Paul Kingsnorth gave a provocative talk for First Things' Erasmus Lecture of 2024, titled "Against Christian Civilization". In this episode, we discuss the essence of his argument, delving into the fundamental tensions between Christianity and civilization. How does faith interact with culture? What is the Biblical narrative around cities and governance? Are we misusing Christianity as a tool for cultural preservation over pursuing true spiritual transformation? Is Western Civilization as we know it even salvable at this point?

-Paul Kingsnorth’s First Things talk: "Against Christian Civilization" | 2024 Erasmus Lecture: https://www.youtube.com/live/Y3hMSZqatHI?si=bmT1rqPyEF-LvR0_
-Written article version of his talk: Against Christian Civilization, January 2025: https://www.firstthings.com/article/2025/01/against-christian-civilization

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==========TIMESTAMPS==========
00:00 - Coming up
01:31 - Intro music
01:56 - Introduction
03:02 - The essence of Paul's talk
07:13 - Civilization and Revelation
12:02 - A Christian's challenge
16:45 - The Biblical vision
31:13 - What about the rulers?
37:01 - Buildings
42:10 - Brands and idols
47:27 - The seed and the fruit
49:24 - Celebrating stories

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375 - Paul Kingsnorth - Western Civilization Is Already Dead

The Symbolic World