"Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?" The internet widely attributes this quote to Groucho Marx, but the gist of the joke is that the line was spoken by Chico Marx, while dressed as Groucho. In a movie (Duck Soup, 1933). In other words, you cannot trust what you see or... Continue Reading →
Fire of Norea Novel Excerpt: The Undying Man
In this excerpt of Fire of Norea, from "1992", a young man named Clint unfortunately got lost in the woods of West Virginia and, more unfortunately, has been found by a witch and her kin: Clint dangled from the rafters of the barn, a thick length of woven hemp twine wrapped around his wrists and shoulders.... Continue Reading →
REVIEW: Sean McCloud, “American Possessions”
McCloud, Sean. American Possessions: Fighting Demons in the Contemporary United States. New York: Oxford University Press, 2015. A tome with the ritualistic repetition of a grimoire, Dr. McCloud's American Possessions is haunted by a singular truth, the barest mystery of which possesses the reader until the final moment, when the specter of "neoliberalism" reveals its... Continue Reading →
Apocryphon of John, Part II of Ineffable God: The Jewish (rather than Platonic) Roots of Gnosticism
In the previous post, I provided an overview of this series, in which I will look at Platonic thought, Philo of Alexandria and the gnostic text Apocryphon of John in order to argue that gnostic thought, although it may have utilized philosophical terms to explain its concepts, was not a philosophical system based on Greek philosophy. In this... Continue Reading →
Ineffable God: The Jewish (rather than Platonic) Roots of Gnosticism, Part I
Let me tell you then why the creator made this world of generation. He was good, and the good can never have any jealousy of anything. And being free from jealousy, he desired that all things should be as like himself as they could be. This is in the truest sense the origin of creation... Continue Reading →
Power Relations and the Socially Constructed Self: What does this say about “belief”? Part IV: Pierre Bourdieu
This is the third in a series, in which I will present a partial summary of systems for three theorists and then apply them to a question in the final post: the relationship between social indoctrination and personal belief. To read the previous post, regarding Michel Foucault, read here. To jump to the first post... Continue Reading →
What you need to know before assuming anything about religion
Martyn Oliver posted this blog last August about the reality of religious diversity within and outside one's own tradition. It's valuable information for everyone, to deepen our understanding of the world around us and to begin a journey of strengthening our relationships through diversity rather than alienating ourselves from one another because of assumptions about... Continue Reading →