Explore every episode of the podcast The Symbolic World

I talk with Rusty Reno about the collapse of the postwar “open society” ideal and the return of people’s need for strong loyalties, meaning, and transcendence. We discuss how we got here after the world wars decimated Western civilization: emergent post-war social narratives and identities like nationalism, globalism, politics, “progress”, environmentalism, and transhumanism. Finally we discuss the crisis of masculinity and our ultimate hope in Christ.

Rusty Reno is the editor of First Things, a journal aimed at "advancing a religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". He is the editor of the Brazos Theological Commentary on Scripture series and the author of several books, most recently Return of the Strong Gods: Nationalism, Populism and the Future of the West. For twenty years Reno taught theology at Creighton University.

YouTube version of this interview: https://youtu.be/NwTYsZfU2ak

Rusty’s book, Return of the Strong Gods: https://www.amazon.com/Return-Strong-Gods-Nationalism-Populism/dp/1621578003

Pre-Order GodsDog: Monk now and/or get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog

Join Dr. Zac Porcu for his course, A Demonological History of the World: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/a-demonological-history-of-the-world

6 weeks, 12 hours

Price: Only $120, and Involved patrons can get 10% off. Apply your discount code at checkout.

Live classes: Sep 15 - Oct 20

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website, blog, courses: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

📚 Store: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Why is St. Michael often shown holding a flaming sword? I look at how this image developed, its connection to the expulsion from Paradise, the defeat of the dragon, and the emergent sacred geography known as the Sword of St. Michael.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/yE68F1pGPmQ

Pre-Order GodsDog: Monk now and/or get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog

Join Dr. Zac Porcu for his course, A Demonological History of the World: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/a-demonological-history-of-the-world

6 weeks, 12 hours

Price: Only $120, and Involved patrons can get 10% off. Apply your discount code at checkout.

Live classes: Sep 15 - Oct 20

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

I finally sit down with Diana Pasulka to talk about UFOs, alien intelligence, AI, psychedelics, transhumanism, and the strange religious framework forming around all of them. We look at how these phenomena overlap with older spiritual categories, and why the promise of technological transcendence may be a counterfeit of something Christianity already understands.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/6TqYxG9gxwc

Her books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/D.W.-Pasulka/author/B07NL6KZN5

Join Dr. Zac Porcu for his course, A Demonological History of the World: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/a-demonological-history-of-the-world

6 weeks, 12 hours

Price: Only $120, and Involved patrons can get 10% off. Apply your discount code at checkout.

Live classes: Sep 15 - Oct 20

Pre-Order GodsDog: Monk now and/or get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

Timestamps:

00:00 – Coming up

01:58 – Introduction

02:52 – How a Religious Studies Scholar Ended Up Studying UFOs

08:52 – UFOs as Religious and Spiritual Phenomena

13:25 – A Demonological History of the World

14:41 – The Mythology and Narrative of UFOs

16:38 – Why Governments Use UFO Disinformation

20:56 – Technology, Magic, and Non-Human Intelligence

24:22 – Aliens, Demons, and the Modern Image of the “Grey”

27:43 – Psychedelics and Encounters With Other Beings

30:19 – AI as an Alien Intelligence

32:02 – UFOs and the Promise of a New Revelation

34:29 – Spielberg and the Alien as Saviour

38:35 – Arthur C. Clarke, Demons, and Childhood’s End

40:50 – Transhumanism vs. Christian Transfiguration

45:42 – God’s Dog: Monk

46:42 – Aliens as Our Future, “Evolved” Selves

49:06 – How the Alien Narrative Collides With Christianity

52:36 – Project Stargate, Remote Viewing, and Psychic Espionage

56:18 – Why Is the AI Project Also Called “Stargate”?

57:30 – 2001: A Space Odyssey, AI, and UFO Disclosure

01:01:29 – AI Is Feeding on Us

01:03:00 – How Should Christians Respond?

01:06:26 – AI Cannot Give Us Transcendence

01:08:42 – Recovering the Spiritual Senses

01:10:39 – Isolation Makes Us Vulnerable to Propaganda

01:11:39 – Diana’s Next Book on Christianity

01:13:00 – The Noosphere, the Singularity, and an Apocalyptic Moment

01:17:06 – Christianity Makes Us More Human

01:18:20 – Conclusion

Dr. Zac Porcu joins me to discuss his upcoming course on the demonological history of the world, looking at the pagan gods, fallen angels, magic, and technology. We explore what happens when you take seriously the early Christian claim that the gods were real, but fallen.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/WMKOzuhnib4

Learn more about Dr. Zac: https://zacharyporcu.com/Join Dr. Zac Porcu for his course, A Demonological History of the World: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/a-demonological-history-of-the-world 6 weeks, 12 hoursPrice: Only $120, and Involved patrons can get 10% off. Apply your discount code at checkout.Live classes: Sep 15 - Oct 20Pre-Order GodsDog: Monk now and/or get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe💻 Website, blog, courses: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com📚 Store: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

This was July 2026's patron video that we decided to make public. If you want to support us and get extra symbolism videos, subscribe a a paying member to The Symbolic World: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribeIn this video, I analyzed the movie Obsession, which was released in May of this year. It had a low budget and was directed by a YouTuber, yet became a massive breakout box office and critical success.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/z09N5ErcoTEJoin Dr. Zac Porcu for his course, A Demonological History of the World: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/a-demonological-history-of-the-world 6 weeks, 12 hoursPrice: Only $120, and get 15% off through September 8, 2026 at 11:55PM ET! After the early bird sale, Involved patrons can still get 10% off. (Discounts can't be combined.)Live classes: Sep 15 - Oct 20Pre-Order GodsDog: Monk now and/or get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog============Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Christian Roy and I discuss Jacques Ellul’s theology of technique (technology) and the way modern systems turn power, efficiency, and mediation into ends in themselves. AI brings this crisis into focus, especially in our speech and relationships, but the deeper question is whether technology still serves a meaningful purpose —or whether we have begun to serve it. We also explore the Christian idea of non-power as a way beyond the logic of domination.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/HH_vCnVDTdo

Christian’s book: Theology and Technique: https://www.amazon.ca/Theology-Technique-Jacques-Ellul/dp/1725259788

Join Dr. Zac Porcu for his course, A Demonological History of the World: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/a-demonological-history-of-the-world

6 weeks, 12 hours

Price: Only $120, and get 15% off through September 8, 2026 at 11:55PM ET!

Live classes: Sep 15 - Oct 20

Pre-Order GodsDog: Monk now and/or get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:

-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5

-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Louise Perry is a British journalist, author, and host of the Maiden Mother Matriarch Podcast. She’s a columnist for the Wall Street Journal and has been described as a leading reactionary feminist. She interviewed me for us to discuss why progressivism became such a powerful cultural force, how the postwar story shaped modern politics and storytelling, and why fairy tales still preserve patterns that our culture has tried to flatten or subvert.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/HVRY6WP4hFA

Her website: https://www.louisemperry.co.uk/

Her X account: https://x.com/Louise_m_perry

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass hosted by Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin: ⁠https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass⁠

Pre-order GodsDog 3 and get volumes 1 and 2 on sale! https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation with artist Matt Rhodes, we explore Dead Gods, his epic comic set in the world before the biblical Flood. We talk about Nephilim, Watchers, ancient patriarchs, dragons, dinosaurs, and what civilization might look like when people live for centuries and Noah himself becomes a warrior at the end of the world.

