Join us for an enriching cultural experience that explores the life and work of C. S. Lewis through collaborations by the arts, education, and faith communities. Festival events are held in Petoskey in beautiful northern Michigan.
Friday, September 13, 7:00PM
Great Lakes Center for the Arts
800 Bay Harbor Drive, Petoskey, MI 49770
Free with registration required through greatlakescfa.org.
Sarah Arthur will host a discussion between herself, Sophfronia Scott, and Léna Roy that will introduce each of the individual scholars and the 2024 Festival’s theme – The Seeker & the Storytellers. This on-stage conversation will give a broad overview of C.S. Lewis, Madeleine L’Engle, and Thomas Merton and their ongoing influences within society.
Saturday, September 14, 8:30AM – 3:00PM
Great Lakes Center for the Arts
800 Bay Harbor Drive, Petoskey, MI 49770
Tickets: $60 full day / $30 half day / $20 student (20 years of age & under)
In his memoir Surprised by Joy, Lewis narrated his conversion from atheism to Christianity as a series of conscious, individual decisions. While accepting Lewis’s account, Sarah also considers the nature of conversion more broadly, including the influence of faith communities, the role of the imagination, and the presence of divine grace–in Lewis’s journey and our own.
Though Merton craved the solitude of a hermitage and the silence in which “God shines there and is immediately found,” his mysticism and writing life were deeply fed and influenced by relationships he developed both in person and through a prolific correspondence that connected him to writers and spiritual thinkers all over the world. Sophfronia will discuss how these dual and often contradictory aspects of his Trappist existence shaped Merton and perhaps led to his famous 4th and Walnut epiphany and his prophetic writings on peace, justice, and civil rights that resonate to this day.
Madeleine believed in the transformative power of art and therefore felt a strong responsibility to write stories, poems, and memoirs with arcs that bring positivity and hope. She struggled with anger, fear, and cynicism, yet it was through the merging of her writing and faith that she found her authenticity. Léna explores Madeleine’s development from poet to playwright to novelist to lay theologian, while meditating on Madeleine’s influence on Léna’s own writing and teaching. She asks: what is our responsibility – and joy – as writers and creative spiritual seekers?
Saturday, September 14, 4:00 – 6:00PM
McLean & Eakin Booksellers
307 E. Lake Street, Petoskey, MI 49770
All four featured speakers and authors will greet readers and sign copies of their various books. This event is free and open to the public. Visit McLean & Eakin’s website for more information.
Saturday, September 14, 6:00PM
Beards Brewery
215 E. Lake Street, Petoskey, MI 49770
Enjoy camaraderie, live music, and victuals at Downtown Petoskey’s favorite brewery overlooking the Little Traverse Bay. Festival Board Member and accomplished musician Curt Coffield will preside over the Root Cellar Stage, with additional musicians performing as part of the C.S. Lewis House Band with songs inspired by Lewis.
This event is open to all; food and drink not provided by the C.S. Lewis Festival.
Sarah Arthur – First Presbyterian Church of Petoskey
9:30AM Service
501 E. Mitchell Street, Petoskey, MI 49770
Sophfronia Scott – Emmanuel Episcopal Church
10:00AM Service
1020 E. Mitchell Street, Petoskey, MI 49770
Thursday, September 12, and Friday, September 13
First Presbyterian Church of Petoskey
501 E. Mitchell Street, Petoskey, MI 49770
For information and to register for the two-day writing retreat, visit the L’Engle Writing Retreat website.