Podcasts about neoplatonic

What if the deepest truth of reality lies not in substances or isolated things, but in the pure relationality that connects everything? John Vervaeke is joined by renowned scholar Douglas Hedley to explore James Filler's groundbreaking work "Heidegger, Neoplatonism, and the History of Being." John and Douglas examine the profound implications of viewing ultimate reality as fundamentally relational rather than substantial, uncovering significant convergences between Heidegger's later thought and the ancient Neoplatonic tradition. The dialogue goes into how Neoplatonic metaphysics offers potent solutions to the philosophical dilemmas posed by modernity and postmodernity, and why the notion of strong transcendence is essential yet challenging in contemporary thought. Douglas enriches the discourse with reflections on imagination, symbolism, and theological significance within the Neoplatonic heritage. Douglas Hedley is Professor of the Philosophy of Religion at Cambridge University. He was educated at Keble College, Oxford and at the University of Munich, and has previously taught at Nottingham University. He is the Director of the Cambridge Centre for the Study of Platonism and co-chair of the Platonism and Neoplatonism section of the American Academy of Religion. Dr Hedley's work centers on concepts of imagination, violence, and the sublime, and he has published widely, from early modern philosophy—particularly the Cambridge Platonists—to Coleridge. He is the Principal Investigator for the AHRC grant on The Cambridge Platonists at the Origins of Enlightenment: Texts, Debates, and Reception (1650-1730), and is co-editor of the Series Studies in Philosophical Theology. Connect with a community dedicated to self-discovery and purpose, and gain deeper insights by joining our Patreon.   Notes:  (0:00) Introduction to the Lectern (01:30) Douglas Headley's Background and Interests (03:30) Overview of James Filler's Argument (05:30) Critique of Substance Ontology (9:00) Neoplatonism and the Trinity (9:30) Lectern Dialogues: Philosophical Connections: Relational Ontology and the Modern Crisis (10:30) Heidegger's Misreading of Plato (16:30) Heidegger's Theological Influences (26:00) Modernity, Postmodernity, and Transcendence (34:30) Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Neoplatonism (36:15) Pushback on the Trinity Concept (40:00) Greek and Russian Orthodox Traditions (43:00) Western Theology and Neoplatonism (49:30) Dialogical Model of the Self (55:00) Christian Neoplatonism and Love (59:30) Embodiment and Transcendence (01:04:30) Final Thoughts and Parting Words   ---  Connect with a community dedicated to self-discovery and purpose, and gain deeper insights by joining our Patreon. The Vervaeke Foundation is committed to advancing the scientific pursuit of wisdom and creating a significant impact on the world. Become a part of our mission.   Join Awaken to Meaning to explore practices that enhance your virtues and foster deeper connections with reality and relationships.   John Vervaeke: Website | Twitter | YouTube | Patreon     Ideas, People, and Works Mentioned in this Episode Substance Ontology vs. Relational Ontology Heidegger's Relationship to Neoplatonism James Filler's Philosophical Contribution The Trinity as Relational Symbolism Mysticism and Theology Embodiment and the Contemporary Crisis of Meaning James Filler Plotinus Iamblichus St. Augustine Marius Victorinus Jonathan Pageau "The Iconic Imagination" by Douglas Hedley "Participation in the Divine" "Process and Reality" by Alfred North Whitehead "Symposium" by Plato

In this episode, we tackle one of the most important figures in the history of religion, philosophy, mysticism & the esoteric - the writer calling himself Dionysios, and who would create a synthesis between Neoplatonic philosophy and Christianity in ways the echoed down the centuries.Check out the Secret History of Western Esotericism Podcast (SHWEP) for more Dionysius content: https://shwep.netFind me and my music here:https://linktr.ee/filipholmSupport Let's Talk Religion on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/letstalkreligion Or through a one-time donation: https://paypal.me/talkreligiondonateSources/Recomended Reading:Lossky, Vladimir (1944). "The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church". James Clarke & Co.Luibheid, Colm (Translated by) (1987). "Pseudo-Dionysius: The Complete Works". Classics of Western Spirituality. Paulist Press International.McGinn, Bernard. "The Presence of God" Series, in several volumes. Perhaps the best and most comprehensive introduction to Christian mysticism. Published by Crossroad Publishing Co.McGinn, Bernard (2001). "The Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart: The Man From Whom God Hid Nothing". Crossroad Publishing Co.The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Entry on Pseudo-Dionysius: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pseudo-dionysius-areopagite/Earl's section:Human and celestial hierarchies compared: EH 373AB, 376BC; CH 208BCD; EH 501A-D.Angelic triads: CH 200D: 3 threefold groups of angels, as taught by Pseudo-D's sacred initiator (i.e. Hierotheos); CH 257C: each angelic triad has Iamblichean-style first and last terms with a necessary median term. Cf. Iamb. De myst. V.8.225.5-8; CH 273C ditto; EH 501A: triads au go-go.Angelic mediation between humans and god: CH 180A. God never appears without intermendiaries, even to the saints: m180C. Even to Jesus: 181C. Long discussion of Isaiah and the Seraphim: 300B ff. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Chris brings us Opinion Scholarship on the idea of a supreme, monotheistic God as expressed in the Neoplatonic idea of "The One" or "The Monad." We explore the commonalities between Christian Monotheism and Neoplatonism and speculate on the fertile ground for the emergency of this idea prepared by the pre-Socratics and Plato himself. We take a deep dive into Plotinus, Porphyry and Proclus, their descriptions of mystical experience and see see how they rationalizations their mystical intuitions with logic and reason. We then discuss altered states of consciousness, the ancient Greek mysteries and depth psychology to bring this all together. Enjoy ;)

In this episode, David and Gene continue their exploration of the Secret Gospel of John, delving into its complex cosmology and comparing it with Neoplatonic philosophy. They review the discussion from the previous episode that detailed the first phases the evolution of consciousness through the emanations of (1) the Monad (pure undifferentiated consciousness - will), (2) Barbelo (first reflection - thought), and (3) Christ/Autogenes (self-generated awareness - life). They draw parallels between ancient spiritual concepts and contemporary neuroscience, and discuss how these concepts relate to the modern understanding of consciousness and psychological development. The conversation explores the emergence of the Four Lights from Autogenes and their correspondence to the Four Worlds of Kabbalah, representing different levels of consciousness from spiritual to physical.This text for this episode focuses on the dramatic turn in the narrative with the appearance of Sophia of the Epinoia and her creation of the Demiurge - a lion-faced serpent representing primal consciousness without higher reasoning. The text details how this "blind idiot god, born of chaos" creates the Archons (rulers) in an attempt to mirror the higher realms, resulting in a distorted reflection of divine patterns that governs the material world. In this episode, David and Gene (as always) weave together insights from various esoteric traditions, including Masonry, Kabbalah, Hermeticism, alchemy, and Christian Gnosticism, showing how these ancient texts are intended as grimoires or textbooks, detailing sophisticated models for understanding consciousness and human psychological development.Deep Dive:Secret Book of JohnSecret Gospel of John correspondencesChapters:01:15 Introduction02:29 Review05:32 Neoplatonism10:38 Autogenes14:03 The Four Lights19:06 Pigera-Adamas22:24 Sophia Epinoia25:52 The Demiurge29:09 The Archons33:53 A Jealous God36:52 ConclusionsResources:MiddleChamber.org - Symposium on Masonic EsotericaThe Nag Hammadi ScripturesThe Apocryphon of John - Frederick Wisse TranslationGnosis.org - The Gnosis ArchiveThe Red Book: A Reader's Edition by Carl Jung

Hypatia was one of the most extraordinary figures of the ancient world. Born in Alexandria around 355 AD, Hypatia was a pioneering mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who defied the constraints of her time to become a symbol of intellectual excellence and resilience. She is a key person credited with the preservation of classic textbooks that still have references that are used to this day. She was a prominent teacher and scholar in the Neoplatonic school of thought. As the political and religious climate in Alexandria became increasingly volatile, Hypatia found herself at the center of a conflict between emerging Christian beliefs and the traditional pagan philosophies she championed. We'll unfold how these circumstances led to her tragic death. Follow us on IG: @homance_chronicles Connect with us: linktr.ee/homance Send us a Hoe of History request: homancepodcast@gmail.com

Ralston College Humanities MA Dr John Vervaeke is a cognitive scientist and philosopher who explores the intersections of Neoplatonism, cognitive science, and the meaning crisis, focusing on wisdom practices, relevance realization, and personal transformation. Ralston College presents a lecture titled “Levels of Intelligibility, Levels of the Self: Realizing the Dialectic,” delivered by Dr John Vervaeke, an award-winning associate professor of cognitive science at the University of Toronto and creator of the acclaimed 50-episode “Awakening from the Meaning Crisis” series. In this lecture, Dr Vervaeke identifies our cultural moment as one of profound disconnection and resulting meaninglessness. Drawing on his own cutting-edge research as a cognitive scientist and philosopher, Vervaeke presents a way out of the meaning crisis through what he terms “third-wave Neoplatonism.” He reveals how this Neoplatonic framework, drawn in part from Plato's conception of the tripartite human soul, corresponds to the modern understanding of human cognition and, ultimately, to the levels of reality itself. He argues that a synoptic integration across these levels is not only possible but imperative.   — 00:00 Levels of Intelligibility: Integrating Neoplatonism and Cognitive Science 12:50 Stage One: Neoplatonic Psycho-ontology and the Path to Spirituality 41:02 Aristotelian Science: Knowing as Conformity and Transformation 46:36 Stoic Tradition: Agency, Identity, and the Flow of Nature 01:00:10 Stage Two: Cognitive Science and the Integration of Self and Reality 01:04:45 The Frame Problem and Relevance Realization  01:08:45 Relevance Realization and the Power of Human Cognition 01:20:15 Transjective Reality: Affordances and Participatory Fittedness 01:23:55 The Role of Relevance Realization: Self-Organizing Processes 01:31:30 Predictive Processing and Adaptivity 01:44:35 Critiquing Kant: The Case for Participatory Realism 01:53:35 Stage Three: Neoplatonism and the Meaning Crisis  02:00:15 Q&A Session 02:01:45 Q: What is the Ecology of Practices for Cultivating Wisdom? 02:11:50 Q: How Has the Cultural Curriculum Evolved Over Time? 02:26:30 Q: Does the World Have Infinite Intelligibility? 02:33:50 Q: Most Meaningful Visual Art? 02:34:15 Q: Social Media's Impact on Mental Health and Information? 02:39:45 Q: What is Transjective Reality? 02:46:35 Q: How Can Education Address the Meaning Crisis? 02:51:50 Q: Advice for Building a College Community? 02:55:30 Closing Remarks   — Authors, Ideas, and Works Mentioned in this Episode:    Antisthenes Aristotle Brett Anderson Byung-Chul Han Charles Darwin Daniel Dennett D. C. Schindler Friedrich Nietzsche Galileo Galilei Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Heraclitus Henry Corbin Immanuel Kant Iris Murdoch Isaac Newton Igor Grossmann Johannes Kepler John Locke John Searle John Spencer Karl Friston Karl Marx Mark Miller  Maurice Merleau-Ponty Nelson Goodman Paul Ricoeur Pierre Hadot Plato Pythagoras Rainer Maria Rilke René Descartes Sigmund Freud W. Norris Clarke anagoge (ἀναγωγή) Distributed cognition eidos (εἶδος) eros (ἔρως) Evan Thompson's deep continuity hypothesis Generative grammar logos (λόγος) Sensorimotor loop Stoicism thymos (θυμός) Bayes' theorem Wason Selection Task The Enigma of Reason by Hugo Mercier and Dan Sperber The Ennead by Plotinus Explorations in Metaphysics by W. Norris Clarke Religion and Nothingness by Keiji Nishitani The Eternal Law: Ancient Greek Philosophy, Modern Physics, and Ultimate Reality by John Spencer   — Additional Resources  John Vervaeke https://www.youtube.com/@johnvervaeke  Dr Stephen Blackwood  Ralston College (including newsletter) Support a New Beginning  — Thank you for listening!

IS THERE A ONE TRUE GOD OVERVIEW: There are many sources of information that people use to infer what might be true about God, including observation and revelation: Observation Some say that general observations of the universe support the existence of God, such as the idea of a non-eternal universe as shown by the Big Bang theory. Other observations that might support God's existence include the Earth's weather patterns, which some say are finely tuned to support human life, and the way nature works to form life. Revelation Some say that God may have entered the universe and told us true things about himself, morality, and how to have a relationship with him. This includes the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. The Bible also includes passages that some say indicate that God has made evidence of his existence so obvious that there is no excuse for denying him.  IS THERE PROOF OF GOD'S EXISTENCE? The existence of God is a subject of debate in the philosophy of religion.[1] A wide variety of arguments for and against the existence of God can be categorized as logical, empirical, metaphysical, subjective or scientific. In philosophical terms, the question of the existence of God involves the disciplines of epistemology (the nature and scope of knowledge) and ontology (study of the nature of being or existence) and the theory of value (since some definitions of God include "perfection"). The Western tradition of philosophical discussion of the existence of God began with Plato and Aristotle, who made arguments for the existence of a being responsible for fashioning the universe, referred to as the demiurge or the unmoved mover, that today would be categorized as cosmological arguments. Other arguments for the existence of God have been proposed by St. Anselm, who formulated the first ontological argument; Thomas Aquinas, who presented his own version of the cosmological argument (the first way); René Descartes, who said that the existence of a benevolent God is logically necessary for the evidence of the senses to be meaningful. John Calvin argued for a sensus divinitatis, which gives each human a knowledge of God's existence. Islamic philosophers who developed arguments for the existence of God comprise Averroes, who made arguments influenced by Aristotle's concept of the unmoved mover; Al-Ghazali and Al-Kindi, who presented the Kalam cosmological argument; Avicenna, who presented the Proof of the Truthful; and Al-Farabi, who made Neoplatonic arguments. In philosophy, and more specifically in the philosophy of religion, atheism refers to the proposition that God does not exist.[2] Some religions, such as Jainism, reject the possibility of a creator deity. Philosophers who have provided arguments against the existence of God include David Hume, Ludwig Feuerbach, and Bertrand Russell. Theism, the proposition that God exists, is the dominant view among philosophers of religion.[3] In a 2020 PhilPapers survey, 69.50% of philosophers of religion stated that they accept or lean towards theism, while 19.86% stated they accept or lean towards atheism.[4] Prominent contemporary philosophers of religion who defended theism include Alvin Plantinga, Yujin Nagasawa, John Hick, Richard Swinburne, and William Lane Craig, while those who defended atheism include Graham Oppy, Paul Draper, Quentin Smith, J. L. Mackie, and J. L. Schellenberg. Traditional religious definition of God In classical theism, God is characterized as the metaphysically ultimate being (the first, timeless, absolutely simple and sovereign being, who is devoid of any anthropomorphic qualities), in distinction to other conceptions such as theistic personalism, open theism, and process theism. Classical theists do not believe that God can be completely defined. They believe it would contradict the transcendent nature of God for mere humans to define him. Robert Barron explains by analogy that it seems impossible for a two-dimensional object to conceive of three-dimensional humans.[7] In modern Western societies, the concepts of God typically entail a monotheistic, supreme, ultimate, and personal being, as found in the Christian, Islamic and Jewish traditions. In monotheistic religions outside the Abrahamic traditions, the existence of God is discussed in similar terms. In these traditions, God is also identified as the author (either directly or by inspiration) of certain texts, or that certain texts describe specific historical events caused by the God in question or communications from God (whether in direct speech or via dreams or omens). Some traditions also believe that God is the entity which is currently answering prayers for intervention or information or opinions. Ibn Rushd, a 12th-century Islamic scholar Many Islamic scholars have used philosophical and rational arguments to prove the existence of God. For example, Ibn Rushd, a 12th-century Islamic scholar, philosopher, and physician, states there are only two arguments worthy of adherence, both of which are found in what he calls the "Precious Book" (The Qur'an). Rushd cites "providence" and "invention" in using the Qur'an's parables to claim the existence of God. Rushd argues that the Earth's weather patterns are conditioned to support human life; thus, if the planet is so finely-tuned to maintain life, then it suggests a fine tuner—God. The Sun and the Moon are not just random objects floating in the Milky Way, rather they serve us day and night, and the way nature works and how life is formed, humankind benefits from it. Rushd essentially comes to a conclusion that there has to be a higher being who has made everything perfectly to serve the needs of human beings.[8][9] Moses ben Maimon, widely known as Maimonides, was a Jewish scholar who tried to logically prove the existence of God. Maimonides offered proofs for the existence of God, but he did not begin with defining God first, like many others do. Rather, he used the description of the earth and the universe to prove the existence of God. He talked about the Heavenly bodies and how they are committed to eternal motion. Maimonides argued that because every physical object is finite, it can only contain a finite amount of power. If everything in the universe, which includes all the planets and the stars, is finite, then there has to be an infinite power to push forth the motion of everything in the universe. Narrowing down to an infinite being, the only thing that can explain the motion is an infinite being (meaning God) which is neither a body nor a force in the body. Maimonides believed that this argument gives us a ground to believe that God is, not an idea of what God is. He believed that God cannot be understood or be compared.[10] Non-personal definitions of God In pantheism, God and the universe are considered to be the same thing. In this view, the natural sciences are essentially studying the nature of God. This definition of God creates the philosophical problem that a universe with God and one without God are the same, other than the words used to describe it. Deism and panentheism assert that there is a God distinct from, or which extends beyond (either in time or in space or in some other way) the universe. These positions deny that God intervenes in the operation of the universe, including communicating with humans personally. The notion that God never intervenes or communicates with the universe, or may have evolved into the universe (as in pandeism), makes it difficult, if not by definition impossible, to distinguish between a universe with God and one without. The Ethics of Baruch Spinoza gave two demonstrations of the existence of God.[11] The God of Spinoza is uncaused by any external force and has no free will, it is not personal and not anthropomorphic. Debate about how theism should be argued In Christian faith, theologian and philosopher Thomas Aquinas made a distinction between: (a) preambles of faith and (b) articles of faith.[12] The preambles include alleged truths contained in revelation which are nevertheless demonstrable by reason, e.g., the immortality of the soul, the existence of God. The articles of faith, on the other hand, contain truths that cannot be proven or reached by reason alone and presuppose the truths of the preambles, e.g., in Christianity, the Holy Trinity, is not demonstrable and presupposes the existence of God. The argument that the existence of God can be known to all, even prior to exposure to any divine revelation, predates Christianity.[clarification needed] Paul the Apostle made this argument when he said that pagans were without excuse because "since the creation of the world God's invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made".[13] In this, Paul alludes to the proofs for a creator, later enunciated by Thomas Aquinas[14] and others, that had also been explored by the Greek philosophers. Another apologetical school of thought, including Dutch and American Reformed thinkers (such as Abraham Kuyper, Benjamin Warfield, and Herman Dooyeweerd), emerged in the late 1920s. This school was instituted by Cornelius Van Til, and came to be popularly called presuppositional apologetics (though Van Til felt "transcendental" would be a more accurate title). The main distinction between this approach and the more classical evidentialist approach is that the presuppositionalist denies any common ground between the believer and the non-believer, except that which the non-believer denies, namely, the assumption of the truth of the theistic worldview. In other words, presuppositionalists do not believe that the existence of God can be proven by appeal to raw, uninterpreted, or "brute" facts, which have the same (theoretical) meaning to people with fundamentally different worldviews, because they deny that such a condition is even possible. They claim that the only possible proof for the existence of God is that the very same belief is the necessary condition to the intelligibility of all other human experience and action. They attempt to prove the existence of God by means of appeal to the transcendental necessity of the belief—indirectly (by appeal to the unavowed presuppositions of the non-believer's worldview) rather than directly (by appeal to some form of common factuality). In practice this school uses what have come to be known as transcendental arguments. These arguments claim to demonstrate that all human experience and action (even the condition of unbelief, itself) is a proof for the existence of God, because God's existence is the necessary condition of their intelligibility. Protestant Christians note that the Christian faith teaches "salvation is by faith",[15] and that faith is reliance upon the faithfulness of God. The most extreme example of this position is called fideism, which holds that faith is simply the will to believe, and argues that if God's existence were rationally demonstrable, faith in its existence would become superfluous. Søren Kierkegaard argued that objective knowledge, such as 1+1=2, is unimportant to existence. If God could rationally be proven, his existence would be unimportant to humans.[citation needed] It is because God cannot rationally be proven that his existence is important to us. In The Justification of Knowledge, the Calvinist theologian Robert L. Reymond argues that believers should not attempt to prove the existence of God. Since he believes all such proofs are fundamentally unsound, believers should not place their confidence in them, much less resort to them in discussions with non-believers; rather, they should accept the content of revelation by faith. Reymond's position is similar to that of his mentor Gordon Clark, which holds that all worldviews are based on certain unprovable first premises (or, axioms), and therefore are ultimately unprovable. The Christian theist therefore must simply choose to start with Christianity rather than anything else, by a "leap of faith". This position is also sometimes called presuppositional apologetics, but should not be confused with the Van Tillian variety. THE HISTORICAL JESUS According to Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God as chronicled in the Bible's New Testament, and in most Christian denominations He is held to be God the Son, a prosopon (Person) of the Trinity of God. Christians believe him to be the messiah, or a saviour (giving him the title Christ), who was prophesied in the Bible's Old Testament. Through Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection, Christians believe that God offers humans salvation and eternal life,[1] with Jesus's death atoning for all sin, thus making humanity right with God. The commonly held belief among Christians is the phrase, "Jesus died for your sins," and thus they accept that salvation is only possible through him.[2] These teachings emphasize that as the Lamb of God, Jesus chose to suffer nailed to the cross at Calvary as a sign of his obedience to the will of God, as an "agent and servant of God".[3][4] Jesus's choice positions him as a man of obedience, in contrast to Adam's disobedience.[5] According to the New Testament, after God raised him from the dead,[6] Jesus ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father,[7] with his followers awaiting his return to Earth and God's subsequent Last Judgment.[8] According to the gospel accounts, Jesus was born of a virgin, instructed other Jews how to follow God (sometimes using parables), performed miracles and gathered disciples. Christians generally believe that this narrative is historically true. While there has been theological debate over the nature of Jesus, Trinitarian Christians believe that Jesus is the Logos, God incarnate (God in human form), God the Son, and "true God and true man"—fully divine and fully human. Jesus, having become fully human in all respects, suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, yet he did not sin.

Neoplatonism, a philosophical system founded by Plotinus in the 3rd century CE. Discover comparative analyses with Plato's ideas and Aristotle's metaphysics, highlighting ethical frameworks, spiritual ascent, and salvation in Neoplatonism. Learn the influence of key figures like Plotinus and Proclus, shaping medieval thought and beyond.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/philosophy-acquired--5939304/support.

