Metamodern Meaning

The Spiritual Naturalist Society is for folks exploring spirituality beyond supernaturalism. Here I'm joined by Daniel Strain and Alex Cheruk to discuss the origins and goals of this awesome organization.0:00 Introduction1:35 What is Spiritual Naturalism?17:22 The Role of Community22:29 Daniel and Alex's Stories44:09 What is the Spiritual Naturalist Society?53:15 Can Christianity Naturalize?59:15 How to Get Involved1:02:50 ConclusionLearn more about about The Spiritual Naturalist Society here: https://www.snsociety.org/ Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Developmental researcher Dr. Cheryl Armon discusses her work on the way different philosophical conceptions of the good life relate to psychological development.0:00 Introduction1:38 The Complexification of Value8:03 The 5 Philosophical Orientations:13:07 Hedonism: Classical22:24 Hedonism: Social29:54 Perfectionism: Functionalist41:22 Perfectionism: Unitarianist52:35 Perfectionism: Progressivist1:06:49 Are Some Orientations More Common among Higher Levels of Development?1:11:23 What Are the Next Steps for this Line of Research?1:15:52 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Nish Dubashia walks through his new book, A Brief History of God: From Nature Spirits to Cosmic Consciousness, the newest offering from Sky Meadow Press. After laying out his framework for religion as a story of the self's aspiration to reunite with Spirit, Nish goes through the major stages of religion's evolution, from humanity's tribal origins to the rise of polytheism in early agricultural civilizations to the Axial Age transformation of transcendence to the modern shift to materialism and the postmodern emphasis on pluralistic harmony. We then explore post-postmodern forms of religiosity as an integral perspective before Nish's concluding speculations on the future of spirituality. 0:00 Introduction 1:12 A Brief History of 'A Brief History of God' 6:11 Religion's Archetypal Story: The Dance of Self and Spirit 11:25 Stage 1. The Beginning of Spiritual Awareness 16:11 Stage 2. The Rise of Individualism 25:27 Stage 3. Tradition and the Search for Order 34:08 Stage 4. Science and the Quest for Truth 41:59 Stage 5. The Path to Harmony 53:17 Stage 6. Bridging Perspectives 1:00:53 Stage 7. Holistic Spirituality 1:09:41 The Future of Spirituality Link for the book: https://www.amazon.com/Brief-History-God-Spirits-Consciousness/dp/B0FH28Q63K/ Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Dr. Theo Linda Dawson, founder of Lectica, Inc., discusses the launch of MindLog, an unprecedented developmental tracking tool that charts the hierarchical complexification of skill capacities using high-precision Lectical scoring. She explains what it does and how it works before we dive into its two major applications for educators and for adult learners. 0:00 Introduction1:05 What is MindLog?5:51 Operationalizing Cognitive-Developmental TheoryMindLog for Educators14:23 Motivating Students for Growth20:13 Teaching Informed by Classroom Developmental Data30:52 How to Get InvolvedMindLog for Adults33:44 A Tool for Tracking Your Development37:16 Opportunity (and Pitfalls) for Coaching Integration42:11 "What Level You At, Bro?" Dangers of Identifying with Your Score46:04 Developing Our Relationship to Development50:02 Tracking Development in Different Skills54:14 Misuse Cases57:31 How the Data is Used1:03:10 Prospects of Revolutionizing Our Understanding of the Mind1:06:33 The Time Has Come1:09:57 Course Offerings: FOLA, LAP-1, ViPMindLog will be launching in beta in June for those interested to get a glimpse of this cutting-edge technology. You can find more about MindLog, as well as the courses mentioned, at Lectica.org Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Educator and philosopher Brad Kershner joins me to discuss the crisis facing our civilizational frameworks and educational institutions, with considerations of what the path out of this cul-de-sac looks like and how we get there.0:00 Introduction3:54 Designing a World for Value13:58 A Trans-Partisan Issue20:03 The Modern Breakdown of Value32:19 The Failure of the Postmodern Response38:38 Metamodernism and/or Perennialism 48:01 The Multi-Dimensional Nature of Value Alignment52:15 An Evolutionary Story1:00:04 Epistemic Humility and an Embodied Taste for Wisdom1:14:38 The Value of AttentionCheck out Brad's recent lectures on his YT channel @bradkershner52 ​ Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

