Hey, Colorado Springs, I can happily report that yesterday, my doctor cleared me to travel this weekend (a back injury forced me to cancel my North Carolina trip at the last minute), so I will be in your town Friday and Saturday for a couple of talks sponsored by the Anselm Society.

On Friday night, I’ll be talking about How Dante Can Save Your Life, at Holy Trinity Anglican Church, 7-9 pm. Details here.  Excerpt:

Following the death of his little sister and the publication of hisNew York Times bestselling memoir The Little Way of Ruthie Leming, Dreher found himself living in the small community of Starhill, Louisiana where he grew up. But instead of the fellowship he hoped to find, he discovered that fault lines within his family had deepened. Dreher spiraled into depression and a stress-related autoimmune disease. Doctors told Dreher that if he didn’t find inner peace, he would destroy his health. Soon after, he came across The Divine Comedy in a bookstore.

In the months that followed, Dante helped Dreher understand the mistakes and mistaken beliefs that had torn him down and showed him that he had the power to change his life. Dreher knows firsthand the solace and strength that can be found in Dante’s great work, and distills its wisdom for those who are lost in the dark wood of depression, struggling with failure (or success), wrestling with a crisis of faith, alienated from their families or communities, or otherwise enduring the sense of exile that is the human condition.

If you’ve read the book, I hope you’ll come anyway, because the final chapter, so to speak, had not yet been written. And it was holy and beautiful, filled with hope and resolution. Plus, I’ll be jacked up on back pain medication, and you never know, I might start speaking in tongues, or something.

On Saturday afternoon from 2 to 4 a bunch of us are getting together downtown to talk about the Benedict Option. Details here. You will be doing me a big favor if you come and share your own opinions and experiences. I’m working on a book about the Ben Op, as you know, and I genuinely benefit from learning from these discussions — and, in turn, so will readers of the book.

Do you know about the Anselm Society? You should.