In their second dialogue on "Voices with Vervaeke," John Vervaeke and Vivian Dittmar explore transrational thought, emotions, and transformative practices, embarking on a profound journey into human experience. Vivian introduces a map of five distinct sensations, illuminating the practice of conscious release for personal growth, emotional maturity, and integrating higher consciousness with shadow aspects. Their discussion delves into pre-rational, rational, and transrational modes of thought, emphasizing the importance of integrating various forms of thinking to navigate modern cognitive landscapes effectively. This intellectual and experiential exploration offers valuable perspectives on human consciousness, emotional work, and the potential of transrational thought to enrich our self-understanding and worldview.   Vivian Dittmar, a globally influenced author, speaker, and wisdom teacher, has dedicated two decades to enhancing holistic development. Her diverse upbringing inspired her to explore beyond conventional education, delving into various cultures' wisdom. Through her books and the Be the Change Foundation, Dittmar seeks to redefine prosperity, focusing on emotional intelligence, ecological sustainability, social justice, and spiritual fulfillment, aiming to address the crises facing modern society.   Glossary of Terms Transrational: Going beyond or surpassing human reason or the rational; nonverbal; nonlinear; abstract. Pre-rational: Preceding the development of intelligence. Rational: A state of consciousness characterized by logical, linear, and verbal thinking. Conscious Release: A practice developed by Vivian Dittmar that fosters the integration of higher states of consciousness with shadow aspects. John Vervaeke Website: https://johnvervaeke.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@johnvervaeke  Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke   X: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VervaekeJohn/   Vivian Dittmar Website: https://viviandittmar.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/@viviandittmareng Resources:   Join our new Patreon https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke   The Vervaeke Foundation - https://vervaekefoundation.org/   Awaken to Meaning - https://awakentomeaning.com/   Voices with Veraeke: Exploring Emotions and Transrational Wisdom with Vivian Dittmar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQWLfOFe0lo   The Emotional Backpack: How to release unhealthy feelings - Vivian Dittmar https://viviandittmar.net/en/the-emotional-backpack-book/   Your Inner GPS: Find Clarity with the Five Ways of Thinking -  Vivian Dittmar https://viviandittmar.net/en/your-inner-gps-book/   Workshop: “How Big Is Your Emotional Backpack?” https://signup.lebensweise.net/free-backpack-workshop   Online Course: “The Emotional Backpack” ► https://campus.lebensweise.net/o/the-emotional-backpack-online-course/   Rational Intuition: Philosophical Roots, Scientific Investigations - Lisa Osbeck, Barbara Held https://www.amazon.com/Rational-Intuition-Philosophical-Scientific-Investigations/dp/1316621219 Quotes    "One of the things that became really clear to me is that the transrational by nature has a very difficult stance in today's world because it speaks to us in a way that is nonverbal, nonlinear, abstract." - Vivian Dittmar [00:16:00]   “The ancient world had a whole faculty and term for nous and noesis, and that was all lost with the loss of our Neoplatonic heritage." - John Vervaeke [00:16:18]   "We have a transrational faculty that is also proactive, that is not receptive, and that's intention. It's really challenging for people to understand in our cultural framework because we very quickly confuse intention with a goal." - Vivian Dittmar [00:57:43] Chapters  [00:00:00] - Introduction and Overview of the Poly Crisis and Emotional Intelligence  [00:04:00] - Differentiating Sensations, Emotions, and Consciousness  [00:11:13] - Pre-rational, Rational, and Transrational Distinctions [00:25:00] - Intuition, Inspiration, and Transrational Wisdom [00:38:45] - Heart Intelligence  [00:47:50] - Reevaluating Rationality and Embracing Intuitive Integration for Decision-Making  [00:56:17] - Intention and Shaping Agency in Transrational Knowing [01:03:40] - Bridging Phenomenology, Transrational, and Transpersonal Dialogues  

In this first episode of the "Philosophy of Meditation" series, Rick Repetti and John Vervaeke take listeners on an engaging exploration of the intricate world of meditation and its deep roots in philosophical thought. John shares his transformative journey from a strict fundamentalist Christian background to finding solace and depth in Eastern philosophy and the practice of mindfulness. Rick and John's conversation navigates through the nuances of meditation and contemplation, shedding light on how these practices enrich the pursuit of wisdom and self-awareness. The discussion also bridges the gap between academic and practical philosophy, illustrating their vital role in understanding and cultivating wisdom. For listeners, this episode offers a deep, reflective insight into the philosophy of meditation, providing a comprehensive view of how these ancient practices are relevant and transformative in the modern world. The outcome is a rich tapestry of ideas, encouraging listeners to explore their own paths toward wisdom and self-realization.   Glossary of Terms   Dialogos: A form of dialogue that affords a reciprocal flow state. Mindfulness: The practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one's thoughts, emotions, or experiences. Cognitive Science: An interdisciplinary field exploring the mind and its processes. Neoplatonism: A philosophical system developed as a version of the teachings of Plato. DIME Model: an ecology of practices for philosophical wellbeing: D=Dialogue, I=Imaginal, M=Mindfulness, and E=Embodied practice.   John Vervaeke: Website: https://johnvervaeke.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@johnvervaeke  Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke   X: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VervaekeJohn/   Rick Repetti: Website: https://www.rickrepetti.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rickrepetti/  X: https://twitter.com/rickrepetti  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophicalpractitioner/   Join our new Patreon https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke   The Vervaeke Foundation - https://vervaekefoundation.org/   Awaken to Meaning - https://awakentomeaning.com/   John Vervaeke YouTube Awakening from the Meaning Crisis https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLND1JCRq8Vuh3f0P5qjrSdb5eC1ZfZwWJ After Socrates https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOwjmZx12gk&list=PLND1JCRq8Vuj6q5NP_fXjBzUT1p_qYSCC AI: The Coming Thresholds and The Path We Must Take | Internationally Acclaimed Cognitive Scientist https://youtu.be/A-_RdKiDbz4   Books, Articles, and Publications   Routledge Handbook on the Philosophy of Meditation - Rick Repetti  https://www.amazon.com/Routledge-Handbook-Philosophy-Meditation-Repetti/dp/036764746X Experimental Phenomenology: An Introduction - Don Ihde https://www.amazon.com/Experimental-Phenomenology-Introduction-Don-Ihde/dp/0887061990 Mentoring the Machines: Orientation - Part One: Surviving the Deep Impact of the Artificially Intelligent Tomorrow - John Vervaeke, Shawn Coyne https://www.amazon.com/Mentoring-Machines-Orientation-Artificially-Intelligent/dp/1645010821/ Mentoring the Machines: Origins - Part 2: Surviving the Deep Impact of the Artificially Intelligent Tomorrow - John Vervaeke, Shawn Coyne https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CH8W8XLF The Republic by Plato - The Internet Classics Archive https://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.html Relevance, Meaning and the Cognitive Science of Wisdom Vervaeke, J., & Ferraro, L. (2013) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286508333_Relevance_Meaning_and_the_Cognitive_Science_of_Wisdom Quotes   "Mindfulness and philosophy converge in cognitive science, enriching our understanding of wisdom." - John Vervaeke  "Meditation and contemplation are integral for a holistic philosophical understanding." - Rick Repetti "The journey to wisdom involves integrating academic philosophy with life practices." - John Vervaeke Chapters with Timestamps   [00:00:00] Introduction to the Series [00:03:00] John's Personal Journey to Philosophy and Meditation [00:06:00] The Convergence of Mindfulness and Academic Philosophy  [00:11:40] Defining Meditation and Contemplation  [00:19:24] Discussion on Academic Philosophy and Its Practice  [00:22:20] Exploring the Philosophy of Meditation  [00:41:00] The Impact of Meditation in Personal Life  [00:52:00] Neoplatonic Levels of Meditation  [00:55:50] Integration of Eastern and Western Philosophical Practices  [01:17:16] Exploring the Verveke Foundation and Its Role  [01:24:00] The Importance of Community and Shared Practices  [01:28:00] Final Thoughts and Reflections    Timestamped Highlights   [00:01:00] - Introduction to the Philosophy of Meditation series. [00:02:01] - Rick's reflection on how the series began. [00:03:13] - John's journey to meditation, philosophy, and philosophy of meditation  [00:07:12] - Integration of academic philosophy and mindfulness practices. [00:11:48] - Defining meditation and contemplation. [00:14:39] - Deepening the understanding of consciousness. [00:19:49] - The role of academic philosophy. [00:22:29] - The philosophy of meditation within cognitive science. [00:31:02] - Can meditation contribute to philosophy? [00:41:00] - The importance of meditation in personal life.   [00:52:00] - Explanation of Neoplatonic meditation levels. [00:55:50] - John Vervaeke discusses integrating Eastern and Western practices. [00:58:19] - Discussion on balancing personal idiosyncrasies and universal challenges. [01:00:38] - John shares his mystical experience of Plato's forms. [01:02:41] - Reflection on the transformative impact of mystical experiences. [01:06:40] - Critical perspective on the current state of mindfulness practices in North America. [01:09:00] - The need for a deeper understanding of the relationship between mindfulness and wisdom. [01:14:22] - Advice for practitioners of meditation and mindfulness. [01:17:16] - Introduction to the Verveke Foundation and its objectives. [01:24:00] - Emphasizing the need for community and shared wisdom practices. [01:28:00] - Closing remarks and gratitude for the podcast series.  

The World and God Are Not-Two: A Hindu-Christian Conversation (Fordham UP, 2022) is a book about how the God in whom Christians believe ought to be understood. The key conceptual argument that runs throughout is that the distinctive relation between the world and God in Christian theology is best understood as a non-dualistic one. The "two"-"God" and "World" cannot be added up as separate, enumerable realities or contrasted with each other against some common background because God does not belong in any category and creatures are ontologically constituted by their relation to the Creator. In exploring the unique character of this distinctive relation, Soars turns to Sara Grant's work on the Hindu tradition of Advaita Vedānta and the metaphysics of creation found in Thomas Aquinas. He develops Grant's work and that of the earlier Calcutta School by drawing explicit attention to the Neoplatonic themes in Aquinas that provide some of the most fruitful areas for comparative engagement with Vedānta. To the Christian, the fact that the world exists only as dependent on God means that "world" and "God" must be ontologically distinct because God's existence does not depend on the world. To the Advaitin, this simultaneously means that "World" and "God" cannot be ontologically separate either. The language of non-duality allows us to see that both positions can be held coherently together without entailing any contradiction or disagreement at the level of fundamental ontology. What it means to be "world" does not and cannot exclude what it means to be "God." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

The World and God Are Not-Two: A Hindu-Christian Conversation (Fordham UP, 2022) is a book about how the God in whom Christians believe ought to be understood. The key conceptual argument that runs throughout is that the distinctive relation between the world and God in Christian theology is best understood as a non-dualistic one. The "two"-"God" and "World" cannot be added up as separate, enumerable realities or contrasted with each other against some common background because God does not belong in any category and creatures are ontologically constituted by their relation to the Creator. In exploring the unique character of this distinctive relation, Soars turns to Sara Grant's work on the Hindu tradition of Advaita Vedānta and the metaphysics of creation found in Thomas Aquinas. He develops Grant's work and that of the earlier Calcutta School by drawing explicit attention to the Neoplatonic themes in Aquinas that provide some of the most fruitful areas for comparative engagement with Vedānta. To the Christian, the fact that the world exists only as dependent on God means that "world" and "God" must be ontologically distinct because God's existence does not depend on the world. To the Advaitin, this simultaneously means that "World" and "God" cannot be ontologically separate either. The language of non-duality allows us to see that both positions can be held coherently together without entailing any contradiction or disagreement at the level of fundamental ontology. What it means to be "world" does not and cannot exclude what it means to be "God." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/indian-religions

The World and God Are Not-Two: A Hindu-Christian Conversation (Fordham UP, 2022) is a book about how the God in whom Christians believe ought to be understood. The key conceptual argument that runs throughout is that the distinctive relation between the world and God in Christian theology is best understood as a non-dualistic one. The "two"-"God" and "World" cannot be added up as separate, enumerable realities or contrasted with each other against some common background because God does not belong in any category and creatures are ontologically constituted by their relation to the Creator. In exploring the unique character of this distinctive relation, Soars turns to Sara Grant's work on the Hindu tradition of Advaita Vedānta and the metaphysics of creation found in Thomas Aquinas. He develops Grant's work and that of the earlier Calcutta School by drawing explicit attention to the Neoplatonic themes in Aquinas that provide some of the most fruitful areas for comparative engagement with Vedānta. To the Christian, the fact that the world exists only as dependent on God means that "world" and "God" must be ontologically distinct because God's existence does not depend on the world. To the Advaitin, this simultaneously means that "World" and "God" cannot be ontologically separate either. The language of non-duality allows us to see that both positions can be held coherently together without entailing any contradiction or disagreement at the level of fundamental ontology. What it means to be "world" does not and cannot exclude what it means to be "God." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

The World and God Are Not-Two: A Hindu-Christian Conversation (Fordham UP, 2022) is a book about how the God in whom Christians believe ought to be understood. The key conceptual argument that runs throughout is that the distinctive relation between the world and God in Christian theology is best understood as a non-dualistic one. The "two"-"God" and "World" cannot be added up as separate, enumerable realities or contrasted with each other against some common background because God does not belong in any category and creatures are ontologically constituted by their relation to the Creator. In exploring the unique character of this distinctive relation, Soars turns to Sara Grant's work on the Hindu tradition of Advaita Vedānta and the metaphysics of creation found in Thomas Aquinas. He develops Grant's work and that of the earlier Calcutta School by drawing explicit attention to the Neoplatonic themes in Aquinas that provide some of the most fruitful areas for comparative engagement with Vedānta. To the Christian, the fact that the world exists only as dependent on God means that "world" and "God" must be ontologically distinct because God's existence does not depend on the world. To the Advaitin, this simultaneously means that "World" and "God" cannot be ontologically separate either. The language of non-duality allows us to see that both positions can be held coherently together without entailing any contradiction or disagreement at the level of fundamental ontology. What it means to be "world" does not and cannot exclude what it means to be "God." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The World and God Are Not-Two: A Hindu-Christian Conversation (Fordham UP, 2022) is a book about how the God in whom Christians believe ought to be understood. The key conceptual argument that runs throughout is that the distinctive relation between the world and God in Christian theology is best understood as a non-dualistic one. The "two"-"God" and "World" cannot be added up as separate, enumerable realities or contrasted with each other against some common background because God does not belong in any category and creatures are ontologically constituted by their relation to the Creator. In exploring the unique character of this distinctive relation, Soars turns to Sara Grant's work on the Hindu tradition of Advaita Vedānta and the metaphysics of creation found in Thomas Aquinas. He develops Grant's work and that of the earlier Calcutta School by drawing explicit attention to the Neoplatonic themes in Aquinas that provide some of the most fruitful areas for comparative engagement with Vedānta. To the Christian, the fact that the world exists only as dependent on God means that "world" and "God" must be ontologically distinct because God's existence does not depend on the world. To the Advaitin, this simultaneously means that "World" and "God" cannot be ontologically separate either. The language of non-duality allows us to see that both positions can be held coherently together without entailing any contradiction or disagreement at the level of fundamental ontology. What it means to be "world" does not and cannot exclude what it means to be "God." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/christian-studies

Delve into the philosophical and theological parallels that shaped the development of early Christian thought. From the influence of Plotinus and his concepts of the One and the emanation of divine beings, to the fusion of Platonic ideas with Christian theology, this video uncovers the intellectual interplay that helped shape the foundations of Western spirituality. Explore how Neoplatonic concepts, such as the nature of the soul, the hierarchy of being, and the pursuit of the divine, found resonance within Christian doctrines.Sources/Suggested Reading: Gerson, Loyd P. (ed.) (2019). "Plotinus: The Enneads". Cambridge University Press.Gerson, Loyd P (2008). "Cambridge Companion to Plotinus". Cambridge University Press. Greer, Rowan A. (1979). "Origen: Selected Writings". Classics of Western Spirituality. Paulist Press. Laird, Martin (2004). "Gregory of Nyssa and the grasp of faith: union, knowledge and divine presence". Oxford University Press. Lossky, Vladimir (1944). "The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church". James Clarke & Co. Luibheid, Colm (Translated by) (1987). "Pseudo-Dionysius: The Complete Works". Classics of Western Spirituality. Paulist Press International. McGinn, Bernard (2003). "The Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart: The Man from Whom God Hid Nothing". Independent Publishers Group. O'Meara, Dominic J. (1981). "Neoplatonism and Christian Thought". State University of New York Press. Pine-Coffin, R.S. (Translated by) (2003). "Confessions". Penguin Classics. Proclus "The Elements of Theology: A Revised Text with Translation, Introduction, and Commentary". Translated by E.R. Dodds. Second Edition. Oxford University Press. O'Meara, Dominic J. (1999). "Plotinus: An Introduction to the Enneads". Oxford University Press. Wallis, R.T. (1998). "Neoplatonism". Second Edition. Bristol Classical Paperbacks. Hackett Publishing Company. Ware, Timothy (2015). "The Orthodox Church: An introduction to Eastern Christianity". New Edition. Penguin Books. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Thomas Merton's epiphany on the corner of Fourth and Walnut Streets was a significant breakthrough into Christ consciousness and the opening up of what Raimon Panikkar calls, “Christophany.”  This new consciousness propelled an inversion of Merton's monastic life toward ever deepening relationships with a world of complexity. Relying on insights from Carl Jung, Raimon Panikkar and Teilhard de Chardin, I will explore Merton's Christophany as a radical theology, a mutational disruption of the Neoplatonic quest, and the ushering in of a new monastic consciousness reflective of the second axial age, marked by the hyperpersonal monk of planetary consciousness. Ilia Delio, OSF, PhD is a Franciscan Sister of Washington, DC and American theologian specializing in the area of science and religion, with interests in evolution, physics and neuroscience and the import of these for theology. Ilia currently holds the Josephine C. Connelly Endowed Chair in Theology at Villanova University, and is the author of twenty books including Care for Creation (coauthored with Keith Warner and Pamela Woods), The Emergent Christ and The Unbearable Wholeness of Being: God, Evolution and the Power of Love (Orbis, 2013).

If you are still trying to figure out what to do with your life, you are the property of Satan. You are trapped. You are caught in a snare because it is not your life. You have already heard the gospel. You know what you have to do. You have to choose a side. There is no middle ground. There is no twilight between light and dark. Neoplatonic expressions like “both-sideism” and “moral equivalency” are Satanic—a lie of the Devil. You have to choose a side. As I speak, every 10 minutes, a child's murder is justified by an egotistical 19th-century European theology born out of a settler-colonial King James translation of the biblical text. It is a settler-colonial text rendered in Anglo-Saxon by the court of a settler-colonial king who sought to justify the theft, dispossession, exploitation, and murder of Native Americans. Previously, European theology resulted in the barbaric and brutal persecution of our beloved Jewish brothers and sisters for centuries. These are facts.For those who are baptized into Jesus Christ, there is only one side—the judgment of God our Father—which is against you and against me. This God—the God of Scripture—does not speak Anglo-Saxon or write with vowels. In view of these facts, YOU must choose a side. YOU must TAKE A STAND—on the content of the biblical text! YOU must WRITE A BOOK—dealing with the content of the biblical text! YOU must START A PODCAST—reading aloud the content of the biblical text! YOU must WRITE AN ARTICLE—exegeting the content of the biblical text! This has nothing to do with your career choices, life goals, dreams, or what you do for a living. When you talk this way, you sound like a navel-gazing, self-serving, money-loving settler-colonial. What of the children in Sudan? Do they have dreams? Or is Sudan only a tourist stop on a checklist for impressive Ivy-League resumes? “Each one of us will give an account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12)“Each one will bear his own load.” (Galatians 6:5)Each one of us must pick up our own shovel. I am speaking to each and every individual person who hears this podcast. This is a personal message to you. Take it personally. Be angry with me if you must. Your programs, activities, groups, mailing lists, ideals, altruisms, associations, parties, clubs, nonprofits, whatever—all of it—is vanity. Are you objectively teaching and spreading the objective content of the biblical text against anthropocentrism, ignorance, fundamentalism, fanaticism, political and religious ideology, philosophy, theology, colonialism, and greed? Or are you promoting your own version of the same (in other words, are you promoting yourself) by building your resume?  Are you teaching the content of Scripture? Are you writing? Are you going through Scripture verse by verse? Are you studying biblical languages? Are you teaching biblical languages?What are you doing? At this hour, plenty of people are expending a ton of energy and wealth to propagandize hate. Worse, they are expending even more energy and wealth to co-opt SCRIPTURE to propagandize genocide. Rightly did St. Paul speak of those who have received knowledge but refuse to work when he proclaimed, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” (Romans 2:24)Because of those who know but do not teach:- 1,200 children have died in the past 5 months in Sudan, and at least 5.8 million people have been displaced since April due to civil war.- More than 500 children have been killed and 1,000 injured in Ukraine since the start of the war, and 11 million Ukrainians were displaced.- At the time of this recording, 5000 children that we know of have been killed in Gaza, almost 9000 were injured, and 1.4 million (70% of all Palestinians living in Gaza) have been displaced. Meanwhile, the US Congress, universities, colleges, and public institutions (and the majority of the European powers) continue to debate whether or not it is “racist” to call for a ceasefire.Those of you who listen to this podcast know better. Forget politics. You know what Scripture teaches. What are you doing to spread the content of God's teaching? Not to give your feedback on how it could be done better, what other people should do, or what your priest should do.What are you doing with your own hands? Richard and I discuss Luke 5:7. (Episode 508) ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Dr. John Vervaeke is joined by multi-talented Ben Holden for a dialogue that delves deep into the esoteric yet compelling domains of naming magic, perception, and the cosmos. From the intriguing nature of ancient myths and folklore to the complexities of modern fantasy literature, the conversation covers a broad spectrum. It explores the tension between the "moreness" and "suchness" of objects, the Buddhist notion of unique essence, and the mysterious realms of naming and representation. The duo also ventures into the practical world, contemplating the psychological underpinnings of our contemporary struggles with meaning, vision, and anxiety. All of this is punctuated by Holden's colorful anecdotes from his work and an earnest exploration of the implications of a sentient cosmos. Don't miss this intellectual feast that promises to stretch your mind and tug at your curiosity.   Resources: John Vervaeke: Website | Patreon | Facebook | X | YouTube Ben Holden: Website | Patreon | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube   The Vervaeke Foundation   Related YouTube Episodes Speculative fiction, post-tragic romanticism and awakening from the meaning crisis w/ Ben Holden - Voice with Vervaeke John Vervaeke - Tradition as a Living Force - Fantasy Creates Reality   Books Tokyo Yokai - Ben Holden Tales from Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin The God of the Left Hemisphere: Blake, Bolte Taylor and the Myth of Creation - Roderick Tweedy   Time Codes 00:00:00 — Dr. John Vervaeke welcomes Ben Holden for their third conversation on the show. 00:00:28 — Ben Holden discusses the balance between audience engagement and addiction. 00:01:29 — Holden introduces his voice-acted short story "Tokyo Yokai." 00:03:13 — Holden suggests exploring ideas for his longer piece of work. 00:06:06 — Explanation of the concept of naming magic. 00:08:19 — Vervaeke delves into the Buddhist notion of 'suchness.' 00:11:00 — A shift in the conversation toward the importance of naming. 00:17:49 — Ben discusses conflicting ideologies in magic. 00:20:20 — Aristotle's notion of form and matter is introduced. 00:24:51 — Holden introduces meteor shower-linked technology. 00:28:20 — Exploration of a dynamic, living cosmos. 00:31:10 — Vervaeke's take on enriching the fantasy genre with new visions. 00:33:20 — Upanishads' perspective on sight is discussed. 00:37:48 — The conversation turns to disruptions in our perceived notions of order. 00:42:32 — Holden talks about living a soulful life in a capitalist world. 00:47:45 — The concept of 'bleeding into each other' is introduced. 00:51:00 — The role of conflict in storytelling is discussed. 00:56:07 — Holden queries Vervaeke on the idea of a sentient cosmos. 00:58:00 — Vervaeke speaks on Neoplatonic magicians during the scientific revolution.  

