Christmas countdown day 6: Father Christmas origin story

Red radical: the tales behind the Santa we see today

Graham Tomlin

Graham is the Director of the Centre for Cultural Witness and a former Bishop of Kensington.

A Lego Stanta figure strolls across a table holding a wrench

Artem Maltsev on Unsplash.

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The Christmas Countdown

It’s the season to be jolly, stressed, and all round Christmassy. On the Seen & Unseen Aloud podcast, we’re here for you with our Aloud Christmas Countdown!

Every day in December, we’ll drop some of the best seasonal content from Seen & Unseen Aloud. From how to survive Christmas, reviews of the best Christmas movies and the origin story of Santa Claus.

For when you’ve got your hands full of mince pies and baubles, but you still want to hear some thoughtful content, subscribe to Seen & Unseen Aloud for the Christmas Countdown.

Subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or Amazon.

Throughout the year, the Seen & Unseen Aloud brings you the week’s best articles, in a short 20 minute podcast episode. Browse the index for episodes from Seen & Unseen Aloud, Re-enchanting and GodPod.

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Seen & Unseen Aloud

Weirdness

1 January 2024

1 min read

Seen & Unseen Aloud: the director's cut

At the start of a new year, Bishop Graham Tomlin looks back over his favourite articles of 2023.

Graham Tomlin

Graham is the Director of the Centre for Cultural Witness and a former Bishop of Kensington.

A medieval illustration of two sets of monks seated and facing each other. One gestures towards the sky

A 13th Century depiction of a meeting between Latin and east Syrian clerics.

AtlasAtlas des Croisades, Jonathan Riley-Smith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

At the start of a new year, Bishop Graham Tomlin - Director of the Centre for Cultural Witness, publisher of Seen & Unseen and the Seen & Unseen Aloud podcast, looks back over his favourite articles of 2023.

The Screwtape Letters image of hell as an unscrupulous business is still relevant. Simon Horobin tells how C.S. Lewis came to author the influential bestseller.
An astonishing tale of a Chinese priest meeting a medieval monarch sheds a different light on the extent of Christendom. Benjamin Sharkey tells the surprising tale of the historic Asian church.
Bach’s boundless abundance: the making of a musical genius. Jeremy Begbie shares how Bach explored musical possibility.