Exploring Peak Experiences and Spiritual Encounters

Elizabeth Oldfield is a writer, speaker, and advocate for intentional community living based in South London. Her work, including her book 'Fully Alive', explores the intersections of faith, culture, and ethics through a deeply personal lens. 

In a world that often trivializes love and deep connections, how can we cultivate a life of wisdom, virtue, and transcendence amidst our finite existence and growing polarization?

Join John Vervaeke and Elizabeth Oldfield in a profound dialogue that explores these critical themes of human existence, drawing from Platonic to Christian thought and emphasizing the transformative power of dialogical reasoning, cognitive flexibility, and awe. Elizabeth Oldfield shares insights from her book 'Fully Alive,' an Augustinian blend of autobiographical confession and psycho-spiritual reflection that highlights relational living and the transformative power of love. The conversation addresses the trivialization of love in modern culture and advocates for a deeper understanding while navigating the complexities of polarization in politics, the comparison between psychedelic and spiritual experiences, and the intrinsic value of community and wisdom traditions in achieving a virtuous life. Discover the necessity of grounding transformative experiences in communal practices for genuine personal and societal transformation in this thought-provoking discussion.

Support John's groundbreaking work and gain exclusive access to live Q&A sessions, early video releases, and more by joining our Patreon community! https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke

Discover a profound exploration of love, wisdom, and the human soul in Elizabeth Oldfield's upcoming book, "Fully Alive: Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times." https://www.amazon.com/Fully-Alive-Tending-Turbulent-Times/dp/1587436507

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“I can close my eyes now and know myself’s seen, and the deep knowing of the presence of love in my life and the way that every other moment of love, and encounter, and intimacy reflects that is the ground of my being.” - Elizabeth Oldfield [00:32:48]

"Wisdom is about this loving enhancement of our connectedness. The wise person can go into a complex, messy, ill-defined situation and home in on what's relevant, summoning their agency in the right way so that they are properly responsible." - John Vervaeke [00:31:04]

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0:00 Introduction to Voices with Vervaeke: Elizabeth Oldfield'

1:30  Elizabeth Oldfield: Life, Faith, and the Quest for Existential Satisfaction

2:50 Exploring 'Fully Alive': Deep Dialogues on Belonging, Soul, and Existential Satisfaction

6:05 Plato's Insights on the Psyche, Inner Conflict, and the Pursuit of Inner Fullness

10:20 The Quest for Inner Peace, Wisdom, and Understanding Sin

14:20 The Interplay of Love, Wisdom, and the Divine in the Pursuit of Fully Aliveness

27:15 Unpacking the Realization of the Really Real: Connectedness, Love, and Presence

45:50 Identity, Cultural Scripts, and the Tension between Faith and Intellect

47:45 Expanding Our Understanding of Intelligence, Reality, and the Role of Attention

1:00:40 The Challenge of Authentic Love, Reverence, and Awe in a Trivialized World 

1:13:10 Reverence, Awe, and the Cultivation of Virtue on the Path to Wisdom

1:22:50 Concluding Reflections on Love, Wisdom, and the Pursuit of Fully Aliveness

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Join the Vervaeke Foundation in our mission to advance the scientifically rigorous pursuit of wisdom and make a meaningful impact in the world. https://vervaekefoundation.org/

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Authors, Ideas, and Works Mentioned in this Episode

Plato 

Freud 

Pascal 

Dialogos 

Kenosis 

Thumos 

Homo Inconvartis in Se 

Plato’s Dialogues

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Thank you for watching!