Back in June I posted a couple of entries having to do with the opening pages of Oliver O’Donovan’s Self, World, and Time, which is the first entry in his “Ethics as Theology” series.  I finally finished the trilogy and have been spending some time re-reading and annotating sections.  It’s a good and interesting work for me, particularly as it stretches the reader in ways that are both deeply theological while totally grounded in day-to-day living (in ways that don’t quite feel like the norm for most theological or ethical writing).

As I mentioned in June, O’Donovan’s opening image of “waking up” really struck me as appropriate on multiple levels.  So much, really, that I decided to weave it into my first “ethics” lesson when our second semester starts this school year via the first three minutes of the pilot episode of LOST, where Jack Shepherd “wakes up” on the island.  Another, more recent, use of the opening-scene-wake-up is The Good Place, which is an amazing opportunity to talk ethics.  Here’s a preview of the show’s first episode back, when its third season premieres next week.  Of course, spoilers.

That first few seconds: a perfect O’Donovan moment.

Over the next few days I hope to get some thoughts down here based on Self, World, and Time.  And since it’s almost TV season, I’m sure there will be some previews and trailers to post, too.