Matt’s website: https://www.mattrhodesart.com/

His YouTube channel where you can follow the creation process: https://www.youtube.com/@mattrhodesart

Project trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vP7ETbjN9yE

Support this project directly: https://www.patreon.com/MattRhodesArt

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass hosted by Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin: ⁠https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass⁠

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation with Jay Dyer, we look at predictive programming, propaganda, Hollywood, and the growing role of AI in shaping how we imagine the future. We also discuss technocracy, centralization, and why the most important response may be much closer to home: rebuilding strong families, parishes, and local communities.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/qdMVVyxEL3k

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass hosted by Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, taking place live this August and September. ⁠https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass⁠

Website: thesymbolicworld.com

Timestamps:

00:00 – Coming up

01:31 – Introduction

03:32 – What Is Predictive Programming?

08:32 – Propaganda, Art, and Soft Power

14:48 – Hollywood and the Intelligence Agencies

18:03 – Preparing the Public for War

22:33 – Hollywood’s Revolutionary Narrative

28:58 – Globalism, Nationalism, and the Nation-State

31:50 – The Power of Invisible Institutions

36:39 – Why Dystopias Can Still Condition Us

43:07 – The Real Temptation of The Matrix

46:11 – Social Engineering Through Entertainment

49:01 – Why Promote Self-Destructive Narratives?

53:39 – Long-Term Planning and the Technocratic Vision

57:55 – Toward a Global Technocratic State

01:01:40 – Has AI Replaced the Old Narratives?

01:05:23 – AI and the Logic of Inevitability

01:10:47 – Technology, Power, and Centralization

01:13:11 – The Christian Alternative: Subsidiarity

01:17:35 – Conclusion

In this conversation with Josh Nadeau, we talk about art, beauty, symbolism, and the recovery of a Christian imagination. We explore why traditional art still speaks so powerfully, how beauty can reveal realities that arguments often cannot, and why the work of artists may matter more than ever in a fragmented world.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/mE1EMCxGuvI

Check out Josh Nadeau’s work:

Sword and Pencil Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swordandpencil/

Every Day Saints Substack: https://substack.com/@everydaysaints

His books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0DNX73MZC

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass hosted by Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, taking place live this August and September. ⁠https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass⁠

Our website: thesymbolicworld.com

Story time with Fr. Andrew! In this episode with Fr. Andrew Damick, we explore the symbolism of paradise through a fairy tale, a Norse saga, and the Christian tradition. We look at how the path to paradise is often revealed through humility, sacrifice, death, and transformation —and how these old stories can help us understand the relationship between heaven and earth.

YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wwp36RyLkPQ

Join us this September in Oxford for a Symbolic World Summit (there are literally only 5 or so tickets remaining): https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass hosted by Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, taking place live this August and September. https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

Part 4. Deacon Seraphim and I continue our journey through the strange world surrounding Noah, the Flood, and the ancient traditions that grew up around Genesis. We get into the Ark, Adam, Melchizedek, sacrifice, priesthood, and a few details I had genuinely never heard before. There’s a lot here that changes the way the story fits into the larger pattern of Scripture.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/-hjCU9Xp3-cJoin us September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/Register now for the Universal History Masterclass: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass Price: $180 USD (Get 10% off if you're an Involved patron)Course Length: 6 weeks, 12 hoursLive classes are on Wednesdays at 3-5 pm Eastern Time, starting August 5th through September 9th, 2026🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.comOur website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

I sat down with Martin Shaw to talk about the underworld and the deep pattern of descent and return. He also gave his own fresh perspective on Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey movie. We explored what it means to come home changed, how these ancient stories illuminate the Bible, and why resurrection is inseparable from the journey through death.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/vLHZ-IQzltA

Join us September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

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Into the Underworld: Tales of Spiritual Initiation in Martin Shaw’s online course that launches in September. It's Martin's most ambitious course yet, venturing into entirely new territory: stories from the Bible and the lives of the Saints.

The course includes more than 6 hours of recorded teaching from a live workshop, plus a limited number of seats for an intimate series of live lectures and interaction over Zoom. Enrollment will be open for a limited time, and space for live sessions is scarce - sign up for the waitlist at JAWBONESTORIES.COM to get early access to Enrollment. Also, get a special surprise from Martin just for joining the waitlist! https://www.jawbonestories.com/

In this course, Martin will tell and teach on: Joseph, Jacob and Esau, Ruth and Naomi, Blind Tobit, The Voyage of Brendan, St. Patrick's Bell.

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Register now for the Universal History Masterclass: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this video, I compare The Odyssey and Masters of the Universe to explore two very different visions of masculinity and heroism. While one reduces masculine strength to fantasy, insecurity, and mockery, the other confronts its dangers while still moving toward repentance, reconciliation, and the return home. The difference is not simply political. It is the difference between a story that despises the hero and one that seeks to restore him.

Join us September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

Price: $180 USD (Get 10% off if you're an Involved patron)

Course Length: 6 weeks, 12 hours

Live classes are on Wednesdays at 3-5 pm Eastern Time, starting August 5th through September 9th, 2026

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:

-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5

-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

It's not hard to find your tribe. The real challenge today is not losing yourself within one. Luke Burgis and I discuss why we struggle as modern people to belong without losing ourselves, how technology fragments our desires, why family, friendship, and real communion are essential to becoming a person, and also the opposite, that to really connect with others you must be true to yourself.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/bZfRs9TWSIg

Luke's book, The One and the Ninety-Nine: https://www.amazon.com/One-Ninety-Nine-Forging-Identity-Contagion-ebook/dp/B0FLYVP6WD

Join us September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

Price: $180 USD (Get 10% off if you're an Involved patron)

Course Length: 6 weeks, 12 hours

Live classes are on Wednesdays at 3-5 pm Eastern Time, starting August 5th through September 9th, 2026

Timestamps:

00:00 – Coming up

02:38 – Introduction

02:52 – Luke Burgess and The One and the Ninety-Nine

03:19 – The tension between individuality and belonging

04:10 – The lost sheep, the one, and the many

06:30 – Why the modern self has become fragile

08:57 – When celebrating difference turns into isolation

10:50 – Why “selling out” no longer carries the same stigma

12:01 – Differentiation, imitation, and false individuality

12:55 – Choosing a vocation beyond market niches

15:18 – Symbolic World Summit in Oxford

17:31 – How technology reshapes the human person

18:02 – Social media as a source of mimetic desire

20:02 – Why online models become so powerful

20:48 – Technology, distraction, and the loss of strong desire

23:09 – Parasocial relationships and vicarious participation

24:42 – Can religious identity become another performance?

25:22 – Thin religion, online faith, and performative belonging

27:39 – Receiving an identity rather than inventing one

29:22 – Suffering, friction, and the consequences of the Fall

31:56 – Is it acceptable to “fake it until you make it” spiritually?

33:38 – False piety and performative religion

34:51 – The danger of the online “Orthobro”

36:16 – The family as a school of communion

38:32 – Differentiating yourself from your family

40:57 – Homogenization versus communion

41:09 – Teenage rebellion as hostile individuation

42:00 – Rebellion as a substitute rite of passage

43:51 – Why identity must serve something higher

45:43 – The family should not become an isolated unit

47:26 – Does it take a village to raise a child?

48:47 – When political identity is built through opposition

49:34 – Internal family systems and the divided self

52:23 – How algorithms feed fragmented parts of ourselves

53:21 – Monetizing anger and online performance

54:56 – What hope is there for young people?

