KENT: Louis Markos, a J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis scholar and professor of literature at Houston Baptist University, will speak June 15 and 16 in Kent and Cuyahoga Falls.
Markos will explore the lives of Lewis and Tolkien from 2 to 4 p.m. June 15 at the Root Café, 852 W. Bath Road, Cuyahoga Falls. The cafe is inside Northampton United Methodist Church.
At 7 p.m. Markos will present his perspective of how Tolkien’s work The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings embody a biblical understanding of both virtue and vice at Riverwood Community Chapel, 1407 Fairchild Ave., Kent. His speech, called Tolkien’s Christian Vision: Virtue and Vice in the Middle-Earth, will explore Tolkien’s handling of the virtues of courage, temperance, wisdom, justice, faith, hope and love and his presentation of evil as corruption and perversion of good.
On June 16, Markos will return to Northampton United Methodist Church where he will deliver a sermon based on Lewis’ view of sin during the 11:10 a.m. worship service.
After the service, from 1 to 3 p.m., he will present a re-enactment and commentary of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Those attending are invited to bring a picnic lunch to eat while he performs.
Markos’ local visit is sponsored by International Friendship Connection, a group of volunteers from nine local churches.
The organization’s mission is to reach out and provide support to the international students in the Akron area. For more information about International Friendship Connection, send an email to ifc@riverwoodchapel.org.