372 - Christmas: The Anchor of Reality (Repost)

In this video I discuss the meaning and symbolism of the title Lucifer, or the Morning Star, drawing on the Old and New Testament. How it is that this title both refers to Christ, as well as the Adversary?BOOKSPre-order Jack and the Fallen Giants and GodsDog 2 at a discounted price. Limited stock of Snow White and the Widow Queen is also available for purchase: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com SYMBOLIC WORLD COURSES:Don't miss out on our upcoming live courses hosted on the Symbolic World Circle community platform:- The Cognitive Science of Ritual with John Vervaeke, starting October 7: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-cognitive-science-of-ritual- Christian Wonder Tales with Martin Shaw, starting November 12: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/christian-wonder-tales💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

5 Okt 202426min

John Vervaeke and I discuss the cognitive science of ritual: the many different aspects of ritual and its importance even in the pursuit of reason, among sacred and secular spaces, to mark time and identity, to establish transformation, and more! John is truly making headway in giving us the concepts and vocabulary to understand symbolic and ritual participation across different participatory levels. Enjoy!Join us for John Vervaeke's new live course: The Cognitive Science of Ritual. The 6 weeks of lectures start on Oct 7th. Involved patrons get 10% discount. Apply code at checkout. Register today: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-cognitive-science-of-ritualVisit our brand new Symbolic World Store now to buy and pre-order our books, like Snow White and the Widow Queen (limited time offer), our new upcoming fairy tale book Jack and the Fallen Giants, GodsDog: Moster and Warrior, digital products, prints, and more: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Timestamps:00:00 - Coming up00:51 - Intro music01:17 - Introduction to Cognitive Science04:16 - Ritual and an advent of the sacred06:18 - Meaningful ritual08:23 - Why work against ritual?14:07 - Replace religious with civic15:47 - Hermeneutics of suspicion18:24 - Progressive rituals23:23 - Transformation27:51 - Marking identity36:17 - Ritual as spaceOur website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

26 Sep 202442min

This conversation is in part John Vervaeke's response to my previous video with Jordan Hall (The End of Strategy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnR2PYtLLnI) where we discussed Jordan's recent conversion to Christianity. John fires up some questions, and we discuss different aspects of sensemaking and religious structures to answer the question: Why Christianity?Original YouTube version: https://youtu.be/Vp_08T0UcikREGISTER TODAY FOR OUR NEW SYMBOLIC WORLD COURSE WITH JOHN VERVAEKE: The Cognitive Science of Ritual. Live classes start on October 7th, 2024, 2-4 pm EST on the Symbolic World Circle community. This is a 6-week, 12-hour online course. All lesson recordings will be made available afterward and all materials will be provided. The final lesson will be co-hosted by Jonathan Pageau in a Q&A format. All patrons at the Involved tier or higher get a 10% discount; see your unique code at the top of the course page and apply at checkout: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-cognitive-science-of-ritualJoin Jonathan Pageau, Jordan Hall, John Heers, and others in Florida for an exclusive, intimate weekend filled with leisure and hospitality. This November event is a fundraiser for First Things Foundation. Learn more: https://first-things.org/aot 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribeTimestamps:00:00 - Coming up01:42 - Intro music02:07 - Introduction05:07 - John's pov on Jonathan and Jordan's conversation08:49 - Why Christian faith?15:38 - Jordan's answer: the Ultimate Map18:27 - The current dialogos21:10 - Jonathan: The Christian Escatological map25:52 - Jordan: Relationship to Jesus32:20 - Grief and the qualities of love37:40 - Jonathan: Particularity beyond duality41:43 - Jordan: A deeper capacity to suffer44:49 - John: Being is good / Not escape46:54 - Jonathan: Theosis49:25 - What if this is a crypto-egoism?55:26 - Is this the grounding of your Christian faith?01:01:29 - Zen: Does the infinite love you?01:11:39 - Intimacy01:22:18 - We can't be meta01:27:47 - Universalism01:29:01 - We each have our callings01:30:21 - John and ChristianityOur website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

19 Sep 20241h 32min

I had a wonderful time talking with Jordan Hall, who has recently converted to Christianity from a secular worldview. We talk about his conversation, societal engineering, artificial intelligence, and the fundamental distinction between vertical and horizontal qualities. We also talk about the problem of delusion, how to know what’s real, the meaning of faith and memory, using technology safely, and not getting lost in our daily life problems.Don't miss my and Richard Rohlin's new 5-week live course on Dante's Divine Comedy: Purgatorio. Classes started August 27th, but you can still join us. Involved patrons get 10% discount. Apply your unique code at checkout.https://thesymbolicworld.com/courses/dantes-purgatorio Follow Jordan Hall:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JordanGreenhall/featuredMedium: https://medium.com/deep-codeX: https://x.com/jgreenhall💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 📱 SOCIAL MEDIA  Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheSymbolicWorld Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/pageaujonathan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jonathan.pageauOur website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