As he continues his studies, St. Augustine realizes his knowledge of God, theology and Jesus are incomplete. He also concludes Book 7 with a comparison of the Neoplatonic texts he's been reading with what he has been studying in Scripture. Fr. Gregory Pine and Fr. Jacob-Bertrand Janczyk discuss the humility with which we must approach our study of God. Today's readings are Book 7, Chapters 19-21. To get your copy of the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/catholicclassics or text "CONFESSIONS" to 33-777. Please note: The Confessions of St. Augustine contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

St. Augustine considers the nature of God in Neoplatonic terms. Searching for a way to explain his reality, St. Augustine broadens his philosophical understanding of what God is. Fr. Gregory Pine and Fr. Jacob-Bertrand Janczyk discuss free will, the root and cause of evil, and our freedom to turn toward or away from God. Today's readings are Book 7, Chapters 1-4. To get your copy of the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/catholicclassics or text "CONFESSIONS" to 33-777. Please note: The Confessions of St. Augustine contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Full title: CSWR List Lecture with Adam Afterman: Kabbalistic Neoplatonism: Divine Emanation and Mystical Integration Dr. Afterman addressed the profound impact of Neoplatonism on Kabbalah, the medieval trend of Jewish mysticism. While its impact on the development of a new form of mystical religiosity of communion and unio mystica is relatively known, he will focus on another critical development: Afterman argued that through an interpretation of Neoplatonic emanation in terms of substantive intra-divine emanation, the kabbalist developed for the first time a Jewish godhead. Dr. Adam Afterman is a Professor at the Department of Jewish Philosophy and Talmud at Tel Aviv University, specializing in Jewish philosophy and Kabbalah. He is a senior scholar and director of the John Paul II Center for Interreligious Dialogue and a senior fellow of the Kogod Center for the Renewal of Jewish Thought at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem. This event took place September 28, 2023. For more information: https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/

“Criticism of Christianity has a long history which stretches back to the initial formation of the religion in the Roman Empire. Critics have challenged Christian beliefs and teachings as well as Christian actions, from the Crusades to modern terrorism. The arguments against Christianity include the suppositions that it is a faith of violence, corruption, superstition, polytheism, homophobia, bigotry, pontification, abuses of women's rights and sectarianism. In the early years of Christianity, the Neoplatonic philosopher Porphyry emerged as one of the major critics with his book Against the Christians, along with other writers like Celsus and Julian. Porphyry argued that Christianity was based on false prophecies that had not yet materialized.[1] Following the adoption of Christianity under the Roman Empire, dissenting religious voices were gradually suppressed by both governments and ecclesiastical authorities [2]—however Christianity did face theological criticisms from other Abrahamic religions like Judaism and Islam in the meantime, such as Maimonides who argued that it was idolatry.[3] A millennium later, the Protestant Reformation led to a fundamental split in European Christianity and rekindled critical voices about the Christian faith, both internally and externally. In the 18th century, Deist philosophers such as Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau were critical of Christianity as a revealed religion.[4] With the Age of Enlightenment, Christianity was criticized by major thinkers and philosophers, such as Voltaire, David Hume, Thomas Paine, and the Baron d'Holbach.[5] The central theme of these critiques sought to negate the historical accuracy of the Christian Bible and focused on the perceived corruption of Christian religious authorities.[5] Other thinkers, like Immanuel Kant, launched systematic and comprehensive critiques of Christian theology by attempting to refute arguments for theism.[6] In modern times, Christianity has faced substantial criticism from a wide array of political movements and ideologies. In the late eighteenth century, the French Revolution saw a number of politicians and philosophers criticizing traditional Christian doctrines, precipitating a wave of secularism in which hundreds of churches were closed down and thousands of priests were deported or killed.[7] Following the French Revolution, prominent philosophers of liberalism and communism, such as John Stuart Mill and Karl Marx, criticized Christian doctrine on the grounds that it was conservative and anti-democratic. Friedrich Nietzsche wrote that Christianity fosters a kind of slave morality which suppresses the desires which are contained in the human will.[8] The Russian Revolution, the Chinese Revolution, and several other modern revolutionary movements have also led to the criticism of Christian ideas. The contemporary LGBT movements have criticized Christianity for homophobia and transphobia. The formal response of Christians to such criticisms is described as Christian apologetics. Philosophers like Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas have been some of the most prominent defenders of the Christian religion since its foundation.” --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/support

Dr. John Vervaeke and Brendan Graham Dempsey explore the intricacies of meaning, spirituality, and the human experience. The episode commences with a succinct recap of their previous discussion, touching on Neoplatonism and Zen, before diving into Brendan's recent work on the concept of meaning. The conversation spans a wide array of topics, from the epistemic aspects of meaning to the philosophical underpinnings of mindfulness and meditation. The duo also delves into the influence of historical figures like Plotinus, Dante, and Proclus, examining how their ideas can be integrated into a modern understanding of spirituality. With a focus on the potential for a synthesis between cutting-edge science and ancient wisdom, this episode offers a fresh perspective on some of the most pressing questions of our time.  Brendan Graham Dempsey is a respected voice in the realm of metamodern spirituality. With a BA from the University of Vermont and a master's degree in religion from Yale, he brings a strong academic background to his work. Authoring the influential 7-volume "Metamodern Spirituality Series" and host of its companion podcast, Dempsey is a thought leader who navigates the intricate corridors of post-postmodern culture.   Resources:   Brendan Graham Dempsey: Website | YouTube | Facebook   Books: Aspects of Truth: A New Religious Metaphysics - Catherine Pickstock  Bonaventure: The Soul's Journey into God, The Tree of Life, The Life of St. Francis Routledge Handbook on the Philosophy of Meditation - Rick Repetti (Editor) God Without Being - Jean-Luc Marion Plato's Critique of Impure Reason: On Goodness and Truth in the Republic - D.C. Schindler   Publications: The phenomenological given and the hermeneutic exchange: which holds priority? - Catherine Pickstock   Videos: Metamodern Spirituality | Updating Neoplatonic Spirituality (w/ John Vervaeke) Part 1 Neoplatonism and the Path of Transformation | Dr. John Vervaeke  The Cognitive Science Show | Transcendent Naturalism Series   Misc: PLOTINUS, Ennead, Volume IV Auguries of Innocence by William Blake | Poetry Foundation   People: Gregg Henriques Martin Heidegger John Hick Benedict De Spinoza Immanuel Kant  Dante Alighieri Alicia Juarrero Emmanuel Levinas Martin Buber Ludwig Wittgenstein   Timecodes: 00:00:20 — Dr. John Vervaeke introduces Brendan Graham Dempsey and revisits the topics of Neoplatonism and Zen from the previous conversation, which can be found on Dempsey's YouTube channel. 00:02:30 — Dempsey outlines his work in metamodern spirituality and post-postmodernism.  00:06:35 — Dr. Vervaeke discusses the model of meaning, focusing on its epistemic aspects.  00:08:20 — Adding a layer of depth to the conversation, especially regarding a cosmological view, Brendan shares his fascination with historical figures like Plotinus, Pseudo-Dionysius, and Dante. 00:10:00 — A constructivist Piagetian developmental framework is introduced by Dempsey, shifting the conversation towards understanding the developmental aspects of meaning. 00:14:00 — The topic shifts to conformity as Vervaeke discusses its role in drawing something out of the subject. He also calls for more discourse around the Neoplatonic framework. 00:15:20 — Brendan expresses excitement about the potential of Neoplatonism in contemporary times. 00:21:00 — A mystical experience from the Ennead, IV by Plotinus, is brought up, opening the door to a discussion on the nature of mystical experiences. Dr. Vervaeke responds with an analogy about complexification, adding scientific rigor to the spiritual discussion. 00:28:11 — Dempsey introduces the concept of a principle of differentiation, suggesting that experiencing this principle could lead to a mystical experience. 00:30:44 — Referencing his work on mindfulness and the philosophy of meditation, Vervaeke introduces the idea of two movements in mindfulness practice. 00:37:36 — Dr. Vervaeke expands on Brendan's point about the contextual relationship of an individual's experience, discussing the idea of complexification. 00:44:10 — Dante's work is discussed and the concept of agape, a form of love that alters the direction of relevance realization. 00:51:28 — Brendan Graham Dempsey discusses the face as a representation of meaning, suggesting that it acts as a portal to increasing meaning. 00:58:30 — Dr. Vervaeke discusses the limitations of science when it comes to probing into its own presuppositions, introducing the concept of truths that are only disclosed through significant transformation. 01:01:03 — Brendan introduces the topic of the narrative that science provides about the origins of the universe, including the Big Bang, adding a cosmological layer to the discussion. 01:09:25 — The conversation shifts to exclusivity claims and how they can mislead us into believing something is more than just indispensable, but rather metaphysically necessary.

During the Renaissance, Kabbalists attempted to synthesize and interpret Kabbalah through a Neoplatonic lens, based on the belief that Plato had studied the secrets of Judaism. Join us as we explore the secret of Plato and Kabbalah in the Italian Renaissance. 00:00 Platonism and Kabbalah during the Renaissance 01:30 Shout out 04:06 Changing Favours 06:27 The Rise of Plato 15:14 How did Plato know Kabbalah? 20:12 Prisca Theologia, Perennial Philosophy 24:58 Case Study: The Sefirot 32:57 Italy vs Spain 37:57 Ripple Effects of the Renaissance 41:01 Summary 43:34 Reading Recs 43:57 Thank you & Shout out Sources and Recommended Readings: • Abraham Melamed, “The Myth of the Jewish Origins of Philosophy in the Renaissance: from Aristotle to Plato,” in Jewish History, 26(1-2), 2012, pp. 41–59., 214—219. • Abraham Melamed, The Myth of the Jewish Sources of Science and Philosophy, 2009, pp. 214-219, 299-315 • Abraham Melamed, The Philosopher-King in Medieval and Renaissance Jewish political Thought (Albany, 2002), 229, n. 30. • Alexander Altmann, "Lurianic Kabbalah in a Platonic Key: Abraham Cohen Herrera's Puerta del Cielo," HUCA 53 (1982) • Chaim Wirszubski, Pico della Mirandola's Encounter with Jewish Mysticism • Hava Tirosh-Rothschild, Between Worlds: The Life and Thought of Rabbi David ben Judah Messer Leon (Albany, 1991), 50, 233. • Miquel Beltran, The Influence of Abraham Cohen de Herrera's Kabbalah on Spinoza's Metaphysics. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2016 • Moshe Idel "Differing Conceptions of Kabbalah in the Early 17th Century,"in I. Twersky and B. Septimus, eds., Jewish Thought in the 17th Century (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1987), 138-41, 155-57 • Moshe Idel, "Jewish Mystical Thought in the Florence of Lorenzo il Magnifico," in La cultura ebraica all'epoca di Lorenzo il Magnifico, ed. D. Liscia Bemporad and I. Zatilli (Florence, 1998), pp. 31-32 • Moshe Idel, "Kabbalah and Ancient Philosophy in R. Isaac and Judah Abravanel", in The Philosophy of Leone Ebreo, eds. M. Dorman and Z. Levi (Tel Aviv, 1985) (in Hebrew), pp. 73-112, 197. • Moshe Idel, "Kabbalah, Platonism and Prisca Theologia: the Case of Menashe ben Israel,” Menasseh ben Israel and his World, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 1989, pp. 207-219. • Moshe Idel, "The Anthropology of Yohanan Alemanno: Sources and Influences," Topoi 7 (1988): pp. 201-10; reprinted in Annali di storia dell'esegesi 7 (1990): 93-112; • Moshe Idel, “The Magical and Neoplatonic Interpretations of The Kabbalah in the Renaissance,” in Jewish Thought in the Sixteenth Century, by Bernard Dov Cooperman (ed.), Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1983, pp. 186-242 • Moshe Idel, “Italy in Safed, Safed in Italy: Toward an Interactive History of Sixteenth-Century Kabbalah,” in David B. Ruderman and Giuseppe Veltri, eds., Cultural Intermediaries: Jewish Intellectuals in Early Modern Italy, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004, p. 243 • Moshe Idel, “Jewish Kabbalah and Platonism in the Middle Ages and Renaissance” in Lenn Goodman, Neoplatonism and Jewish Thought, State University of New York Press, 1992, pp. 319-351 • Moshe Idel, “Metamorphoses of a Platonic Theme in Jewish Mysticism,” in Jewish Studies at the Central European University 3: 67 • Moshe Idel, “Particularism and Universalism in Kabbalah, 1480-1650,” in Essential Papers on Jewish Culture in Renaissance and Baroque Italy, edited by David B. Ruderman, 1992, p. 327-8, 338 • Moshe Idel, Kabbalah in Italy, 1280-1510: A Survey, Yale University Press, 2007 • Richard Popkin, “Spinoza, Neopiatonic Kabbalist?,” in Lenn Goodman, Neoplatonism and Jewish Thought, 1992, pp. pp. 367-410 • S. Toussaint, "Ficino's Orphic Magic or Jewish Astrology and Oriental Philosophy? A Note on Spiritus, the Three Books on Life, Ibn Tufayl, and Ibn Zarza," Ac- cademia 2 (2000): 19-33

In Episode 7 of TN, John and Gregg welcome Brendan Graham Dempsey. Brendan is a writer, theologian, and theorist whose work focuses on the meaning crisis and the nature of spirituality in metamodernity. He is also the host of the Metamodern Spirituality podcast, and he runs the Skymeadow Retreat, which has hosted several metamodern spirituality events. In this episode, Brendan shares about his recent work, which he wrote about in Emergentism, and from his in-progress work on the meaning of meaning. He shows how his work, UTOK, and Bobby Azarian's unified theory of reality can provide a framework to delineate the history and development of cultural meaning-making systems (i.e., large-scale systems of justification). This episode is full of powerful convergences between Brendan's vision and the worldview for bridging science and spirituality that is emerging in TN.    Resources: Brendan Graham Dempsey  Oika  Claude E. Shannon: Founder of Information Theory - Graham P. Collins The Levin Lab UTOK   Publications: A Spirit of Trust: A Reading of Hegel's Phenomenology - Robert B. Brandom The information theory of individuality - David Krakauer Semantic information, autonomous agency and non-equilibrium statistical physics - Artemy Kolchinsky and David H. Wolpert   Videos: The Reality of Meaning: Knowledge, Value, and Complexity | Consilience Conference '23   Books: The Romance of Reality: How the Universe Organizes Itself to Create Life, Consciousness, and Cosmic Complexity - Bobby Azarian  Context Changes Everything: How Constraints Create Coherence - Alicia Juarrero Cosmic Evolution: The Rise of Complexity in Nature - Eric J. Chaisson   Quotes: "Transcendent naturalism is trying to articulate a new worldview that holds science and spirituality, [and] orients us towards a frame of understanding for the 21st century that can enable a collective orientation toward wisdom.” - Gregg Henriques "Meaning equals information relevant to enhancing viability of an entity in context, and meaning is inherently transjective. It's not in the subject, it's not in the object, it's in the relationship between the two." - Brendan Graham Dempsey "Earth burns like a quasar of complexification in the night sky. So if our measure is mass, then yes, but if our measure is complexification, especially an ontic epistemic conformity that affords awareness, experience, potentiality, growth, oriented towards a potential future, et cetera, that is an area in which we find ourselves quite uniquely situated in the universe in terms of the everyday knowledge that we have of things in the world. " - Gregg Henriques   Timecodes: [00:00:00] Dr. John Vervaeke introduces the episode and the guests, Gregg Henriques and Brendan Graham Dempsey. The episode focuses on Transcendent Naturalism within the Cognitive Science Show. [00:02:34] Gregg Henriques introduces transjective epistemology, detailing its relation to pragmatism. [00:03:13] Collective awakening towards wisdom is discussed, focusing on its societal implications. [00:07:55] Brendan Graham Dempsey explains the principle of a naturalistic universe and the energy-information relationship. [00:10:40] Dempsey reveals the concept of figure-ground distinction in information theory. [00:16:28] The discussion revolves around the learning process in cosmic evolution and complexification. [00:20:10] The concept of symbolic learning and its relevance to the spiritual and sacred is discussed with emphasis on the need for a focus on this area in the conversation.  [00:27:52] Dr. Vervaeke explores the idea that humans are symbols, connecting to collective intelligence. [00:30:14] Dempsey discusses the role of symbolic information in forming justification systems and the enculturation of individuals. [00:35:00] The conversation shifts to penetrating the unknown and restructuring it for higher complexity. [00:39:16] Henriques connects to justification systems theory, revealing the alignment with Habermas's structure. [00:45:23] Dempsey delves into the progression from modernity to post-modernity and new integrations. [00:53:41] Dr. Vervaeke criticizes postmodernism and its impact on the understanding of reason and wisdom. [00:56:26] Dempsey responds to Dr. Vervaeke, discussing faith in the emergence of new understanding. [01:00:39] Henriques shares his agnostic stance, addressing the expansion of knowledge within ambiguity. [01:04:09] Discussion of trust and cosmic history in response to Dr. Vervaeke's post-Hegelian, Neoplatonic faith. [01:07:12] The importance of pattern recognition in navigating a chaotic world. [01:07:39] Henriques describes his role in carrying a "baton of energy information" within the greater story, and discusses the importance of being a good ancestor and considering the ripple effects of our actions across time, emphasizing the need for a better understanding of our human natures and our relationships.  

Your hosts Dr. Dean Bertram and Jason McLean venture into the sci-fi section of the Mysterious Library's AV wing tonight. They'll be chatting about the hit 1999 film, and Keanu Reeve's vehicle, THE MATRIX. But should the film be considered simple fiction? Or is it blasting us with secret, divine messages, the way P. K. Dick suggested some enlightening pop culture did in his seminal and reality-bending novel VALIS? Or perhaps THE MATRIX just follows the long and ancient strain of Neoplatonic and gnostic thought which posits we exist in a baser reality, beneath higher spiritual truth; today a concept which has been modernized, technologized and popularized in "simulation theory." Your Mysterious Librarians will be pondering these questions, and more in what is going to be a wild ride, to the furthermost boundaries of this reality.... and beyond!This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast, contact us at https://www.spreaker.com/show/4602609/advertisement

Dr. John Vervaeke and Gregg Henriques continue their thought-provoking exploration of Transcendent Naturalism by examining extended naturalism, neoplatonism, and the dimensions of sacredness. They challenge conventional notions of sacredness by examining its connection with strong transcendence and discussing Spinoza's insights into nature, God's ultimate reality, and the universe's deterministic nature, aligning with the Neoplatonic framework. They discuss religious perspectives, comparing classical and common theism and their evolution, while addressing the interplay between energy, consciousness, and reality, highlighting the philosophical underpinnings of theism. They also intriguingly differentiate spirituality from religion, both rooted in the concept of the sacred, and discuss symbolic ideals, spiritual richness, consequential history, and the profound significance of consequential decisions in our lives.   Resources: The Case for God - Karen Armstrong Religion and Nothingness - Keiji Nishitani Thinking Being: Introduction to Metaphysics in the Classical Tradition - Eric Pearl Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge - Edward Osborne Wilson   Time-codes: [00:00:00] Dr. John Vervaeke outlines the episode's structure: extended naturalism, the meaning of sacredness within extended naturalism, the concept of strong transcendence, and three phenomena where people traditionally express a sense of transcendence: rituals, altered states of consciousness, and belonging to a worldview. [00:04:53] Dr. Vervaeke dives into the first topic, extended naturalism. He discusses the consilience between structural and content arguments in the context of neoplatonism. [00:07:36] Discussion of Spinoza's distinction between nature nurturing and nature being nurtured, a concept that explores the relationship between top-down and bottom-up processes in nature, bringing  forward the idea of God not as a physical entity but as the source of all existence and understanding. [00:15:14] Dr. John Vervaeke discusses the features of common theism and its basis in classical theology, shares his perspective on the debates between theists and atheists, and the conception of God as a supreme being  [00:18:00] The concept of God as the ground that supports continual self-transcendence, and a contemplative discussion on theism's classical and common forms, pushing the boundaries of philosophical exploration. [00:25:19] A deep dive into how truth can exist outside our understanding, challenging conventional beliefs. [00:30:20] Dr. Vervaeke delves into the concept of sacredness, describing it as an inexhaustible and paradoxical fountain of intelligibility. He also highlights the limitations of traditional propositional knowing in fully comprehending this concept. [00:37:23] The concepts of soul and spirit as ineffable aspects of human experience, with the soul, referring to the groundedness of our experiences and spirit pointing to our capacity for self-transcendence, and discussion on the connection between the symbolic ideal and the transcendent, [00:38:09] Symbolic Ideals & Transcendence: Gregg Henriques links symbolic ideals to deeper philosophical perspectives, enriching discourse. [00:41:20] Dr. John Vervaeke explains the concept of sacredness as a transjective experience, providing a new perspective on the understanding of sacredness. [00:44:53] Gregg Henriques introduces a proposes a new concept of inconsequential versus consequential history; viewing historical events based on their long-term impact. [00:55:00] Dr. John Vervaeke outlines his plan to explore the deep interconnections between an extended notion of rationality and ritual and their power, including an explanation of how and why we experience strong transcendence within ritual experiences, within the framework of extended naturalism. Qoutes: “Strong transcendence has epistemological and ontological import. The idea is that there are truths about reality that are disclosed only when one goes through a transcendence, which also gives you access to different levels of knowing.” - Dr. John Vervaeke   “Generalizability in and of itself it's not really intelligibility. It's generalizability in relationship to the capacity for differentiation held in appropriate dialectic. There's a generalizable differentiation polarity where the poles between the two is going to afford intelligibility, and it's the right relationship of that t that is fundamentally key.” - Gregg Henriques  

#plotinus #iamblichus #magic What's Plotinus's idea of Magic? Why is theurgy so important for Iamblichus? Emanationism, Sympathy, Antipathy and Neoplatonic cosmology. CORRIGENDUM: It's "Fall under the umbrella", not "Follow". Apologies, I was unwell when I filmed this video. CONNECT & SUPPORT

 This episode of After Socrates explores the transformative experience of examining ideas and beliefs through the practice of dialectic, which is seen as the virtue of tracking the logos, a concept not present in everyday dialogue. The dialogue involves mindfulness and Neoplatonic contemplation, fostering feelings of brotherhood, comfort, expectancy and playful curiosity. Key roles of the scribe and herald in tracking the proposal and managing the interaction are explored, along with the role of virtues like vulnerability, courage, humility and openness. Trust in following the logos is seen as paramount. The conversation sometimes pushes the limits of language, illuminating the mystery of the logos, but deepens understanding nonetheless.   Time-codes: 00:00:00 - Christopher Mastropietro discusses the transformative experience of burning through ideas and beliefs. This concept sets the stage for the discussion, introducing the primary theme of transformation through dialectic practice. 00:01:07 - Dr. John Vervaeke introduces the topic of dialectic and the virtue of dialectic itself. His explanation offers a profound understanding of dialectic, setting a philosophical foundation for the conversation. 00:16:25 - Taylor Barratt shares his feelings of curiosity, excitement, and nervousness. This moment brings an emotional and human dimension to the conversation, reminding participants of the personal aspect of philosophical dialogue. 00:19:14 - Dr. John Vervaeke expresses his amazement with the depth and playfulness of his experiences with Chris. This reflection deepens the sense of camaraderie and shared exploration within the group. 00:21:07 - Dr. John Vervaeke discusses the excitement and security he feels when interacting with Taylor. This moment underscores the value of trust and safety in fostering deep and meaningful conversations. 00:22:10 - Christopher Mastropietro shares his feelings of brotherhood and comfort with Guy. His words illustrate the close bonds formed through dialogos, underscoring the relational aspect of dialectic practice. 00:24:30 - Dr. John Vervaeke asks for an overview of the steps, stages, and roles in the dialectic process. This moment frames the rest of the discussion, providing context and structure to the exploration of dialectic. 00:33:20 - Dr. John Vervaeke discusses the defining feature of dialectic as tracking the logos. This key insight offers a new way of understanding the purpose and function of dialectic, distinguishing it from ordinary conversation. 00:43:24 - Taylor Barratt and Guy Sengstock discuss the role of vulnerability and other virtues in dialectic. This moment highlights the personal qualities needed to engage meaningfully in the practice of dialectic. 00:50:45 - Taylor reflects on the limits of language to describe the state they're in. This moment of introspection highlights the complex and ineffable nature of the dialectic experience. 01:00:16 - Dr. John Vervaeke introduces the idea that dialectic is the virtue of following what the proposal does not say. This intriguing idea invites a deeper exploration of the nature of dialectic and how it fosters understanding. 01:07:16 - Christopher Mastropietro discusses the geometry and shape of a proposal. This unique perspective brings a new layer of complexity to the understanding of proposals within the context of dialogos. 01:15:38 - Dr. John Vervaeke and Christopher Mastropietro discuss the practice of dialectic and the I-thou relationship with a proposal. This moment further refines the understanding of dialectic, emphasizing the relational aspect of the process. 01:20:54 - Christopher Mastropietro discusses the emergence of the Geist, or the persona of the Logos. This idea expands on the concept of the logos, introducing an animate aspect that guides the process of dialectic. 01:22:01 - Christopher Mastropietro discusses offering our beliefs and ideas to the transformative process of the Logos. This concept encapsulates the spirit of the discussion, emphasizing the transformational potential of dialectic practice.

Psychology professor and cognitive scientist John Vervaeke (@johnvervaeke) joins me to talk about how Neoplatonism (which has provided the worldview "grammar" of Western mysticism) is being revisioned in light of contemporary advances in philosophy, cognitive science, and cross-cultural exchange. 0:00 Introduction 1:21 Updating the Perennial Tradition 6:19 A Post-Two-Worlds Neoplatonism 12:20 "The One" according to 4E Cognitive Science 20:16 Ascent and Descent 26:05 Complexification as Narrative? Creating a Psycho-Ontology 36:01 Nonduality, Meaning, and Nihilism 44:30 Death and (Re-)Incarnation 53:11 After Life

 My special guest is paranormal investigator Daena Smoller who's here to discuss her experiences working alongside one of the most revered investigators in New Orleans.      Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature.[1] The term is derived from Medieval Latin supernaturalis, from Latin super- (above, beyond, or outside of) + natura (nature)[1] Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings since the ancient world, the term "supernatural" emerged in the Middle Ages[2] and did not exist in the ancient world.[3]  The supernatural is featured in folklore and religious contexts,[4] but can also feature as an explanation in more secular contexts, as in the cases of superstitions or belief in the paranormal.[5] The term is attributed to non-physical entities, such as angels, demons, gods, and spirits. It also includes claimed abilities embodied in or provided by such beings, including magic, telekinesis, levitation, precognition, and extrasensory perception.  The philosophy of naturalism contends that nothing exists beyond the natural world, and as such approaches supernatural claims with skepticism.[6]     Etymology and history of the concept[edit]  Occurring as both an adjective and a noun, descendants of the modern English compound supernatural enter the language from two sources: via Middle French (supernaturel) and directly from the Middle French's term's ancestor, post-Classical Latin (supernaturalis). Post-classical Latin supernaturalis first occurs in the 6th century, composed of the Latin prefix super- and nātūrālis (see nature). The earliest known appearance of the word in the English language occurs in a Middle English translation of Catherine of Siena's Dialogue (orcherd of Syon, around 1425; Þei haue not þanne þe supernaturel lyȝt ne þe liȝt of kunnynge, bycause þei vndirstoden it not).[7]  The semantic value of the term has shifted over the history of its use. Originally the term referred exclusively to Christian understandings of the world. For example, as an adjective, the term can mean "belonging to a realm or system that transcends nature, as that of divine, magical, or ghostly beings; attributed to or thought to reveal some force beyond scientific understanding or the laws of nature; occult, paranormal" or "more than what is natural or ordinary; unnaturally or extraordinarily great; abnormal, extraordinary". Obsolete uses include "of, relating to, or dealing with metaphysics". As a noun, the term can mean "a supernatural being", with a particularly strong history of employment in relation to entities from the  mythologies of the indigenous peoples of the Americas.[7]  History of the concept[edit]  The ancient world had no word that resembled "supernatural".[3] Dialogues from Neoplatonic philosophy in the third century AD contributed to the development of the concept the supernatural via Christian theology in later centuries.[8]   It's super easy to access our archives!   Here's how:   iPhone Users: Access Mysterious Radio from Apple Podcasts and become a subscriber there or if you want access to even more exclusive content join us on Patreon.   Android Users: Enjoy over 800 exclusive member-only posts to include ad-free episodes, case files and more when you join us on Patreon.    Copy and Paste our link in a text message to all your family members and friends! We'll love you forever! (Check out Mysterious Radio!)  

