Amon Sûl

Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick and live panelists Dcn. Nicholas Kotar, Dr. Cyril Jenkins, Michael Haldas and Steven Christoforou talk visions of the age to come in the works of Tolkien. Fr. Andrew adds meditations on music and poetry inspired by the vision.

Guest co-host Joshua Duncan joins Fr. Andrew to talk food, cheer, song, hoarded gold, the merrier world, and the hobbits who love them. Is the hobbit life compatible with Orthodox Christian asceticism?

Fr. Andrew thinks a lot of the reviewers of the 2019 film “Tolkien” are getting their reviews wrong, and he tells you all about it in this special review minisode with a lot of help from you, the listeners.

Guest co-host and Greek Orthodox priest Fr. Anthony Cook joins Fr. Andrew to talk about life, death, anthropology (and elvenology?), with a dive into one of the lesser-known Tolkien texts, the “Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth.”

Fr. Andrew addresses some messages from listeners and also discusses a famous passage from The Two Towers, where Faramir opens up the “Window on the West,” that is, he shows us how to look into the transcendent from the immanent.

Epic fantasy author and Russian Orthodox deacon Nicholas Kotar joins Fr. Andrew to discuss Tolkien’s famous essay “On Fairy Stories,” storytelling, Christian hagiography and culture, and their benefit to spiritual life. They wrap up with a strange journey into the wild world of Russian Tolkien fandom.

Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick introduces his first "minisode" (a.k.a. "The Appendices") to talk about what Amon Sûl actually is in Middle-earth and its significance for him. He also responds to some concerns from a listener and visits the Tolkien exhibit in New York along with Steven Christoforou and a very special guest.

Stephen Christoforou, Director of Y2AM and a podcaster at Ancient Faith Radio, joins Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick to explore the literary magic of J.R.R. Tolkien. They discuss how Tolkien's narratives reflect virtues relevant to modern life. The duo dives into the concept of 'true myth' and the struggles of characters like Denethor, linking them to contemporary secular challenges. They humorously critique the role of the eagles while examining personal transformation through suffering. Their conversation is a delightful blend of Tolkien's depth and contemporary relevance.