Blaise Pascal as a Modern Guide with Graham Tomlin

Update: 2025-10-21

Description

In this episode, we explore the life and mind of whom historian Tom Holland calls “17th century Europe’s supreme polymath": Blaise Pascal.

Our guide is Graham Tomlin, a former bishop in the Church of England.

Drawing from his book, Blaise Pascal, the Man Who Made the Modern World, Graham brings us on a journey through Pascal’s life, his conversion to Christianity, and his famous argument for belief in God known as “the Wager.”

Together, we’ll explore the ways in which Pascal himself can still be a guide for us today.

"What else does [man's] craving and helplessness proclaim—but that there was once in man a true happiness of which all that remains is the empty print and trace. This he tries in vain to fill with everything around him, seeking in things that are not there, the help that he cannot find in those that are. Though none can help. Because this infinite abyss can be filled only with an infinite and immutable object. In other words, by God himself."

This conversation was recorded in August 2025. You can find the original video and transcript here.

Thank you for joining us in exploring timeless wisdom together, to help you gain clarity and courage for your own life, and to help nurture a culture of renewed hope.