A selection of verses taken from various texts from the works of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, (flourished c. 500), probably a Syrian monk who, known only by his pseudonym, wrote a series of Greek treatises and letters for the purpose of uniting Neoplatonic philosophy with Christian theology and mystical experience. In the early sixth century, a series of writings of a mystical nature, known as the Corpus Areopagiticum or Corpus Dionysiacum was ascribed to the Areopagite. They have long been recognized as pseudepigrapha, and their author is now called "Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite". The author pseudepigraphically identifies himself in the corpus as "Dionysius", portraying himself as Dionysius the Areopagite, the Athenian convert of Paul the Apostle mentioned in Acts 17:34 According to Pseudo-Dionysius, God is better characterized and approached by negations than by affirmations. All names and theological representations must be negated. According to pseudo-Dionysius, when all names are negated, "divine silence, darkness, and unknowing" will follow. The Dionysian corpus was absorbed into Greek and Eastern Christian theologies and also influenced mystics in the Western church, such as Meister Eckhart. Thomas Aquinas was among those who wrote commentaries on the works. There remains for the Christian reader no theologian or scholar quite as enigmatic as Pseudo-Dionysius.

It's time to talk about a few ways that Neoplatonic ideas have shown up in the history of Islamic thought.Sources/Recomended Reading:Adamson, Peter (ed.) (2005). "The Cambridge Companion to Arabic Philosophy". Cambridge University Press.al-Ghazali - "The Niche of Lights". Translated by David Buchman. Islamic Translations Series. University of Chicago Press.Daftary, Farhad (2007). "The Isma'ilis: Their history and doctrines". Cambridge University Press.Chittick, William (2005). "Ibn Arabi: Heir to the Prophets". OneWorld Publications.Chittick, William (1989). "The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn 'Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination".Chittick, William (1998). "The Self-Disclosure of God: Principles of Ibn al-'Arabi's Cosmology". State University of New York Press.Chittick, William (2005). "The Sufi Doctrine of Rumi". World Wisdom, inc.Dillon, John (1996). "The Middle Platonists". Bristol Classical Press.Gerson, Loyd P. (ed.) (2019). "Plotinus: The Enneads". Cambridge University Press. (This is the translation of the Enneads I have been using in this episode).Gerson, Loyd P (2008). "Cambridge Companion to Plotinus". Cambridge University Press.Ibn Sina - "A Treatise on Love". Translated by Emil L. Fackenheim. Medieval Studies.Ibn 'Arabi - "The Ringstones of Wisdom (Fusus al-Hikam)". Translation by Caner K. Dagli. Great Books of the Islamic World.Ibn Arabi - "The Universal Tree and the Four Birds (al-ittihad al-kawni). Translated by Angela Jaffray. Oxford: Anqa Publishing.Ibn 'Arabi - "The Openings Revealed in Makkah: al-futuhat al-makkiyya". Translated by Eric Winkel. Volumes 1-4. Pir Press.Morewedge, Parviz (1992). "Neoplatonism and Islamic Thought". State University of New York Press.Ormsby, Eric (Translated by) (2012). "Between Reason and Revelation: Twin wisdoms reconciled". An annotated English translation of Nasir-i Khusraw's Kitab-i Jami al-hikmatayn. The Institute of Isma'ili Studies. I.B. Tauris.Proclus "The Elements of Theology: A Revised Text with Translation, Introduction, and Commentary". Translated by E.R. Dodds. Second Edition. Oxford University Press.O'Meara, Dominic J. (1999). "Plotinus: An Introduction to the Enneads". Oxford University Press.Wallis, R.T. (1998). "Neoplatonism". Second Edition. Bristol Classical Paperbacks. Hackett Publishing Company.#neoplatonism #islam #philosophy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ideas Matter takes a trip back to the fourth century AD to read St Augustine of Hippo, a famed Christian theologian from Thagaste, North Africa. Augustine's writings have proved tremendously influential not only within Christian theology, but in philosophy and political theory more broadly. His teachings on the nature of human sin - that we sin because it is fun - have informed political realism in domestic and international relations theory. Augustine shows how deeply Christianity was influenced by Neoplatonic readings of the bible, furthering cementing the claim that all philosophy is a footnote to Plato. Even in the fourth century, educated theologians recognised that the Bible was an allegorical work, whose apparent contradictions are great wellsprings of profundity and meaning. Even if you do not consider yourself religious, reading Augustine is a humbling experience. Most contemporary criticisms of Christianity are straw-man arguments, or “mental figments” as Augustine would describe them. An informed agnostic or partisan of another spiritual tradition could do much worse than to read Augustine. Indeed, there is much in common between Augustine's Christianity and Daoism, Hinduism, and other Eastern religions. Perhaps they all point to the same fundamental human need to connect with something greater than ourselves. Please like and share the podcast if you think others may benefit. As always we reachable via Instagram @ideasmatterpod or via email ideasmatterpod@gmail.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ideasmatter.substack.com

In this episode of the Awareness to Action Enneagram podcast, Mario Sikora, María José Munita and Seth "Creek" Creekmore continue their deep dive into critical thinking as a fundamental thing they believe is important for the Enneagram community. They discuss a few ideas on how to think critically and why it's important.“If you are positioning yourself to be a teacher of the Enneagram, but you are not working on your critical or clear thinking skills, then you are being irresponsible.” -Mario [20:41]“When we're working with the Enneagram, if we were seekers after truth, we need to think critically, and that involves seeing other people for who they are and not who we think they are.” -María José [30:54]“As a rather emotional human, critical thinking has aided me in being able to actually more clearly and more deeply experience these emotions, whether they make sense or not.” -Creek [31:17]TIMESTAMPS[00:01] Intro[02:17] Examples of using critical thinking[04:41] What is Neoplatonic essentialism[10:29] Religion and the Enneagram[17:54] Critical thinking does not goes against spirituality or religion[21:10] Five obstacles to critical thinking and five solutions to them[25:37] High degree of confidence and intellectual character[31:08] What's happening is not always the whole situation [32:17] Fundamental attribution error[34:34] OutroConnect with us:Awareness to ActionEnneagram on Demand Mario Sikora: IG: @mariosikoraWeb: mariosikora.comPod: Enneagram in a MovieMaria Jose Munita: IG: @mjmunitaWeb: mjmunita.comSeth "Creek" Creekmore: IG: @creekmoremusicPod: Fathoms | An Enneagram PodcastPod: Delusional Optimism

A selection of some key pointers for meditation from Simone Weil taken from various texts and sources. Simone Adolphine Weil (1909 -1943) was a French philosopher, mystic, and political activist. Weil received spiritual direction from a Dominican friar and learned much from the Catholic author Gustave Thibon. She was especially rooted in Neoplatonic thinking in her spiritual writings. Yet her spiritual curiosity took her far. She learned Sanskrit to read the Bhagavad Gita. She studied Mahayana Buddhism and the ancient Greek and Egyptian mystery religions. She believed that each religion, when we are within it, is true. But she was opposed to religious syncretism. She saw a blending of religions as diminishing the particularity of each tradition and the truth of that path to God. Though she learned from other faiths, she plunged deeper into her own Catholicism. For Weil, truth was deeply personal and could only be approached through deep introspection. She experienced a powerful and ecstatic experience in the same church where Saint Francis had prayed. Weil wrote intensely about spirituality, mysticism, beauty and social struggle. Her writings sought to develop the intellectual consequences of the religious experiences she was having.

How did the Platonists and Neoplatonists view the world? How did they view our relationship with it and what is our responsibility to it? I explore this issue in this video using the philosopher David Fideler.

In this stream I focus on critically analyzing David Icke's spiritual paradigm. He adopts many Neoplatonic, Gnostic, and contemporary theories about a simulation to describe the "reality" of the world. We will see if it stands up to scrutiny. Make sure to check it out and let me know what you think. God bless Go subscribe to Dry Creek Wrangler School: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCU0HzTA9ddqOgtuV-TJ9ywIntro MusicFollow Keynan Here! https://linktr.ee/keynanrwilsb-dibe's Bandcamp: https://b-dibe.bandcamp.com/b-dibe's Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/b-dibeSuperchat Here https://streamlabs.com/churchoftheeternallogosRokfin: https://rokfin.com/dpharryWebsite: http://www.davidpatrickharry.com GAB: https://gab.com/dpharrySupport COTEL with Crypto!Bitcoin: 3QNWpM2qLGfaZ2nUXNDRnwV21UUiaBKVsyEthereum: 0x0b87E0494117C0adbC45F9F2c099489079d6F7DaLitecoin: MKATh5kwTdiZnPE5Ehr88Yg4KW99Zf7k8d If you enjoy this production, feel compelled, or appreciate my other videos, please support me through my website memberships (www.davidpatrickharry.com) or donate directly by PayPal or crypto! Any contribution would be greatly appreciated. Thank you Logos Subscription Membership: http://davidpatrickharry.com/register/ Venmo: @cotel - https://account.venmo.com/u/cotel PayPal: https://www.paypal.me/eternallogos Donations: http://www.davidpatrickharry.com/donate/PayPal: https://www.paypal.me/eternallogos Website: http://www.davidpatrickharry.com Rokfin: https://rokfin.com/dpharryOdysee: https://odysee.com/@ChurchoftheEternalLogos:dGAB: https://gab.com/dpharryTelegram: https://t.me/eternallogosMinds: https://www.minds.com/DpharryBitchute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/W10R...DLive: https://dlive.tv/The_Eternal_LogosInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/dpharry/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/eternal_logos

She was the ultimate Muse of the Renaissance, inspiring princes, painters and poets. This discussion looks to unpack the shockwave that followed the arrival of Simonetta Vespucci in Florence. Who was she, and how does history inform her impact on the Italian Renaissance? We dive deeper, interpreting how to digest the questions around attributions of her image, and how virtue, courtship, and Neoplatonic thought elevated her in Florentine society.  Even after her tragic death, La bella Simonetta was closely entangled in the developing culture by the likes of the Medici, Sandro Botticelli, and Angelo Poliziano. Couture & ConstructionWeekly conversations about luxury building & design. Brought to you by Textures Nashville.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the show

Thank you for listening to Will Wright Catholic. Please share it by clicking the blue button below!The Nature of Human BeingsLet's start with… well… everything! Reality exists: both natural and supernatural. The natural realm is everything that we can detect, observe, or measure. This part of the created order includes atoms, molecules, and matter, in general, but it also includes unseen forces like gravity, electromagnetism, and the like. All of this exists in space and time, in a closed system where matter is neither created nor destroyed. But is there more? The “more” would be above nature or “supernatural.” The supernatural is all that exists apart from the material and natural realm. Angels, demons, and the Creator Himself all exist apart from the visible observable universe. Truly, God deserves His own category as the only Necessary Being whereas everything else is contingent on Him.We speak of the things of our material universe as Nature. Here on Earth, nature includes the elements: earth, fire, water, wind, and life. However, there is another usage of the term “nature” which is more important to our conversation today. The nature of a thing is the basic or inherent features of that thing. So, when we speak of human nature, we are not necessarily referring to the things which can be observed in human behavior or external characteristics shared by homo sapiens. Human nature is the basic or inherent features of being human. What is written into the very heart of man? What pertains to the nature of the human person from the beginning, now, and forever? This is what we mean by human nature.All Human Beings Have the Same NatureAll human beings have the same nature. If they did not, then they would not be human. Again, the vital distinction is in the difference between observable behaviors on the one hand and those intrinsic and essential aspects on the other. The former is merely behavior and the latter is the necessary realities of being human. We are human beings, after all, not “human doings.” So, if someone has a mental disorder that causes them to act in a way that is opposed to human nature, they are nonetheless still human. This distinction is important because we hear people speak of such and such phenomena “existing in nature” and drawing the conclusion that the observed phenomena must be “natural.” Quickly falling apart upon examination, this line of thinking leads to great confusion about human nature. A coworker recently brought up an example of this with the phenomenon of geophagy. In certain instances, pregnant women will begin to experience an inordinate desire to consume dirt and clay. The ingestion of this non-food item is compulsive and might derive from a deficiency in iron. At any rate, it is not “normal” or “well-ordered” to eat dirt and clay. Yet, geophagy “exists in nature.” So, is it part of human nature to eat dirt and clay? No. Something is seriously off in this phenomenon. Just because some human beings do certain things or even desire certain things, this does not make it part of human nature.What We Ought to BeBecause all human beings have the same nature, endowed by the Creator, there are certain standards consistent across the entire human race. When we say what a human being essentially is, there is an implication of what human beings ought to be.From before recorded History, human beings have been self-reflective - incidentally, self-reflection and powers of abstraction is an intrinsic part of human nature. In this self-reflection, human beings have interrogated the known and the unknown, within and without themselves. The fundamental questions resound through the ages: who are we? Why are we here? What is the purpose of life? Why is there life at all? Who am I? What is a human being? What does it mean to be a human being? Is there something after death? Do I have a soul? And so on…These questions are universal: in every time and in every place, human beings have voraciously questioned everything. Many of these questions require philosophical investigation and others require scientific examination. But philosophy and science can only get us so far in inquiry. From the beginning, human beings have also relied on the queen of the sciences: theology. Admittedly, theology was not called the “queen of the sciences” until the High Middle Ages. Schools of higher learning used the trivium of grammar, logic, and rhetoric and the quadrivium of arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy to investigate the universe - both seen and unseen, within and without. Nevertheless, theology as the study of God and the divine in general could be called religion.What is Religion?Before we can define what religion actually is, we need to understand what we, as human beings, are capable of. Man is made in the image and likeness of God. Being made in the image and likeness of God is to possess a rational soul. Human beings have the ability to know things (intellect) and the ability to choose freely the good (will). Endowed with freedom, man seeks the good and is capable of understanding the ordering of reality, established by the Creator. Given possession of a rational soul, man ardently seeks after reality. The disposition of the soul towards the good, true, and beautiful, in practice, is religion. The word religion has derived diverse meanings over the last few millennia. Cicero seeks religion as deriving from the verb relegere which means “to treat carefully.” On the other hand, the fourth century Christian apologist Lactantius says:“We are tied to God and bound to him [religati] by the bond of piety, and it is from this, and not, as Cicero holds, from careful consideration [relegendo], that religion has received its name (Divine Institutes, IV, xxviii).”Speaking in a Neoplatonic mode, the great St. Augustine in City of God gives a sense of recovering God: “having lost God through neglect [negligentes], we recover Him [religentes] and are drawn to Him.” However, he later leaves behind this idea in favor of Lactantius' view, saying, “Religion binds us [religat] to the one Almighty God.”St. Thomas Aquinas, in the Summa, does not make a decision between the three views but sees them as all valuable: careful consideration, recovering God, and binding oneself. In a general sense, religion is the free choice to subject oneself to God. We are binding ourselves to God and Him to us in the practice of true religion. Are Human Beings Religious? Certainly, some human beings are religious, but would it be proper to say that all human beings are religious? Controversy is perpetual surrounding this question, especially in the modern world. How many times have you heard someone say, “Oh. I'm spiritual, but not religious.” Or perhaps you have heard the usually evangelical Christian idea that religion is opposed to the true practice of faith in Jesus Christ which is a relationship. However, I hope to show by the end of this short article that all human beings are truly religious, at the deepest metaphysical level. The first example of being spiritual and not religious is something that I will get to in a moment. But, let us begin with the second notion of relationship versus religion. If religion is about voluntary subjugation to God and binding ourselves to Him and Him to us, then I would suggest that religion, properly understood, is entirely about relationships. Right relationship with God bears fruit in the right relationship with our neighbor. The practice of true religion is all about relationships. Often, when people levy this rejoinder, it is from a misconception or false view of what religion ought to be.Spiritual, But Not Religious?Now to the notion of spiritual, but not religious. At the core of our being, as human persons, we are religious. This is the fundamental fact of our nature. It is right to say that we are spiritual, but it would be equally correct to say that we are corporeal. We are body and soul. If we were bodies without souls, we would be zombies. And if we were souls without bodies, we would be ghosts. So, our bodily-ness and spiritual-ness are part and parcel of our humanity. Yes, we are spiritual. But how then could we not also be religious? The human heart is made to worship. The notion of worship comes from the Middle English word worthschipe. Literally, it is an amalgamation of the word worth meaning “worthy” or “honorable” and the suffix -ship which means a denotation of a property or state of being. To worship something is to show with the depths of our being, body and soul, what we put worth in. What is worthy to us? This is what we worship. Centering and prioritizing our lives conveys what we worship and bears fruit in our actions.Oxford University professor Roger Trigg said in 2011 that, “We tend to see purpose in the world. We see agency. We think that something is there even if you can't see it… All this tends to build up to a religious way of thinking… If you've got something so deep-rooted in human nature, thwarting it is in some sense not enabling humans to fulfill their basic interests. There is quite a drive to think that religion is private. It isn't just a quirky interest of a few, it's basic human nature.”Professor Trigg hits the nail on the head. Religious thinking is basic human nature. All human beings have a hardwired religious drive. Now, an atheist might say that this is a bio-evolutionary oddity which motivated us in the past but is antiquated. They might say, like Marx, that religion is the opiate of the masses. I would say that the atheist and the marxist are in denial about their own nature and are dismissing as a nuisance the idea that perhaps God is in control. Because what is marxism or atheism if not a deep desire for control over the uncontrollable, for knowledge over the unknowable? Everyone puts worth in something. If they are not worshiping God - who alone is worthy - then that religious drive, essential to human nature, will be directed to something else. The rub is that the new object of worship will always be infinitely less than the Almighty. And so, aiming far below the Way, the Truth, and the Life, man falls prey to his base desires and can never find happiness. The conception of “spiritual, but not religious” does not conform to reality and will always result in the worship of creation rather than the Creator. Our soul, at the deepest level, desires to bind itself to the higher things. If we aim at God, then He will bind us to Himself. If we aim at lesser things, then we will be bound to them, to our detriment and perhaps even our damnation.Human Nature Cannot Be RepressedAny attempt to repress, control, or snuff out human nature in the realm of religion has miserably failed and has always been accompanied by widespread human suffering. In the 20th Century alone, we can look to the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, the Nazi regime in Germany, the later Soviet policies in Russia, the Cultural Revolution in China, and other instantiations of godless Communism and Socialism. Human nature is hardwired into our being at the deepest levels. The human heart will always seek out God and will only be satisfied in Him. As St. Augustine said in the opening of his Confessions, “Our hearts are restless, until they rest in Thee.” Our restless hearts are religious. They want to worship. Who or what are they worshiping? Even for the believer, the exercise is worthwhile: what is the object of our worship, our desire, and our ultimate affection? If the answer is God, then we must beg the Lord for the grace to grow in this. If the answer is anything else, the pruning shears need to spring into action. Thank you for reading Will Wright Catholic. If you've enjoyed it, please share it by clicking the blue button below! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willwrightcatholic.substack.com

In this special edition series, I will be joined by multiple thinkers and philosophers to discuss Platonic and Neoplatonic philosophy. This ongoing series of conversations will focus on the nature of goodness, truth, justice, freedom, beauty, reason, and love. My first guest in this series is the eminent cognitive scientist and philosopher John Vervaeke, and we examine D.C. Schindler's masterpiece "Plato's Critique of Impure Reason: On Goodness and Truth in the Republic."Be sure to check out Swan Private, the trusted Bitcoin financial services provider for high-net-worth individuals and businesses worldwide: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveGuestJohn's Twitter: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_johnPlato's Critique of Impure Reason: https://www.amazon.com/Platos-Critique-Impure-Reason-Goodness/dp/0813228247#:~:text=Plato's%20Critique%20of%20Impure%20Reason%20offers%20a%20dramatic%20interpretation%20of,real%20image%22%20of%20the%20good.PODCASTPodcast Website: https://whatismoneypodcast.com/Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-what-is-money-show/id1541404400 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/25LPvm8EewBGyfQQ1abIsE?si=wgVuY16XR0io4NLNo0A11A&nd=1RSS Feed: https://feeds.simplecast.com/MLdpYXYITranscript:Outline00:00:00 “What is Money?” Intro00:00:08 Swan Private00:01:37 Breaking In: Reversal and Reality00:06:50 Socrates as the Living Symbol of Philosophy00:10:33 The Paradoxical Identity of Procession and Reversion00:17:07 How Socrates the Courage that Nobody Can Define00:21:04 The Dramatic Roles of Socrates and Christ00:27:04 The Sun, The Good, and the Mediating Third00:32:27 Sciencia Intuitivia00:37:01 The Deep Continuity Between Vision and Cognition, Mind and Biology00:40:37 The Pricing System as a Set of Perpetual Feedback Loops00:45:15 The Nature of the Absolute00:48:00 Could Causality be an Illusion?00:51:20 The Dramatic Structure of Knowledge00:51:58 Watch “Hard Money with Natalie Brunell” From Swan Studios00:52:44 Take Control of Your Healthcare with CrowdHealth00:53:52 The 6th Sense: The Climax of a Film Is a Reversal00:57:19 Reciprocal Opening: How to Keep Falling Ever-Deeper in Love01:02:06 On Being Invisible01:04:45 The Difference Between Discovery and Invention…01:09:29 What is It About Self-Knowledge that So Closely Resembles The Good?01:13:05 “The Supreme Reality is Not Anything the Eye Can See, but the Power By Which the Eye Can See”01:19:36 Cybernetics, Organisms as Messages, and Purifying the Mediating Thirds01:25:35 Information: Surprise, Or, The Difference that Makes a Difference01:31:00 “One Must Love More Than Ideas In Order to Love Ideas Properly”01:35:32 The Mission of Socrates: Get Justice, Or Die Trying01:37:40 “The Unexamined Life is Not Worth Living”01:45:21 “Perfect Freedom is thus Identical to Absolute Obedience to What is Absolute”01:51:00 “What is Money?” OutroSOCIALBreedlove Twitter: https://twitter.com/Breedlove22WiM? Twitter: https://twitter.com/WhatisMoneyShowLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/breedlove22/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breedlove_22/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@breedlove22?lang=enAll My Current Work: https://linktr.ee/breedlove22 WRITTEN WORKMedium: https://breedlove22.medium.com/Substack: https://breedlove22.substack.com/ WAYS TO CONTRIBUTEBitcoin: 3D1gfxKZKMtfWaD1bkwiR6JsDzu6e9bZQ7Sats via Strike: https://strike.me/breedlove22Sats via Tippin.me: https://tippin.me/@Breedlove22Dollars via Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/RBreedloveDollars via Venmo: https://venmo.com/code?user_id=1784359925317632528The "What is Money?" Show Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=32843101&fan_landing=true RECOMMENDED BUSINESSESSwan Private guides high-net-worth individuals and businesses in all areas of Bitcoin strategy: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveCrowdHealth offers an innovative health insurance model based on Bitcoin and community: https://www.joincrowdhealth.com/breedloveOkcoin is an innovative and education-focused cryptoasset exchange platform—earn $50 in free Bitcoin by signing up at: https://okcoin.com/breedloveInvest with a licensed Bitcoin advisor through DAIM: https://daimio.typeform.com/RobertBreedloveJoin Me At Bitcoin 2023, pre-order your tickets now (for a chance to win 10M sats, use discount code BREEDLOVE): https://b.tc/conference/2023Automatic Recurring Bitcoin Buys and Withdrawals: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/breedlove/

