The Optimistic Curmudgeon

Ministry in a Hostile World - Urie Brito of the CREC (7x2)

Ministry in the negative world is often difficult. Pastor Urie Brito explains his story of getting into ministry, why he loves the CREC (Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches), and details the argument of his latest book, The War of the Priesthood: An Exposition of the Armor of God. Towards the end of the episode, Uri explains why he is willing to go into overtly political spaces, and what role he sees pastors playing in shepherding their flocks through political seasons. With shoutouts to Meg Basham's Shepherds for Sale, National Conservatism, and New Saint Andrews College, this is a conversation you don't want to miss! Links:

https://kuyperian.com/

https://drbrito.substack.com/

https://www.amazon.com/War-Priesthood-Exposition-Armor-God/dp/1956611053/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2F1G8L1GG6A9Q&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.TWyZnRucm4iTkcGaxE49DeDJe-nzptqCL2b1bhAACeA.tX2QE5DsVTG0FuCVCHs8HC3F-0Rg5jHqHJB9ZZvnMr0&dib_tag=se&keywords=war+of+the+priesthood+uri+brito&qid=1728404845&sprefix=the+war+of+the+priesthood+%2Caps%2C204&sr=8-1

https://crechurches.org/

 

Beauty and Aesthetics: Mike Young (7x1)

Dr. Michael Young discuss beauty, Roger Scruton, and aesthetics as a natural desire of the human soul. Our longing for beauty signifies our desire for something higher, something more meaningful to the human condition, than mere utility. We were made for more! This conversation was inspired by Roger Scruton's book Beauty: A Very Short Introduction. #beauty #aesthetics #philosophy #thegoodlife #moralimagination #rogerscruton #scruton

SECCE - Kristen Rudd: Stop Leaving your Students in Hell, or Read the Whole Comedia!

At this SECCE breakout talk, Kristen Rudd argues that classical schools do their students a disservice when they only teach The Inferno. To really grasp Dante, students need to ascend through Purgatorio into Paradiso. 

SECCE - Marc Fusco: Shakespeare is Still the One

At this SECCE breakout talk, Marc Fusco argues that Shakespeare is the best guide to understanding human nature. Classical schools ought to teach, read, and perform Shakespeare to help students understand the complexity of what it means to be human. 

SECCE - Jim Ranieri: Re-Enchant the World by Reading Tolkien

In this SECCE breakout session, Jim Ranieri argues that the world stands in need of re-enchantment after the ravages of modernity. Tolkien's The Lord the Rings, read as a distinctly Catholic novel by Catholic teachers, has the potential to rightly re-enchant our minds and help us perceive the sacramental nature of reality. 

SE Consortium: Jason Jewell - The Canon as an Antidote to Contemporary Rootlessness

In this plenary address at the inaugural SE Consortium of Classical Educators conference at Thales College, Jason Jewell argues that our modern culture is marked by a rootlessness; the literary canon pushes against that rootlessness, encouraging us to find home through the pursuit of tradition, place, and things divine. 

SE Consortium: Sean Hadley - The Word for Heritage is Canon

In this plenary address at the inaugural SE Consortium of Classical Educators conference at Thales College, Sean Hadley builds a metaphorical view of the canon as a forest. The forest requires tending, and appreciation. Sean draws from Lewis's Experiment in Criticism to distinguish how classical educators bring their students into the forest to foster a certain kind of reading. 

SE Consortium: Robert Woods - Being a Loving Resistance Fighter During our Culture and Canon Wars

In this plenary address at the inaugural SE Consortium of Classical Educators conference at Thales College, Robert Woods draws on Neil Postman's Technopoly to argue for a certain attitude that classical educators ought to adopt as they engage in the fight for what is good, true, and beautiful. 

SE Consortium: Josh Herring - Books which Nourish the Soul

In this opening plenary address at the inaugural SE Consortium of Classical Educators conference at Thales College, Josh Herring draws from C.S Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, David Hicks, Russell Kirk, and Robert Hutchins to describe the kind of book worth requiring in a K-12 educational context. This talk was delivered on 8/3/2024. 

Katherine Bradshaw: Learning to Play in Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew

Katherine Bradshaw of the Ancient Language Institute joins Josh Herring for a discussion of Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew. They summarize the play, discuss interpretive difficulties, read several passages, and generally have a delightful time laughing at one of Shakespeare's best (and most controversial) comedies. If you are interested in knowing more about the gender wars, let Shakespeare be your guide! Petruchio, Katherine, Bianca, Grumio and the rest shed light on some of today's most pressing questions.

Links to the things mentioned in the podcast:

The Ancient Language Institute - https://ancientlanguage.com/about/

New Humanists podcast from ALI: Katherine Bradshaw been a guest on this podcast a few times to talk about Coriolanus, Julius Caesar, and Antony and Cleopatra, as well as to interview Eric Adler about Irving Babbitt - https://newhumanists.buzzsprout.com/1791279

Article for the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal about alternative paths open to the academically inclined - https://www.jamesgmartin.center/2023/07/diary-of-a-freelance-language-scholar/