55:47 – Give young people a name, not a niche

58:05 – Communities we cannot easily abandon

01:00:04 – Choosing deliberately what previous generations inherited naturally

01:02:25 – Friendship, commitment, and cultural renewal

01:04:03 – Final thoughts on individuation and communion

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:

-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5

-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Deacon Seraphim Rohlin joins me for an emergency Universal History episode to debate Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of The Odyssey. We discuss what the film gets right and where it misunderstands the ancient world.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/lKIxTvWNDNw

Join us September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

Register now for the Universal History Masterclass: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

Price: $180 USD (Get 10% off if you're an Involved patron)

Course Length: 6 weeks, 12 hours

Live classes are on Wednesdays at 3-5 pm Eastern Time, starting August 5th through September 9th, 2026

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:

-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5

-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Spoiler alert. In this video, I offer a full symbolic breakdown of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, going through the entire film sequence by sequence to examine its use of trickery, guilt, hospitality, memory, and the return of the father. I explain that I think Nolan is deliberately unsettling both the left and the right, and why the story he tells is definitely a contemporary retelling, but ultimately more traditional than many viewers realize – and that’s exactly why it’s needed in our world right now.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/ESIzQNfmAo4

Register for Universal History Masterclass during the month of July and get 15% off: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:

-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5

-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Malcolm Guite is a poet and Anglican priest. He is a Life Fellow of Girton College, Cambridge and lives in Norfolk, England. He lectures widely in England and North America on Theology and Literature. His books include Sounding the Seasons; Seventy Sonnets for the Christian Year (Canterbury 2012). The Singing Bowl; Collected Poems (Canterbury 2013) and Parable and Paradox (Canterbury Press 2016) and Mariner: A Voyage with Samuel Taylor Coleridge (Hodder 2017) After Prayer (Canterbury Press 2019) and The Word Within the Words (DLT 2021) and Lifting The Veil, Square Halo, 2021.

In 2023 he was awarded the Archbishop Lanfranc Medal for Education and Scholarship by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

He is presently working on Merlin’s Isle: an Arthuriad a four volume epic poem on The Arthurian legends

He has a Youtube series called ‘A Spell in the Library’ at https://www.youtube.com/c/MalcolmGuitespell

YouTube version of this episode: https://youtu.be/E5En6DZTYFk

Galahad and the Holy Grail: https://store.rabbitroom.com/products/merlins-isle

Patrons of The Symbolic World can watch the 30 minute documentary here: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/premium-content/merlins-isle

Subscribe here if you’re not already a patron: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

Register for Universal History Masterclass during the month of July and get 15% off: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

Timestamps:

00:00 – Coming up

01:29 – Introduction

03:05 – Malcolm Guite’s Calling as Priest and Poet

06:39 – Can the Imagination Be Dangerous?

09:27 – Imagination as the Organ of Meaning

11:58 – Fantasy, Escapism, and Enchantment

15:46 – Why Arthurian Stories Resist Modernization

19:57 – Galahad and the Grail

21:20 – What Arthurian Stories Reveal About Human Brokenness

23:27 – The Scope of Malcolm’s Arthurian Project

26:05 – The Dolorous Stroke and the Origin of the Wasteland

30:54 – “You Live in Just Such a World”

33:20 – The Wasteland as a Pattern of Reality

37:51 – Recovering the Christian Meaning of the Grail

40:44 – Universal History Masterclass

42:42 – Why Malcolm Chose the Ballad Form

44:59 – The Collapse of the Materialist Worldview

49:41 – Remembering Without Falling into Unreason

51:46 – Tradition as Active Remembrance

53:19 – Tradition as the Roots of a Living Tree

54:40 – How Irony Destroys Old Stories

57:56 – Daring to Be Naive Again

58:28 – The Four-Volume Arthurian Series

59:54 – Why the Beauty of the Book Matters

01:01:10 – Chivalry, Masculinity, and the Civilized Warrior

01:02:23 – Fellow Travelers in the Recovery of Meaning

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this video, I discuss Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated new film adaptation of The Odyssey after watching it at the premiere.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/K3wkrDbRgDs

Sign up for the Universal History Masterclass during the month of July and get 15% off: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

I speak with Andrew Stokich, co-founder of Logos Cinema, about building a home for beautiful Christian storytelling. We discuss the limits of modern Christian film, the need to recover deeper symbolic stories, and Logos Cinema’s vision for supporting Orthodox filmmakers and audiences.

Special discount link: https://www.logoscinema.com/the-symbolic-world-summit 

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/LATR7_QsQLY

Paradise Imagined. Join us from September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House. Only 150 tickets will be sold. Don't miss out. https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

http://www.thesymbolicworld.com

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In this episode (Part 3 on our series that will soon become about Persia), we continue reading The Cave of Treasures with Deacon Seraphim, looking at Noah, the world before the flood, the strange traditions around the Ark, and how Adam, Paradise, priesthood, and Melchizedek are all carried through the waters into the new world.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/IMd160ye1OM

Register now and get 15% off the Universal History Masterclass! https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass

Part 1: https://youtu.be/f--wBUEAxjY?si=thM3QIB4jcwnqpzu
Part 2: https://youtu.be/3D2bRWrbKUU?si=odQ6p9ehqS912PEb

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation I speak with Gregg Hurwitz about his new Orphan X novel, Antihero, and the surprising role Orthodox Christianity plays in the story. We discuss the assassin who is forced to face mercy, the limits of violence, the exhaustion of modern storytelling, and why we may need a new kind of hero, one who can hold together justice, sacrifice, and humanity.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/lPpZnZWdPGk

Gregg Hurwitz books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001IXPXTG
Latest Novella, The Delivery: https://www.amazon.com/Delivery-Novella-Gregg-Hurwitz-ebook/dp/B0FX5Y9FQG
Antihero: https://www.amazon.com/Antihero-Orphan-Novel-11/dp/1250479916

📢 Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation with Rachel Wilson, we discuss the strange inversion at the heart of modern feminism, its occult and anti-Christian roots, and the way it has turned women against motherhood, marriage, the family, and even the feminine itself.
We also look at abortion, witchcraft, gender, the destruction of womanhood, and the vision of marriage as a path of sacrifice, love, and mutual self-giving.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/DKliIG90YDw

Follow Rachel Wilson’s work:
X: https://x.com/Rach4Patriarchy 
Substack: https://rwilson.substack.com/ 
Get her book, Occult Feminism: The Secret History of Women’s Liberation: https://www.amazon.com/Occult-Feminism-Secret-History-Liberation/dp/B09NGXZKHB
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@rachel.wilson


📢 Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation with Deacon Seraphim Rohlin, we continue our exploration of Genesis through the Syrian tradition, looking especially at Seth (Adam and Eve’s son after Cain and Abel), the Nephilim, and the fall of the sons of God. What begins as a discussion of the descendants of Seth becomes a way of understanding the descent from the holy mountain, the corruption of Cain’s line, and the strange traditions around giants, demons, music, desire, and the second fall before the flood.

YouTube version of this episode: https://youtu.be/3D2bRWrbKUU
Episode 1 of this series: https://youtu.be/f--wBUEAxjY?si=cJE6aczhbDx13AoI

Fr. Stephen De Young talking about Nephilim with Tucker Carlson: https://youtu.be/5x9vR5sKHFI?si=nBh9exyV3jkGYtWs

📕 Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

📢 Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

Books (outside of the Bible) mentioned:
The Cave of Treasures
The Book of the Bee
Book of Enoch
Book of Adam
Kebra Nagast
Jubilees

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
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Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

This is a talk I presented at Chesterton Academy of Ottawa earlier this year. 

