A Brief Defense of Jediism and Syncretic Religion — In the Star Wars canon, the Jedi are described as being members of a religious tradition. After all, Jedi are essentially space-Sōhei who live in temples, wear ascetic robes, and have a litany of sacred texts, mantras, and practices. …

Exploring the meaning and potential of dreams — Before you read further, I should be upfront with you about the inspiration of this brief piece and if that information makes you scoff, then you may as well stop after the next paragraph because this will not get any more materialist-friendly (i.e., banal and boring). …

An excavation and commentary on the thread of nonviolent teaching throughout the Bible — Given the high propensity for American Christians (especially evangelicals) to own guns, it may seem absurd to claim that nonviolence — even in the face of danger — is God’s clear dream for humanity, as presented in the Bible (as well as many early patristic traditions). Even more assuredly, I…

Anarchy, monarchy, and the juxtaposition of political fantasies — I have tremendously enjoyed the work of both J.R.R. Tolkien and Salvador Dalí — two great artists who had little in common. One unexpected commonality they do hold, however, is that they were each at one point in their lives simultaneously drawn to both monarchism and monarchism. Admittedly, for the…

The severance from transcendence, erosion of trust, and elite frustration are spiraling out of control — “Our democracy is under attack.” How many times have we all heard or read this phrase since Trump won the GOP primary in 2016? Then, after a dim-witted and half-baked coup attempt on January 6, 2021, that warning has been underlined, bolded, and highlighted. …

Vaccines, Abortion, & Dangerous Confusion — In December of 2020, a statement about the then-recently announced COVID-19 vaccines was given by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. …

Civic Dissent, Modern Ugliness, & the Search for Beauty — I’d like to set the stage for what follows by offering three quotes. The first is from the prolific farmer-poet, Wendell Berry: In the dark of the moon, in flying snow, in the dead of winter, war spreading, families dying, the world in danger, I walk the rocky hillside, sowing clover…

How art is degraded to create synthetic auras and destroy politics — In his much-applauded 1935 essay, “The Work of Art in the Age of Its Mechanical Reproduction”, German philosopher Walter Benjamin posited the thesis that “the logical outcome of fascism is an aestheticization of political life.” For Benjamin, this aestheticization of politics was logical because his understanding of fascism was as…

Revisiting Plato to diagnose the looming threat of technocratic totalitarianism — Picture men dwelling in a sort of subterranean cavern with a long entrance open to the light on its entire width. Conceive them as having their legs and necks fettered from childhood, so that they remain in the same spot, able to look forward only, and prevented by the fetters…