How do we do the most good? Answers popular in the Rationality and effective altruism spaces can be helpful in some ways, but could also be radically misframing the issue in others. Here Anna Riedl joins me to discuss more of what she means by an "autopoiethics" approach to the topic, which takes seriously the implications of complex systems science for understanding "doing the right thing" in context. 0:00 Introduction1:51 Autopoiethics5:34 On "Doing the Right Thing" at Different Scales11:01 Metamodern Ethics beyond the "View from Nowhere"17:01 The Normative Primacy of Self-Maintenance 20:55 The Relation of Self to Others28:56 Autopoiethics and Intersubjectivity: The Other in the Self34:58 Does Complexity Have Intrinsic Value?40:17 Complexify Self to Complexify Other47:21 Your Starbucks Receipt and Schindler's List 51:20 Moral Foundations Theory and Opponent Processing58:36 Ethics and Relevance Realization1:05:42 Bottom Up or Top Down? A Counter-Argument from Emergent Causality1:17:29 Summing Up1:23:47 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Boaz Feldman joins me to talk about an important conference he's helped to organize at Harvard. The Education for Flourishing Conference, AKA Human Transformation in a Time of Metacrisis, is happening at the Harvard Graduate School of Education on Friday, May 2nd, followed the next day by the Unconference featuring workshops, panels, and opportunities for further connection. 0:00 Introduction1:21 Boaz's Background3:26 Overview of the Conference and Unconference8:21 The Liminal Coming to the Center: Realizing Metamodern Paradigm Change15:08 Setup to a Second Renaissance18:54 Itinerary and Speakers25:03 Brendan's Offering for the Unconference28:51 Is This for You?36:31 From Thinking to DoingLink to conference info: https://news.lifeitself.org/p/education-for-flourishing-conference Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

I'm joined by professor Gary Cziko, author of Without Miracles: Universal Selection Theory and the Second Darwinian Revolution, to discuss the universal learning process driving adaptive complexification across cosmic scales. We get into the issue of "puzzles of fit" and how they've tended to be accounted for, the scope and power of selectionist theories for understanding evolution and knowledge generation, and relationships of the theory to a number of important topics, including how we make meaning in life. 0:00 Introduction2:22 Puzzles of Fit and Universal Selection Theory8:55 A Metatheory for Meaningful Knowledge Generation16:23 The Universe Learning, & Learning How It Learns23:02 Transcending Constraints of Knowledge Structures31:22 History of the Theory40:31 Adjusting Experience for Meaning47:17 Piaget and Universal Selection Theory55:52 Hegel?57:08 The Miracle 'Without Miracles'59:44 The Existential Basis of Purpose1:06:27 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Oliver Griebel joins me to discuss the topic of the anthology he edited on the metaphysical relationship between the one and the many. Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Evolutionary spirituality writer Tim Freke joins me for a live Limicon event to discuss his take on the new form of spirituality emerging in metamodern culture. We explore a few topics together, then open the conversation up for Q&A from the rest of the attendees. Evolution, consciousness, death, mysticism--it's a good ride! Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Tony Wolf joins me to discuss his new book out from Sky Meadow Press: 'Poetic Faiths: New Religions and Rituals as Works of Living Art, Vol I.' First we tackle the idea of "Poetic Faiths" and what they are before going over what's in this new anthology of interviews with creators of such Poetic Faiths. Tony shares part of his story that led him to this work as well as some of the specifics of his own Poetic Faith, The Mysterium. Finally, we consider the significance and future of this form of spirituality. 