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EMP Podcast 70
Modernity, Christianity and Meaning with Paul Vander Klay EMP Podcast 70
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Modernity, Christianity and Meaning with Paul Vander Klay EMP Podcast 70

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Episode Breakdown

On this podcast we have dug deeply into the topic of meaning and recent episodes have had a strong focus on spirituality. This however will be the first time we are dealing really directly with Christianity.

One might reasonably ask why a podcast formed to talk about movement practice and the science connected to it is featuring a Christian reformed church pastor?

Over the years though what we have discovered is that fundamentally we believe the purpose of movement practice is the cultivation of a meaningful life and the development of personal and communal virtue. John Vervaeke, the podcast’s most recurrent guest and one of my close friends and mentor has gone so far as to joke that what we have built is a church.

I demur from that label, because I fear the dogmatism that can be attached and taking on a scope that is inappropriate. Still I am increasingly convinced that the function the church has played for individuals and communities needs to be recaptured. To do that I believe we in the west need to grapple with the legacy both positive and negative of Christianity.

Paul is an amazing partner for such a conversation, while we differ in our relative positions on Christianity, we both share a deep interest in understanding the meaning crisis and share a study of the works of Vervaeke and Jordan Peterson.

I have found Paul to be a great resource for insight into understanding those to bodies of work as well as connecting them to broader conversations. Without an understanding of how Christianity has structured our society, where it failed and where it benefited us, I don’t think we can effectively solve the problems we face today, move towards more effectively overcoming the problems of late modernity, and rebuild more meaningful lives and more virtuous selves and communities.

This conversation felt quite personal and deep. I know some of you will find the Christian aspect off putting and I understand that, but I think there are insights and principles here that you can gain from no matter what your religious or non religious beliefs are.

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