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/ETaRAauDxS0

Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
00:51 - Intro music
01:05 - Chesterton Academy introduction
03:28 - Jonathan begins: art, AI, education, and the Pope’s encyclical
05:53 - Why AI is not human intelligence
08:18 - AI lacks embodied understanding
10:47 - Money, efficiency, power, and the values behind AI
13:07 - The Moloch trap and the AI arms race
15:32 - AI’s impact on work and education
17:01 - The anti-human vision of technocracy
18:40 - What education is really for
21:05 - Why learn art in the age of AI?
23:50 - Little Red Riding Hood promotion
24:46 - Remember, celebrate, and create
25:57 - Remembering our stories and traditions
29:36 - Celebrate what is good
33:16 - Create in service of remembrance and celebration
37:11 - Sincerity after irony and cynicism
39:32 - Fairy tales, icons, and Christian visual language
42:58 - Graphic novels, saints, and medieval storytelling
44:28 - The challenge and opportunity of our time
46:27 - Q: Is pessimism about AI justified?
48:32 - Q: How can remembrance, celebration, and creation be transmitted practically in schools and families?
53:23 - Q: Should schools return to oral exams and oral presentations because of AI?
55:52 - Q: How much can we participate in or use AI without falling into the trap?
58:31 - Q: What does cave art reveal about the relationship between man and art? Is art the signature of man?
01:03:02 - Q: What is the difference between inventing something new and creating?
01:07:20 - Q: Do strict rules in art stifle creativity? Why do people say beauty is subjective?
01:10:04 - Q: How can we recover a true remembrance of the Middle Ages rather than seeing them as dark or backward?
01:14:55 - Q: What is the difference between reading traditional stories and watching movies for entertainment?
01:19:02 - Q: Why was beauty dismissed from art, and why is our built environment so ugly?
01:21:07 - Q: What is your favorite piece of art in your home?
01:23:28 - Q: Can AI be used as a Socratic interlocutor in education?
01:26:36 - Q: What is the value of teaching classical languages like Latin and ancient Greek?
01:27:45 - Q: How should young artists balance pursuing art with the need to make money?
01:30:50 - Q: What is the importance of boredom, rest, silence, and imagination?
01:33:15 - Q: Is re-enchantment, post-irony, and sincerity possible in an intentional way?
01:37:08 - Q: How can different traditions unite against AI without losing their distinctiveness?
01:41:39 - Q: How do we discern beauty in imperfect work, especially in a performative society focused on excellence?
01:44:02 - Q: Where do you think AI is going, especially in education and culture?

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

There’s a lot of expectation and noise around Christopher Nolan’s upcoming movie, The Odyssey (2026). For decades after WW2 we were unable to tell many stories about kingship and fatherhood. As we move through the turbulent end of the WW2 consensus, stories like this form part of how we process the return of the father and identity.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/6prGX3wZKI8

Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free. More than our other fairy tales, this one emphasizes the importance of the father’s role in protecting his family from the strange and subversive. https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau
🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Backrooms (2026) is a recent horror/thriller film based on a creepypasta —an internet urban legend— that emerged around the time of the Covid lockdowns. A man discovers an infinite, labyrinthine expanse of "backrooms" that becomes increasingly disturbing.

In this video, I analyze the symbolism of the film and explore the deeper reasons why it is so popular, outshining major blockbusters with much larger budgets and marketing campaigns. Enjoy.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/ZK6NaFsBGaM

Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau
🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

I had a discussion with Gavin Ortlund about the Orthodox Church's position on salvation outside the church.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/RtC8ENpbOW4

Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

Timestamps
00:00 Introduction and background to the discussion
03:08 Steelmanning each other’s positions
04:12 Gavin summarizes the Orthodox view of salvation
05:37 Jonathan explains salvation as healing and theosis
06:36 Normative and non-normative ways of salvation
08:13 Jonathan summarizes Gavin’s historical argument
10:53 Gavin clarifies his thesis about Orthodoxy, Catholics, and Protestants
16:40 Is the modern Orthodox view a return to earlier tradition?
18:32 Gavin explains why the 9th–19th century period matters
20:20 Disagreement over whether individuals can be declared damned
22:57 Jonathan responds on Orthodox theological boundaries
24:54 Debate over the 9th century and the Photian schism
31:32 The question: Is Gavin a Christian brother?
38:37 The Synod of Jerusalem and Protestant theology
41:36 Jonathan reads from the Synod of Jerusalem
43:56 Gavin responds to Jonathan’s use of an old blog post
46:42 Gavin outlines the Synod’s language about Protestants
49:12 Jonathan argues synods define norms, not individual destinies
52:28 Gavin challenges the “normative” reading of the Synod
55:20 Normative texts, dogmatic authority, and qualifications
58:13 Theophan the Recluse and hope for the non-Orthodox
01:04:16 St. Philaret of Moscow and leaving souls to God’s mercy
01:09:35 Protestant missions in Orthodox lands
01:11:23 Gavin defends Protestant missionary theology
01:13:30 Jonathan critiques Protestant evangelism and denominationalism
01:16:21 The Eucharist, communion, and institutional exclusivism
01:18:16 Gavin explains why he is not Orthodox
01:20:44 Jonathan on Christ’s presence and God’s desire to save all
01:21:59 Are Protestants categorized like Buddhists or Muslims?
01:25:36 Salvation as transformation into the image of Christ
01:28:55 Theophan’s advice: focus on your own salvation
01:30:06 Personal holiness and evangelism
01:32:18 Calvinism, evangelism, and divine decree
01:36:52 Predestination, foreknowledge, and the River of Fire
01:39:59 Closing the theological discussion
01:40:33 Gavin’s apology and reflections on online discourse
01:42:59 A call for patient Protestant-Orthodox dialogue
01:44:12 Jonathan’s closing thanks

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

I went to see Spielberg’s Disclosure Day and found myself watching a strange, late-stage piece of boomer propaganda about aliens, media, religion, and who we are supposed to trust. Here are my thoughts on the symbolism of the film.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/SBGPLaGfVTc

Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

We often think of enemies as those who attack us openly, but fairy tales also warn us about another kind of enemy: the one who comes close, pretends to be our friend, and destroys from within. I also discuss how this pattern appears in Scripture, culture, identity, and even technology, and why discernment is so important in our current moment.

Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/ 

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/U8VXqPX1-0Q

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

I’m joined again by Seraphim Hamilton to discuss his upcoming Symbolic World course on Isaiah, beginning June 15th. We talk about why Isaiah is central for understanding Christ in the Old Testament, the relationship between prophecy, exile, the suffering servant, the gentile nations, and the deep symbolic unity between Scripture, liturgy, and creation.

