Word and Journey

That Hideous Strength - Humanity versus The Head

Part III of the Ransom Trilogy may be one of the finest pieces of speculative(dare I say - predictive) literature ever written. Building on the prior two books, THS takes place on Earth, in England, beginning with Bragdon Wood and the legendary burial site of Merlin. There are those humans who have aligned with the heavenly forces bent on Humanity's destruction, and the worst part is...they don't even know it! They think they're just being innovative in creating technology to sterilize the world. In developing The Head(literally a decapitated, now resuscitated and animated head), they have given evil a mouthpiece into our world. But there are also those who see what is happening and fight to preserve the good. They must overcome their fears, their lusts, their pride, their materialism, their physical weakness, and their own idiosyncratic bumblings. But if they hold fast, then all might be saved. *With special appearance by Mr. Bultitude the Friendly Bear. (Yes, actually a bear). Word and Journey is a community dedicated to encountering the great stories and letting them shape our lives. This channel is made possible by generous financial and media-visibility support from its listeners, patrons, and fellow readers. Please subscribe, share, review, and donate on behalf of the show so we can continue reading together with you! Moses can be reached at wordandjourney@gmail.com [wordandjourney@gmail.com] Rousseaux can be reached at ousseaux@gmail.com [ousseaux@gmail.com]. Also, his books can be found on Amazon, and anywhere else good books are sold.

Perelandra - Faith, Science, and the War for Paradise

In part II of the Ransom Trilogy, Ransom again makes a voyage through Deep Heaven, this time to Perelandra, or as we know it, Venus. This time he goes on purpose, being sent for a task. He encounters a paradise unfallen, beautiful, pristine, and innocent., its only inhabitants its queen and king, long separated, searching for each other. As Ransom befriends the queen, he quickly discovers that all is not well, for a tempter lurks amidst the waters - it is Ransom's very own rival from earth - Professor Weston! Now Ransom draws on every bit of wisdom and determination he can find to persuade the Queen to disregard the words of the Tempter, for if he fails, then ANOTHER world will be lost! Word and Journey is a community dedicated to encountering the great stories and letting them shape our lives. This channel is made possible by generous financial and media-visibility support from its listeners, patrons, and fellow readers. Please subscribe, share, review, and donate on behalf of the show so we can continue reading together with you! Moses can be reached at wordandjourney@gmail.com [wordandjourney@gmail.com] Rousseaux can be reached at ousseaux@gmail.com [ousseaux@gmail.com]. Also, his books can be found on Amazon, and anywhere else good books are sold.

Out of the Silent Planet - Moses and Rousseaux go to Deep Heaven!

Welcome to Part I of the Ransom Trilogy by C. S. Lewis! And we say the "Ransom" Trilogy rather than its other common name, "The Space Trilogy," because, as we find as we read, outer space is not really empty space at all, but, being the "heavens," is full of the weight substance of the Creator! Moses and Rousseau team up again to follow the adventures of Dr. Ransom, an English philologist, as he is captured by the devious and opportunistic Weston and Devine and finds himself in explicably on a voyage from Thulcandra to Malacandra(what we would call, from Earth to Mars). There on Malacandra, Ransom encounters its three great races, and the mighty and eternal beings, the oyarsas, that caretake them all. But more than merely exploring a strange new world, Ransom finds himself entering into a cosmic struggle between spiritual forces that engulfs all the worlds of our sun and has been raging since the beginning of time. Could it be that a lowly Human has a pivotal role to play? Follow our discussion - and better yet, read the book! - and find out! Word and Journey is a community dedicated to encountering the great stories and letting them shape our lives. This channel is made possible by generous financial and media-visibility support from its listeners, patrons, and fellow readers. Please subscribe, share, review, and donate on behalf of the show so we can continue reading together with you! Moses can be reached at wordandjourney@gmail.com [wordandjourney@gmail.com] Rousseaux can be reached at ousseaux@gmail.com [ousseaux@gmail.com]. Also, his books can be found on Amazon, and anywhere else good books are sold.

The Miserable Monster's Moral Cliff - Frankenstein, Part 3

"The story [of Frankenstein] is nothing like the costume; it's much better." Here we come to the conclusion of the classic novel Frankenstein, where we learn the fates of Dr. Frankenstein, the Fiend, and friends. We talk about betrayal and vengeance, misery and morality, the nature of humanity, redemption, the devastation of loneliness, and the pitfalls of hubris We ponder what is the moral cliff that over which our characters tumble head over heels. Can the monster be redeemed? Could Dr. Frankenstein find redemption? Or are they like the classic "Addict" who becomes obsessed, acts in secret, and whose behaviors escalate beyond their control? We learn that keeping secrets is bad. Loneliness is untenable. Messing around with trying to improve upon humanity tends to have results we don't want. Redemption only comes to those who seek it. Listen along and let us know what you think! The Word and Journey podcast is made possible by financial support from our listeners, collaborators, and friends. Please like, rate, review, and share this show with a friend who will love it! For more information, and to join our community, visit patreon.com/wordandjourney [https://patreon.com/wordandjourney] Moses can be reached on instagram at @mosesbernabe and at mosesmichaelrhys@gmail.com [mosesmichaelrhys@gmail.com] Joel can be found on instagram at @joelhere Caleb can be found at https://www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net [https://www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net] We'd love to hear from you!

"The Monster Had Potential!" Frankenstein Part 2

Moses, Joel, and Caleb are back with Dr. Frankenstein and the Fiend! We continue discussing Mary Shelley's classic novel Frankenstein. Here we deep dive into the story of the Fiend. We discuss class consciousness, empathy, nature versus nurture, and how a being is formed by community, or deformed by the lack thereof! "The Monster had potential!" But then we see what happens when he encounters exclusion, rejection, betrayal, and biased hatred. We ponder the question of what it means to be human. Turns out the Fiend more closely resembles Lt. Commander Data then a raging, hungry zombie. We note the horror experienced by the Fiend as he encounters the purposelessness and isolation of his own experience. We also contemplate the deep transgression of Dr. Frankenstein to have brought a being to life, then abandoned him, and how this affects our concept of God. Do we need more science and reason? Or do we need more human connection? We definitely need the support group "Mad Scientists Anonymous." Listen along and let us know what you think! The Word and Journey podcast is made possible by financial support from our listeners, collaborators, and friends. Please like, rate, review, and share this show with a friend who will love it! For more information, and to join our community, visit patreon.com/wordandjourney [https://patreon.com/wordandjourney] Moses can be reached on instagram at @mosesbernabe and at mosesmichaelrhys@gmail.com [mosesmichaelrhys@gmail.com] Joel can be found on instagram at @joelhere Caleb can be found at https://www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net [https://www.calebkellercounselingpllc.net] We'd love to hear from you!