The General Eclectic

The General Eclectic

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The General Eclectic episodes

  • The General Eclectic Podcast #27: "Maps and Terrains, Ideas and Realities"
    Kale is joined today by Dr. Larry Chapp, blogger and retired professor, in discussing Ross Douthat's latest piece at First Things. The mid-century inspired accommodation between Catholicism and American liberal democracy is fraying, so that the existing "liberal" and "conservative" camps no longer appear operative. Emergent are four basic subgroups: populists, integralists, benedictines, and tradinistas. Larry and Kale go to discuss why the old friction-less detente is in need of an upgrade, and why the message of faith must recapture the goodness, the essential attractiveness, of the Good News. Enjoy. Links: Douthat First Things piece: Catholic Ideas and Catholic Realities by Ross Douthat | Articles | First Things We Hold These Truths: We Hold These Truths by John Courtney Murray (goodreads.com) Larry's Blog: Gaudium et Spes 22 – Dr. Larry Chapp Links to our former discussions: (1) Kale Zelden - YouTube
    1 hr
  • Gradually Then Suddenly: Against Nostalgic Conservativism
    Rod and Kale reconnect this week to discuss decline and fall scenarios, particularly in the context of a Tanner Greer piece called "Culture Wars are Long Wars (Culture Wars are Long Wars – The Scholar's Stage (scholars-stage.org)) and how so much Conservative Inc energy and resources has been deeply misunderstood. Conservatives have waged a political war while missing the deeper and more deeply consequential culture war. The "Blue Church" cathedral freak out over Orban illustrates this two-tier battle. Nostalgic Conservatism dominates the second half of the show, and both Rod and Kale point to the power of enchanted story as a powerful antidote and inoculation against the deep culture war being waged for our children and our children's children.
    1 hr 2 min
  • The Grace of Story: What to Read, How to Read, Why to Read with Jessica Hooten Wilson

    Kale is joined by Dr. Jessica Hooten Wilson to discuss the literary tradition and why we must read. He starts by asking Jessica why teaching literature is difficult and fraught. Instead of reading for identity affirmation, Jessica points to the inherent ability to challenge us that makes the tradition so dynamic and ultimately anti-fragile. The tradition--that which is received and that which is passed on--gives us a way of being in the world, without which we hazard our shared humanity. Contrary to current notions of progressive education theories that foreground technologies instead of content, Jessica posits a vision of education in which we come to understand the broad inheritance and not the narrowed focus literature as a selfish mirror.

    44 min
  • Cathedral Narrative, Broken Windows, and the Logic of Civilization
    Rod returns to talk about the disconnect between official narratives and on-the-ground reception of Live Not By Lies by refugees from Venezuela and former communist countries. They move on to discuss the "logic of civilization," and whether or not we have lost the wisdom needed to live together. Do proponents of the emergent woke ideology really understand what demons they are summoning vis a vis white identity politics. Kale and Rod end on a passionate plea for a renewal in the hope of civilization.
    57 min
  • What Will Happen to the Right, Now?
    Kale is joined in this episode by Emile Doak, Executive Director of the American Conservative to discuss the big rethink on the Right. What will the Right be in the post Trump era? Will it double-down on globalism, or tack to a more localist or nationalist position? Will there be a fruitful discussion about distinctions between policy and principle? What role will technology play in this moment for reflection and revision? What will survive in the wake of Conservative Inc's exposure? Mentioned in this episode: Abigail Shrier: When the State Comes for Your Kids | City Journal (city-journal.org) The Rest is History Podcast: ‎The Rest Is History on Apple Podcasts Subscribe to TAC: Subscribe | The American Conservative
    56 min
  • Will the Western Liberal Order Hold and Save?

    Rod, fresh back from his amazing trip to Bucharest promoting Live Not By Lies, returns with Kale to talk about his deepening appreciation for the cultural and political scene. The West has lost its Authority in many ways, becoming in some sense a Zombie-culture. In the charge to "read the signs of the times," they discuss the neo-racist talks at Yale, Pope Francis' snub of Orban, and James Lindsey's ongoing discussion of Hegel as the "operating system" of the left.

