Introducing Ministry of Ideas

Ministry of Ideas is a podcast devoted to exploring the philosophy, history and ideas of our world. 

EPISODE 23: WELCOME TO VALHALLA

Heathenry, a modern movement drawing on pre-christian pagan religions, has become associated with the violent, racialized politics of the alt-right. Less well known is the fight to make heathenry--and the progressive values it can promote--inclusive and open to all.

Guests

• Robert Schreiwer, Heathen activist, founder of the Heathen tradition of Urglaawe, Manager of Huginn’s Heathen Hof and Heathens Against Hate, and Steer of the Troth (2016-2019 and again in 2020). Founder of In-Reach Prison Services.

• Michael Strmiska, associate professor in global studies at SUNY-Orange and author of Modern Paganism in World Cultures.

• Lauren Crow, co-host of the Heathen History podcast.

• Ben Waggoner, co-host of the Heathen History podcast.

• Thomas Engelmann, outreach specialist at Life After Hate’s ExitUSA.

EPISODE 24: VIRTUALLY VIOLENT

During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, vulnerable communities have been hit especially hard by disruptive online attacks. But calling these attacks "violent" could jeopardize the future of disruptive protests designed to protest those same communities.

Guests

• Erica Chenoweth, professor of human rights and international affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and author of Civil Resistance: What Everyone Needs To Know.

• Dr. Joan Donovan, research director of the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University. 

• Oren Segal, vice president of the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism.

EPISODE 11: FORBIDdEN FRUIT

Contemporary diet culture is only the latest manifestation of a long history of religious fervor about food.

Guests

• Isabel Foxen Duke, health coach

• Alan Levinovitz, Professor of Religious Studies at James Madison University

• Corrie Norman, Associate Director, Religious Studies at University of Wisconsin-Madison

EPISODE 12: CHILD's PLAY

We shouldn’t be dismissive of the popularity of children’s literature among adults, as it is often in these works of fiction that powerful themes such as death, love, and virtue are most deeply and imaginatively explored.

Guests

• Christina Phillips Mattson, Scholar of Children’s Literature

• Casper ter Kuile, Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity School and co-host of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text

• MG Prezioso, Contributing writer for Harvard Political Review

EPISODE 14: APOCALYPTIC POLITICS

Evangelical voters made up a significant portion of Donald Trump’s base in the 2016 presidential election. Their political agenda may not be peace or prosperity, but instead bringing us closer to the end of time.

Guests

• Matthew Sutton, Graduate Studies Director, Washington State University History Department

• Katharine Hayhoe, Director, Climate Science Center, Texas Tech University

• Liya Rechtman, Harvard Divinity School student

EPISODE 16: NOTHING MATTERS

Between the Buddhist doctrine of ‘emptiness,’ the Jewish idea of Ayin, and the quantum mechanical zero-point energy of a vacuum, it turns out there’s quite a lot to be said about Nothing.

Guests

• Janet Gyatso, Professor of Buddhist Studies at Harvard Divinity School

• Daniel Matt, Scholar of Jewish Mysticism

EPISODE 18: SPIrItUAL MACHINES

Ever since early scientists began experimenting with immortality elixirs in the middle ages, religion has been influencing transhumanism. Now, we’re beginning to see transhumanism influencing religion.

Guests

• Calvin Mercer, Professor of Religious Studies at East Carolina University

• Meghan O’Gieblyn, writer

• Blaire Ostler, President of The Mormon Transhumanist Association

EPISODE 19: The Myth of MOdernity

Many think modernity is about the rise of science, the spread of democracy and capitalism, or the decline of religion or superstition. But those stories ignore the bigger picture about colonialism and race.

Guests

• Mayra Rivera, professor of Religion and Latinx Studies at Harvard University.

• Jared Hickman, professor of English at Johns Hopkins University. Author of the book, Black Prometheus: Race and Radicalism in the Age of Atlantic Slavery.

Episode 1: THE SHAPE OF HISTORY

The way we think about history can affect our belief that we can change it.

Guests

• Jo Guldi, Associate Professor at Southern Methodist University and author of The History Manifesto

• Amber Morningstar Byars, artist and Standing Rock protestor

Episode 4: (in)Efficiency

Efficiency has moved from a technique for measuring machines to a widely held moral value. But at what cost?

Guests

• Jennifer Alexander, Associate Professor at the University of Minnesota and author of The Mantra of Efficiency: From Waterwheel to Social Control

• Tom Hodgkinson, founder and editor of The Idler

Episode 7: 21st Century Citizenship

What does it mean to be a citizen in America in 2017?

Guests

• Danielle Allen, Director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics and University Professor at Harvard University

• Erhardt Graeff, PhD candidate at the MIT Media Lab Center for Civic Media

• Shanelle Matthews, Director of Communications for the Black Lives Matter global network

EPisode 8: Secular Salvations

The decline of organized religion in the West has opened up new paths for individuals to pursue what once was once understood to be salvation.

Guests

• Craig Calhoun, President of the Berggruen Institute and author of Rethinking Secularism

• Sean Kelly, Professor of Philosophy of Harvard University and author of All Things Shining

• Angie Thurston, fellow at On Being and author of How We Gather

Episode 9: Demeritocracy

Total faith in meritocracy leads to the dangerous belief that all social winners and losers are wholly deserving. Instead, we need an economy of grace.

Guests

• Victor Tan Chen, assistant professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University and author of Cut Loose: Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy

• Thomas Frank, author of What’s the Matter with Kansas? and Listen, Liberal

EpIsode 10: Enlightened cynicism

Trust in government, media, organized religion, businesses and even democracy is at historic lows. But what if the answer to declining faith in institutions isn’t more hope, but more cynicism?

Guests

• Sharon Stanley, Professor of Political Science at the University of Memphis and the author of The French Enlightenment and the Emergence of Modern Cynicism.

• David Mazella, Professor of English at the University of Houston and the author of The Making of Modern Cynicism