The Two Tongues Podcast

S4E40 - From Monism to Monotheism - Plotinus and Company

In this episode Chris brings us Opinion Scholarship on the idea of a supreme, monotheistic God as expressed in the Neoplatonic idea of "The One" or "The Monad." We explore the commonalities between Christian Monotheism and Neoplatonism and speculate on the fertile ground for the emergency of this idea prepared by the pre-Socratics and Plato himself. We take a deep dive into Plotinus, Porphyry and Proclus, their descriptions of mystical experience and see see how they rationalizations their mystical intuitions with logic and reason. We then discuss altered states of consciousness, the ancient Greek mysteries and depth psychology to bring this all together.

Enjoy ;)

S4E39 - Discussing U.S. Politics and Religion with a Brit

In this episode Chris reconnects with friend of the show--Daniel Torridon of the Onion Unlimited podcast. We talk about U.S. politics in the new Trump era and the English perspective on it; we compare and contrast U.S. and U.K. political parties and platforms...and then pivot to our mutually favorite subject--Religion. Daniel discusses his journey from a repressive upbringing as a Jehovah's Witness, to his discovery of Pandeism and then his rapid subsequent descent through related systems such as Panentheism, Advaita Vedanta and philosophical Monism.

Enjoy :)

S4E38 - Critique of Mysticism with the Other Chris

In this episode we introduce a new friend of the show and have a thoughtful discussion on the origin of religion and just what rests at the historical beginning of organized faith. We discuss the work of Wilhelm Schmidt, E.J. Michael Witzel and Michael Heiser on the subject in addition to a whole host of interesting asides. We discuss the ideas of 'sympathetic magic' and 'archetypes of the mind' as potential answers to the origin of religion, but ultimately end on another possibility--that of personal, individual mystical experience. What follows is an exploration of where mysticism overlaps with Christian theology and where it varies. Agree or disagree, great fun was had by all!

If you enjoyed our guest--Chris from YHWH's Janitor--you can take a deeper dive here: www.yhwhjanitor.com 

Enjoy ;)

 

S4E37 - The Power in the Soul - Eckhart Continued

In this episode Chris returns to the Sermons of Meister Eckhart to build from the first Eckhart episode covering Sermon 52. On this pass we cover Eckhart's conception of the soul and how it relates to God, setting the stage for mystical experience. We then turn to the corpus of Eckhart's sermons in search of a path toward attaining mystical experience for yourself. While there are few direct prescriptions, Eckhart leaves us a breadcrumb trail, which entails detachment and ego death in conjunction with an earnest and steadfast seeking after God. Will this path lead you to mystical illumination? Only one way to find out!

Enjoy ;)

S4E36 - Robots, Apologetics and the Future

In this episode Kyle and Chris re-unite after 2 weeks to catch up on the state of the world and what's new with each of us. The conversation  illustrated the contrast between our relatively recent past and glimpses of our future techo-utopia...or dystopia (a the case may be). Kyle discussed breaking his phone and enjoying the disconnection and independence that comes with it; eliciting nostalgia for the "simpler times" of the 1990s.  Then we discuss Chris' new fascination with various Christian apologists on YouTube--such as Sam Shamoun, Bob Speakers Corner and Cliffe Knechtle. We meander through a discussion of Communism, which leads to speculation about Automation, Universal Basic Income and whether Communism finds a resurgence in a post-labor world.

Enjoy ;) 

S4E35 - Meister Eckhart - The Eternal Abyss of Divine Being

In this episode Chris brings us Opinion Scholarship on the medieval Christian mystics, Meister Eckhart. We review one of his most famous sermons--Sermon 52--to discover why he was accused of heresy and delivered to the inquisition. We explore his notion of "being free of God," "standing in my first cause," and "breaking through" and the kenosis or self-emptying that is necessary to achieve it. We then follow Eckhart as he describes what mystic experience is, what it tells us about the nature of God and ultimately to the conclusion that Creator and Creation are One.

Enjoy ;)

S4E34 - What Did Jesus Teach

In this episode Chris and Kyle pow-wow with a former evangelist and friend of the show, Daniel Torridon, of the Onion Unlimited podcast, to see what we can make of Jesus as a teacher. What or who Jesus was remains hotly debated after over 2,000 years. Was he God or merely a man? Was he a prophet? A teacher? While we have no hope of consensus as to his godhood, we do have general agreement that he was a great teacher. Oh? So, what then did Jesus teach? Do you know? Could you summarize his teachings? Could your average Western Christian? It turns out, many cannot. This is a shame, but one we can remedy. Come! Pick up your cross and follow me down the rabbit hole of gospel of the Kingdom of God.

Enjoy ;)

S4E33 - The Kingdom of God

In this episode Chris brings us Opinion Scholarship, this time surrounding Christianity. We read through the gospels of Mark, Matthew, Luke, John and Thomas, searching for the teachings of Jesus. Here we find references to the 'gospel of the kingdom of God,' but without any clear description of what that means. So we seek, as Jesus suggested, until we find. And what did we find? A whole host of images and ideas surrounding the symbol of the 'Kingdom of God.' We put those images together like the pieces to a mystical puzzle and voila! We find the Kingdom of Heaven just might be an allegory of unity with the divine.

Enjoy ;)

S4E32 - Game of Thrones, the Debate and Revisionist History

In this episode Kyle and Chris reunite after a few weeks apart to catch up on what's been going on--the presidential debate key among them. We begin with praise and criticism of the GOT series, which Kyle felt compelled to share after re-watching all 8 seasons in bed sick this past week. The theme of political upheaval then took us into a discussion of the Trump-Harris debate and the various conspiracy theories surrounding it. This leads us into a rabbit-hole of public mistrust, racial division and the existential anxiety of wondering just how all this gets resolved...if ever it does.

Enjoy ;)

S4E31 - Ex Nihilo

In this episode Chris delivers Opinion Scholarship on the idea of Nothingness and the Zero-Energy Universe Hypothesis in modern physics. He compares these ideas and their implications to humanity's oldest myths about the creation of the cosmos...and finds some striking parallels! In our myths we find a primordial mystery existing before existence from which 2 equal and opposing deities are formed. In physics we find the mystery of the quantum vacuum from which 2 equal and opposing particles are formed. In the case of myth, God created Ex Nihilo--from nothing. In the case of the Zero-Energy Universe, the whole of the cosmos was created Ex Nihilo--from a state of zero energy!

Enjoy ;)