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now to get 15% off before the early bird sale ends: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/lPpBFh2-V90

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
00:47 - Intro music
01:01 - Introducing Seraphim Hamilton and the Isaiah course
01:48 - Seminary, liturgy, and returning to Scripture
02:39 - Why Isaiah?
03:02 - Isaiah as a Christological book
05:27 - High Christology in the Old Testament
06:52 - Leviathan, Revelation, and the Angel of the Lord
07:51 - Isaiah 27 and the serpent of Genesis
08:22 - Sennacherib, Hezekiah, and the Angel of the Lord
10:51 - Are Old Testament prophecies taken out of context?
11:18 - Exile, Assyria, Babylon, and biblical prophecy
14:57 - Course promo: The Fifth Gospel
15:47 - Isaiah 14 and the fall of Satan
16:44 - The king of Babylon and the Daystar
19:06 - Isaiah 14, Isaiah 53, and the suffering servant
22:46 - Venus, Lucifer, and Christ as opposite images
24:22 - Angels, humanity, and the transfer of authority
25:57 - Is the suffering servant Israel or the Messiah?
26:23 - The Messiah as the son of David
28:50 - The servant, the seed, and the restoration of Israel
32:13 - How the nations participate in the promise
32:41 - The Old Testament and the redemption of the nations
34:54 - The mountain of the Lord and divine fire
37:34 - The heavenly Jerusalem and Isaiah 60
38:02 - Isaiah 59, incarnation, and the redemption of Israel
40:19 - The nations coming to honor the Jewish Messiah
43:14 - What the Isaiah class hopes to offer
43:56 - Seeing Christ disclosed in the Old Testament
46:36 - Symbolism, the Fathers, and the tight weave of Scripture
47:44 - Course details: five classes on Isaiah
48:49 - Closing and where to sign up

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

This is a talk I did at Hillsdale College in March 2026. In this talk, I explore mythological thinking as a way of understanding how facts become meaningful. Facts do not present themselves to us neutrally. They are always organized by care, relevance, attention, and story. I look at examples from Genesis, Icarus, Spider-Man, the Tower of Babel, and modern science to show how myths preserve deep patterns of human experience. Rather than treating myth as fiction or primitive explanation, I argue that myth reveals the structures by which we perceive reality, understand purpose, and connect psychology with theology.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/DEShUddn8HY

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now to get 15% off before the early bird sale ends: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Timestamps:
00:00 Coming up
01:38 Intro music
02:03 Introduction at Hillsdale College
06:59 Talk begins: hope, fragmentation, and new conversations
09:19 “Facts don’t care about your feelings”
12:12 Care organizes facts
16:50 Facts are always contained in a story
19:15 The Fifth Gospel course announcement
20:10 Why stories survive across generations
24:04 Mythological stories vs. scientific descriptions
27:14 Origin stories and why we care
30:37 Genesis as more than a scientific text
33:34 Genesis, relevance, and human categories
37:38 Why the mythological story should be primary
39:36 Myths are not primitive explanations
41:47 Babel, Icarus, Prometheus, and repeated patterns
44:16 Applicability vs. allegory
47:40 All remembered stories are mythological
49:24 Psychology, theology, and human care
51:27 The Incarnation as the myth that came true
54:34 How story unites psychology and theology
58:29 Returning to mythological thinking
59:55 Q&A: Bringing mythological thinking into science education
01:02:58 Q&A: How to recognize false myths
01:07:37 Q&A: Speaking truth in hostile circles
01:08:53 Q&A: Original sin as a true myth
01:11:13 Q&A: How artists discover truth through story
01:13:42 Q&A: Why live by Christ’s story rather than another?
01:18:21 Q&A: The modern fall into cold, hard reality

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

A telling of the events in Genesis that you might never have heard before.
In this episode of Universal History, Deacon Seraphim Rohlin and I return to Genesis through the Syriac tradition, especially the Cave of Treasures. This is the groundwork for understanding the universal history of Persia.

Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now to get 15% off before the early bird sale ends: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/f--wBUEAxjY

Universal History playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVX4HUUPrIY_M2uZP3yW6EEiod3fGD6FD

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
00:38 - Intro music
01:03 - Why return to Genesis before Persia
05:54 - Syriac sources and the Cave of Treasures
08:21 - Tradition, Scripture, and how ancient stories are received
12:55 - Melchizedek, Moriah, and hidden biblical patterns
17:41 - The first day: creation, waters, and the leaven of life
24:37 - The second day: the firmament and the waters above
28:45 - The third day: earth, seeds, and creation’s hidden potential
34:22 - Sterility, power, and modern artificial systems
38:21 - The fourth day: sun, moon, stars, heat, and life
43:45 - The sixth day: the formation of Adam
45:23 - Adam’s glory and the angels’ fear
52:17 - Satan refuses to venerate Adam
56:56 - The chariot of fire and ascent into paradise
59:19 - Eve, Adam’s side, and ancient wedding symbolism
01:02:09 - Paradise as the Church
01:06:47 - Jerusalem, the cross, and universal history
01:10:55 - The fall, the serpent, and the mirror of temptation
01:17:42 - Garments of skin and the body after the fall
01:22:13 - Adam and Eve expelled from paradise
01:27:00 - The Cave of Treasures and the first temple
01:29:21 - Cain, Abel, and the first sacrifice
01:31:42 - Cain’s jealousy and the first murder
01:35:40 - Abel as the first martyr and first relic
01:37:50 - Genesis as the pattern of the whole world

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this video, I look at the symbolism of the recent TV show, Pluribus. There's a lot of speculation about whether it's an allegory for AI, the internet, totalitarianism, or resisting tyranny. But I would argue that it's not allegorical at all, rather it's an exploration of a deeper ontological problem: the relationship of the one and the many, the inside and the outside, sameness and difference.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/JIk5jpmf5D0

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  
🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this video, I explore the symbolism of decapitation in the Bible and Christian tradition. Beginning with Joseph’s interpretation of the baker and cupbearer in Genesis, we trace a pattern of “lifting up the head” through Scripture, martyrdom, the Eucharist, and ultimately the crucifixion and ascension of Christ. Along the way, we encounter Saint John the Baptist, the mystery of sacrifice, and the astonishing story of Saint Denis of Paris, who carried his own head while preaching after his martyrdom.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/uwRsUj30URk

Join us at the Symbolic World Summit | May 14-16 | Ohio | Keynote speakers: Jonathan Pageau, Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, Kale Zelden, Annie Crawford, and Heather Pollington
Buy your tickets: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 
Virtual tickets are now also for sale, and Involved+ patrons can get 10% off: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/virtual-summit-2026

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

I sat down with Fr. Josiah Trenham to talk about something that’s becoming harder to ignore: how to properly order your loyalties.
We discussed the tension between faith, nation, family, and personal identity, and what happens when those come into conflict. 

Join us at the Symbolic World Summit, where Fr. Josiah will be one of the keynote speakers. 
May 14-16 | Ohio | Keynote speakers: Jonathan Pageau, Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, Kale Zelden, Annie Crawford, and Heather Pollington
Buy your tickets: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 

YouTube version of this episode: https://youtu.be/Ugt7XnbH0tQ

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation with Annie Crawford, we explore the role of alchemy in C.S. Lewis’ That Hideous Strength. While alchemy is often dismissed as occult or irrelevant, Lewis uses its symbolism in a precise and meaningful way.

We look at how the novel presents two forms of transformation: one rooted in control, technology, and disembodied power, and the other in sacrifice, order, and participation in the divine. This distinction speaks directly to how we understand modern technology, including AI.
The discussion also touches on story structure, the nature of symbolic thinking, and how transformation is embedded in narrative itself.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/7WqrbWNHJBs

Join us at the Symbolic World Summit | May 14-16 | Ohio | Keynote speakers: Jonathan Pageau, Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, Kale Zelden, Annie Crawford, and Heather Pollington
Buy your tickets: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 

=====
🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Please review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

This is the final episode of our Universal History series on the American Religion. Deacon Seraphim Rohlin and I look at the religious ideas behind the American project, especially the influence of Kabbalah and the search for a “pure” and universal mystical tradition. We trace how early Protestants, thinkers like Thomas Jefferson, and figures like Ezra Stiles engaged with Jewish mysticism as part of their attempt to understand and shape America’s role in the universal history.