In this special edition series, I will be joined by multiple thinkers and philosophers to discuss Platonic and Neoplatonic philosophy. This ongoing series of conversations will focus on the nature of goodness, truth, justice, freedom, beauty, reason, and love. My first guest in this series is the eminent cognitive scientist and philosopher John Vervaeke, and we examine D.C. Schindler's masterpiece "Plato's Critique of Impure Reason: On Goodness and Truth in the Republic."Be sure to check out Swan Private, the trusted Bitcoin financial services provider for high-net-worth individuals and businesses worldwide: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveGuestJohn's Twitter: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_johnPlato's Critique of Impure Reason: https://www.amazon.com/Platos-Critique-Impure-Reason-Goodness/dp/0813228247#:~:text=Plato's%20Critique%20of%20Impure%20Reason%20offers%20a%20dramatic%20interpretation%20of,real%20image%22%20of%20the%20good.PODCASTPodcast Website: https://whatismoneypodcast.com/Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-what-is-money-show/id1541404400 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/25LPvm8EewBGyfQQ1abIsE?si=wgVuY16XR0io4NLNo0A11A&nd=1RSS Feed: https://feeds.simplecast.com/MLdpYXYITranscript:Outline00:00:00 “What is Money?” Intro00:00:08 Swan Private00:01:37 “Value” vs “The Good”: The Goal of All Human Action00:10:00 The Through-Line to Economic, Intellectual, and Moral Value00:16;10 Distinguishing Intrinsic from Instrumental Goodness00:24:20 Aristotelean Subject-Object Metaphysics and the Mediating Third00:28:28 The Academy's Misapprehension of Platonic Philosophy00:29:54 On the Absolute Goodness of Justice00:34:46 Intrinsic Existence vs Attributed Existence: Gravity vs Money00:40:38 Variants Coalesce to Invariants Within a System: An Analogy to Gravity00:42:11 Freedom: An Instrumental or Intrinsic Good?00:49:56 Love and Reason Live In-between the Arbitrary and the Algorithmic00:54:25 Watch “Hard Money with Natalie Brunell” From Swan Studios00:55:11 Take Control of Your Healthcare with CrowdHealth00:56:20 Direct vs Indirect Observation, Qualitative and Quantitative Tradeoffs01:03:53 “Falling in Love With Being Again”: A Critique of the “Two Worlds” Mythology01:07:57 Replacing “Transcendence Above” with “Transcendence Into”01:14:17 The Good: The Multi-Aspectual Through-Line01:17:12 “The Question that Can Wake John Vervaeke at 3am”01:22:03 Distinguishing Between “Relevance” and “Value”01:27:30 Common Approaches to The Good01:33:58 “Spinoza's Religion” and Self-Sufficiency as the Emulation of God01:41:41 The Inseparability of Human Reason and Love01:44:44 Bitcoin as Good Money01:55:20 Translucence: How Symbols Simultaneously Reveal and Conceal02:04:46 Goodness as Perfective Unity02:06:48 The Divided Line in the Parable of Plato's Cave02:14:00 Plato Emphasizes the Continuity of the Divided-Line: Gradations on the Through-Line02:20:14 Where the Icon Darkens: Social Media, Fiat Money, and Other False Realities02:26:23 The Unity of Opposites: The Absolute, Self-Transcending Nature of Love02:29:07 “Love is the Difficult Realization that Something Other than Yourself Is Real”02:35:59 Unbroken Wholeness: Religion as the Real Self-Realization of Reality02:41:30 Dialogical Rationality Supersedes Individual Rationality02:42:40 “What Would Happen If You Touched the Sunset?”SOCIALBreedlove Twitter: https://twitter.com/Breedlove22WiM? Twitter: https://twitter.com/WhatisMoneyShowLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/breedlove22/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breedlove_22/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@breedlove22?lang=enAll My Current Work: https://linktr.ee/breedlove22 WRITTEN WORKMedium: https://breedlove22.medium.com/Substack: https://breedlove22.substack.com/ WAYS TO CONTRIBUTEBitcoin: 3D1gfxKZKMtfWaD1bkwiR6JsDzu6e9bZQ7Sats via Strike: https://strike.me/breedlove22Sats via Tippin.me: https://tippin.me/@Breedlove22Dollars via Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/RBreedloveDollars via Venmo: https://venmo.com/code?user_id=1784359925317632528The "What is Money?" Show Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=32843101&fan_landing=true RECOMMENDED BUSINESSESSwan Private guides high-net-worth individuals and businesses in all areas of Bitcoin strategy: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveCrowdHealth offers an innovative health insurance model based on Bitcoin and community: https://www.joincrowdhealth.com/breedloveOkcoin is an innovative and education-focused cryptoasset exchange platform—earn $50 in free Bitcoin by signing up at: https://okcoin.com/breedloveInvest with a licensed Bitcoin advisor through DAIM: https://daimio.typeform.com/RobertBreedloveJoin Me At Bitcoin 2023, pre-order your tickets now (for a chance to win 10M sats, use discount code BREEDLOVE): https://b.tc/conference/2023Automatic Recurring Bitcoin Buys and Withdrawals: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/breedlove/

In this special edition series, I will be joined by multiple thinkers and philosophers to discuss Platonic and Neoplatonic philosophy. This ongoing series of conversations will focus on the nature of goodness, truth, justice, freedom, beauty, reason, and love. My first guest in this series is the eminent cognitive scientist and philosopher John Vervaeke, and we examine D.C. Schindler's masterpiece "Plato's Critique of Impure Reason: On Goodness and Truth in the Republic."Be sure to check out Swan Private, the trusted Bitcoin financial services provider for high-net-worth individuals and businesses worldwide: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveGuestJohn's Twitter: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_johnPlato's Critique of Impure Reason: https://www.amazon.com/Platos-Critique-Impure-Reason-Goodness/dp/0813228247#:~:text=Plato's%20Critique%20of%20Impure%20Reason%20offers%20a%20dramatic%20interpretation%20of,real%20image%22%20of%20the%20good.PODCASTPodcast Website: https://whatismoneypodcast.com/Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-what-is-money-show/id1541404400 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/25LPvm8EewBGyfQQ1abIsE?si=wgVuY16XR0io4NLNo0A11A&nd=1RSS Feed: https://feeds.simplecast.com/MLdpYXYITranscript:Outline00:00:00 “What is Money?” Intro00:00:08 Swan Private00:01:37 The Truth is Defenseless00:07:00 “Knowledge is About Evidence, but Understanding is About Relevance”00:12:27 The Self as the Through-Line Within Which Aspires to Through-Line into Reality00:16:34 Metacognition: Self-Reflection as the Internalization of the Perspectives of Others00:21:56 Exploring the Relationship Between the Soul and the Real, and Property00:32:37 The Ecstatic Moment and the Impossibility of a “Perfect” Metaphysics00:38:44 A Paradox of Perspective: Science Cannot be Defended Scientifically00:42:44 The Pure Consciousness Event: Adverbial Overriding Adjectival Experience00:52:22 “Is-Ness”: Where Becoming and Being, Relative and Absolute, Converge00:56:10 Multiple Object Tracking Experiments: Seeing Quantity over Quality00:59:39 “Precisely What is Most Important Cannot Be Said…”01:06:10 Watch “Hard Money with Natalie Brunell” From Swan Studios01:06:55 Take Control of Your Healthcare with CrowdHealth01:08:04 Goodness as the Cause of Truth01:10:44 The Etymological Root of “Intelligence”: “To Read Between the Lines”01:17:35 Property, The Law, and Religion as a Meta-Meaning System01:28:25 Why Do We Punish Treason? Human History in the Cave of Statism01:33:19 Playing in the Platonic Dojo: Toward a Just Apprehension of Money01:38:14 Money and Religion: Systems for Cost-Effectively Scaling Trust?01:41:33 Post-Statism: An Absolute 21M Bitcoin to Replace the Specter of Death?01:48:44 Could Debasing Currency be Catalyzing Misology?01:56:44 Does Bitcoin Put Power in Service to Reason?01:59:04 The “In-Itself-Ness” to Bitcoin that We Can't Mess With…02:08:45 Could Bitcoin Be the Platonic Form of Money?02:16:34 The Inadequacy and Indispensability of Images02:18:51 A Dramatic Literary Structure Mapping Onto Feedback-Driven, Complex Reality02:27:22 Reading the Platonic Dialogues as a Spiritual Exercise…02:35:09 The Interpenetration of Rationality and Ritual: A Dramatic Enacted Mythos02:38:27 Distinguishing the Imaginary from the Imaginal: A Sailboat vs Toddler Zorro02:52:12 “What is Money?” OutroSOCIALBreedlove Twitter: https://twitter.com/Breedlove22WiM? Twitter: https://twitter.com/WhatisMoneyShowLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/breedlove22/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breedlove_22/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@breedlove22?lang=enAll My Current Work: https://linktr.ee/breedlove22 WRITTEN WORKMedium: https://breedlove22.medium.com/Substack: https://breedlove22.substack.com/ WAYS TO CONTRIBUTEBitcoin: 3D1gfxKZKMtfWaD1bkwiR6JsDzu6e9bZQ7Sats via Strike: https://strike.me/breedlove22Sats via Tippin.me: https://tippin.me/@Breedlove22Dollars via Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/RBreedloveDollars via Venmo: https://venmo.com/code?user_id=1784359925317632528The "What is Money?" Show Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=32843101&fan_landing=true RECOMMENDED BUSINESSESSwan Private guides high-net-worth individuals and businesses in all areas of Bitcoin strategy: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveCrowdHealth offers an innovative health insurance model based on Bitcoin and community: https://www.joincrowdhealth.com/breedloveOkcoin is an innovative and education-focused cryptoasset exchange platform—earn $50 in free Bitcoin by signing up at: https://okcoin.com/breedloveInvest with a licensed Bitcoin advisor through DAIM: https://daimio.typeform.com/RobertBreedloveJoin Me At Bitcoin 2023, pre-order your tickets now (for a chance to win 10M sats, use discount code BREEDLOVE): https://b.tc/conference/2023Automatic Recurring Bitcoin Buys and Withdrawals: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/breedlove/

In this special edition series, I will be joined by multiple thinkers and philosophers to discuss Platonic and Neoplatonic philosophy. This ongoing series of conversations will focus on the nature of goodness, truth, justice, freedom, beauty, reason, and love. My first guest in this series is the eminent cognitive scientist and philosopher John Vervaeke, and we examine D.C. Schindler's masterpiece "Plato's Critique of Impure Reason: On Goodness and Truth in the Republic."Be sure to check out Swan Private, the trusted Bitcoin financial services provider for high-net-worth individuals and businesses worldwide: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveGuestJohn's Twitter: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_johnPlato's Critique of Impure Reason: https://www.amazon.com/Platos-Critique-Impure-Reason-Goodness/dp/0813228247#:~:text=Plato's%20Critique%20of%20Impure%20Reason%20offers%20a%20dramatic%20interpretation%20of,real%20image%22%20of%20the%20good.PODCASTPodcast Website: https://whatismoneypodcast.com/Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-what-is-money-show/id1541404400 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/25LPvm8EewBGyfQQ1abIsE?si=wgVuY16XR0io4NLNo0A11A&nd=1RSS Feed: https://feeds.simplecast.com/MLdpYXYITranscript:Outline00:00:00 “What is Money?” Intro00:00:08 Swan Private00:01:37 Introducing the Book “Plato's Critique of Impure Reason”00:04:40 The Central Argument of the Book: Enriching Our Understanding of Reason00:08:34 Ratio (Science and Rationality) and Religio (Connectedness and Religion)00:11:22 Love as a Proper Proportioning in Service of the Whole00:15:15 The Deeper Meaning of Reason: “Love for What Is Real”00:18:09 A Return to the Contemplative, Non-Computational Account of Reason00:30:15 The Elusive “I”: The Impossibility of Framing the Process of Framing00:35:53 Theoria: To Contemplate, to Look in the Right Way, to Travel to See00:40:22 Misology: The Total Abandonment of Reason00:49:00 How Theory Shapes the Interpretation of Our Perceptions00:55:45 The Absolute Simultaneously Transcends and Includes the Relative01:09:15 The Inspiration of John's Neologism “Transjective”01:13:39 The Trivialization of Reason, Intellectual Impatience, and Hyperbolic Discounting01:22:14 Watch “Hard Money with Natalie Brunell” From Swan Studios01:23:00 Take Control of Your Healthcare with CrowdHealth01:24:09 Printing Money Causes People to Lose Perspective on the Whole?01:28:16 Intellectual Impatience, Misology, and Totalitarianism01:34:10 “The Dictator Wins if He Can Make Everybody as Impulsive as Him”01:38:22 The Significance of Plato and the Idea of “The Good”01:45:44 The Good: The Unbreakable Promise of Intelligibility Always Tracking Reality01:50:43 Science is Based on the Ongoing Faith that Reality is Intelligible01:57:00 The Through-Line as the True-Line: Is There Universal Darwinism?02:03:34 The Distortions of Our Present “Cultural Cognitive Grammar”02:07:26 The Relationship Between the Dialectical and the Dialogical02:16:48 The Degree of Dialogical Connection Increases Collective Intelligence02:19:49 Entering Chapter 1: A Logic of Violence02:30:48 Substituting Faithfulness to The Logos with Totalizing Knowledge Brings Violence02:39:17 “Hitler Came to Power for A Reason”02:46:38 Using “Flatland” to Analogize the Transcendence of The Good02:56:28 “What is Money?” OutroSOCIALBreedlove Twitter: https://twitter.com/Breedlove22WiM? Twitter: https://twitter.com/WhatisMoneyShowLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/breedlove22/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breedlove_22/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@breedlove22?lang=enAll My Current Work: https://linktr.ee/breedlove22 WRITTEN WORKMedium: https://breedlove22.medium.com/Substack: https://breedlove22.substack.com/ WAYS TO CONTRIBUTEBitcoin: 3D1gfxKZKMtfWaD1bkwiR6JsDzu6e9bZQ7Sats via Strike: https://strike.me/breedlove22Sats via Tippin.me: https://tippin.me/@Breedlove22Dollars via Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/RBreedloveDollars via Venmo: https://venmo.com/code?user_id=1784359925317632528The "What is Money?" Show Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=32843101&fan_landing=true RECOMMENDED BUSINESSESSwan Private guides high-net-worth individuals and businesses in all areas of Bitcoin strategy: https://www.swanprivate.com/breedloveCrowdHealth offers an innovative health insurance model based on Bitcoin and community: https://www.joincrowdhealth.com/breedloveOkcoin is an innovative and education-focused cryptoasset exchange platform—earn $50 in free Bitcoin by signing up at: https://okcoin.com/breedloveInvest with a licensed Bitcoin advisor through DAIM: https://daimio.typeform.com/RobertBreedloveJoin Me At Bitcoin 2023, pre-order your tickets now (for a chance to win 10M sats, use discount code BREEDLOVE): https://b.tc/conference/2023Automatic Recurring Bitcoin Buys and Withdrawals: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/breedlove/

