91. Evolving Evolutionary Spirituality w/ Steve McIntosh

Post-postmodern spiritual writer Steve McIntosh discusses his journey from the progressive spirituality scene of the 70s into the Spiral Dynamics and Integral scenes of the 90s and early 2000s, then his own philosophical development from there into the emerging forms that evolutionary spirituality is taking today. In the middle of all that, we go deep into the different approaches the current scene is exploring in terms of re-thinking value and meaning as intrinsic aspects of reality, comparing perspectives on this important topic. The conversation concludes with an assessment of the still rather fractured state of the contemporary movement and the imagined benefits of pluralistic cooperation toward shared goals of cultural transformation. 0:00 Introduction1:40 Steve’s Story up to Integral Consciousness (2007)11:43 Steve’s Story from Then to Now21:29 The Nature of the Emerging Worldview25:01 Value vs. Entropy in Cosmic Evolution36:24 The Metaphysics of Meaning: What is the Origin of Value?45:46 Transcendent vs. Immanent, Static vs. Relational Accounts54:48 The Evolution of Evolutionary Spirituality1:07:22 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

90. Modern vs. Postmodern (vs. Metamodern) Philosophy w/ Stephen HicksPhilosopher and professor Dr. Stephen Hicks returns for a discussion about integrating critiques of the modern project and the Enlightenment ideals on which it is based. Are postmodern challenges already contained within modern philosophy or do they represent a dialectical shift beyond it in some meaningful way? Is postmodernism defined by its skepticism or by the nature of the problems it poses? Is the modern narrative of Progress undermined by the reality of the global metacrisis or can modernity self-correct? A spirited discussion exploring these questions from a modern (Hicks) vs. metamodern (Dempsey) perspective.0:00 Introduction0:42 The Quality of Modern Enlightenment Thought7:14 Where is the Dialectic? Integrating Critiques of Modernity20:27 The Question of Epistemic Pluralism35:38 The Question of Power-Knowledge and Cultural Relativism45:35 Modern Progress and the Metacrisis1:00:27 The Modern Individual vs. a Relational World1:05:39 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

Rufus Pollock of Life Itself explains what Life Itself is about before we dive into a deep and rich conversation about the heart of this new movement we're a part of that's dedicated to a different orientation to value and meaning. What is distinctly core and emergent about this new approach and way of seeing the world? Rufus speaks eloquently about this, articulating the spirit of a Second Renaissance with beauty and emotion. 0:00 Introduction1:47 What is 'Life Itself'?31:24 What are the Reeeeeeal Deep Structures?1:01:05 A New Kind of Deep Meaning Focused on the Primacy of Being1:27:15 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

God'swill Osa joins me to talk about his doctoral work exploring identity-formation and group consciousness, specifically in the American political context. We discuss the idea of political group consciousness and the significance of individuation and self-awareness for moving beyond the simplistic binaries of culture war acrimony. How does the current system hijack identity concerns for political gain and what healthier, more adaptive ways of thinking about identity are possible?0:00 Introduction1:00 Identity and Group Consciousness7:45 Individuation and the Complexification of Identity14:30 Who Are You When? Identity and Context18:56 Survival Strategies vs. Self-Awareness25:51 The Political-Identity-Industrial Complex34:30 Bottom-Up vs. Top-Down Influences: The Better and Worse Angels of Our Nature42:41 Adaptive Diversity, Fluid Identity53:46 Saving the American Experiment1:06:51 Conclusion Get full access to Brendan Graham Dempsey at brendangrahamdempsey.substack.com/subscribe

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