0:00 Introduction2:02 What is a "Poetic Faith"?15:13 The Anthology18:53 Poetic Faiths and Metamodern Religion23:04 Tony's Story: The First of The Three Moments31:09 Tony's Poetic Faith: The Mysterium38:51 Mindful Ritual and Serious Symbols44:02 A Mycelial Network of New Faiths54:42 The Roles for Creators1:10:39 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Cheryl Armon joins me to talk about her work in the field of developmental psychology. After discussing how she developed a passion for moral philosophy, entered the field, and met Lawrence Kohlberg, as well as the important theoretical distinctions between "hard" stages and "soft" stage models which they published about, we dive into the data Armon has amassed over her career on how people's conceptions of "The Good" complexify across the lifespan. 0:00 Introduction3:07 Cheryl's Path to Developmental Studies11:30 Studying Complexification of the True, the Good, and the Beautiful17:15 Meeting Kohlberg22:16 The "Right" vs. the "Good"28:07 Asking People about the Good30:57 Hard Stage Models vs. Other Kinds38:24 Are There Domain-General Stages?Stages of the Good43:16 Stage 1. Egoistic Hedonism47:36 Stage 2. Instrumental Hedonism50:11 Stage 3. Altruistic Mutuality59:17 Stage 4. Individuality 1:10:07 Stage 5. Autonomy/Interdependence1:17:42 The Complexification of Value1:19:47 Doing the Work Right1:23:50 Taking Adult Developmental Reasoning Seriously1:30:37 ConclusionSOURCESCheryl Armon, "Ideals of the Good Life: A Longitudinal/Cross-Sectional Study of Evaluative Reasoning in Children and Adults." PhD Dissertation, Harvard University, 1984.Cheryl Armon, "Ideals of the Good Life and Moral Judgment: Ethical Reasoning across the Lifespan," in Beyond Formal Operations, ed. Michael L. Commons, Francis A. Richards, and Cheryl Armon (New York: Praeger, 1984), 357–380.Cheryl Armon and Theo Linda Dawson, "The Good Life: A Longitudinal Study of Adult Reasoning," in Handbook of Adult Development, ed. Jack Demick and Carrie Andreoletti (New York: Kluwer Academic, 2003), 271–300. Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Zak Stein joins me in a constructive discussion about our respective projects to reconstruct value after postmodernism. Having talked to Zak about his work with David J Temple, this time he responds to my work in the first volume of the Evolution of Meaning Series. Here we explore in greater detail his concerns about projects that would situate human cultural evolution within the broader cosmic evolutionary process more generally. How do we avoid reducing the human in the process? How do we properly understand what uniquely delineates human cultural processes from animal ones? What is the proper role of science in all of this?0:00 Introduction2:24 Irreducible Humanity: Continuity and Discontinuity15:34 The Role of the Philosopher: Translating the Sciences for Human Meaning20:34 Situating the Insights of Modern Science: Integrating Postmodern Critiques35:46 Interior vs. Exterior Accounts29:37 Metaphysics and Methodology: Religion or Radical Empiricism?41:58 Intersubjectivity and Universal Pragmatics1:04:30 Science after Postmodernism Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Layman joins me for further jamming on the human/biosphere relationship. We explore the idea of entropy reduction (negentropy) as a natural trajectory and its relationship to the evolution of consciousness. Folding in Nietzsche, we consider the "will to power" in terms of a natural drive related to such processes before turning to the "mereological question": Is humanity (the noosphere) part of the biosphere or is the biosphere part of the noosphere? This leads to further considerations of the unique human contribution to biospheric dynamics, and the question of anthropocentrism in how we frame such relationships. 