The six Enneads are the collected writings of the Neoplatonic philosopher Plotinus, arranged by his student Porphyry into fifty-four books with each Ennead containing nine. Plotinus was a student of Ammonius Saccas and the founder of Neoplatonism. His work, through Augustine of Hippo, the Cappadocian Fathers, Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and several subsequent thinkers, has greatly influenced Western thought.The translator Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie arranged these books chronologically rather than according to Porphyry's numeration. This recording is organized according to Porphyry's numeration with Roman numerals indicating the Ennead and numerals indicating the book e.g. VI.9 would be the ninth book of the sixth Ennead. A hyperlinked table of contents at Volume 1 Page 3 of the gutenberg.org text will enable you to jump to the specific Ennead if you wish to read along with the recording.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The six Enneads are the collected writings of the Neoplatonic philosopher Plotinus, arranged by his student Porphyry into fifty-four books with each Ennead containing nine. Plotinus was a student of Ammonius Saccas and the founder of Neoplatonism. His work, through Augustine of Hippo, the Cappadocian Fathers, Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and several subsequent thinkers, has greatly influenced Western thought.The translator Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie arranged these books chronologically rather than according to Porphyry's numeration. This recording is organized according to Porphyry's numeration with Roman numerals indicating the Ennead and numerals indicating the book e.g. VI.9 would be the ninth book of the sixth Ennead. A hyperlinked table of contents at Volume 1 Page 3 of the gutenberg.org text will enable you to jump to the specific Ennead if you wish to read along with the recording.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Episode 106 We are thrilled to be joined today by author, speaker, and public theologian, Brian McLaren. His new book, "Do I Stay Christian?: A Guide for the Doubters, the Disappointed, and the Disillusioned" is an absolute must-read for any Christian struggling to make sense of things in this crazy world we live in. We talk about creating hope, fighting white supremacy, re-wilding Christianity, and the playful joy of reimagining religion.  Speaking of reimagining religion, have you checked out Zack's new podcast with his wife Nichole, "Reimagining Faith with the Pastors Jackson"? If you enjoy DtW (and of course you do), then you should check it out!    Support this podcast on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/DowntheWormholepodcast   More information at https://www.downthewormhole.com/   produced by Zack Jackson music by Zack Jackson and Barton Willis    Transcript  This transcript was automatically generated by www.otter.ai, and as such contains errors (especially when multiple people are talking). As the AI learns our voices, the transcripts will improve. We hope it is helpful even with the errors. Zack Jackson 00:04 You are listening to the down the wormhole podcast exploring the strange and fascinating relationship between science and religion. Our guest today is an author, speaker, activist and public theologian. He is the author of over 15 books including faith after doubt, a generous orthodoxy and a new kind of Christian which got me in a whole lot of trouble at my home church 20 years ago, his new book do I stay Christian, a guide for the doubters, the disappointed and the disillusioned is an absolute must read for any Christian struggling to make sense of things in this crazy world we live in is an absolute joy and honor to welcome to the podcast, Brian McLaren. Oh, joy   Brian McLaren 00:45 and honor for me to be with you guys. So, so glad to be here.   Zack Jackson 00:49 Yes, I was thrilled to death to get that the email confirming that you had time in your very busy schedule to be with us today. We're all big fans, and I'm sure a lot of folks on the of our listenership likewise.   Brian McLaren 01:03 Well, hey, and I gotta say, now that I know about you guys, I'm your fan as well. And, you know, this subject of the inner interaction between faith and science, my goodness, so important these days. So really happy to be in this conference. Yes, thank you.   Zack Jackson 01:21 I love the way that you weave these two things together in your writings, by the way, and I've noticed it really in the past 10 years worth of books are so it seems, it seems almost effortless that every once in a while you're just gonna get some reference in there to evolution, some reference in there to the cosmic origins of the universe, it just seems like it is. It is always somewhere in the back of your mind.   Brian McLaren 01:45 Well, it's Yeah. And maybe I could say it this way. Without science. I don't think I could be a Christian. So. So yeah, I can't imagine how anyone would want to have a faith that were they had to keep their faith in one compartment. And then everything else. Another compartment compartments, right. Yeah.   Zack Jackson 02:10 Well, that's a sound clip that I'll definitely Absolutely. So Ian and I have been talking a lot recently about your new book, which when the time this podcast launches will have been released yesterday, so available to all of your major retailers. So this book, which is just so helpfully entitled, do I stay Christian? answers that question, which I think a lot of folks have had over the past couple of years, especially. But it's it's very helpfully organized into three sections, the answer that question that? No, I will not stay Christian. And here's why. Yes, I will stick it out and stay Christian. And the last section is how, which of those sections is taking up the most real estate in your mind? And in your day to day life?   Brian McLaren 03:03 Well, let's see. I think all of them jostle for the top position. But I think actually, the writing of this book propelled the third question up in importance. Because in the writing of this book, I realized it's just inevitable. Some people cannot stay Christian, the religion is killing them. It's damaging them, they need to get away at least for a time. And, and other people will stay Christian, it's who they are, and how could they deny who they are? And, and then what I realized is, even whatever you decide on staying Christian, you have to wake up the next morning, and ask what kind of a human being am I going to be? And that I hope that the Reading of the book helps lift the importance of that question up for everybody.   Ian Binns 04:02 Well, and I, you know, Brian, I really appreciated that aspect of the book. And as I said, Before recording, I absolutely loved the book, you know, so for me, I don't have the kind of historical experiences that I know, Brian, you talk about in your books, and that Zach has had and talked about before, the feeling I needed to leave, like, deconstruct and then come back or anything like that. But one of the things that I've always struggled with, is and you you do so well, in the first several chapters, when the answer to your question is no, you know, those chapters explaining No, just really stood out for me. And so but sorry, I know, I'm rambling. This is normal for me. But at the end, I loved as you just said, to connect it back to what kind of human do we want to be? You know, I tell people a lot when they question, my faith, because I'm open with my doubts and questions and the idea of a literal resurrection. I think those are all questions and doubts I have. And I don't know if I'll ever be able to resolve them yet. But I think I prefer to think of it as that I want to live my life, fighting for what Jesus fought for,   Brian McLaren 05:12 what a great way to what a great way to sit.   Ian Binns 05:15 Right? And so if it's more of that's the way I live, I don't have to stand on a rooftop and scream, everyone be a Christian. It's more of a this is the life I want to live. And I love that you did that.   Brian McLaren 05:26 And isn't it ironic that major sectors of the Christian religion are really uninterested, whether you want to fight for the things Jesus fought for, they're really interested in whether you will check certain boxes, agreeing with their authority figures about what you're supposed to say about Jesus. So I just can't help but think that Jesus would be happier with someone who's ready to join him in the struggle with his word for that was follow me, then then have certain opinions about me. In fact, you know, there's that password thing in the Gospels where he says, You know, I really don't care if you call Me Lord, Lord, I mean, what difference does that make the words you use about me? If you don't do what I say so?   Ian Binns 06:10 All right. Well, and in this book, and also to in your podcast, learning how to see, you start off talking about something that was very close to me. So I got my PhD from the University of Virginia. And so I was in my wife and I were in Charlottesville was the first place we really lived as a young married couple. Were there for 208. And so when the the situation happened in Charlottesville in August of 2017, that was very challenging for us, because the grounds of UVA are places I spent four years of my life that we love that town. And so that was very challenging for us. And then hearing you on your podcast and Reading this book. I would love to, if you could talk more about that experience. Because I didn't realize you were there. And so I just curious if you can kind of talk about that. Yeah.   Brian McLaren 07:04 Well, the story of how I ended up there was kind of interesting, I had introduced this couple to each other who ended up getting married, and both were seminary graduates. And so they were a ministry couple in Charlottesville, and they contacted me and they said, Look, Brian, we you may not have even heard about this. And I hadn't it it turns out, you know, before, was it August 10. I forgotten the date now. Whatever the date was, in August, they'd had a series of Ku Klux Klan rallies, it was like it. A lot of people don't know this. But there is a group of people who are planning for a civil war. And they want to make Charlottesville the capital of the new Confederacy.   Ian Binns 07:46 I did not know that part.   Brian McLaren 07:48 Yeah, it's scary. And it's crazy stuff. But and, and yet very disturbing. And they said, so a really big one is coming in August. And we're we're trying to get clergy to come support us, and to stand with us. And they said, we're finding a lot of clergy of color. And we're finding a lot of women, clergy who will come we're really finding it hard to get white male clergy to come. And of course, there's a big supply of them, but they just couldn't get them to come. So they said it. They said, Is there any chance you could come you need to know it's going to be dangerous, there going to be a lot of guns there. Several militia have already signed up to be there. And they'll all come heavily armed. And I said, I'm not going to tell that last part to my wife. But yes, I would be honored to be there. Actually, she knew that there would be some danger. And she made me make certain promises to her about what I would do and not to when I was there, but it was just an experience I'll never forget first seeing how organized these folks were. They were super, super highly organized. I was invited into a meeting an Antifa meeting of people who were organizing to try to not let these folks sort of rule the city for a day. And I never thought in my lifetime, I would see people carrying Confederate flags, and Nazi flags and a bunch of other flags along with Bibles and other Christian paraphernalia. I never thought I would see that. And of course, and I happen to be just up the street when Heather hair and other was killed and others were injured by a guy using a car as a terrorist weapon to drive through a crowd. And a group of us clergy went I was wearing you know, black leather shoes and I just remember the feeling of my feet slapping against the ground as I ran down this hill into this crowd where there's chaos and people screaming and crying. And so an experience I'll never forget. But then January 6 2021 happened and I just thought there they are again, you know, and in between, I'd organized an a public An event here in Florida where I live, where we had been, our event was disrupted in the entrances were blocked by the proud boys. So I yeah, this has been a big part of my experience and watching the complicity of major sectors of the Christian faith with these folks has been the AI, it's highly significant in the way I wrote this book, do I stay Christian? Because I feel like that I wish I'd put the sentence in the book. But it only became clear to me actually, in the last few days, that one of the reasons I wrote the book the way I did, and I took those first 10 chapters to really take the No seriously is because I am worried that those 10 chapters give a kind of overview of some of Christianity's crimes. And through the centuries, I'm worried that the worst things Christianity has ever done will be exceeded in the next few years. And that's why I feel anyone who stays Christian, better be aware of the danger that our religion poses to this world and to many of our neighbors. And that then puts a kind of responsibility on us to say, if I'm going to inhabit this religion, I better take responsibility for trying to stand up to some of the harm that it is in danger of doing and not just in danger of doing it is actually doing, you know, as we speak, no, yeah.   Zack Jackson 11:29 I mean, we're not just complicit in the rise and spread of white supremacy. Western Christianity is the author of white supremacy, it is very much our child. And it is completely inseparably intertwined with Western Christianity as we know it. And so this is not an issue for the black church to figure out or to lead us in. This is not an issue for people of color to be taking charge. This is our problem, our sin and our need to, to work on to fix to fight. And you're somebody who's been at the frontlines of that. It seems, what what can the rest of us do us white Christians out here? How can we help fight the scourge? I mean, just look, even as we're recording this, we just, we just witnessed another white supremacist, killed 10 people in a buffalo grocery store. And by the time that this podcast launches, who knows? We'll have there will be another one. It just seems like we're just spinning our wheels. Yes.   Brian McLaren 12:31 Well, let me say first, I really agree with you that white Christians really have a responsibility right now. And one of our responsibilities is to listen to the cries and the agony and the frustration of our neighbors of color. who are who are just, you know, who can blame them for saying, you know, if they hear thoughts and prayers one more time, you know, I mean, it's just, it's just, yeah. So here's what one thing I think we can do, I think we can all make a commitment that we will never let a racially harmful statement go unchallenged. And, and I think we have to learn how to challenge them in ways that don't create a worst blowback. But silence is its own vote of confidence, and its own voters support for outrageous, immoral, harmful, dangerous statements. So my little recommendation to people is that you've developed your own version of this five word statement, here's my version of it. Wow, I see that differently. It's instead of, you know, you're such a bigot, you're, it's I see that differently. I throw a while in there, because I want to add a little bit of emotional intense intensity without having to yell or scream. Wow, I see that differently. And almost every time I say that, people say, What do you mean? What do you mean? And if it's in public, I say I say to them, I'd rather talk to you about this in private. If you'd like to ask me about it in private some other time, I'll be glad to talk to you. And the reason I say that, and there might be times to have the conversation in public. But what I've noticed is that anytime these conversations happen in public egos are so involved, people are defending themselves, people are performing their loyalty to whatever group it is. And so it seldom becomes an act of communication, and usually becomes the kind of argument that hardens people and their positions. And I would like to be someone who helps little cracks form in their position or, or helps soften their position. And if if I can set up the terms of that discussion, then I'll say to them, if you're ever curious about why I see things differently and how like came to see things differently. I'll be glad to have that conversation with you and private. Just let me know when you'd like to know how I came to see things differently, because I'm not asking them to tell me how they see things. I'll listen respectfully if they want. But I've been listening respectfully, that's what got us into this situation. And so while I see that differently is my, my mantra in these circumstances?   Ian Binns 15:27 Well, that's very disarming, I   Brian McLaren 15:29 think, and I go, and I feel it's honest, and it's not aggressive. But it also is an act of protest. And it's just an act of deferring boldly, hopefully, graciously, non hatefully, you know? Yeah. And frankly, I'll just say, frankly, late in the book there, in that house section of the book, there's a chapter called, announce and renounce, or renounce and announce, and in some ways, it's the same thing. It's, it's, it's having more and more of us just have the courage to say, I am not where you are. And to do it in a way that says, It's not that I hate you. It's not that I am going to insult you. In fact, I'm going to just state in a way that says, I don't, I'm nothing's changing in our relationship, but I'm not where you are. If that creates a problem for you, then we'll deal with it. But I need to let you know I can be at a different place than you are. So I thought   Ian Binns 16:31 that story you told in that chapter about John Ray and Amanda was really powerful. And one of the phrases that stood out, it was after early on in the story. When John Ray comes back to Amanda and says, I was confronted by your father for 20 minutes. And the phrase that you use in the book was he felt that he was in the presence of Christian hate? Yes. And I thought that was just just those four words, or five words. Yeah, forward presence of Christian hate just really kind of caught me of because I feel like that's what we're seeing a lot of right now.   Brian McLaren 17:08 Yes, yes. And of course, Christians will say, that's not hate, that's love. And they, and they're satisfied with that. But there is something really ugly going on. It's just ugly. And I've experienced that. And my gosh, when you're on Twitter, and Facebook, you know, I grew up fundamentalist. And part of being a fundamentalist is you didn't cuss? And you didn't use crude language. And you you felt this obligation to be decent and, and respectful. But my gosh, the profanity and I mean, it's just, it's just shocking to me to see what what people are doing in the name of Jesus, and it's all sort of acceptable. And of course, some of this is because they're imitating their new leader, you know, Donald Trump, who's, in a sense, the new leader of their denomination that has that has newly formed and, and, and part of this is just stuff that's been in the American psyche for a long time, and maybe we're better with a profanity, because it's, you know, somebody said, what I mentioned, I've had a lot of interactions with the proud boys, they said, there, it's just the kk k with that, and the sheets are off. And I think that's, there's some truth to that. So this is a historical reckoning, that needed to happen. So better now than not letting it happen, you know, letting it fester for another 100 years.   Zack Jackson 18:35 Yeah, that chapter, which kind of tells the story of a couple whose ideologies had changed, their faith had changed, and they hadn't really let their family know, which I think a lot of folks who have deconstructed can relate to because they're going to, they're afraid of then being renounced by their family. And she gathers up the courage after her husband has been sort of accosted for 20 minutes to go up and just tell her father, this is how it's going to be from here on out. And you talked about that in terms of a coming out story for her. And that framing, I think is really helpful. And something that queer theologians, this gift that they have given us, this idea of coming out, it is a vulnerable experience, in which you can be hurt in all new ways. But it is such an empowering experience. I read one, one theologian referred to John one as God's coming out that Jesus is incarnation is him, showing who he truly is to the world and offering up himself to be either accepted in new ways or hurt in all new ways. And I honestly had never understood the Incarnation until then. But this idea that those of us us who are straight sis hetero folks who have never had the need to come out to people to tell them, This is how you have perceived me. But this is how I truly am. We've just always been known for who we are, that this is something that we we should learn, that we should need to love louder than the hate and that we need to be more vocal. It's not enough to just love on our own, but that we need to love loudly and outwardly. Yeah,   Brian McLaren 20:30 another little saying that has kind of been sitting with me lately is I would rather be rejected for who I am then accepted for who I am not.   Ian Binns 20:39 And I wrote that down. Well, like I, I want to tattoo that on my arm or something, because I think that's such a powerful phrase. It really is.   Brian McLaren 20:47 And I think what one of the things that just saying it that way helps me do is realize that the fear of rejection has so much power over so many of us. And as someone who's experienced a bit of rejection. And now I know Zach has led to other people to being rejected. But, but it's, it's not the end of the world. It's not the worst thing that ever happens to you. In fact, some pretty amazing positive things happen can happen in the experience of rejection. So And isn't it interesting in the gospels, this is really a major theme of Jesus teaching. Hey, guys, if you take seriously what I'm saying, you're gonna be rejected, here's what's gonna happen and it and then we're surprised when it happens.   Zack Jackson 21:39 Right? The high priest is gonna block you on Twitter at this point. And   Ian Binns 21:44 well, and I think you mentioning the rejection, the fear of rejection, I mean, that's something that cripples me at times, you know, with my own work of wanting to write, as an academic for more public audience, it, it, something that holds me back quite a bit. And Reading, you know, your book has helped and then also Rob Bell's work as well as helping me remember that it's not, I cannot control people's reactions to my work in my message.   Brian McLaren 22:14 And so we're writing about things that matter than then there are things that people have strong opinions about, and they have vested interests in. And so of course, there'll be pushback, like, you know, every once in awhile, I have to sit down with myself and just say, of course, people would get upset. What were you expecting to get a Nobel Prize? You know, of course. So, yeah, that's just the territory. And it's, it's, it's part of the privilege of talking about things that really matter and, and working on things then that matter. So I like that doesn't it doesn't make it easy, but it does, I think it is, it's something we have to do that helps us navigate through those first few experiences of rejection, that that can either scar us for life or become our hazing. For for a member membership, and a new, a new community.   Zack Jackson 23:19 And I've experienced a lot of the dirty underbelly of the Christian church growing up in, in the back rooms of the church, and then being a part of church leadership, the first 10 chapters of your book, where you talk about all the reasons why you should leave Christianity. I, at the end of every chapter, I thought to myself, I know where he's going. I know there's a there's a part two, but I'm almost ready to just like, just close the book here and be like, yeah, no, he does have a point, why should I be a part of this and re even Reading part two, a couple chapters in where you're talking about why we should stay Christian. And I thought, these don't quite outweigh yet in my mind, where, where Part one was. And then then I hit chapter 14. And you asked us to consider an anticipatory Christianity that is leaning towards the future. And I love that phrase so much. I highlighted it, I wrote it down. And anticipatory Christianity because it describes the stance towards the future in which that doesn't necessarily claim that everything in the future is better than everything in the past that we're evolving into something better, just something different to newer and maybe better adapted. Would you care to unpack that phrase for us? Yeah. Wow. That is bringing you life and older.   Brian McLaren 24:46 There's a lot of ways to do it. But a kind of fun way is to say that both in religion and science, a lot of us inherited a religion, where the Locus of Power was always in the past. So So the, you know, the big bang happens. And I bet most of us have seen this in a science movie somewhere. And it's like somebody's playing pool and they hit the cue ball and the cue ball hits the rack of, you know, balls, and everything is action reaction being driven from the past. And that describes, that's one way of looking at the universe. It's one way of describing the universe. But there's another way to look at it to say, to think of the Locus of Power, not just being in the past, but actually being the future itself, that opens, that constantly gives everything a chance to move in some new direction. And the way that theologians have talked about this is to say instead of thinking of God, pushing things out of the past into the future, imagine God in the distant future, inviting things to keep moving toward maturity. The one of the early church scholars, who is a very imaginative fellow, his name was Gregory of Nyssa. And Gregory, got in trouble with a lot of his fellow scholars, because they all bought into this idea of Greek philosophy that perfection is static, because perfection can only get worse, if it could change, it wouldn't be perfect. If it could change for the better, it wouldn't be perfect. So perfection is always static. And Gregory said, that's just not good enough. He said, perfection is infinite progression, this idea of an endlessly open future for endlessly new possibilities, you know, and so that way of thinking, instead of God's sort of being in control, either behind us or standing over us, it's God inviting us into greater freedom, and greater wholeness and greater maturity and greater relationship and greater diversity and greater beauty, which is actually what we see kind of unfolding in the universe, you know, there was no Mozart or Bob Dylan or Taylor Swift, you know, 4 billion years ago. And so these things, new things that you never ever would have anticipated, are baked into the possibilities and, and have chances to open up. So that's, and when we let that kind of almost scientific view, also have a theological expression. It helps us think about Christianity, not as something that is already set in concrete, but something that is, in its very early stages.   Zack Jackson 27:48 It is hard to think about Christianity in its early stages, 2000 years later, but that is, that can be helpful,   Ian Binns 27:56 if we can, you know, I think I said before we started recording that, especially Reading the first part of your book, where you're providing, you know, many reasons why the answer to your question will be no, that's when I was Reading it near my wife, and I would stop and be like, Oh, my God, I have to have to read this for you. So if I can read a quote to you, that just really stood out for me. And I just would love to get your thoughts on it a little bit more, but it's in the chapter. Because Christianity is a failed religion. And at the very end, you talk about, you know, you kind of are speaking to that your reader, obviously, of asking if that was harsh to them, for people to consider many of the things you've already shared. But you say if you persist in minimizing these failures of the past and brushing them aside as trivial matters, then please realize, to growing millions of people, you now represent the contemporary failure of Christianity to transform lives. To put it more bluntly, you are a living example of the failure of Christianity, and you are another reason for them not to stay Christian, which resonated with me. I mean, I probably I'm very emotional person. And I started crying when I read it, but it was just a, I'd love to know, how did that feel. As a leader in Christianity, many people look to you to write that sentence.   Brian McLaren 29:21 Yeah, I remember writing it and I and I have been in so many of those conversations. I won't mention this name just out of politeness, but a leader of people in my generation, and probably your generation would know his name. He died a few years ago, but he was super well known, highly respected on Christian radio and all that sort of thing. And we once had an email exchange and he gave me permission to go public with it, but I just couldn't do it. And in that email exchange, he said the Crusades weren't that serious. The Witch burnings were exaggerated, he just minimized every single thing. And I just thought to myself, you know, you think you're making Christianity look better. And something else I realized about him is that, for him, Christianity and Western civilization were fused together. And his defense of Christianity was a defense of Western civilization. And in that way, it was an act of aggression toward Muslims, and Buddhists and Hindus. And so it all sort of was of a piece, you know, and I think that's part of what so many of us just don't want to be part of anymore, we don't want to be part of that kind of dismissive defensive. Christianity. And, and, of course, you know, I'm not wanting to go around and vilify all these people of the past. I mean, they are what they are, and they did what they did. And, and, and if I'd been alive, I may have done many of the similar, similar things. But to say that the message of Jesus Christ should not have demanded more of people. It just feels to me like a pretty low opinion of the of Jesus and His message.   Ian Binns 31:21 Well, and as I said, early on to, you know, I try to live by his message and what he fought for, and died for, right. But one other thing you said a little bit earlier in the text, you said, you know, teaching others by their example, to live by Jesus's spiritual method of radical non discriminatory love and courageous truth telling, you know, that's gotten me in trouble at times. With some, and I don't do it nearly as much as I used to. And Zach has actually said, and some of my science education friends have said that they're really happy that I don't engage as much on Twitter, as I used to, partly because I was blocked by Ken Ham, who is still welcome to be on the show. But what I also have several friends who are members of the LGBTQ community, and who are people of faith, and I remember telling one of them one time when we were having a conversation about some of their struggles, and I just kind of said that I believe in a God who loves us for us. Yeah. And that if that makes me wrong, when I have to face God, it didn't my time. And I'm told that's not the way it works. My response to my friend was, I don't want to be there anyway. Like if that if that's what can get me into heaven. If Heaven is a place that they say, you messed up, you have to renounce that I'd say I'm going somewhere else.   Brian McLaren 32:49 Yes, that that God is not good enough. Right? That's just not good enough. My friend Tripp fuller says, Look, if if your view of God isn't half as nice as Jesus, there's something wrong. So, right,   Zack Jackson 33:06 how can Christians take Jesus and like, look at him in the Gospels? And then be like, All right, well, but at the end of it all, we're gonna meet scary God. And he's going to do the scary judge thing. While Jesus the guy, you know, the don't cast the first stone guy. He's just going to be in his room because he's a naughty boy or something. I don't know. Why is he not up on the jet like we can affirm that all members of the Trinity are of one substance, according to the ancient Creed's, but yet won't apply Jesus's examples of grace to the judgments that we fear from God, there   Brian McLaren 33:46 was a Quaker theologian who I just think captured what we're discussing right now. So aptly, he said, it was Elton Trueblood. And this isn't a quote, but this is sort of the substance of one of his ideas. He said, The Christian understanding of the deity of Christ did not mean that we had a definition of God. And Jesus came along and we lifted him up to that definition. He said, what this really is supposed to mean is that we had a definition of God. And Jesus came along, and we had to adjust our definition of God. And I think that's very well, I think that's very well said, I think that's what it should have been. I don't know if that is what happened historically. But I think that's how it should have been.   Zack Jackson 34:38 Yeah, if I can, if I can pivot here for a second. We've we've been on some heavy topics. I want to I want to lighten things up a little bit. I your chapter on rewilding ourselves and our faith and humanity itself was far and above my favorite chapter of the book. I highly They did. The basically the whole thing. It reminded me very much of a conversation those longtime listeners might remember, way back in 2020, episode 42 with Dr. Scott, the paleontologist from PBS, his dinosaur, I   Ian Binns 35:15 remembered it too. First thing I thought about called   Zack Jackson 35:19 reinventing the natural world was was his and his theory. And his, the whole devotion he has towards educating children is that in in order in order to save the world, from climate disaster from environmental disaster, we will not do that by better spreadsheets. Because nobody is apathetic because they don't know the facts. They're apathetic because they don't care. And so his entire life Miss mission is to help children fall back in love. I love to read and chant nature, and to get them outside. And even while watching television to then inspire them to go outside afterwards. Because when you fall in love with the world, then you want to save it. It's your mother. Again, it's not it's not just a commodity anymore. And Reading your chapter about being out on a kayak in the middle of the of Florida. And there's gators and birds and fish and the whole deal. I'm I'm there in my mind. And I'm imagining my own slice of wild here in the Pennsylvania mountains. And I'm wondering if you can talk a little bit about how the natural world and how this process of rewilding has awoken your spirituality and how we might best share that with people.   Brian McLaren 36:40 Well, maybe I could just tell you two quick stories. One from yesterday, we had a death in the family over the last week. And so I was out of state. I was in New Jersey, for the funeral. And I had to do a whole bunch of interviews for this book. So I was in, in the home office of my deceased brother in law. To conduct these interviews, I brought along my microphone and had my computer set up. And right outside his window. There's a dogwood tree and in the dogwood tree, about two feet from the window was Robin building her nest and so I was doing interviews literally from you know, 10 in the morning till 11 At night, cuz some of them were Pacific Coast time. And so as I sat there through the day, I watched the mother Robin, come and go and come and go mouthful of mud a mouthful of grass and watching her use her the shape of her body to form the perfect cup. If you've ever observed a bird's nest, it's just this perfect semi sphere. Oh my goodness, it's just an I never gotten to watch that. That's such a intimate angle. And if that wasn't good enough, just before dark, she was out, I guess gathering more materials. And a little English Sparrow came in and climbs into her nest and steals a bunch of grass. And it was just great. And I just felt like I just got to see a little bit of mischief and fat, all the rest of it. But just all felt I just it just was it. There's a poet. What a great resume. There's a fellow named Lanham from Clemson University, who's a biologist and a poet. Isn't that a great combination? And he uses that term in one of his poems orgasm, that we have these experiences of oh, that produce this sort of delight you know, that's that goes beyond words. And, and I had said I felt watching that all unfold. And then another experience. Last summer I fall in love with a place I highly recommend it for people who like this sort of thing called ring Lake Ranch. It's a Christian based retreat center, but it's just a place that brings you out into the wilderness of Wyoming and you get to ride horses and fly fish and hike and and just enjoy an incredible a place with deep history for the sheep eat or people that Native American people that area and, and I took a hike with a botanist. And as we walked through a Badlands area along the Wind River Gorge. She would just everything she talked about was the relationship. We came along she said see that flower there says I've never seen that flower in bloom during the daytime. It's a night blooming flower. And she said there is one species of wasp that pollinates that flower and it only comes out at night. And she said isn't it amazing to think one species of Wasp and one flower have evolved to be sort of partners in their in one another survival, you know, and then we'd come upon a sagebrush, and she talked about before she was done, you just felt you were on holy ground, it was like a burning bush. But it was the sagebrush because she explained, this is high desert. And in the in the winter, snow drifts form around sage brushes, and that snow drifts, then when it melts, it concentrates moisture around the base of the sagebrush, which helps the sagebrush live but also becomes like a little oasis of moisture. And then she starts talking about all the creatures that depend on that moisture of the sagebrush. And I mean, you're done. And you're just, you're, it's ecstatic to think of the web of life that is around you. And, and that sense of connectedness, if that's not holy, I don't know what it is, you know. And so any kind of Christianity that wants to ignore all that and just look at the world as something that God plans to destroy, because he wants to suck our souls up into heaven or send them somewhere else. You just think what, what a blasphemy to, to discount and the wonder and glory that's there, you know, in that a Badlands of the Wind River Gorge.   Zack Jackson 41:27 You talk about that sort of mutual evolution. And the two things that when we first were developing the ideas of evolution, the common conception was survival of the fittest, the strongest, right the the beefiest and biggest teeth. And we've learned that the in many ways that was just white supremacy, Reading itself into science, when the truth is that it's survival of the most adaptable, the most resourceful, the best collaborators is, is survival of those who can work with others best is is how species evolve and continue that relationality is just,   Brian McLaren 42:10 and if we're going to survive, we have to learn that wisdom from from creation, I was honored to be invited to write a book about the Galapagos Islands. So I've had a chance to visit there a few times. And I in my book, I wrote a couple of chapters about Charles Darwin and I, I got to read his biography while I was there, and and then just did a bunch of research and that term survival of the fittest, you may know this. It wasn't Darwin's term. And Arthur, Arthur Wallace, I think it was Arthur was his first name, I, he, he recommended the term because natural selection sounded like it personified nature too much, you know that nature is making choices. Like a Calvinist, God makes choices, and they wanted to get away from that. When they use the word fittest, it meant fit best, the opposite of the most domineering and aggressive, it's those who fit best.   Zack Jackson 43:06 So yes, yes, you will love my favorite. That my favorite new fact in physics that is just that is filling my soul with all in wonder these days. Is that do you think about the part of the atom that makes that has stuff, right? That has mass that has the stuff that makes you a thing, and not just nothing? Where does your mask come from? Well, only 9% of the mass of an atom comes from the particles of the atom 91% of the mass of every atom comes from the interaction between the atoms, the forces created by the protons and neutrons, generate the the 91% of the mass of you and I and the planet and the stars. Everything is a relationship between things without the relationship, the things that exist don't exist. And I love that. I mean, that is just, that's the illogical.   Brian McLaren 44:05 Literally the weightiest part of the universe is its relationships.   Zack Jackson 44:10 Exactly. It is it is, if you ever wanted to find a fingerprint of a relational Creator, who created a creation that continues to create, it's right there.   Brian McLaren 44:20 And this is when you were talking about anticipatory Christianity. This is if if what will happen if we're given the chance to incorporate all of these magnificent understandings into our theological work, and not just be stuck under this very low ceiling of Neoplatonic philosophy? Which has its own beauties and all the rest, but you know, yeah, so all of this is one of the other reasons it's a little hard to walk away in spite of all the horrible things because somebody is going to get to do this kind of revisioning of what we mean when we say the word God, in light of all of this, and what we mean when we say the word human in light of all of this, and it's sort of would be a shame to miss miss that fun.   Zack Jackson 45:15 It is fun, isn't it?   Ian Binns 45:17 Well, and, you know, Reading throughout your, your book too about, you know, the interconnectedness of all things, and just the importance of, you know, stepping back from that just developing those connections and those relationships, you know, that's something that as a teacher, I do with my students, and, you know, I teach future elementary school teachers how to teach science. And so one of the first things I really focus on is not necessarily, let's get into teaching science immediately, it's, let's develop a connection to each other a relationship. And, you know, I've been told by some of my colleagues that they've always been impressed that typically by week two, I've developed a very strong rapport with my students. And I tell my students, this is my messaging to them all the time, is that if you're able to connect with your students, on a personal level in some way, you can teach them anything there is yes, yes, yes. Because they will learn to trust you and know they're in a safe space.   Brian McLaren 46:21 Yes. And in the presence of that kind of respect and affection, you know, and in the presence of that, our curiosity comes out. And so then we become natural learners because we feel safe and all the rest. Oh, it's so true. And this, again, is one of the things that I think we have to realize that the Christian religion, by working so much on a base of fear and shame, creates an antagonistic environment to learning and curiosity. And it might be one of the factors in the lack of transformation we were talking about before, it makes people sort of hunker down, rather than open up.   Ian Binns 47:07 Well, that's, you know, part of that, too, with developing that relationship and connection is in it kind of touches on something. Zack, you said earlier when talking about Dr. Scott, coming on, as you know, teaching people to love nature, again, is that I approached my class, also teaching them to not fear science. Yes. And to realize why it's such an incredible thing to teach. And that children are natural born scientists. Yes. Just they'll whole notion of being curious and wanting to ask a question is doing science. And so I remind them of that. And then I say, Now let's have some fun, and focus on ways to teach it. But if they can get that down, yeah, pretty quickly, we're gonna have a good time. So   Brian McLaren 47:54 be a nice thing for seminarians to hear.   Zack Jackson 48:00 I mentioned before we started recording, friend of mine just wrote his first book, called Jesus takes the side embracing the political demands of the gospel, his name is Johnny Rashid. By the time this episode airs, I think it'll be a week out from release. And in it, one of the things he argues is that Western Christianity doesn't have a sense of honor, but it does have a sense of shame. And most societies are honor shame based, and his family comes from Egypt, and they have a deeply ingrained system of honor and shame and honor and shame is how you keep society together, how to keep religion together, but Western Christianity has a lot of shame. But we have no systems of honor. anymore. And so we cling desperately, to our our dogma, our beliefs, our right thinking, because it is so easy to feel shame, and so hard to find honor in the system anymore. Sounds remarkable. It is. And it's it's a great book, and everyone should read it. But I think that when we're talking about reimagining the church and reimagining our faith and our religion and what it means to follow Christ. I mean, I can't think of another historical person who spent more time pouring honor on people that other people poured Seamus. Yes, yes, yes. And if we're going to reimagine this faith, I think we put that near the center. I love it. As as we're, as we're sort of wrapping up our time together. I want to I want to ask you one more question. That for me, is very full circle. Because back in 2006, I preached a sermon as a teenager, at my home church, based on your brand new book, The secret message of Jesus. A part of that book is in which you talked about how the phrase the kingdom of God doesn't work. In this post monarchical world. You know, nobody knows what a kingdom is anymore. Jesus was using a metaphor for his time that no longer works, and probably carries too many too much baggage for it to be useful. And you propose a dozen different solutions. The the, my favorite one at the time was the dream of God, that was the name of the sermon, actually just listen to the sermon today, it was very hard to listen to an 18 year old me preach a sermon. But here we are. I wonder if in the past 16 years, you've found a version of the kingdom of God that resonates deeper with you. And with the current reality, we find ourselves very   Brian McLaren 50:40 much. So that's very relevant to our discussion today. You know, there, there's a chapter in the book called to free God and, and I, I have a beautiful quote from Barbara brown Taylor that plays heavily in the book and and, in fact, maybe the way for me to say the phrase is to say that I think this phrase refers to the kingdom of God. And I think it refers to God. In that chapter I talk about in do I stay Christian, I talk about the you that we refer to God, that seems to me becomes a we, because the the nature of God, it seems to me is a God of participation, who invites us into participation in the divine life. And so anyhow, the phrase is the web of life. And, in fact, I, I wrote a little table grace, that is my table grace for the last several years. And it's I just say, for this breath, for this heartbeat, for this meal with these companions. For the web of life of which were part we give thanks with all our heart. And it's an as I'm saying, the web of life. I realized, I'm not just talking about you that web of life includes God. It's a we that's God and creation in that one web. So that now I think the web is what weighs 91%, or this 91% of the mass.   Zack Jackson 52:20 Yes, absolutely. It is all about how we are connected to one one,   Ian Binns 52:24 if I may ask one more question. Brian is based on something you said to us at the very beginning. After you talked about your experience with Charlottesville, you said you kind of alluded to that you are concerned about things to come. Yeah. Right. So that was hard to hear. Yeah. So what gives you hope? Yeah. Because January 6 was rough. It was rough. For those of us who admit what happened.   Brian McLaren 52:57 So in that's really an important question. And in fact, that's going to be at the heart of the next book I write actually. And I guess one thing I can say is the word hope used to mean for me, where do I see trend lines that make me think things might get better? And I'm not defining hope that way anymore. I'm not defining hope as having anything to do with evidence or not, not depending on evidence. And because what I expect this is what's helping me have hope, to not have to depend on evidence for things getting better. What I expect will happen is that forms of Christianity will get worse than they've ever been. I think that's almost unavoidable. I think, I can't imagine it not happening. i There are people who want it to happen, they want Christianity to become in words I would use uglier, more selfish, more vicious, more violent. And I have no hope that that will not happen, like that will happen. But here's the here's what I think, as that happens, I'm quite certain that we are seeing and we'll see extraordinarily beautiful expressions of Christian faith and other expressions of human life as well. Just because the ugliness that we'll see will will provoke many of us to step out of sort of complacency into a more vigorous and robust expression of beauty and pursuit of beauty. And, and the lies and conspiracy theories on one side will make us more passionate to actually know and face the truth and and, and, of that, of course, I do see evidence I see our conversation being evidence all The three of us are different than we were three years ago. And, and so, you know, it's just all around us. I would I was, you know, I said I was out of town. And when I was on a plane coming home this morning, as I walked down the aisle of the plane, I just had one of those kinds of grace moments, where as I walked down the aisle, I, this guy is asleep. And this woman is tending her child, and this older person is Reading a magazine. And as I'm walking down the aisle toward my seat at the back, cheap seat of the plane, I just felt this tenderness and love and saw the beauty of these people was one of those moments where you just sort of you feel every one of these people is beloved, you know, and, and I just think more and more of us are moving in that direction. But that won't stop the ugly people the ugly things from happening, and taking over more and more people's lives to so that's how I that's how I survived i i have to be able to expect the worst will happen and and the best will happen.   Ian Binns 56:07 So then we'll just also have to have you back on when you finish that next book. Okay. I would like that. I would appreciate that response. Brian. That helps a lot. salutely Thanks. Yeah.   Zack Jackson 56:18 The book is called do I stay Christian, a guide for the doubters, the disappointed and the disillusioned, it is available wherever you get your books as of yesterday. Brian has been such a pleasure to talk with you for the past hour. Thank you so much for carving time out of your ridiculously busy life to be   Brian McLaren 56:38 such a delight. It's just been a pleasure. I'm, I feel energized and I'm so glad you're doing what you're doing. Thanks for having me on. And please keep up the good work. It's important. Thank you      