9 Sep 20241h 13min

In this week's video I discuss what a miracle is, looking at different examples but especially at the miracles of Christ. A miracle is not just an extraordinary event, rather it's an event that reveals and restores matter to its true identity and meaning. Thank you for your continued support. My course with Richard Rohlin on Dante's Purgatorio has kicked off and is currently taking place live on Tuesdays 2-5 pm EST. Consider joining us on this extraordinary journey through Dante's Divine Comedy. Patrons at the Involved tier or higher get 10% off -  apply your discount code at the checkout. Register now: https://thesymbolicworld.com/courses/dantes-purgatorio🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

3 Sep 202427min

Dr. Nathan Jacobs is an academic, artist, and filmmaker. In this conversation, we discuss where reason, rationality, and discernment fit into the mystical experience and how the modern world has mistakenly divorced reason and mysticism.YouTube version: https://youtu.be/BlB1EkTaxpgCheck out the Nathan Jacobs Podcast: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheNathanJacobsPodcast Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0hSskUtCwDT40uFbqTk3QSApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-nathan-jacobs-podcast/id1747994475Nathan's website: https://www.nathanajacobs.com/Join me and Richard Rohlin for our new Universal History course on Dante’s Divine Comedy: Purgatorio. Patrons at the Involved tier or higher qualify for 10% discount. Apply your unique discount code at checkout. Class starts August 27th. Register today: https://thesymbolicworld.com/courses/dantes-purgatorio 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Timestamps:00:00 - Coming up01:46 - Intro music02:10 - Introduction03:09 - What's happening?13:12 - Intuitions and tangibility17:30 - The synopsis21:25 - A cognitive minority24:58 - Joe Rogan and the pre-rational27:30 - Transpersonal agency31:02 - Everybody believes in ghosts39:56 - The question of realism45:52 - The Mind50:42 - Overcoming skepticism56:07 - The Son of Man01:00:24 - Naming01:03:57 - The focal point of man01:17:49 - The Nathan Jacobs PodcastOur website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

23 Aug 20241h 22min

In this episode of the Universal History podcast with Richard Rohlin, we discuss the surprising Irish origin of the medieval notion of purgatory, why it's understandable that purgatory is part of the medieval experience, its relevance to our lives today, and how Dante presents purgatory in a new, more optimistic way in his Divine Comedy.YouTube version: https://youtu.be/XBdXgwl1VYURemember to like and share. And don't miss our upcoming course on Dante's Purgatorio, starting August 27th. Involved patrons get a 10% discount. Your unique code is at the top of the course page if you log in. Apply at checkout. https://thesymbolicworld.com/courses/dantes-purgatorio Timestamps: 00:00 - Coming up01:11 - Intro music01:37 - Introduction04:23 - Ireland in the medieval period13:31 - History for the Irish20:15 - A lyrical approach23:51 - Magical realism29:37 - Ireland's rigour37:34 - The popular medieval belief of Purgatory40:25 - The Irish Penitentials43:03 - Purification after death50:20 - Avoid purgatory51:06 - Descriptions of purgatory54:57 - The problem statement01:07:03 - Dante's purgatory01:09:04 - The best defense for purgatory01:17:15 - Bringing it home🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

17 Aug 20241h 19min

This is a complement to my previous video where I explained the symbolism of the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony (linked below). This time I discuss the latest Olympic controversy in the women's boxing division where the gender of boxers was called into question. It's related to the same message of the opening ceremony; I argue that gender ambiguity is being weaponized against the public to challenge societal boundaries, gaslight, win a supposed moral upper hand, and thereby perpetuate the culture war. It's important to be able to see these patterns in public discourse and not to get carried away in our opposing camps.Original YouTube version: https://youtu.be/KR0Wf6ukgHYSymbolism Explained: The Olympics Opening Ceremony is Worse than You Thought: https://youtu.be/rckBhO23cIA?si=5Yew13kVoDsyhgI4Don't miss my and Richard Rohlin's new upcoming course on Dante's Divine Comedy. Involved patrons get 10% discount. Apply your unique code at checkout: https://thesymbolicworld.com/courses/dantes-purgatorio 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🔒 BECOME A PATRON: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson.

8 Aug 202421min