Jordan Peterson and John Lennox on God

 The Christian mathematician and apologist John Lennox talks with the not-quite-all-the-way-Christian-yet public intellectual, Jordan Peterson about the existence of God and the "Word-structured" reality we live in.  Fascinating stuff.

The Temptation of Jesus

Great discussion and insight-filled discussion of the Temptation of Christ in the wilderness with Jordan Peterson, Jonathan Pageau, Bishop Barron, and others.

Bishop Barron: Civilization needs God

 Here is a great talk from the ARC (Alliance for Responsible Citizenship) Conference from Roman Catholic bishop Robert Barron.  He contents (rightly, in my view) that a renewal of Western Civilization requires God, it requires the lifting up of our gaze - our desires and ambitions - beyond the self, to the Infinite Source of Goodness, Wisdom, Truth, and Beauty.  

"Don't buy into the modern lie that belief in God constrains the human spirit; the exact opposite is true!"

Non-religious Thinkers rediscover the Bible's Wisdom

 I've been watching with interest some major "non-religious" thinkers in the last few years rediscovering the importance of Christianity to the vitality of Western Civilization (and the freedoms it brings); some of these same thinkers are also rediscovering that the Bible is not just a poorly-written science book, but a source of amazing (even inspired) wisdom that really does work.  

May God use this movement to bring many souls back into the fellowship of his Church.
Here is the Roman Catholic Bishop and apologist Bishop Robert Barron commenting on the same movement: 

Patterns of Symbolism to understand the Bible

 Here is a great video from Jonathan Pageau "doing his thing" and discussing patterns of symbols in Scripture, and in the ways that we actually perceive reality, and how recognizing these patterns helps us understand the Bible more deeply. 

Jordan Peterson on the power of Ideology to bring Hell on Earth

Like millions others around the world, I've engaging with the thought of Jordan Peterson in recent years and profited from doing so.

While we do have some philosophical differences, I think Peterson's critique of Ideology-based censorship (sometimes colloquially referred to as "political correctness") and his critique of Intersectional Ideology (also known as Critical Theory, Cultural Marxism, Intersectional Feminism, Grievance Studies, Liberation Theology, Politics of Emancipation, Social Justice Ideology and so on) is extremely timely, important, and perhaps even Prophetic in this particular cultural moment.

I also respect his unswerving commitment to remain civil with his debate opponents, who are not always so civil with him.

So here is a video that describes how radical ideologies, when they become all-consuming (or, as we Christians would say, when they become "idols") also become murderous and deeply de-humanizing.  We need only pay attention to history (so difficult to do in our distracted age) to see that this is in fact the case: 

Bishop Barron on Jordan Peterson Interview

Two of the "internet intellectuals" whom I've been attending to of late are Jordan Peterson the (agnostic? secular Christian?) Canadian Psychologist and professor and also Bishop Robert Barron, who seems to me one of the most winsome, intellectually compelling, and interesting Christian (and specifically Roman Catholic) voices in the Public Square today.

So, thanks to YouTube algorithms, I ran across this video.  Catholic podcaster Brandon Vogt is interviewing Bishop Barron and asking him to reflect upon the (much longer) conversation that Bishop Barron recently had with Jordan Peterson.  This interview is fabulous and well worth your time.

I love Bishop Barron's observation, when reflecting upon Jungian archetypes and the "hero's journey" that plays so prominently in world literature, that in the Bible people are called on an adventure, a hero's journey with God - Abraham is called to leave his home and follow God; Jesus calls us to leave all and take up the cross and follow him.  Yet in an even deeper sense, Bishop Barron points out, the Bible is the story about God making the hero's journey in order to find us. Also, I now need to go back and re-watch True Grit...