals or in charnel houses, […]

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "Lost and Found", Searching for God | Comments closed

The Twisted Fingers Letting Go

By Robin Bates | Published: November 26, 2016

Catherine Alder has a beautiful poem in which she calls upon us to unclench our fists. I reflect also upon two other works that feature clenched fists, Blake’s “Grey Monk” and George MacDonald’s “Lilith.”

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged "Advent Hands", "Grey Monk", Advent, Catherine Alder, Hands, Lilith, St. Joseph, William Blake | Comments closed

Opened up by a Fire of Roses

By Robin Bates | Published: June 24, 2010

I am writing today about an image that gripped me as a child and that has proved a comfort to me since losing my oldest son ten years ago. I encountered it in The Princess and Curdie, a Victorian children’s fantasy novel by George MacDonald. I use it differently than the author does but […]

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged Princess and Curdie, Suffering | Comments closed

The Magic World of Children’s Lit

By Robin Bates | Published: July 7, 2009

William Kristof, the much traveled Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for the New York Times, wrote recently about the disturbing way that children’s IQ scores often drop over summer vacation. The cause is lack of intellectual stimulation. The problem is more severe with poor than it is with middle class kids. As an antidote, Kristof offered […]

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged A. A. Milne, Alexander Dumas, Alice in Wonderland, Around the World in 80 Days, Arthur Conan Doyle, Baroness Emmuska Orczy, C.S. Lewis, Cecil Day-Lewis, children's books, E. Nesbitt, Francis Hodgson Burnett, Freddy the Pig, Hardy Boys, Homer, Iliad, J.R.R. Tolkien, Jules Verne, Jungle Books, Just So Stories, Knights of King Midas, Lewis Carroll, Little Lord Fauntleroy, Lost World, Mistress Masham's Repose, Narnia Chronicles, Otterbury Incident, Paul Berna, Rudyard Kipling, Scarlet Pimpernel, summer reading, T.H. White, The Lord of the Rings, The Princess and Curdie, The Secret Garden, Three Musketeers, Treasure Seekers, William Kristof, Winnie the Pooh, Would Be Goods | Comments closed

Tag Archives: George MacDonald

MacDonald’s Loving Vision of Christ

Thou Cam’st a Little Baby Thing

Befouling America’s Future

With Many Tears I Went in Search of HIm

The Twisted Fingers Letting Go

Opened up by a Fire of Roses

The Magic World of Children’s Lit

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