This episode, Boethius uses Neoplatonic philosophy to prepare himself for his impending execution and to help Klaus and Travis understand why Batman is so miserable.Free online version of the Consolation of PhilosophyP.G. Walsh's translation and introductionJames Marebon, “Boethius,” at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

This episode is all about non-Christian, Greek-philosophical perspectives on demons and their role in the universe that were developing around the formative stages of Christian theology. Neoplatonism would go on to influence late-ancient and medieval Christianity and so we start to track its effects in this episode.Neoplatonic Demons and Angels, ed. Luc BrissonPlotinus, EnneadsPorphyry, On Abstinence from Animal Food, Bk. 2“Iamblichus” by Riccardo Chiaradonna & Adrien Lecerf at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy“Plotinus” by Lloyd Gerson at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy“Porphyry” by Eyjólfur Emilsson at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Listen to life changing messages from Pastor Chidi Okorie on SendMe Radio LIKE, SHRE and SUBSCRIBE. SendMe Radio listen to us on Spotify, Amazon Music, Google and Apple Podcast, ITUNES. Contact Pastor Chidi Okorie on 915-490-9653.Join Mountain Top Prayer 1000 Days of Searching the Scriptures

Listen to life changing messages from Pastor Chidi Okorie on SendMe Radio LIKE, SHRE and SUBSCRIBE. SendMe Radio listen to us on Spotify, Amazon Music, Google and Apple Podcast, ITUNES. Contact Pastor Chidi Okorie on 915-490-9653. Join Mountain Top Prayer 1000 Days of Searching the Scriptures

In this research episode, Xavier, Rylan, Noah, and Balin discuss Neoplatonic philosophy, history, and influence on some of the world's largest religions.Donate to a local mosque that was attacked: https://www.launchgood.com/tacomaOur YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMW63MBn6CNfeuICmUsBkqwStay tuned for an interview with a Bahai!Sources/Suggested Informationhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KLPrLrR67ohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJgeKlPZxmYhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmD1G9BnhkAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osifQrujav8https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pseudo-dionysius-areopagite/https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/neoplatonism/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sethianismhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monad_(Gnosticism)

History and philosophy are seen as elitist topics and not for most. In this episode with Marios Koutsoukos (PhD candidate in History of Religions in the Late Antiquity at the University of Liverpool, fiction author, heavy metal bands lyricist and French literature studies), we see that there is nothing new today and in history, but constant evolution and selective hybridisation and syncretism of any present times. Lessons through: the influence of Neoplatonism's late antiquity philosophical movement on Christianity and Orthodoxy, from Aristotle and Plato to Plotinus and Porphyry and to Christianity, the earlier ancient Greek philosophical schools effects on Neoplatonism. What elements do we choose to keep to becoming from being? Music: "Fortitude" by Lance Conrad Source: Storyblocks" --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/panagiota-pimenidou/message

Dr. Jeffrey Kupperman returns to the show to discuss his new book “A Theurgist’s Book of Hours,” a collection of daily practices and prayers that provides a structured framework which while drawing primarily upon Neoplatonic teachings, is adaptable and accessible to practitioners of any tradition which seeks direct connection and union with the divine. Check […]

Professor Kevin Staley joins us today in discussing all things philosophical and environmental. These subjects are central to the character of this notable Saint Anselm teacher and local New Hampshire “urban gardener” whose fascination with the natural world has contributed greatly to his philosophical outlook. Kevin has been cultivating the soil and cultivating curiosity in Saint Anselm students for three and a half decades as he continues to try to understand where we humans fit into seen and unseen universe. Settle in for this free-wheeling conversation about Kevin's Kentucky upbringing, metaphysical ideas, Neoplatonic thought, and what we can learn from Boethius, pepper plants, and our dogs.

In today's episode I have the great pleasure to talk to UK based author of two books and more to follow soon, teacher, martial artist and specialist on Daoist witchcraft, alchemy and magic, Jason Read. Jason's path started like probably a lot of ours out there with visiting a local bookstore. Getting his hands on Dion Fortunes ‘Psychic Self Defence' was just the first step in embarking on a journey of long and serious studies of Western Esotericism where he became familiar with the Golden Dawn's system as well as with Aleister Crowley's writings and a lot more important cornerstones in Western Esoteric Tradition. However, after some time Jason felt that he had to go back to some of the more original sources of Western Esotericism such as the writings of Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa and after embracing a Neoplatonic path he finally found himself to be attracted by references to Chinese magic made in Kenneth Grant's works. Fascinated by the Chinese traditions Jason decided to live and work in Asia for some time and learned Mandarin fluently. Soon he felt the need to look into forbidden occult Chinese practices in depth but something seemed to be missing to him personally so he relocated to Malaysia where he not only met his future wife but also came across his teacher and entered a 12 years long apprenticeship in the Maoshan tradition, a specific branch of Daoist practice. Find those book to buy HERE In this episode of the show we talk about all those common things that Daoism and Western magic share, point out one often enough overlooked key to magical systems in general and discuss the Western idea of Daoism as an invention.  Jason sheds some light on the various branches of Daoism and explains the differences between the Northern and the Southern branch in great detail as well as a lot of parallels to Western magical ideas. We'll go into detail about certain shamanistic practices as the base of an original Chinese magical system and Jason will explain the practice of Qi Gong versus Neigong and the aim of the latter which is quite in harmony with a lot of Western alchemical and spiritual practices. We also touch on the importance of the landscape surrounding the magician and the inclusion of ancestors for his workings. Of course, Jason's two books ‘Thunder Magic' and ‘Fox Magic' that have already been published with Mandrake will be an important topic and he will open up on his motivation using a certain terminology in his writings. Both books are highly recommended for anyone who wants to learn more about Chinese magical concepts in a profound yet quick and accessible way and the next book in his series will be ‘Practical Chinese Magic' which should be out soon, also published by Mandrake. In this most recent book Jason aims for covering the fundamentals that a skilled Western magician can take out and apply to his practice. Music played in this episode Exist Trace (イグジストトレイス, Iguzisuto Toreisu, stylized as exist†trace) is a Japanese visual kei rock band, consisting entirely of female members. The members originate from Tokyo, and initially formed in June 2003. The founding members are Jyou, Naoto, and Mally, who met Miko and Omi after placing an advertisement for guitarists. To date, Exist Trace has released four albums, eight EPs, and nine singles.In addition, the band has appeared on eleven compilation albums and three omnibus DVDs, plus their self-released 2012 concert DVD Just Like a Virgin. Exist Trace made their U.S. debut at Sakura-Con 2011 in Seattle, Washington. On June 15, 2011, they made their major label debut on Tokuma Japan Communications with the EP True. Their song "I Feel You" was featured in Nadeshiko Japan's official 2012 guidebook DVD...

0:00:10  Intro / announcements 0:02:50  Can PVK address JBP and the Antichrist as in 1 John 4:1-3? 0:29:50  PVK gets one wish; what would it be? 0:30:00  What is the Christian justification of war?  0:32:20  What is the default religion of mankind (Pantheism vs Gnosticism)? 0:37:10  What does PVK mean by spiritual? 0:39:40  What are the pros and cons of home churches? 0:49:00  Is PVK always a pastor (e.g. in the grocery store)? 0:53:50  What's PVK's opinion about The Distributist? 0:59:05  What's a Lay Preacher? 1:01:20  PVK's vision of Griz Grim 1:02:15  Is PVK familiar with the work of Dennis MacDonald? 1:02:35  What's the message of ‘Jesus and the money changers?' 1:06:25  Why would Jesus challenge someone calling him good?  1:07:30  Can principalities, powers, demons only work in humans? 1:10:05  Would we recognize Jesus if he was on earth with us today?  1:12:55  Would Griz Grim be one of the first who would recognize Jesus? 1:13:45  Can Bazzani attribute Agentic and Arenic to Vervaeke and PVK in an essay on perennial philosophy? 1:13:50  Jesus on top of a hierarchy vs archetype (questions after Pageau Hatke storytelling video commentary)? 1:22:10  How does Calvinism views the seven deadly sins?   1:26:00  What're Neoplatonic, Christian, Kabbalistic and Suffic interpretations of the Bible as the spoken word of God? 1:27:10  Can we discuss the Trinity a little more? 1:28:25  Closing remarks / End of transmission Discord link. Good for just a few days. Check with more recent videos for a fresh link. https://discord.gg/UtXjCExw Paul Vander Klay clips channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX0jIcadtoxELSwehCh5QTg My Substack https://paulvanderklay.substack.com/ Estuary Hub Link https://sites.google.com/view/estuaryhubcontent/home If you want to schedule a one-on-one conversation check here. https://paulvanderklay.me/2019/08/06/converzations-with-pvk/ There is a video version of this podcast on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/paulvanderklay To listen to this on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/paul-vanderklays-podcast/id1394314333  If you need the RSS feed for your podcast player https://paulvanderklay.podbean.com/feed/  All Amazon links here are part of the Amazon Affiliate Program. Amazon pays me a small commission at no additional cost to you if you buy through one of the product links here. This is is one (free to you) way to support my videos.  https://paypal.me/paulvanderklay To support this channel/podcast with Bitcoin (BTC): 37TSN79RXewX8Js7CDMDRzvgMrFftutbPo  To support this channel/podcast with Bitcoin Cash (BCH) qr3amdmj3n2u83eqefsdft9vatnj9na0dqlzhnx80h  To support this channel/podcast with Ethereum (ETH): 0xd3F649C3403a4789466c246F32430036DADf6c62 Blockchain backup on Lbry https://odysee.com/@paulvanderklay https://www.patreon.com/paulvanderklay Paul's Church Content at Living Stones Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh7bdktIALZ9Nq41oVCvW-A To support Paul's work by supporting his church give here. https://tithe.ly/give?c=2160640

What is the daimon/daemon, and can it work for your higher purpose and better life? The answer is yes, especially with the right astrological, meditative, magical, or psychological tools. The daimon has guided many significant historical figures, including Socrates, Plotinus, Blake, Goethe, PKD, and Jesus (Gnostic view). Beyond gaining the eldritch tech to access our daimon, we journey through history to understand its presence, from Chaldean magicians to Neoplatonic sages, from Arabic mysticism to Thelema.Astral Guests – Cat Rose Neligan, author of Discovering Your Personal Daimon.This is a partial show. For the second half of the interview, please become an AB Prime member: http://thegodabovegod.com/members/subscription-levels/  or patron at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aeonbyteGet the simple, effective, and affordable Private RSS feed for all full shows: Exclusive Aeon Byte Podcast Feed | RedCircleMore information on Cat: https://www.catroseastrology.com/Get the book: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/catrose/discovering-your-personal-daimonDownload these and all other shows: http://thegodabovegod.com/Become a patron and keep this Red Pill Cafeteria growing: https://www.patreon.com/aeonbyteSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/aeon-byte-gnostic-radio/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

#Logos #LogosRising #Christianity In this stream I discuss the emergence of Hermetic and Neoplatonic magical thought in Florence Italy during the Italian Renaissance. In addition I read from the popular book The Western Esoteric Traditions by Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke. Make sure to check it out and let me know what you think. God bless

Julian of Norwich (1342-c 1416) was the most important English mystic of the 14th century. She wrote the best known surviving book in the English language written by a mystic, Revelations of Divine Love. The book is the first written in English by a woman. Her spirituality is strongly Trinitarian and basically Neoplatonic. Through the Passion, Julian was led to visions of the Trinity and of the universe as it exists in God. Music: "Finding Stillness" - Chris Collins

Neoplatonic occult detective, at your service. Thanks to the awesome Patreon supporter who commissioned this episode! Support the show and gain access to over three dozen bonus episodes by becoming a patron on Patreon. Rate and review the show to help us reach more readers and listeners. Not enough science-fiction and fantasy in your life? Join us on The Gene Wolfe Literary Podcast! Love Star Trek? Come find us on the Lower Decks! Neil Gaiman fan? Love comics? Join us on Hanging Out With the Dream King: A Neil Gaiman Podcast. Check out Glenn's medieval history podcast Agnus! Find out how you can commission a special bonus episode here. Join the conversation on the Claytemple Forum. Follow Claytemple Media on Facebook and Twitter, and sign up for our newsletter. Follow Glenn on Facebook and Twitter. Check out Glenn's weird fiction story "Goodbye to All That" on the Tales to Terrify Podcast. Next time: The Horror on the Links by Seabury Quinn. Music: http://www.purple-planet.com

Neoplatonic occult detective, at your service. Thanks to the awesome Patreon supporter who commissioned this episode! Support the show and gain access to over three dozen bonus episodes by becoming a patron on Patreon. Rate and review the show to help us reach more readers and listeners. Not enough science-fiction and fantasy in your life? Join us on The Gene Wolfe Literary Podcast! Love Star Trek? Come find us on the Lower Decks! Neil Gaiman fan? Love comics? Join us on Hanging Out With the Dream King: A Neil Gaiman Podcast. Check out Glenn's medieval history podcast Agnus! Find out how you can commission a special bonus episode here. Join the conversation on the Claytemple Forum. Follow Claytemple Media on Facebook and Twitter, and sign up for our newsletter. Follow Glenn on Facebook and Twitter. Check out Glenn's weird fiction story "Goodbye to All That" on the Tales to Terrify Podcast. Next time: The first of two episodes on The Inmost Light by Arthur Machen. Music: http://www.purple-planet.com

In this episode of The Two Wings, Dr. Angelyn Arden speak on Metaxy, Forms, and Healing: Neo-Platonic-Christian-Augustinian Depth Psychology and Christianity (March 18, 2021) To download the bibliography, go to https://wcatradio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Metaxy-Forms-Healing-Presentation-Bibliography.pdf

Sarah Klitenic Wear, ‘Language of Interaction in Cyril’s Trinitarian Theology and Proclus’s Theory of the Henads’, and ‘The Rational Soul of Jesus and the Word in Cyril’s Scholia on the Incarnation’, forthcomingIn this session, Dr. Sarah Klitenic Wear discusses two papers exploring St. Cyril of Alexandria’s metaphysics of the Incarnation and the Trinity, and the consequent contribution of St. Cyril and other Christian theologians to Neoplatonic philosophy in the 5th Century. In the first paper, Dr. Klitenic Wear explains St. Cyril’s adoption of Proclus’ theory of the henads – from the Greek for ‘one [hen]’ and meaning simple intelligible entities – and uses this Neoplatonic concept to explain the Christian doctrine of the Trinity (One God in Three Persons) as a ‘union without confusion’. In the second paper, Dr. Klitenic Wear again attends to St. Cyril’s conception of oneness or unity, but now as it is applied to the Christian doctrine of the Incarnation (One Person in Two Natures), again as a ‘union without confusion’, and focuses on the distinctive way St. Cyril interprets the unity of soul and body in the Person of Jesus Christ. Following upon this discussion, and indicating other areas of classical scholarship situated in the cross-over of philosophy and Christian doctrine, Dr. Klitenic Wear unpacks something of the metaphysics undergirding early Christian hymns by reviewing the Akathist hymn, a beautiful Byzantine chant to the Blessed Virgin Mary dating from the 7th century, and which contains an abundance of philosophically rich Christian doctrine.

As we look forward to the end of this week, we see Halloween, All Hallow's Eve, and I don't know about your neighborhood, but mine is marked by all sorts of spooky sights, decorations and what have you. It's become commonplace this time of year to conjure ghoulish scenes meant to give one a sense of the eerie, or fire the latent gothic imaginations of both young and the not so young. And what's a Catholic to think of all this? Some embrace it wholesale, though with little sense of its place in the Catholic imagination. Others reject out of hand seeing it as trading in the dark arts. And yet neither of these responses are adequate or satisfying. We can't ignore the whole of human experience and be authentically Catholic, and within that we have to have at least some account of the spooky, spectral, and potentially sinister things that go bump in the night. And so in this episode we'll look at the ways in which St. Augustine considered the demonic in his life and work. Helping us do so is Seamus O'Neill, who is Associate Professor of Ancient and Medieval Philosophy at The Memorial University of Newfoundland. His main philosophical interests are Ancient and Medieval Philosophy generally, Metaphysics, and the Philosophy of Religion. His current research deals with St. Augustine and other thinkers such as Plotinus, Boethius, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Bonaventure and their relation to the Neoplatonic tradition, specifically concerning the question of human and divine mediation. He is co-editor of Neoplatonic Demons and Angels and has published articles and book chapters on figures such as St. Augustine, Boethius, St. Anselm, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Dante, and on the history of Platonic thought, demonology, the problem of evil, and the relation between ancient and scholastic thought and contemporary philosophical trends. Currently, he is writing a book-length manuscript on the results of this research while working on the demonology of St. Thomas Aquinas and its philosophical import. Dr. Seamus O'Neill, Ph.D.Neoplatonic Demons and Angels, co-edited by Seamus O'NeillSupport the show (http://patreon.com/curiouscatholicpodcast)

Website:  https://www.rockstaresoterica.com/p2bp-podcast

 Here we touch upon the broader issues surrounding Eastern & Western Catholicism, to outline what we will be discussing in several different segments for members.  This includes: Measuring out the same standards against both, dealing with polemics that often come from the Eastern side against Rome that are problematic in light of the former, understanding that both East and West get attacked in fundamentally the same ways by the enemies of the Church (as opposed to Protestant factions & WASP powers) and having a mutual respect and charity for each other despite some fundamental disagreements.  Topics outlined are: The Two Swords model of Christendom, Popes & Emperors, Schisms & Crusades, influence of Neoplatonic texts, the Jesuits, the Vatican Councils and more. Part 2 for Members: Here we discuss the Two Swords model of Christendom, and how the structures of East and West became oddly reversed over time, despite dealing with each scenario in differing ways.  We talk about the rise of Constantinople, the Fall of Rome, and how each side dealt with Heathen & Heresy woes.  Could a more developed Papacy have actually helped the East, despite the polemics against the centralization and supremacy of Rome becoming more and more established during tumultuous times for Byzantium? Perhaps it depends on who you ask, but we try to provide some different factors to consider when making your own decisions on such issues. To make an individual purchase of part 2:
 https://tinyurl.com/yyhfasje To make an individual purchase of part 3: https://tinyurl.com/y66b5bu3 To make an individual purchase of part 4: https://tinyurl.com/yxhvjmlq To gain yearly access to all podcast content: https://www.rockstaresoterica.com/plans-pricing-1 

An webinar lecture with Professor Torrance Kirby (McGill University), delivered August 11, 2020. Part of our summer webinar series on "Reason and Beauty in Renaissance Christian Thought and Culture," presented in collaboration with the American Cusanus Society Richard Hooker (1554-1600) was a preeminent theologian and philosopher of the Elizabethan Church. His seminal book, Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity (1593), set out a path for Anglican theology that was distinct from both Puritan and Roman Catholic thought. In Book I, Hooker identifies Law with Holy Wisdom and his treatment echoes the sapiential books of Scripture, viz. Proverbs, Job, and the Wisdom of Solomon. Hooker also appeals to a hierarchical disposition of the species of law in the medieval scholastic conception of the ‘lex divinitatis', especially as formulated by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and later by Thomas Aquinas. For Hooker, the First Eternal Law concealed in the ‘Bosome of God' is unutterable, while its external emanation, the Second Eternal Law, is a ‘Voyce' whose utterance constitutes the beautiful ‘Harmony of the Worlde'. This distinction between two species of Eternal Law owes much to the ancient Neoplatonic metaphysics of Proclus. Both Hooker's sapiential theology and his invocation of the law of the ‘great chain' stand in creative tension with his professed adherence to doctrine expressed by the Elizabethan Articles of Religion (1571). In this webinar, Professor Torrance Kirby will examine the tension between Hooker's sources and his theology and will ask whether Hooker is successful in reconciling his legal metaphysics with his Reformed soteriology.

