Welcome to Episode 312 of The Thinklings Podcast!
This week we spend the bulk of the episode discussing Homer’s Iliad and asking a simple question: Why should a Christian read it? We consider the place of classic literature in the Christian life before exploring Achilles, Hector, anger, glory, mortality, virtue, and what Homer might be trying to teach us about the good man. We conclude in Ephesians 4 with a meditation on why truthfulness matters within the body of Christ.
⏱️ Chapters
0:00 — Welcome & Introduction
2:04 — Announcements
5:46 — Books & Business
17:39 — Main Content: Why Should a Christian Read the Iliad?
30:07 — The Story of the Iliad
36:19 — Achilles: Anger, Honor & Glory
42:00 — Hector: What Makes a Good Man?
49:41 — Priam, Achilles & the End of Wrath
54:31 — Virtue, Homer & the Christian Reader
1:00:11 — Final Meditation: Ephesians 4:25
📣 Announcements
Our September Substack giveaway is Understanding Christian Theology, edited by Charles Swindoll and Roy B. Zuck. Anyone subscribed to the Thinklings Podcast or one of our individual Substacks is automatically entered. We also give a reminder about the upcoming Young Adult Retreat at Iowa Regular Baptist Camp and our goal of seeing more than 100 young adults attend.
📚 Books & Business
📖 The Iliad — Homer
📖 Animal Farm — George Orwell
📖 Louis L’Amour: His Life and Trails
We share some current reading, including reflections on Animal Farm and its portrayal of power, propaganda, and rewriting history. We also discuss the remarkable life of Louis L’Amour and how his years of travel, work, reading, and real-world experience eventually shaped him as a writer.
🏛️ Main Content
Why Should a Christian Read the Iliad?
We ask what value an ancient pagan classic can have for Christians and why Homer has remained foundational to the Western literary tradition. Through Achilles and Hector, the Iliad forces us to wrestle with anger, honor, glory, mortality, grief, reconciliation, and the question of what actually makes a good man. Read alongside Scripture, these ancient questions can help us think more carefully about virtue while also revealing how much fuller the Christian answer is.
🌿 Final Meditation
Ephesians 4:25
We consider Paul’s command to put away falsehood and “speak truth” because believers are members of one another. Lying within the body of Christ damages our ability to serve, shepherd, counsel, parent, and care for one another well. As people united to Christ, we should examine where falsehood or careless words remain in our lives and deliberately choose to speak truth.
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