Choose Hard for Body, Mind, & Soul
FROM THE DESK OF ERIN DOOM
Dr. Doom's Desk
Notes from the Midst of the Work
Personal essays, letters, and reflections on faith, books, culture, memoir, and the work of Podvig. Here I gather my own writing, together with links to published work on my two Substack channels: Dr. Doom's Patristic Word and Dr. Doom's Commonplace.
ESSAYS · LETTERS · REFLECTIONS
From the Desk
A Life Considered
Essays, reflections, and letters on the questions, experiences, and convictions shaping my life and work. Read the featured piece below, or select More from the Desk to explore the full collection
St. Symeon the Stylite, patron saint of Podvig
SEPTEMBER 1, 2026 · A NEW BEGINNING
Something New Is Beginning
After 28 years at Eighth Day Books and Eighth Day Institute, I found myself in an unexpected desert of silence, exhaustion, and physical labor. For a long time, I had no desire to read and nothing in me to write. Slowly, the seemingly disconnected parts of my life began drawing together.
Sent on the Feast of the Ecclesiastical New Year, this letter marks my return to writing and the first announcement of Podvig. It begins with gratitude for the work and friendships that came before, and with a hard-won recognition: choosing hard does not mean that every hard thing must be chosen forever.
PATRISTIC WORD · COMMONPLACE
From Substack
Two Featured Offerings
Dr. Doom’s Patristic Word draws from the wisdom of the Church Fathers. Dr. Doom’s Commonplace gathers books, music, images, and encounters worth returning to. Read a featured offering from each channel below, or select Explore Substack to browse the full archive.
DR. DOOM'S PATRISTIC WORD · OCT 12, 2026
A Florilegium of Books
A florilegium is a gathering of flowers: passages selected because they deserve to be noticed, remembered, and revisited. Books can be gathered in much the same way. Here are five ways into St. Irenaeus, each suited to a different reader.
Five ways into St. Irenaeus of Lyons, with more waiting on the shelf.
Rich Mullins, whose songs open this gathering in the Podvig Listening Room.
DR. DOOM'S COMMONPLACE · SEP 26, 2026
Rich Mullins in the Listening Room
Twenty-nine years after his death, Rich Mullins’s songs still ask questions that resist easy answers: What do we believe? What does love require? What makes hardship meaningful? This gathering brings his songs and reflections into the Podvig Listening Room, a place for practicing attention.