- Watch the YouTube version of this episode: https://youtu.be/A563i-jrZs0
- Watch the rest of this series here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVX4HUUPrIY_U0msyBRVpwCI_srzn3tjL
- Universal History playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVX4HUUPrIY_M2uZP3yW6EEiod3fGD6FD



Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming Up
01:10 - Intro Music
01:35 - Introduction & Framing the Topic  
02:28 - Jefferson, Adams & “Pure Religion”  
05:23 - Kabbalah and the Founding Fathers  
07:48 - Puritans, Quakers & Early American Mysticism  
11:11 - Adam Kadmon & Christian Kabbalah  
16:18 - George Keith & Quaker Debates  
20:18 - Sabatianism & Messianic Movements  
26:03 - Apocalyptic Expectations in Early America  
29:44 - Judah Monis & Kabbalah in Harvard  
33:48 - Kabbalah Used to Defend the Trinity  
35:59 - Ezra Stiles & America as the New Israel  
39:06 - America as the “New World” in Prophecy  
42:49 - Loss of Christian Mysticism & Turning to Kabbalah  
48:33 - America as the Promised Land Idea  
51:50 - Is America the “End of the World”?  
54:54 - The Contradictions of American Culture  
58:10 - Final Reflections on America’s Spiritual Identity  

=====

Join us at the Symbolic World Summit | May 14-16 | Ohio | Keynote speakers: Jonathan Pageau, Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, Kale Zelden, Annie Crawford, and Heather Pollington.
Buy your tickets: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 

=====

NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD - Involved patrons can get a 10% discount. Apply your code at checkout. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history 

=====

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

This is a repost of a past video where I discussed the icons of Holy Week in the Orthodox Church and how they relate to each other as a unified symbolic pattern. Have a blessed Pascha.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/h55O4Kxs6tU

Join us at the Symbolic World Summit | May 14-16 | Ohio | Keynote speakers: Jonathan Pageau, Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, Kale Zelden, Annie Crawford, and Heather Pollington
Buy your tickets: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 

Timestamps:
00:00 - Start / Introduction
00:48 - Palm Sunday (Entry into Jerusalem)
05:34 - Holy Monday (Bridegroom / Crown of Thorns)
07:54 - Holy Tuesday (Wise & Foolish Virgins)
10:15 - Holy Wednesday (Washing of the Feet)
12:37 - Holy Thursday (Mystical Supper)
14:36 - Holy Friday (Crucifixion)
19:27 - Holy Saturday (Descent into Hades / Anastasis)
21:47 - Resurrection & Empty Tomb
24:09 - Burial & Laying in the Tomb
26:20 - Conclusion / Meaning of Holy Week

=====
NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD - Involved patrons can get a 10% discount. Apply your code at checkout. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history 
=====

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 

My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

With the release of Ye’s new album, Bully, many have asked about the music video for the song called “Father.” While the video is surreal and AI generated, it is not without meaning or structure. If you pay attention to broader, context, patterns, and the relationships between images, a coherent meaning begins to emerge.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/BG2psRcPH7o
My review of Ye's album Bully: https://x.com/PageauJonathan/status/2038374009382097289
Ye: Father music video: https://youtu.be/HBMy-y2wb4I?si=OKlf4_0c8y1zJwV1

SUMMIT 2026: Join us for the Symbolic World Summit 2026! Speakers include Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Jonathan Pageau, Dn. Seraphim Rohlin, and others.
Date: May 14-16
Place: Broadview Heights, OH
Don't miss out! https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

=====
NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD - Involved patrons can get a 10% discount. Apply your code at checkout. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history 
=====

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Kale Zelden is a literature teacher and writer and in this video he joins me to discuss reading, the "Great books", and what it means to recover the reading tradition in a modern context. We talk about how to encounter old texts, what reading can contribute to our lives, and how to approach authors like Homer, Dante, and Shakespeare without reducing them to modern assumptions. We also explore the limits of the novel, modernism, postmodernism, irony, and the essential rediscovery of the epic.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/9zps7RIov44

Kale’s Substack, The Underneath: https://kalezelden.substack.com/

Join us at the Symbolic World Summit | May 14-16 | Ohio | Keynote speakers: Jonathan Pageau, Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dcn. Seraphim Rohlin, Kale Zelden, Annie Crawford, and Heather Pollington
Buy your tickets: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 

Learn more about Pavel Shchelin's phenomenal course on Plutarch, Live now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history


TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Coming up
01:07 - Intro music
01:32 - Introduction
02:09 - The state of education
07:30 - First of all
10:47 - The power of analogy
13:11 - Select your curriculum
21:05 - What is canon?
33:24 - What are we moving towards
39:20 - Allegory
43:47 - What is modernism?
47:50 - Great books program
53:24 - What is the epic?


BOOKS MENTIONED IN THIS DISCUSSION:
00:04:45
 Augustine — Confessions — Spiritual autobiography, early Christian thought
 Plato — Dialogues — Philosophy of truth, justice, knowledge
 Aristotle — (various works) — Ethics, logic, metaphysics
 Church Fathers — (various writings) — Foundations of Christian theology
00:06:20
 Anne Rice — (novels) — Modern popular fiction
 Shakespeare — (general works) — Foundational drama
 Beowulf — Anonymous — Old English epic poem
00:06:49
 Plato — Dialogues — Rediscovered philosophical texts
00:07:32
 Shakespeare — Hamlet — Tragedy of revenge and doubt
 Dante — Divine Comedy — Vision of Hell, Purgatory, Heaven
 Chaucer — Canterbury Tales — Medieval storytelling
 Mary Shelley — Frankenstein — Creation and responsibility
 Milton — Paradise Lost — Epic of the Fall
00:13:55
 Kerouac — On the Road — Modern freedom and experience
 Camus — (e.g. The Stranger) — Existential philosophy
00:14:31
 Homer — Iliad, Odyssey — Foundational epics
 Plato — Apology, Republic — Justice and philosophy
 Shakespeare —
Romeo and Juliet — Tragic love
Julius Caesar — Politics and betrayal
Macbeth — Ambition and guilt
A Midsummer Night’s Dream — Comedy and illusion
King Lear — Suffering and authority
Hamlet — Existential tragedy
The Tempest — Reconciliation
00:16:21
 Dostoevsky — Crime and Punishment — Guilt and redemption
 Dostoevsky — The Brothers Karamazov — Faith and morality
00:21:31
 Voyage of St. Brendan — Medieval Christian voyage
 Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius — Apocalyptic text
 The Golden Legend — Jacobus de Voragine — Saints’ lives
00:21:58
 Cervantes — Don Quixote — Satire of chivalry, early novel
00:22:51
 Jane Austen — Pride and Prejudice — Social psychology
00:23:59
 Milton — Paradise Lost — (revisited, epic psychology)
00:26:11
 Faulkner — (novels) — Fragmented modern storytelling
00:33:41
 C.S. Lewis — On Stories — Defense of story over psychology
 C.S. Lewis — Abolition of Man — Critique of modern values
 C.S. Lewis — Miracles — Defense of the supernatural
00:37:05
 Sondheim — Into the Woods — Modern fairy tale deconstruction
00:38:55
 Rabelais — Gargantua and Pantagruel — Satirical, playful text
00:44:06
 Melville — Moby-Dick — Epic-scale novel
 Hemingway — The Sun Also Rises — Modern disillusionment
00:49:42
 Ovid — Metamorphoses — Mythic transformations
00:46:13 (thinkers mentioned)
 Lyotard — Postmodern philosophy
 Derrida — Deconstruction
 Heidegger — Phenomenology
00:53:14
 Virgil — Aeneid — Roman epic
 Bible — (Moses narrative) — Epic of calling and suffering

