When I was a kid, I always liked the story about The Little Engine that Could.
I’m reminded of that as I occasionally find mentions of Through a Screen Darkly on blogs. It just keeps chugging along, finding new readers everywhere. It’s nice to see folks like Brian Rice continuing to discover it and share it with others. I’m glad it’s proving useful.
This week, the book will be introduced to yet another audience: Radio listeners in Australia.
I spoke via telephone with Sheridan Voysey, host of the Australian radio show Open House. Voysey’s a true professional, who reads his notes before he sits down at the microphone. It wasn’t a live broadcast — it was recorded for a podcast and later radio broadcasts. But we had a delightful conversation about meaningful movies, the power and purpose of art, and the challenges of being a Christian in the cineplex.
Our conversation will be broadcast on radio stations all over Australia.
I immediately became a big fan of Sheridan and his approach to thoughtful radio conversation. When I turn on Christian radio, almost 75% of the voices I hear are complaining about how corrupt the world has become, and how we have got to stop the homosexuals before they take over the world. (Seriously… almost half of my Christian-radio interviews about my work have been preceded by a report or a call-in rant-session about homosexuality. It’s rather embarrassing… especially since these programs are broadcast in the name of one who said he did not come into the world to condemn the world.)
Sheridan’s goal, by contrast, is to provoke thoughtful dialogue between Christians… and also between Christians and their non-Christian neighbors. There was a quality of grace and peace and warmth in Sheridan’s manner that I greatly appreciated, and that I’ve only experienced on only a few other programs.