What can we learn from Mr. and Mrs. Beaver? David sat down with Aaron Bair to discuss his book, “A Joyful Outpost”.
Show Notes
01. “Introduction”
Q. Would you mind introducing yourself to the viewers?
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02. “Concerning Biblical Domesticity”
Q. Why did you feel that the C. S. Lewis world needed another Narnia book? What did you see missing?
- Bair grew up on the Narnian Chronicles, but dove into his apologetics later in life.
- Recently he’s been convicted about having a biblical household. He was introduced to this through a book called “In the House of Tom Bombadil”, which fleshes out the theology of the character in J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy series, “The Lord of the Rings”, as well as the dynamic between Tom and Goldberry.
- Bair began looking for similar concepts in Lewis’ work, and the Beavers came to mind. The deeper he dug into it, the more he discovered.
03. “Hearth and Home”
Q. Let’s talk about the content of the book. Could you give us a flavour of what you’re examining? What makes the Beavers special?
- In the beginning of the series, the Beavers are one of the only married couples in the Chronicles. Some of the only other instances were Prince Caspian’s marriage to Ramandu’s daughter in “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”, and the marriage between the first king and queen of Narnia in “The Magician’s Nephew”.
- The book begins with a literary analysis, and transitions into the importance of the Beavers and the purpose that they serve.
- “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” is not the first instance of Beavers in Lewis’ writing!
- Some themes that Bair discovered in the literature were hospitality, biblical rest, and masculinity and femininity. Concerning the section on biblical rest, David was reminded of the work of Catholic philosopher Josef Pieper, who has written a lot on the subject, including “Leisure: The Basis of Culture”.
04. “Leisure”
Q. Speaking of biblical rest, let’s discuss that section. Could you give us some of the highlights?
- When the children met Father Christmas, he had the Beaver’s dam rebuilt, Mrs. Beaver’s sewing machine replaced, and they were also given a teapot. The group had tea time in the middle of the forest as the White Witch was hunting after them. The Beaver’s and Pevensie’s are resting in the truth that the world is slowly being put to right again.
05. “Hospitality”
Q. The other subject I wanted to touch on was hospitality. What do we learn from the Beavers regarding this?
- The children meet Mr. Beaver when they lost and afraid, and he ushers them into his home. Mrs. Beaver transforms into a gracious host immediately when they enter. They welcome the stranger and uplift their spirits with their generosity and kindness.
- Around the table, Mr. Beaver gives the children the prophesy of Aslan and spring.
“Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion.”
“Ooh” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion”
…”Safe?” said Mr Beaver …”Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”
C. S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
- Like this world, the Pevensies have entered a world that might be beautiful and fantastic, but is ultimately dangerous, with evil afoot. It reminded David of Rod Dreher’s book “The Benedict Option”, discussing St. Benedict who founded the Benedictine Order, individual monasteries that retained knowledge and kept the faith as the world around them fell to pieces.
- The setting of Narnia is an endless winter…
“It is winter in Narnia,” said Mr. Tumnus, “and has been for ever so long…. always winter, but never Christmas.”
C. S. Lewis, Mr. Tumnus, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
- The world is essentially thorns and thistles, like in Genesis:
Thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.
Genesis 3:18
Enemy-occupied territory—that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us to take part in a great campaign of sabotage.
C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
06. “Future Projects”
Q. Do you have any other projects or books in the works?
- During the summer, Bair is going to devote time to Edmund Spenser’s famous book series, “The Faerie Queene”. He intends to potentially write a reader’s guide. We had an episode of Jack’s Bookshelf on Edmund Spenser earlier in the season with Fr. Stephen Gregg.
Wrap Up
Concluding Thoughts
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