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  
🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

We often assume that being “historically accurate” means getting closer to the truth, but that’s not always the case. In this video, I explore how modern, mechanical thinking can actually invert meaning, using the example of Christ’s crucifixion. 
What matters most is not just the mechanical details of how something could have happened, but what it means and its actual implications.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/HXsbK_k8vn4

SUMMIT 2026: Join us for the Symbolic World Summit 2026! Speakers include Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Jonathan Pageau, Dn. Seraphim Rohlin, and others.
Date: May 14-16
Place: Broadview Heights, OH
Don't miss out! Hope to see you there: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

=====
NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD - Involved patrons can get a 10% discount. Apply your code at checkout. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history
=====

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation, I sat down with Mary Harrington about technology and the online world.
Mary reflects on her path as a writer, the evolution of online culture, and the growing difficulty of discerning truth in the digital environment. We also touch on memory, embodiment, cancel culture, and politics. 

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/eeBZuA0S1ZE

Mary will be speaking at the Symbolic World Summit. The theme of the conference is Retelling the Cosmic Epic, and Mary’s talk will be titled: 'Rebuild the Monasteries'
Description:
In an age of AI "slop" and flattened culture, how do we understand, and cultivate, what makes us distinctly human? Mary Harrington will argue that there is no need to reinvent the wheel. Premodern practices of memory and prayer, once cultivated in Europe's monasteries, can refresh our imaginations and salvage our human cultures in the digital age.
Come join us at Woodside Event Center | Broadview Heights, Ohio | May 14-16, 2026
Early Bird Pricing – Ends March 26th: Save $50 on both General Admission and VIP tickets
Buy tickets now: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ 

=====
NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD - Involved patrons can get a 10% discount. Apply your code at checkout. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history 
=====

Jonathan and Mary's discussion on Socrates in the City: https://youtu.be/nrsjZKPH4WA?si=kaM5zE2Qj-4XCD1K

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
01:07 - Intro music
01:32 - Introduction
02:14 - Mary's journey
09:00 - The meaning of meaning
10:46 - The singularity already happened
12:53 - Being connected
17:28 - The printing press industrial template
20:52 - AI
22:21 - Using AI
25:47 - Internet platforms and politics
32:10 - Being anonymous
35:37 - Politics
37:44 - The end of the printing press
39:47 - The end of the industrial era
42:46 - Cancel culture
46:56 - Treasure houses

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation I speak with Dr. Zachary Porcu about his book, Journey to Reality: Sacramental Life in a Secular Age, and the challenge of explaining true Christian thinking to modern people. We discuss how modern assumptions about the world make it difficult to understand ideas like sacraments, participation, and the relationship between the spiritual and material. Dr. Porcu explains why he wrote the book and how reframing basic categories—what we mean by God, religion, and reality—is often necessary before theology can make sense.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/Qd9xENDzfRo 
Please review the Symbolic World podcast on Spotify or Apple podcasts. 

Dr. Zac’s website and book: https://zacharyporcu.com/
The Roots of Everything podcast (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@TheRootsofEverything
Substack: https://zacharyporcu.substack.com/ 

=====
NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD, get the early bird discount of 15% off if you register by March 18th. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history 
=====


SUMMIT 2026: Join us for the Symbolic World Summit 2026! Speakers include Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Jonathan Pageau, Dn. Seraphim Rohlin, and others.
Date: May 14-16
Place: Broadview Heights, OH
Buy your tickets now and get $50 off with the early bird sale through March 26th. Don't miss out! Hope to see you there: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
01:03 - Intro music
01:29 - Introduction
03:54 - Jargon
05:46 - Matter and spirituality
08:49 - Re-enchantment
13:10 - What you see
22:09 - The moral and physical laws
31:01 - Occult converts
36:39 - Supernatural experiences
40:54 - What do we do?
46:46 - Meditation
49:47 - On American religion
52:16 - The rational and the esoteric

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  
🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

This is a conversation between Deacon Seraphim Rohlin and Pavel Shchelin on political theology, power, and Plutarch’s Lives. They explore how ancient biographies reveal enduring patterns of ambition, authority, and the human passions that shape political history—from Rome to the modern world. Topics include Cicero, rhetoric and power, the fall of the Roman Republic, and why the stories of ancient statesmen still help us understand today’s political landscape.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/Wo2IkgDT0q4

Please review this podcast on Spotify or Apple podcasts, it helps us a lot. Links:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5 
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

NEW COURSE: Plutarch: Symbolism in History with Pavel Shchelin
The problem with history is that you are in it. Plutarch teaches us to read power symbolically—asking "whom does the hero serve?" to predict leadership patterns before they play out.
Presenter: Pavel Shchelin
Duration: 8 weeks studying the lives of Greeks and Roman Lycurgus, Alcibiades, Lysander, Pompey, Caesar, and Octavian –as living patterns, not dead men.
Live classes are on Wednesdays at 4-6pm Eastern Time, starting March 18th through May 6th, 2026.
Price: $180 USD, get the early bird discount of 15% off if you register by March 18th. 
Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/plutarch-symbolism-in-history 

SUMMIT 2026: Join us for the Symbolic World Summit 2026! Speakers include Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Jonathan Pageau, Dn. Seraphim Rohlin, and others.
Date: May 14-16
Place: Broadview Heights, OH
Buy your tickets now and get $50 off with the early bird sale through March 12th. Don't miss out! Hope to see you there: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
01:32 - Intro music
01:58 - Introduction
03:47 - The separation of religion and politics
07:44 - Current politics
09:20 - How they met
10:46 - Why Plutarch?
18:46 - If you were pointing a video camera
20:20 - Great men
24:28 - Plutarch's Lives
26:57 - Influence
28:40 - Cicero
49:18 - Digging his own grave
56:58 - Word and will
01:05:48 - Cicero's lesson for us
01:10:58 - Course info
01:16:06 - The point of studying history

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Magical beginnings, secular endings. In this episode of Universal History, Deacon Seraphim Rohlin and I start a discussion about early Mormonism (or rather, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) within the broader context of American religious history.
We look at the enchanted religious world of early America — folk magic, treasure seeking, restorationism, the Melchizedek priesthood — and how these patterns shaped movements like Mormonism. We also reflect on the recurring American impulse to “restore” a lost spiritual authority, and the impulse to, on the other hand, make all things respectably secular.

