Who is Tom Bombadil? 

Any Lord of the Rings/Tolkien fan knows that Bombadil is a very mysterious character.

But what’s interesting is that as we unpack Tom Bombadil as a character, we end up unpacking things we’ve forgotten about how to do life. Tom Bombadil opens a window into what it means to steward the earth well. 

What if we had a larger concept of stewardship that goes towards dominion in its truest sense: not just ecological preservation and certainly not domination, but instead a posture that asks questions like, “What if my vocation has a home in the kingdom of God?”  

Even though Bombadil himself doesn’t appear largely in the story or go with the hobbits on their journey, exploring his character opens ultimate questions about death, resurrection, heaven, rest, good, and evil–questions about who we’re supposed to be and what exactly we’re supposed to do. 

This reading group will take what looks like a nerdy, obscure character discussion and drive it into a realm of wonder, mystery, and a new picture of what it means to live in the world.   

Buy the book here (not included)

Schedule

Beginning on June 4, we’ll spend four weeks reading and discussing In the House of Tom Bombadil by C. R. Wiley. 

Each Wednesday, we’ll host a live virtual meetup on Substack*, covering each of these topics:

June 4: Who is Bombadil? A Conversation with Author C. R. Wiley 

Tolkien fans love to debate the question: who is Tom Bombadil? And why is he even in the story? And we’ll get into our theories (and yours!) on the answer–but this week, with author C.R. Wiley, we’ll also explore the question of why the answer matters. Because the answer isn’t just a key to understanding The Lord of the Rings. It’s a key to understanding the Christian life. 

June 11: Dominion 

We tend to shrink from a word like “dominion.” Yet Tom Bombadil exercises a stewardship that goes a great deal further than “do no harm.” He gives us a model for living as the imago Dei so that our God-given lordship of creation is woven into the thriving of the things in it. This week, we will contrast Bombadil and Sauron, and unpack a vision for shepherding the earth in keeping with the ancient songs sung into its soul.

June 18: Communion 

Order and chaos. Women and men. Nature and technology. It’s pretty easy to see apparent opposites in tension as we look around. And it is difficult to build households that manage those tensions! Yet Tom and Goldberry supply a picture of how to live joyfully in the wilderness, order our lives by the great stories, and weave seamlessly into a dance of mutual delight. This week, we’ll tiptoe through a theology of communion that has implications for the relationship of the sexes, mankind and the rest of creation, happiness and limits, and home and wild things.

June 25: Culmination 

Tom has his limits–including as an exemplar. This week, we’ll explore those limits, and what they teach us. But we’ll also look at what he shows us of death and resurrection, the hierarchical complexity of God’s creation, and a vision of heaven that can shape our habits on earth.

What’s included

By joining the reading group for $50.00, you’ll have access to:

  • A live conversation with the author of In the House of Tom Bombadil**, C. R. Wiley, on June 4th 

  • 3 more webinar conversations on the book facilitated by executive director Brian Brown 

  • Unlimited replays of all four conversations 

  • Four weeks of exclusive chats, comment section, and prompted discussion on Substack 

  • For members local to Colorado Springs, stay tuned for in-person opportunities! 

We’re going to have fun. That’s kind of the point. We’re curious about how to approach the mysteries of how we live in the world and with each other. . . and come out with a posture of merriment. Are you in?

*Not familiar with Substack? All good! It’s a free and easy-to-use platform (we promise.) Once you checkout, we’ll add your email address to our private Substack group and voila, you have permanent access and will automatically receive emails every time something new happens. 

**Book not included. To get the most value out of this reading group, we strongly recommend purchasing a copy of In the House of Tom Bombadil by C. R. Wiley.