Your hosts' exploration of mysticism and vision in pop music continues with two powerful pieces of popular music: Radiohead's "Pyramid Song" from the 2001 album Amnesiac, and Fran Landesman and Tommy Wolf's "Ballad of the Sad Young Men," from the 1959 Broadway musical The Nervous Set. Synchronicity rears its head as the dialogue reveals how these two gems, selected by JF and Phil with no expectation that they might form a set, begin to glow when placed side by side, amplifying and focussing each other's eldritch light. This episode touches on Neoplatonic myths of spiritual ascent, African-American spirituals, Plato's realm of Forms, Gnosticism, dream visitations by the dearly departed, the travails of the Beat generation, the objectivity of hope, the implosion of America, and that particularly modern condition of the soul which Phil calls the "Philosopher's Blues." REFERENCES Radiohead, "Pyramid Song" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid_Song) Fran Landesman and Tommy Wolf, "The Ballad of the Sad Young Men" (http://greatamericansongbook.net/pages/songs/b/ballad_of_the_sad_young_men.html) Edgar Allan Poe, "The Pit and the Pendulum" (https://poestories.com/read/pit) Charles Mingus, [Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MingusMingusMingusMingusMingus) Plato, Phaedrus (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1636/1636-h/1636-h.htm) Plato, Republic (http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.html) Plato's Unwritten Doctrines (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato%27s_unwritten_doctrines) The Secret History of Western Esotericism Podcast, episode 69: "Plutarch's Myths of Cosmic Ascent" (https://shwep.net/podcast/plutarchs-myths-of-cosmic-ascent/) William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/621/621-h/621-h.html) Pierre Hadot (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Hadot), French philosopher Algis Uzdavynis, Philosophy as a Rite of Rebirth: From Ancient Egypt to Neoplatonism (https://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-Rite-Rebirth-Neoplatonism-7-Dec-2008/dp/B011T6X636) Charles Taylor (https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Taylor), Canadian philosopher Phil Ford, "The Philosopher’s Blues" (Weird Studies Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/weirdstudies) exclusive) Peter Sloterdijk (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Sloterdijk), German philosopher Ferdinand de Saussure (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_de_Saussure), French linguist JF Martel, Reclaiming Art in the Age of Artifice (https://www.amazon.com/Reclaiming-Art-Age-Artifice-Manifesto/dp/1583945784) JF Martel, "Stay With Mystery: Hiroshima Mon Amour, Melancholia, and the Truth of Extinction" in Canadian Notes & Queries, issue 106: Winter 2020 (http://notesandqueries.ca/product/cnq-106-winter-2020/), edited by Sharon English and Patricia Robertson Ray Brassier, Nihil Unbound: Enlightenment and Extinction (https://www.amazon.com/Nihil-Unbound-Enlightenment-Extinction-Brassier/dp/023052205X) Jay Landesman and Theodore J. Flicker, [The Nervous Set](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TheNervousSet), musical Phil Ford, [Dig: Sound and Music in Hip Culture](https://www.amazon.com/Phil-Ford/dp/0199939918/ref=tmmhrdswatch0?encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=) Jay Landesman (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Landesman), American publisher and writer Marshall McLuhan, "The Psychopathology of 'Time & Life'" (https://ionandbob.blogspot.com/2018/02/marshall-mcluhan-psychopathology-of.html) Marshall McLuhan, [The Mechanical Bride: Folklore of Industrial Man](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TheMechanicalBride) William Butler Yeats, "Sailing to Byzantium" (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43291/sailing-to-byzantium) Joel and Ethan Coen, No Country For Old Men (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0477348/) Mike Duncan (Twitter) Jeff Chang, [Can’t Stop Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54754.CantStopWontStop)_ Karl Marx, Capital: Volume I (https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/download/pdf/Capital-Volume-I.pdf)

A webinar lecture with Valentina Zaffino (Pontifical Lateran University; Rome Global Gateway, University of Notre Dame). Part of our summer webinar series on "Reason and Beauty in Renaissance Christian Thought and Culture," presented in collaboration with the American Cusanus Society Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) was an Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, mathematician, and cosmologist. Bruno's notoriety is due both to his adventurous life and to his original reinterpretation of ancient thought in light of the new philosophical scenario. Valentina Zaffino will analyze Bruno's image of the cosmos, focusing on his remodeled Neoplatonic background. In this context, as will be shown, the notions of harmony and beauty are closely related with Bruno's fascinating claim of the infinity of the cosmos.

We get into the strangeness of Neoplatonic philosophy and those who picked up on it! Correction: We said there are 365 aeons, when we meant 360. Also, note the precise number of aeons varies according to the given Gnostic tradition. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Attempting to explain the mystery of the emergence of 12th-13th Century Kabbalah of Isaac the Blind and Nachmanides in France and Spain, by examining the merger of the mythological genre of early Jewish mysticism with the Neoplatonic philosophy of Ibn Gabirol and Plotinus. And exploring the role that their metaphysics of the 'One and the Many', Unity and Multiplicity, Great Chain of Being and Emanationism, play in Kabbalah. 00:00 The Historical Mystery to solve 06:34 The Genre of Kabbalah 08:43 Midrash-Mythos meets Chakira-Logos 10:18 Neoplatonism: Plato, Philo and Plotinus 14:52 Neoplatonism in Muslim and Jewish thought 19:00 Ibn Gabirol: Mekor Chaim, Fons Vitae 21:31 Kabbalah meets Neoplatonism 23:04 Metaphysics of Neoplatonism: The One and the Many 28:32 Kabbalah of 12th Century Provence 31:09 Reaction against Maimonidean-Aristotelianism 35:44 Kabbalah of 13th Century Catalonia and Girona 41:49 Teaser and Recap 43:48 Question Time --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Drawing on Neoplatonic teachings of Plotinus and Christianity, Dionysius was the first the write an explicitly Mystical Theology in which he wrote of the divine darkness that transcends concepts, language, and image.  Contemplative Light has a class on Contemplative Practices.

Welcome back. We hope you're staying healthy.This week the Nerds invited Dev-i-Boy on again. He'll be joining us for the next while.First up is a discussion about Indiana Jones 5. Can Indy swing himself back into relevance for a new generation? Not if COVID-19 has anything to say about it. Indiana Jones 5 has been pushed back again due to the pandemic. The Nerds are hoping Actual Cannibal Shia LaBeouf doesn't make another appearance as Indy's son, but we'd be ok with him appearing as a cannibal tribesman. This of course leads into a discussion on Disney's other properties, including the notorious Pirates of the Caribbean and Jungle Cruise. This looks like a rough year for Disney.Dev-i-Boy has heard that Russians are behind everyone's favourite YouTube channel, Five Minute Crafts. In a story reminiscent of bad Cold War fiction, Russian propaganda is slipped into innocuous seeming YouTube videos. Now we just need a team of teenagers to sneak into the secret Russian video studio lab and uncover their plot.Activision has pulled off a major win in court against the maker of the Humvee. Modern warfare needs modern weapons, and the US courts have ruled in favour of realism over licensing fees. Finally, DJ and Dev-i-Boy can't handle the knowledge. An Australian lizard joins the tiny group of reptiles that both lay eggs and give live birth. This revelation is too much for them to handle though, so we move on to the games of the week.Professor and DJ play Generation Zero, a game about Swedish battle mechs and robot dogs that want to kill you. It's buggy, but generally a good experience. Dev-i played LoZ: Wind Waker again but breaks into a new dimension in VR Chat. Of course, he picked an anime girl avatar. Of course.On to the usual shoutouts and remembrances, and DJ refuses to wrap up the show by performing Waterloo. Maybe next week.Stay safe, and we'll see you all next week.Indiana Jones 5 -https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/indiana-jones-2022/YouTube viral video debunked - https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/how-to-cook-that-creator-ann-reardon-is-debunking-viral-youtube-videos.html/ Call of Duty lawsuit win -https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/call-duty-wins-first-amendment-victory-use-humvees-1287882A lizard can now lay eggs and give live birth -https://theconversation.com/this-lizard-lays-eggs-and-gives-live-birth-we-think-its-undergoing-a-major-evolutionary-transition-133630 - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mec.15409 Games PlayedProfessor– Generation Zero - https://store.steampowered.com/app/704270/Generation_Zero/Rating : 5/5DJ– Generation Zero - https://store.steampowered.com/app/704270/Generation_Zero/Rating : 4.5/5Dev-i-Boy - The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Zelda:_The_Wind_WakerRating – 5/5- VR Chat - https://store.steampowered.com/app/438100/VRChat/Rating – 3/5Other topics discussedIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and the fourth installment in the Indiana Jones series.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana_Jones_and_the_Kingdom_of_the_Crystal_SkullThe timeline of the Indiana Jones films is the chronological order of The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones and the film series.- https://indianajones.fandom.com/wiki/Timeline_of_filmsTransformers film series (Transformers is a series of American science fiction action films based on the Transformers franchise which began in the 1980s. Michael Bay has directed the first five films.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformers_(film_series)Harrison Ford survives plane crash - https://money.cnn.com/2017/02/14/news/harrison-ford-plane-mishap/index.htmlDisney’s Artemis Fowl Official Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl2r3Fwxz_oJungle Cruise (The Jungle Cruise is a river boat attraction located in Adventureland at many Disney Parks worldwide, namely Disneyland, Magic Kingdom,Tokyo Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland. For years, Walt Disney Pictures had been toying with the idea of turning the Jungle Cruise into a full-length action adventure motion picture, which it would be loosely inspired by the theme park attraction of the same name.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jungle_CruiseBruckheimer is very frank about how he almost passed on the project, which is based on the famous Disney theme park ride.- https://web.archive.org/web/20080102184110/http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/425/425848p1.htmlPirates of the Caribbean 6th movie- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean_(film_series)#Sixth_film How to Cook That (Youtube channel by Ann Reardon)- https://www.youtube.com/user/howtocookthat/videosDebunking Fake Videos & WHO'S behind 5-min crafts? | How To Cook That Ann Reardon- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvqa8dsBtno Lonelygirl15 (lonelygirl15, the first of many shows within the fictional LG15 Universe, tells the ongoing story of a group of young adults fighting against a mysterious secret society called, The Order.)- https://www.youtube.com/user/lonelygirl15Sex-workers - idubbbz complains by iDubbbzTV- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQLzOuwDu_8Elsagate (neologism referring to the controversy surrounding videos on YouTube and YouTube Kids that are categorized as "child-friendly", but which contain themes that are inappropriate for children.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ElsagateThe FTC action against YouTube and Google- https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/blogs/business-blog/2019/11/youtube-channel-owners-your-content-directed-children Why Youtube doesn’t make any profit - https://www.cbsnews.com/news/4-reasons-youtube-still-doesnt-make-a-profit/ The Simpson – Lionel Hutz vs 10 high priced lawyers - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3hhAH4mlQk Donald Trump Violated First Amendment by Blocking Critics on Twitter- https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/donald-trump-violated-first-amendment-twitter-blocking-1203542245/ Temperature-dependent sex determination (a type of environmental sex determination in which the temperatures experienced during embryonic/larval development determine the sex of the offspring.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperature-dependent_sex_determinationDogs (Dogs are autonomous robotic quadrupeds, equipped with a series of lethal weapons.)- https://black-mirror.fandom.com/wiki/DogsBoston Dynamics : Spot - https://robots.ieee.org/robots/spotmini/Japanese students hold graduation ceremony in Minecraft amid school cancellation- https://soranews24.com/2020/03/15/japanese-students-hold-graduation-ceremony-in-minecraft-amid-school-cancellation/Katie Bouman: The woman behind the first black hole image- https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47891902 Systers (founded by Anita Borg, is an international electronic mailing list for technical women in computing.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SystersThe Eleventh Hour (The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery is an illustrated children's book by Graeme Base.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eleventh_Hour_(children%27s_book)Hareraiser (video game released in 1984 in the UK in two parts: Prelude and Finale, comedian and computer game historian Stuart Ashen described and showed the game play, and called it "quite possibly the worst video game ever.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HareraiserAnimalia (an animated children's television series based on the 1986 picture book of the same name by illustrator Graeme Base.)- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animalia_(TV_series) The story behind Jackie Chan’s stunt in Police Story which involved slides several stories down a pole strung with lights, electricity arcing around him as he crashes through multiple panes of glass into a shop stall.- https://observer.com/2019/01/how-jackie-chan-police-story-stunts-changed-movies/Jackie Chan further explains the stunt in Police Story- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZEVz1V-X4w Waterloo ("Waterloo" is the first single from the Swedish pop group ABBA's second album, Waterloo and their first under the Epic and Atlantic labels.- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterloo_(ABBA_song) That’s Not COVID (TNC Podcast)- https://thatsnotcanon.com/thatsnotcovidpodcast Shout Outs 5 April 2020 - Shirley Douglas, actress and mother of Kiefer Sutherland dies at 86 - https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/shirley-douglas-dead-actress-mother-kiefer-sutherland-was-86-1288624Shirley Douglas, an actress in films directed by Stanley Kubrick and David Cronenberg and the mother of actor Kiefer Sutherland. Douglas appeared in Kubrick's Lolita (1962) and Cronenberg's Dead Ringers (1988) and in other movies including Shadow Dancing (1988) and Wind at My Back (1996). In 2003, for her contributions to the performing arts, she was named an Officer of the Order of Canada. Sutherland announced his mother's death on Twitter, saying "My mother was an extraordinary woman who led an extraordinary life," Sutherland wrote. "Sadly she had been battling for her health for quite some time and we, as a family, knew this day was coming. To any families who have lost loved ones unexpectedly to the coronavirus, my heart breaks for you. Please stay safe." She died of complications surrounding pneumonia at the age of 86 in Toronto,Ontario. His son noted her passing was not related to COVID-19. 5 April 2020 – Anime ending this week 10 years ago according to Japanese netizens - https://soranews24.com/2020/04/05/whered-the-time-go-top-anime-series-that-finished-ten-years-ago-ranked-by-japanese-netizens/Here’s the top ten of this decade-old anime! Which ones have you watched recently?10. Kuroshitsuji II9. Durarara!!8. A Certain Scientific Railgun7. Nodame Cantabile Finale6. HeartCatch PreCure!5. Fullmetal Alchemist4. K-On!!3. Inuyasha: The Final Act2. Animal Detective Kiruminzoo1. Hidamari Sketch×☆☆☆6 April 2020 - ‘Jaws’ actress Lee Fierro dead at 91 from coronavirus complications - https://nypost.com/2020/04/06/jaws-actress-lee-fierro-dead-at-91-with-coronavirus-complications/Lee Fierro, best known as Alex Kintner’s mom in Steven Spielberg’s 1975 shark attack classic “Jaws,” In her iconic scene from “Jaws,” an enraged Fierro confronts Chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) and slaps him in the face. “I just found out that a girl got killed here last week and you knew, you knew there was a shark out there. You knew it was dangerous, but you let people go swimming anyway,” her character says, sobbing. “You knew all those things and still my boy is dead now, and there’s nothing you can do about it. My boy is dead.” Fierro reportedly had "objected to the profanity" of the scene's dialogue as originally drafted, and the director, Steven Spielberg, wanted dialogue that accorded with Fierro's "everywoman looks," so the scene's dialogue was rewritten the day before it was filmed. Fierro went on to reprise her role in 1987’s subpar “Jaws: The Revenge” opposite Michael Caine. She died from COVID-19 at the age of 91. Remembrances6 April 1520 – Raphael - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual achievement of the Neoplatonic ideal of human grandeur. Together with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, he forms the traditional trinity of great masters of that period. Many of his works are found in the Vatican Palace, where the frescoed Raphael Rooms were the central, and the largest, work of his career. The best known work is The School of Athens in the Vatican Stanza della Segnatura. After his early years in Rome, much of his work was executed by his workshop from his drawings, with considerable loss of quality. He was extremely influential in his lifetime, though outside Rome his work was mostly known from his collaborative printmaking. His career falls naturally into three phases and three styles, first described by Giorgio Vasari: his early years in Umbria, then a period of about four years (1504–1508) absorbing the artistic traditions of Florence, followed by his last hectic and triumphant twelve years in Rome, working for two Popes and their close associates. He died from fever at the age of 37 in Rome, Papal States.6 April 1944 - Rose O'Neill - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_O%27NeillRose Cecil O'Neill, American cartoonist, illustrator, artist, and writer. She built a successful career as a magazine and book illustrator and, at a young age, became the best-known and highest- paid female commercial illustrator in the United States. O' Neill earned a fortune and international fame by creating the Kewpie, the most widely known cartoon character until Mickey Mouse. Her Kewpie cartoons, which made their debut in a 1909 issue of Ladies' Home Journal, were later manufactured as bisque dolls in 1912 by J. D. Kestner, a German toy company, followed by composition material and celluloid versions. The dolls were wildly popular in the early twentieth century and are considered to be one of the first mass-marketed toys in the United States. Their name, "Kewpie", derives from Cupid, the Roman god of love. According to O'Neill, she became obsessed with the idea of the cherubic characters, to the point that she had dreams about them: "I thought about the Kewpies so much that I had a dream about them where they were all doing acrobatic pranks on the coverlet of my bed. One sat in my hand." She described them as "a sort of little round fairy whose one idea is to teach people to be merry and kind at the same time". O'Neill also wrote several novels and books of poetry, and was active in the women's suffrage movement. She was for a time the highest-paid female illustrator in the world upon the success of the Kewpie dolls. She died from heart failure at the age of 69 in Springfield, Missouri. 6 April 2003 - Anita Borg - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anita_Borg American computer scientist. She founded the Institute for Women and Technology and the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing. In 1997, Borg founded the Institute for Women and Technology (now the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology). Two important goals behind the founding of the organization were to increase the representation of women in technical fields and to enable the creation of more technology by women. The Institute was created to be an experimental R&D organization focusing on increasing the impact of women on technology and increasing the impact of technology on the world's women. It ran a variety of programs to increase the role of technology, build the pipeline of technical women, and ensure that women's voices affected technological developments. Borg passionately believed in working for greater representation of technical women. Her goal was to have 50% representation for women in computing by 2020. She strove for technical fields to be places where women would be equally represented at all levels of the pipeline, and where women could impact, and benefit from, technology. She died from a brain tumour at the age of 54 in Sonoma, California. Famous Birthdays6 April 1958 - Graeme Base - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graeme_BaseAuthor and artist of picture books. He is perhaps best known for his second book, Animalia published in 1986, and third book The Eleventh Hour which was released in 1989. He worked in advertising for two years and then began illustrating children's books, gradually moving to authoring them as well. His first book, My Grandma lived in Gooligulch, was accepted by the first publisher he sent it to. He was born in Amersham, Buckinghamshire. 6 April 1975 - Zach Braff - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zach_BraffAmerican actor, director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known for his role as J. D. on the television series Scrubs, for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2005 and for three Golden Globe Awards from 2005 to 2007. He starred in The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy, In Dubious Battle, and has done voice-work for Chicken Little, Oz the Great and Powerful, and the Netflix series Bojack Horseman. In 2004, Braff made his directorial debut with Garden State, which he also wrote, starred in, and compiled the soundtrack album for. He shot the film in his home state of New Jersey for a budget of $2.5 million. The film made over $35 million at the box office and was praised by critics, leading it to gain a cult following. He won numerous awards for his directing work and also won the Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album in 2005. Braff directed his second film, Wish I Was Here, which he partially funded with a Kickstarter campaign. He was born in South Orange, New Jersey. 7 April 1954 - Jackie Chan - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_ChanChan Kong-sang, known professionally as Jackie Chan, is a Hong Kongese martial artist, actor, film director, producer, stuntman, and singer. He is known in the cinematic world for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts, which he typically performs himself. He has trained in Wushu or Kung Fu and Hapkido, and has been acting since the 1960s, appearing in over 150 films. Chan is one of the most recognisable and influential cinematic personalities in the world, gaining a widespread following in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres, and has received stars on the Hong Kong Avenue of Stars and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He has been referenced in various pop songs, cartoons, and video games. He is an operatically trained vocalist and is also a Cantopop and Mandopop star, having released a number of albums and sung many of the theme songs for the films in which he has starred. He is also a globally known philanthropist and has been named as one of the top 10 most charitable celebrities by Forbes magazine. In 2004, film scholar Andrew Willis stated that Chan was "perhaps" the "most recognised star in the world". In 2015, Forbes estimated his net worth to be $350 million, and as of 2016, he was the second-highest paid actor in the world. He was born in Victoria Peak. 7 April 1964 - Russell Crowe - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_CroweRussell Ira Crowe actor, film producer and musician. Although a New Zealand citizen, he has lived most of his life in Australia. He came to international attention for his role as the Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the historical film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which Crowe won an Academy Award, a Broadcast Film Critics Association Award, an Empire Award, and a London Film Critics Circle Award for best actor, along with ten other nominations in the same category. Crowe's other award-winning performances include portrayals of tobacco firm whistle-blower Jeffrey Wigand in the drama film The Insider, and John F. Nash in the biopic A Beautiful Mind. Crowe's other films include, L.A. Confidential, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Cinderella Man, 3:10 to Yuma, American Gangster, State of Play, Robin Hood, Les Misérables, Man of Steel, Noah, and The Nice Guys. In 2015, Crowe made his directorial debut with The Water Diviner, in which he also starred. Crowe's work has earned him several accolades during his career, including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, one BAFTA and one Academy Award out of three consecutive nominations (1999, 2000, and 2001). Crowe has also been the co-owner of the National Rugby League (NRL) team South Sydney Rabbitohs since 2006. He was born in Wellington. Events of Interest 6 April 1896 – In Athens, the opening of the first modern Olympic Games is celebrated, 1,500 years after the original games are banned by Roman emperor Theodosius I. - https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-modern-olympic-gamesOn April 6, 1896, the Olympic Games, a long-lost tradition of ancient Greece, are reborn in Athens 1,500 years after being banned by Roman Emperor Theodosius I. At the opening of the Athens Games, King Georgios I of Greece and a crowd of 60,000 spectators welcomed athletes from 13 nations to the international competition. In Athens, 280 participants from 13 nations competed in 43 events, covering track-and-field, swimming, gymnastics, cycling, wrestling, weightlifting, fencing, shooting, and tennis. All the competitors were men, and a few of the entrants were tourists who stumbled upon the Games and could sign up. The track-and-field events were held at the Panathenaic Stadium, which was originally built in 330 B.C. and restored for the 1896 Games. Americans won nine out of 12 of these events. The 1896 Olympics also featured the first marathon competition, which followed the 25-mile route run by a Greek soldier who brought news of a victory over the Persians from Marathon to Athens in 490 B.C. In 1924, the marathon was standardized at 26 miles and 385 yards. Appropriately, a Greek, Spyridon Louis, won the first marathon at the 1896 Athens Games.6 April 1909 - Robert Peary and Matthew Henson become the first people to reach the North Pole; Peary's claim has been disputed because of failings in his navigational ability. - https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pearys-expedition-reaches-north-poleOn April 6, 1909, American explorer Robert Peary accomplishes a long elusive dream, when he, assistant Matthew Henson and four Eskimos reach what they determine to be the North Pole. Decades after Peary’s death, however, navigational errors in his travel log surfaced, placing the expedition in all probability a few miles short of its goal. In 1908, the pair travelled to Ellesmere Island by ship and in 1909 raced across hundreds of miles of ice to reach what they calculated as latitude 90 degrees north on April 6, 1909. Although their achievement was widely acclaimed, Dr. Frederick A. Cook challenged their distinction of being the first to reach the North Pole. A former associate of Peary, Cook claimed he had already reached the pole by dogsled the previous year. A major controversy followed, and in 1911 the U.S. Congress formally recognized Peary’s claim. In recent years, further studies of the conflicting claims suggest that neither expedition reached the exact North Pole, but that Peary and Henson came far closer, falling perhaps 30 miles short. On May 3, 1952, U.S. Lieutenant Colonel Joseph O. Fletcher of Oklahoma stepped out of a plane and walked to the precise location of the North Pole, the first person to undisputedly do so.6 April 1917 - Americans declares war on Germany - https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/america-enters-world-war-iTwo days after the U.S. Senate voted 82 to 6 to declare war against Germany, the U.S. House of Representatives endorses the declaration by a vote of 373 to 50, and America formally enters World War I. Apart from an Anglophile element urging early support for the British and an anti-Tsarist element sympathising with Germany's war against Russia, US public opinion reflected that of the president: the sentiment for neutrality was particularly strong among Irish Americans, German Americans, and Scandinavian Americans, as well as among church leaders and among women in general. On the other hand, even before World War I had broken out, American opinion had been overall more negative toward Germany than toward any other country in Europe. Over time, especially after reports of atrocities in Belgium in 1914 and following the sinking of the passenger liner RMS Lusitania in 1915, American citizens increasingly came to see Germany as the aggressor in Europe. While the country was at peace, American banks made huge loans to Britain and France, which were used mainly to buy munitions, raw materials, and food from across the Atlantic. Wilson made minimal preparations for a land war but he did authorise a major ship-building program for the United States Navy. The president was narrowly re-elected in 1916 on an anti-war ticket.6 April 1974 - The Swedish pop band ABBA wins the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Waterloo", launching their international career. - https://www.mylifetime.com/she-did-that/april-6-1974-abba-won-the-eurovision-song-contest-for-waterloo-launching-their-international-careerSongwriters and musicians Ulvaeus and Andersson first met in 1966. However, it was in 1969 when the seeds of the soon-to-be Swedish supergroup were planted when Björn met his fiancée, Fältskog, and Benny met his fiancée, Lyngstad. Ulvaeus and Andersson knew how to write contagious pop hits. However, Fältskog and Lyngstad’s beautiful harmonies were integral to the global chart-topping ABBA sound. After “Waterloo” won the 19th edition of the Eurovision song competition, the winning tune reached the No. 1 spot on the UK chart and became a top ten hit in the US on the Billboard Hot 100. “Waterloo” sold six million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time.Follow us on Facebook - Page - https://www.facebook.com/NerdsAmalgamated/ - Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/440485136816406/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/NAmalgamated Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6Nux69rftdBeeEXwD8GXrS iTunes - https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/top-shelf-nerds/id1347661094 RSS - http://www.thatsnotcanonproductions.com/topshelfnerdspodcast?format=rssInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/nerds_amalgamated/General Enquiries Email - Nerds.Amalgamated@gmail.comRate & Review us on Podchaser - https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/nerds-amalgamated-623195