In "The Divine Magician," Peter Rollins describes Christianity as a magic trick. The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus are demonstrative events in which God's self-estrangement from Himself calls human beings into the metaphysical "lack" at the center of our existence. All are guilty of the frenetic pursuit of imaginary Sacred Objects that were crucified with God.

Ambiguous language matters because of what it permits to go under the radar. Jon Harris' recent anti-anti-racist polemic shows why.

The Greek presented the concept of tragedy as a universe indifferent to human virtues. I look at Kazuo Ishiguro's excellent "The Remains of the Day" as both a successor and challenge to that tradition. I suggest the book asks universal questions about what it means to define character amid absurdity and tragedy.

Burt's wish list:

In his 1970 collection of essays, Albert Murray assaulted both right and left wing culture warriors. At the center of his criticism was the "folklore of white supremacy and the fakelore of black pathology." Murray argued for an incontestably "mulatto" character in American culture.

Brett ends season one with a meditation on what it means for people to desecrate the spiritual garden of the world. In the tradition of Wagner and Tolkien, Brett analyzes modern forms of politics and culture that instrumentalize people and values. In his own country, Brett finds leaders abdicating the constraints of moral authority that are necessary to cultivate notions of “the true” and “the good.” In this new dark ages, where else can we find purpose, not just for ourselves but for our common life in the city?

Burt's Books Wish List

Roger Scruton on "Beauty & Desecration"

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