Theology, Religion, and Twin Peaks

John Anthony Dunne is Associate Professor of New Testament at Bethel Seminary (Saint Paul, MN). Kris Song is Adjunct Professor at Bethel Seminary (Saint Paul, MN).

Reading a new collection of original and illuminating essays on the over-eviscerated, hyper-analyzed Twin Peaks is quite rare, but this is precisely what this book offers. With its eighteen chapters focusing eclectically on different theological and religious aspects of the three seasons of the series (from Biblical readings and Animism to Apocalypticism and Apophaticism), this volume certainly provides its readers with new, clear, and well-researched interpretations that further unveil the mysteries of one of the most debated TV programs ever.

• About the ContributorsIntroduction: “But When I Saw the Face of God”: Introducing Theology, Religion, and Twin PeaksJohn Anthony Dunne and Kris SongSection I. “The Search for the Zone”: Spiritual Quests for Truth and MeaningChapter 1—“My Log Is Turning Gold”: The Religions in and of Twin PeaksJohn Anthony DunneChapter 2—Catching Big Fishes in a Postsecular Age: Twin Peaks and the Search for Meaning in 1990s CultureIlaria W. BianoChapter 3—Transcendental Style in Twin PeaksZachary SheldonChapter 4—The Music of Twin Peaks: Seeking the Spiritual in Angelo Badalamenti’s ThemesChris ThiessenChapter 5— Of Logs and Logos: Twin Peaks, Animism, and the New MaterialismsWhitney A. BaumanChapter 6—“One Day My Log Will Have Something to Say about This”: A Posthuman Analysis of a Log and a LadySusana Pacheco, Joel Santos, Tânia Casimiro, and Afonso LeãoChapter 7—Laura’s Not the Only One: Twin Peaks and the Critique of Christ FiguresThomas BrittChapter 8—Revelation, Dreams, and Apocalypticism in Twin PeaksTaylor M. WeaverSection II. “The Gifted & the Damned”: Evil and Human AgencyChapter 9—David Lynch Keeps His HeadDavid Foster WallaceChapter 10—Laura Palmer and the Dancing Daughter in Mark 6.17–29Alexis BradfordChapter 11— “I Am What You Fear I Could Be”: A Reading of BOB as Perceived by Laura Palmer in The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With MeDana Abu DbayChapter 12—Once More, “Who Killed Laura Palmer?”: BOB, Demon Possession, and Human CulpabilityJoshua AlfaroChapter 13—Apophaticism and the Ineffable JudyPhilip JeffriesSection III. “Through the Darkness of Future Past”: Time, Endings, and Eschatology Chapter 14—Time and Time Again: From Christian Linearity to Vedic Atelicity in Twin PeaksTrevor BabcockChapter 15—Storytelling Sequels: Multi-volume Mysteries in Luke-Acts and the Original Series of Twin PeaksNickolas A. FoxChapter 16—“Once We Cross, It Could All Be Different”: Cooper’s Nostos and the Women of Twin Peaks: The ReturnAndrew H. WallerChapter 17—The Red Room and the Bridal Chamber: The Relational Reunion of Self in Twin Peaks and the Gospel of PhilipJohn Anthony DunneChapter 18—“The Past Dictates the Future”: Biblical Repetition, Stoic Recurrence, and the Circularity of Time in Twin Peaks: The ReturnKris Song