0:00 Introduction1:28 Nature and Negentropy14:44 Towards a Qualitative Typology of Negentropic Systems25:00 A Natural Direction: The Role of Consciousness and Care35:41 Decentration and Ecologization 41:16 Negentropy and the Will to Power57:35 Mereology and Mutual Transformation 1:11:29 Art and Nature1:21:16 An Appetition for Noospheric Mapping1:39:44 Anthropocentrism and the Human Perspective1:57:43 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Cognitive scientist Anna Riedl helps me get a sense of the emerging paradigm in cogsci and beyond dedicated to understanding how we make meaning in an uncertain and entropic world. After that, we tackle ideas Anna is working on informed by her experience with and critique of effective altruism: a framework she provisionally calls "autopoiethics," which relates to the normative decision-making processes of autopoetic systems.0:00 IntroductionI. State of the Art in Meaning Studies1:22 Meaning, Relevance, and Rationality 11:28 Synthesizing Abstract and Particular 21:56 Metarationality and the Transjective Frame30:03 A New Paradigm?40:41 Related Fields and ThinkersII. Autopoethics52:11 Normativity and Collective Welfare57:06 Autopoietic Normativity vs. Effective Altruism1:15:05 Perspectival Values1:26:50 Function vs. Process1:31:44 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Here, Lene Rachel Andersen joins us to talk about her piece Polymodern Economics. Following the publication of the first issue of Metamodern Theory & Praxis, a new, anti-disciplinary journal dedicated to movements in metamodern thought, we will be inviting the various contributors for some discussion about their work.You can read this and the other works in issue 1 here: https://sts.williams.edu/metamodern/v1i1/ Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

On Saturday, January 18, Sky Meadow Institute hosted a virtual meet-up and open Q&A with Tim Freke, author of Soul Story and a leading thinker in the emergent spirituality space. For more upcoming events, check out skymeadowinstitute.org Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Layman and I dig into the distinctions between similar terms like "nature," "natural," "naturalization," and "natural order" in an effort to better realize the relevant shades of the biosphere.0:00 Introduction2:56 'Nature' vs.19:36 'Natural' vs. 40:41 'Naturalization' vs.1:08:39 'Natural Order' vs...1:25:03 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

I continue my discussion with Layman Pascal about the role of the human in/as/and for the biosphere. After an elegant summary and recap of the topic so far, Layman offers thoughts on specific roles and projects that might be undetaken through collective action to traverse along the negentropic course of the "ecodrome." We chat economics, ideology, ethics, and religion, and also tackle the question of biosphereic consciousness. 0:00 Introduction2:03 Layman's Recap: Sacred Naturalism and the "Ecodrome"18:26 Gaian Demography I: Eco-Heirophants23:30 Civics: Green Mobilization Efforts25:52 Economics: Negentropy as Currency35:03 Ideology: A Post-Neoliberal Spirit of Eco-Cultus43:59 Lower- to Mid-Scale Enaction47:49 The Ethics of Biosphere Extension and Reproduction1:03:53 Gaian Demography II: Roles and Tribes1:21:42 Waking Gaia1:34:44 Religion: A Planetary Devotion1:40:20 Looking Ahead Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

In the first of a series of discussions, Layman Pascal offers his thoughts on the role of humanity in the biosphere. What new ways are there for appreciating our place on/as the planet and in/as the cosmos? Here we focus primarily on the role of the individual in biospheric processes. How do religion-like activities and sensibilities serve ecological viability and flourishing? How can this vision unite various approaches to value and knowledge in the 21st century? Timeline:0:00 Introduction 3:16 The Role of the Human in, for, and as the Biosphere 7:48 A Biophilic Universe 14:51 A Comprehensive Story for Our Time 23:30 Nurturing Nature 27:28 Minds and Societies as Systems of Gaia 38:42 Contingency and Teleology, Problems and Progress 44:22 Religionizing Eco-Consciousness: Promise and Pathology 1:04:09 Psychotechnologies and the Biosphere 1:14:08 The Center of the Mandala 1:20:38 Moving out of Flatland Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe