4. Reclaiming Religious Terminology (w/ Layman Pascal)
Jun 14, 2021
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Exploring redefining religious terms like 'God' and 'Spirit' in a metamodern context. Navigating the complexities of heaven, hell, and afterlife. Embracing sacred geometry and myths beyond conventional narratives. Advocating for reclaiming and adapting religious terminology for modern conversations.
Reclaiming religious terminology enriches metamodern spirituality by infusing traditional terms with new vitality and meaning.
Defining spirituality as integrating subjective subsystems for luminous coherence prioritizes experiential engagement over theoretical constructs.
Spirit transcends the self, embodying luminous coherence and enthusiasm, guiding individuals towards mysterious spiritual experiences.
Telos and divine essence orient towards enhanced coherence and novelty, reflecting intrinsic architectural components for self-organization.
Deep dives
The Significance of Traditional Religious Language and Terms
Exploring the balance between reclaiming traditional religious language and ideas versus the need to rename or reinvent them. Discusses the idea of re-infusing familiar terms with vitality and meaning, referencing Martin Buber's thoughts on the word God.
Defining Spirituality as Integration of Subjective Subsystems
Defines spirituality as the practices and predispositions enabling individuals to integrate their subjective subsystems to produce luminous surplus coherence. Emphasizes the experiential, engaged relationship with a self that transcends current limits.
Exploring the Concept of Spirit in Spirituality
Discusses spirit as an entity transcending the self, imbued with luminous coherence. Addresses the transcendent qualities spurring enthusiasm and the mysterious nature of spiritual experiences.
Discussion on the Telos and Will in Divine Context
Examines the teleological aspect as an orienting quality guiding towards enhanced coherence, novelty, and inter functionality. Considers the potent and orienting characteristics of the divine, reflecting on potential intrinsic architectural components guiding progression towards self-organization.
Engagement of Differing Perspectives on Mythical Narratives
Engagement with the divergence in perspectives on traditional and modern mythical narratives is addressed. The discussion delves into the significance of myths in fostering integration and understanding across diverse belief systems, emphasizing the need for a nuanced approach to navigating varying interpretations.
Exploration of Therapeutic Use of Narrative Reevaluation
The therapeutic potential of reevaluating and redefining narratives, particularly in religious and spiritual contexts, is explored. The conversation highlights the importance of processing and transcending past negative associations with spiritual language to reclaim their transformative and meaningful essence.
Healing Language Profaned Through Reclamation Efforts
The challenge of reconciling the profane connotations associated with spiritual language is confronted through the concept of reclaiming and sanctifying the sacred within the mundane. The dialogue underscores the significance of renegotiating language and symbols to restore depth and authenticity to spiritual discourse.
Embracing Rebellious Transformation within Sacred Dialogue
The theme of rebellious transformation within religious discourse is examined, drawing parallels between religious texts and the necessity of embracing rebellion to facilitate evolution in belief systems. The importance of transgressions and reversals in spiritual growth and revaluation of values is emphasized.
How do we talk about metamodern spirituality, especially when traditional religious terminology is so fraught with baggage from the past? Do we rename our terms, or reclaim them? In this conversation with Brendan Graham Dempsey, Layman Pascal defends the reclamation of religious language, offering his own definitions of words like "God," "spirit," "heaven and hell," and more. With this reformulation of familiar ideas, we can glimpse a vital and viable framework for a truly metamodern spirituality, one that retains its connection to the traditions of our ancestors and their age-old explorations of matters of ultimate concern.
0:00 Introduction
3:30 Defending Conservation: The Right in the Right/Left Polarity of Metamodern Spirituality
5:24 Redefining: "Spirituality"
7:36 "Spirit"
8:51 "Numinous"
12:10 "God"
26:38 "Telos," the "Will of God," and "Sin"
34:31 (On Mingling Symbol Sets)
38:35 "Sacred Geometry"
46:05 "Religion"
54:35 "Myth," "Pantheon," and "Divinities/gods"
1:17:44 "Heaven" and "Hell"
1:21:09 "Afterlife," nihilistic vs. life-affirming Transcendence
1:32:23 Meta-Praxis or Meta-Narrative? The Primacy of Experience over Theory
1:42:52 Navigating Different Terminological Contexts
