The Symbolic World

In this week’s episode of Universal History, Richard Rohlin and I give an introduction to Dante’s Divine Comedy, discussing its historical and political context, Dante’s motivations and his point of view, and why the Comedia is the greatest work of Western literature.  Join us for the first course on the Divine Comedy, starting May 8th. Dante’s Inferno: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses-pag...

This is part two of our discussion about the Tower of Babel in the context of Universal History. Richard Rohlin and I recap and continue our discussion on the Book of Jubilees and Pentecost, discussing more in-depth the Feast of First Fruits, and what it means as a structure by which communion between heaven and earth can be facilitated - of unity and multiplicity. The duality of Pentecost explain...

This video will premiere tomorrow, Saturday, April 13th at 10 am EST. In this short reflection, I will explain the parable of Jesus that’s the most difficult to understand, the Parable of the Penitent Steward, or the Unjust Steward. Recently I teamed up with Jordan Peterson, Daily Wire, and the same panel of the Exodus series, this time to film a series on the Gospels. The discussions pushed me to...

This is my second interview with Timothy Patitsas on the topic of beauty. We also discuss filmmaking, the work of Dr. Iain Mcgilchrist, liturgy, self-sacrifice, and social renewal as part of the fruits of a beautiful life. Timothy G. Patitsas has been the Interim Dean of Hellenic College since January of 2020 and the Assistant Professor of Ethics at Holy Cross since the Fall of 2005. In 2019 he pu...

I had the opportunity to sit down with Justin Brierley to talk about Christian apologetics, the state of public discussions about faith, new converts, the identity crisis, and the rise of the “Christian atheist” with figures like Tom Holland, Jordan Peterson, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali intellectually aligning themselves with Christianity. Justin Brierley is a freelance writer, speaker and broadcaster who...

In this dialogue with the amazing artist and iconographer, Aidan Hart, we discuss an image he has been developing depicting the New Jerusalem. This cosmic image shows many fractal relationships, including the Garden of Eden, the role and destiny of mankind, heaven, earth, and all of creation. It’s a beautiful synthesis presenting the positive aspect of the apocalypse. - YouTube version: https://yo...

This is a discussion that Ken Lowry kindly organized on his YouTube channel and podcast, Climbing Mt. Sophia. The panel includes me, John Vervaeke and DC Schindler. We talk about the ontology of artificial intelligence from different perspectives: the scientific, philosophical, and spiritual or theological perspectives.  Follow the Climbing Mt. Sophia channel: https://www.youtube.com/@climbingmt.s...

In this podcast, I give you a sneak peek into some of what we are doing with GodsDog and the Garments of Skin comic, while also sharing my very first experience encountering the idea of the garments of skin in the apocryphal Book of Jasher. This was monumental not just for what would later become GodsDog, but it was also part of what drew me to Holy Orthodoxy. Through this kind of storytelling, we...

In this episode of Universal History, Richard Rohlin and I discuss the Tower of Babel in Scripture (Genesis) and the Book of Jubilees, the symbolism of the structure itself, what it means for us today, Pentecost, and the solution to authoritarianism. - Original YouTube version: https://youtu.be/wj9EK0QAW54 Links: - The Symbolic World Summit in-person tickets: https://thesymbolicworld.com/summit -...

The Leviathan is a strange creature in the Bible and tradition. In this podcast episode I look at the Leviathan, the sea serpent, the dragon, and its relationship to the devil, and how al of these associations came to be what they can mean. And also it can help us understand how symbolism can be polyvalent that is that symbolism can have multiple meanings at the same time, and that understanding t...

This is my discussion with James Poulos about technology and spirituality, how technology has reshaped our world and America, the hope of taking control over new technologies and putting them in the right hands, the role of global institutions, laws, and authority. James Poulos is the co-founder and executive editor of The American Mind at the Claremont Institute and the cofounder and publisher of...

Visit https://thesymbolicworld.com/summit for more information about the Symbolic World Summit Stephen James Blackwood is a Canadian-American professor, academic, and social commentator. Blackwood is the founder and president of Ralston College, a liberal arts college awaiting accreditation in Savannah, Georgia. We met on the Daily Wire+ Exodus panel where he had a lot of amazing insights and we h...

