In this episode, Aaron Simmons stepped up to host this conversation with Robert Talisse while I'm leading the Bonhoeffer travel-learning trip. They unpack one of the most pressing issues of our time - this wild paradox where the very thing democracy needs (us banding together with like-minded folks to get stuff done) is also the thing that's slowly destroying our ability to see people who disagree with us as actual human beings worth listening to. Rob brilliantly unpacked how we've gotten to this place where our political identities have become so central to who we are that we'd rather our kids marry someone of a different faith than someone who votes differently, and how belief polarization turns us into these echo-chamber dwellers who can't imagine that reasonable people could possibly disagree with us. But here's the beautiful thing - they didn't just diagnose the problem; they talked about hope, about finding spaces where we can be human together without politics being the main event, like Aaron's MAGA-flag camping story. This conversation is exactly why we're doing the Democracy in Tension Summit this summer, because we need to figure out how to navigate these tensions without losing our souls or our democracy in the process.

ONLINE SUMMIT:⁠⁠ Democracy in Tension - NAVIGATING THE INTERLOCKING CRISES OF DEMOCRACY AND RELIGION ⁠⁠

Democracy today faces profound challenges – polarization, inequality, populist authoritarianism, and widespread cynicism are eroding the foundations of democratic life. Yet, what if democracy's greatest strength lies not in eliminating these tensions, but in productively embracing them?The summit will navigate the complex terrain between political equality and social justice, liberal freedom and democratic sovereignty, and ethical demands and political action.

As always, the class is donation-based, including 0. INFO & Sign-Up at ⁠⁠www.HomebrewedClasses.com⁠

You can WATCH the conversation on YouTube.

Dr. Robert B. Talisse is W. Alton Jones Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Dr. Aaron Simmons is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Furman University. You can follow his Substack ‘Philosophy in the Wild.‘

Previous Episodes with Aaron

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Sustaining Democracy

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