Church History, George MacDonald and the Diary of an Old Soul | Dr. Timothy Larsen

Ryley Heppner Podcast

Today's conversation is with Professor of History and Christian thought, Dr. Timothy Larsen. Dr. Larsen's latest project is the reissue of a powerful devotional from the 19th century Scottish author and minister, George MacDonald, Diary of an Old Soul, in which Dr. Larsen provides an introduction and explanatory notes throughout the book. We talked lots about George Donald, about his Christian faith, his influence on people like Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, the uniqueness and ongoing relevance of this devotional Diary of an Old Soul, and what exactly an Old Soul even is.

Dr. Larsen is McManis Professor of Christian Thought and Professor of History at Wheaton College, an Honorary Fellow, School of Divinity, University of Edinburgh, and an Honorary Research Fellow, School of Theology, Religious Studies and Islamic Studies, University of Wales Trinity Saint David. He has been a Visiting Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge, All Souls College, Oxford, and Christ Church, Oxford and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute. He has been elected President of the American Society of Church History for 2025. He is the author or editor of twenty books including Crisis of Doubt: Honest Faith in Nineteenth-Century England, A People of One Book: The Bible and the Victorians, The Slain God: Anthropologists and the Christian Faith, John Stuart Mill: A Secular Life and The Oxford Handbook of Christmas (all with Oxford University Press).