Lately, I’ve become more and more skeptical regarding Traditionalist narratives (and polemics) of Modernity. Here’s a two insights on this topic which percolated as I chatted with a friend yesterday. The first point is of a more historical/empirical nature. Basically, I am simply not convinced that Modernity is as dissimilar…

I’ve recently begun more serious study of Neoplatonism through primary sources, starting with the Enneads of Plotinus. This collection of mystical writings begins, interestingly, with a treatise on beauty, which connects readily to both moral goodness and truth for the Neoplatonists, so by beginning with aesthetics Plotinus is by no…

In recent years, with mounting popular interest in the philosophy of the Kyoto School, scholarship and digital resources on the ideas of these Japanese philosophers has grown significantly. Many find themselves drawn to Keiji Nishitani and, in particular, his great work Religion and Nothingness. The following is a list of…

lā ʾilāha ʾillā -llāhu wa muḥammadan rasūlu -llāh “There is no god but God and Muhammad is the messenger of God.” This basic proclamation of faith, known as the Shahada, is at the basis of both Islamic theological and legal thinking and its recitation is one of the basic pillars…

Critics of universalism (here referring to a vision of universal salvation in an Abrahamic framework) often indict their perceived theological opponents on moral grounds — if everyone is ultimately saved and there isn’t eternal punishment for evil, why should people choose to live a good life and act in morally…

Something interesting I have noticed lately as I have been examining contemporary reform arguments within religious traditions as well as the polemics against these arguments, is how liberalism is often reified by the polemicists so that they may easily accuse the reformists of attempting to judge the religion by something…

Proposition 1: Religion and spirituality are not meant to make you comfortable in your life. They are in essence, “wrestling with God” — the original meaning of the name Israel. You don’t get to pick and choose doctrines and practices based on what your ego finds most palatable. Proposition 2…

It seems like a common philosophy 101 (or maybe 201) move to lay all the sins of our current mental models at the feet of Descartes (assuming you’re not just regurgitating reactionary talking points about how postmodernism and Marxism are destroying the West, and that you’re actually reading some deeper…

I’ve recently been enjoying the YouTube channel Carefree Wandering, presented by German philosopher Hans-Georg Moeller. Moeller’s work centers around the concept of identity, specifically what he calls “identity technologies” — basically the different sociocultural modes through which identity is constructed and understood. Moeller identifies three basic identity technologies which exist…