On Dante’s ‘Paradiso’ and How Tolkien Improved His Story

March 20, 2023March 23, 2023 ~ Richard Rabil, Jr. ~ Leave a comment

Another week, another dollar. What I'm reading: I finished Dante's Paradiso---at last. The poet ascends the spheres of heaven with his guide Beatrice, meeting figures such as Adam, Thomas Aquinas, St. Peter, Mary, and St. John along the way. I have many thoughts and feelings about it, but one surprising moment was in canto 27, … Continue reading On Dante’s ‘Paradiso’ and How Tolkien Improved His Story

On the Inconvenience of Surrender

April 29, 2020January 22, 2021 ~ Richard Rabil, Jr.

C.S. Lewis once wrote that surrendering yourself is the only way to find your true self. It's a true and inspiring sentiment which, unfortunately for Christians, is diametrically opposed to just about everything a culture bent on consumerism and expressive individualism stands for.

What Every Writer Wants: Update June 4, 2019

June 4, 2019November 13, 2019 ~ Richard Rabil, Jr.

It's quite simple, really: A public pension, encouragement to keep going, and assurance that not all the stories worth telling have been told.