    52 min
  • Authority Leak, Narratives, and Protecting the Shield
    Rod and Kale reconnect after his return from Poland, Rod reports on his ongoing conversations with Western academics and intellectuals about what is going on with the state of discourse, and the control of The Narrative. It strikes them both as incredible to think that the former communist countries have become a beacon of intellectual freedom in this time of self censorship. Speaking of censorship, the lab leak hypothesis is now "New York Times official" with the latest Bret Stephens piece. Kale and Rod discuss the implications of the capture of the scientific establishment, the odd protection of a narrative and a comparison to it and NFL Commissioner's campaign a decade ago to "protect the shield," along with the protection of the church during the abuse crisis. Viewpoint diversity, though messy and a bit chaotic, seems to be the only recourse to finding truth. Rod ends with a comparison with the underappreciated comparison between our moment and the lead up to the Spanish Civil War.
    53 min
  • Spiritual Abuse in a Therapeutic Age
    Fresh off an oyster-laden trip to Paris, replete with great conversations about Live Not By Lies and a couple of compelling "green shoots" of hope about Benedict Option-style lay communities, Rod is on the road again to Warsaw. He joins Kale to discuss his trip and his newfound renewal in his vocation. He and Kale talk about discernment between carrying your cross or laying it down, and the crucial element of credibility in living out your vocation. Sacrifice and gift seem to be fellow travellers. St. Galgano's story figures prominently in Rod's renewed vision. Kale invokes Babette's Feast. They go on to chew on the latest woke eruptions, and then move on to discuss the profoundness of institutional rot and capture, especially as regards the church. Rod invokes a piece by JD Flynn from The Pillar about Bishop Rick Stika, and then they go on to discuss a searing and painful essay from Steve Skojec called "Against Crippled Religion." In short, hurt people hurt people. Where are our fathers? Mentioned in the podcast:
    • JD Flynn's piece: Bishop Stika wants 'the whole story' ahead of Vatican investigation - The Pillar (pillarcatholic.com)
    • Steve Skojec's essay: Against Crippled Religion - The Skojec File (steveskojec.com)
    • Rod's trip to France: The Oyster King Lives | The American Conservative
    1 hr 8 min
  • Who Owns the Future?
    Rod and Kale ruminate on what our moment heralds for us in the West. Rod's offers further thoughts on his experience of watching his home from afar, and how perspectives can be shaped by being a "stranger in a strange land." Why is the future, which has been located optimistically in the West and in the concept of Freedom, suddenly up for grabs. In his conversations with ordinary Hungarians, many voice a skepticism of their own government, but also a genuine distaste for the external threats of immigration and the internal threats of gender ideology. Is our faith in the future at stake? Can the West muster the energy and focus to play the role of future shaper? Or will China's brand of capital diplomacy be our future? Both think we are at the end of something big...and perhaps as a culture, we really are in fact crazy. Mentioned in the podcast: Baylor Flipped: Every Knee Shall Bow | The American Conservative Carl Trueman's The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self - Faith & Law (faithandlaw.org) Al Mohler podcast on Baylor: Monday, May 17, 2021 - AlbertMohler.com Walker Percy's letter to the NYT: Walker Percy's 1981 Letter to the New York Times on the Con and Doublespeak of the Abortion Discussion (thegospelcoalition.org) Richard Henania: Why is Everything Liberal? - Richard Hanania's Newsletter (substack.com)
    59 min
  • This Time, It's Personal
    Rod and Kale react to the news that John Lennon's Boomer Anthem "Imagine" plays across Germany in their "synodal" moment. As they rush to bless same-sex unions in defiance of the CDF, when will a break become a break? After a brief mention of the new woke college president at LSU, Kale asks Rod to talk about the vocation of writing, how he found it, the proliferation of platforms amdidst the collapse of legacy journalism, and the future of writing. Kale presses Rod on his own process, his life at home versus his life in Budapest.

    54 min

About The General Eclectic

From the publisher's feed

A new podcast from The American Conservative, presented by Kale Zelden and bestselling author Rod Dreher, exploring faith, culture, and public affairs.