In this episode of Universal History with Richard Rohlin, by popular demand, we finally explored the topic of dragons! We discussed the ubiquitous appearance of dragons across history and different cultures, a dragon’s essential characteristics and mythical nature, their connection to snakes, birds, and angels, and the dragon as a hybrid and guardian of paradise. We also discussed the treatment of...

In this video I discuss the symbolism of titans, giants, and Nephilim in anticipation of the God's'Dog: Warrior Kickstarter. Sign up for early bird specials: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/symbolicworldpress/godsdog-warrior 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🗣 Join The Symbolic World Community for discussions about symbolism: ht...

In this discussion with Jean-Philippe Marceau, we introduce the latest Symbolic World Course, called Symbolic World Metaphysics, based on JP’s upcoming book. JP also talks a bit more about his journey in the symbolic world, his unique approach to these topics, and what the course will offer. Join other Symbolic World metaphysics enthusiasts to experience a detailed introduction to the metaphysics...

This is a repost of a discussion with Benjamin Boyce on the topic of the Enlightenment, rationalism and science, the problem of identity on the levels of the individual and the group, value hierarchies, authoritarianism, subsidiarity, love, and sacrifice. This conversation happened after I had some disagreements with James Lindsay on Twitter (X) about the Enlightenment and authoritarianism. My and...

In celebration of Theophany (6 January) or Epiphany, as it’s called in the Western tradition, I discuss the meaning of baptism, starting with the baptism of Christ, what it means to be “born again” symbolically, and how Scripture, our sacraments, and the Theophany icon illustrate and explain this to us. Join us for the Symbolic World Summit on Feb 29th, 2024. Learn more: https://thesymbolicworld.c...

For my last video of 2023, I discuss the pagan god Janus, after whom the month of January is named; why he has two faces, how it’s related to this time of year, the winter solstice, Christmas, and the general ambiguity and uneasiness of places of transition. Happy New Year! Join us for the Symbolic World Summit on Feb 29th, 2024. Learn more: https://thesymbolicworld.com/summit 💻 Website and blog:...

This video takes a close look at one sentence in the Christmas story. A great company of angels appeared to the shepherds in the field to announce the birth of Christ, and they sang, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom His favour rests”. To many people this statement seems meaningless or abstract, but in celebration of the nativity I took some time in this video to tak...

In this episode of the Universal History podcast, Richard Rohlin and I discuss Christmas, why it looks the way it does, how Christmas developed into what we have today, and why you absolutely should celebrate it if you’re a Christian. --- Buy the Beowulf Course (You have to have a profile on our Symbolic World community, you can create one for free): https://thesymbolicworld.com/news/the-beowulf-c...

This is a repost of an older video published on this channel in 2018. We are reposting it because the original video was blocked by YouTube in several countries. Now also seems like a good time to revisit the topics of aliens, encountering the strange, garments of skin, the consequences and dangers of technology, and all the tropes we have in our culture around the foreign, whether in the directio...

This is a repost of my recent discussion with Seraphim Hamilton on his YouTube channel. He asked me many good questions about universal history, re-enchantment, fairy tales, the occult, divination, carnival, war, prayer, and ritual, thinking symbolically about your own life, AI, and more. Enjoy. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/wXwi8r00-XU Previous discussion: https://youtu.be/C9pNpJxY3kQ?si=RA6B...

Fr. Joseph Lucas published a thesis on the question of sacrifice, called Offerer and Offering: Cyril of Alexandria on Jewish and Christian Sacrifice. In this video, we discuss sacrifice in Scripture, how we should understand the crucifixion, and how the notion of sacrifice applies to the Christian life. Bio: Father Joseph Lucas is an Orthodox Christian priest, theological scholar, and practical ph...

This is a repost of a great discussion I had on the Climbing Mt. Sophia channel alongside DC Schindler. We discuss beauty, art, freedom, techne and technology, primarily exploring the question: what is beauty? Original: Climbing Mt. Sophia - Beauty, Art and Freedom with Jonathan Pageau and DC Schindler: https://youtu.be/pIikYtFS4Q8?si=SlFG5MR0ZtbmcL9I Jonathan’s video on contemporary art: The Sear...

For this week’s podcast, I sat down with Fr. Turbo Qualls and David Patrick Harry to discuss beauty and iconography in the Orthodox Christian tradition, why beauty is a part of the Church despite Christ leading a simple life, giving back to God, the meaning and purpose of icons in worship, balancing beauty and charity, the question of idolatry, the duality of externals, and more. Fr. Turbo Qualls...