How seven writers gave us stories that endure, imparting truths that never fade

The stories of George MacDonald (1824-1905) showed goodness and holiness to Lewis and Chesterton—and show those same things to us

The educational experiences of C. S. Lewis (1898-1963)

Dorothy L. Sayers (1893-1957) proclaimed Christ as Lord over areas from theater to economics

Owen Barfield (1898-1997) insisted on the imagination as a road to truth. It profoundly changed his friends—and through them, us

MacDonald’s players, Tolkien’s grave, Chesterton’s pajamas, and Lewis’s hat

How much did C.S. Lewis and his friends and mentors change the society around them?

Honoring a writer and scholar

Lewis’s recommendation to seekers: read George MacDonald

G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) wanted a new kind of Christian economics

Sayers was asked to compose a wartime message

J. R. R. Tolkien (1892-1973) and his friend Lewis shared an ideal of remaining rooted on the land of God’s good creation

He laughed at the idea of being a classical author while still alive

Brief biographies of our featured authors

Four of the seven sages belonged to a group of famous friends

Some connections and influences among the seven sages

Sayers's widely-used educational model

C. S. Lewis on learning

Tolkien and “subcreation” — the making of a secondary, fictional world

The difficult works of Charles Williams (1886-1945) tell of self-giving love and mystical union

It was often Williams's agitated intellect, fertile imagination, and physical energy that moved things along

With seven influential authors and scores of books by and about them, where should one begin? Here are suggestions compiled by our editors, contributors, and the Wade Center