This is episode 4 of our Universal History series on the American religion. Watch it here on YouTube:
Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVX4HUUPrIY_U0msyBRVpwCI_srzn3tjL
Episode 1: https://youtu.be/htXHJ1WRSAg
Episode 2: https://youtu.be/o9rMy6lde0c
Episode 3: https://youtu.be/0_RKBPaQAyk
Episode 4: https://youtu.be/ZopvdgYe-UA

===

Join us for the Symbolic World Summit 2026! Speakers include Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dn. Seraphim Rohlin, myself, and others.
Date: May 14-16
Place: Broadview Heights, OH
Buy your tickets now and get $50 off with the early bird sale through March 12th. Don't miss out! Hope to see you there: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/

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NEW COURSE: The Art of Imitating Heaven: Structure and Meaning in Ancient Cosmology By Joshua Sturgill
What is heaven? Where is it? For ancient people, the answer was obvious: simply look up at the night sky. For them, to see the stars and planets was to see the face of the divine. Christianity, too, understood the visible sky as the realm of unfallen creation. What does this belief mean, and why was it lost?
🗓 Live classes are on Sundays at 5-6:30pm Eastern Time, starting February 1st through March 8th, 2026.
💰 Price: $150 USD (Involved patrons qualify for a 10% discount)
⏰ Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-art-of-imitating-heaven

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Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
01:01 - Intro music
01:27 - The problem with talking about Mormonism
06:10 - Context for why to talk about this
13:26 - The Bible and magic
20:46 - The distinction in magic
25:55 - Enchanted practices
35:14 - Baptism for the dead
36:20 - Melchizedek priesthood
38:54 - Defining feature of American religion
41:28 - The charismatic narrative
42:43 - Hebrews
44:46 - Esoteric Enoch
45:52 - Secret garments
46:45 - The Whitmer family
51:24 - Joseph Smith
58:56 - Proscribed but practiced
01:02:52 - Many religious experiences
01:04:54 - The attitude to magic and miracles
01:09:24 - Magical beginning, secular end
01:16:40 - Long-lasting

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this conversation, I sit down with Stephen Roach on the Makers and Mystics podcast to explore why our stories feel exhausted — and what that reveals about our cultural moment. We talk about the end of the post–World War II narrative, the collapse of the hero (and even the anti-hero), and how storytelling has drifted. We also discuss fairy tales, monsters, AI, and the future of art.

Let me know what you think in the comments and come join us at the Breath and the Clay conference, a creative arts gathering in Winston Salem, NC March 20-22, 2026: http://www.thebreathandtheclay.com/

YouTube version of this episode: https://youtu.be/Xbr6XQlspGQ

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Another opportunity to come together and meet is the Symbolic World Summit 2026! Speakers include Fr. Josiah Trenham, Mary Harrington, Dn. Seraphim Rohlin, myself, and others.
Date: May 14-16
Place: Broadview Heights, OH
Buy your tickets now and get $50 off with the early bird sale. Don't miss out: https://symbolicworldsummit.com/
Hope to see you there.

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 
🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
01:21 - Intro music
01:47 - Introduction
03:08 - Narrative exhaustion
04:38 - End of the WW2 narrative
08:40 - Fairy tales
11:09 - Jonathan's retelling
13:17 - Art and ideology
17:41 - Complexity in religious art
21:32 - Trust in the audience
24:33 - Participation in art
28:27 - Distorted retellings
32:30 - Resistance of tyranny
35:28 - Identity and form
37:16 - Limitation and contemporary art
41:34 - AI art
44:11 - Human connection
45:30 - Making space

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this episode I try to circle around something that is very difficult to speak about directly — the void.
From the opening verses of Genesis, where the earth is described as “empty and void,” we are confronted with a mystery that runs through Scripture, philosophy, and our own experience. What is the “not that” which underlies being? Why has the modern world become so fascinated with negativity, difference, and alterity? And how do we understand the necessary — yet possibly dangerous — role of emptiness in the structure of reality?

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/10DS7IxOVro

🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast:
-Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5
-Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 

=============
NEW COURSE: The Art of Imitating Heaven: Structure and Meaning in Ancient Cosmology By Joshua Sturgill
What is heaven? Where is it? For ancient people, the answer was obvious: simply look up at the night sky. For them, to see the stars and planets was to see the face of the divine. Christianity, too, understood the visible sky as the realm of unfallen creation. What does this belief mean, and why was it lost?
🗓 Live classes are on Sundays at 5-6:30pm Eastern Time, starting February 1st through March 8th, 2026.
💰 Price: $150 USD (Involved patrons qualify for a 10% discount)
⏰ Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-art-of-imitating-heaven
===============

Mentioned:
-Symbolism Explained: The Fundamental WWII Duality That Still Haunts Us Today: https://youtu.be/vLpEDlgEleg?si=w45xD3-uGdx2WOo4
-The World War II Consensus is Breaking Down: https://youtu.be/MfXxQW77cQA?si=7TnLlu7uq--Fej3D
-GodsDog: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/collections/godsdog
-My recent video on the Parable of the Wedding Feast: https://youtu.be/YRMlQiNkSpE?si=JF3fy7RdFR8FtxO2

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
01:03 - Intro music
01:28 - Introduction
05:22 - The role of the void
06:36 - The separation of heaven and earth
09:13 - Not that
11:18 - Let the earth produce
14:32 - Asking questions
16:07 - The ancient perspective
20:38 - Earth being earth
22:15 - The tree of good and bad
29:44 - What is sin?
32:37 - Examples of sin
33:53 - Judging difference
35:01 - Postmodern thinking
36:07 - Sadism and masochism
40:11 - The Mother of God
43:51 - Since WW2
48:08 - Outro

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  

Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

In this talk at St. Michael’s Church in Charleston, I walk through the seven days of creation as presented in Genesis, exploring creation as a divine song: a rhythm of heaven and earth, light and darkness, above and below. 

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/p2kb9ggwrp0

=============
NEW COURSE: The Art of Imitating Heaven: Structure and Meaning in Ancient Cosmology By Joshua Sturgill
What is heaven? Where is it? For ancient people, the answer was obvious: simply look up at the night sky. For them, to see the stars and planets was to see the face of the divine. Christianity, too, understood the visible sky as the realm of unfallen creation. What does this belief mean, and why was it lost?
🗓 Live classes are on Sundays at 5-6:30pm Eastern Time, starting February 1st through March 8th, 2026.
💰 Price: $150 USD (Involved patrons qualify for a 10% discount)
⏰ Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-art-of-imitating-heaven
===============

Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
00:57 - Intro music
01:22 - Introduction
05:18 - Day 1
15:20 - Day 2
21:53 - Day 3
33:34 - Day 4
38:31 - Day 5
45:51 - Day 6

🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive montly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe
💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com
🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau  
Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ 
My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

Many are called. Not all are chosen.
There is a widespread idea that Christianity is about being “nice,” endlessly tolerant, and endlessly open. But that idea does not survive a careful reading of the Gospel.
In this video, I look at the parable of the Wedding Feast and explain why Christ’s invitation to everyone does not mean the acceptance of everything. Using this parable, I explore how compassion can become weaponized, how inclusion without a standard of conformity leads to chaos, and why both churches and nations must have limits if they are to remain what they are. This is not a political argument, but a symbolic and theological one—about how bodies, communities, and kingdoms actually function.

YouTube version: https://youtu.be/YRMlQiNkSpE
=============
NEW COURSE: The Art of Imitating Heaven: Structure and Meaning in Ancient Cosmology By Joshua Sturgill
What is heaven? Where is it? For ancient people, the answer was obvious: simply look up at the night sky. For them, to see the stars and planets was to see the face of the divine. Christianity, too, understood the visible sky as the realm of unfallen creation. What does this belief mean, and why was it lost?
🗓 Live classes are on Sundays at 5-6:30pm Eastern Time, starting February 1st through March 8th, 2026.
💰 Price: $150 USD (Involved patrons qualify for a 10% discount)
⏰ Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-art-of-imitating-heaven
===============

💻 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: https://matthewwilkinson.net/