It's a Theological World After All

About It's a Theological World After All

It’s a Theological World After All explores how theology shapes everything—from science and technology to culture, politics, and human identity. Join Dr. Joshua Farris and guests from around the world for deep conversations at the crossroads of faith, reason, and the big questions of our time.

Publisher

Joshua R. Farris

Category

religion & spirituality · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

28 Aug 2025

Latest episode

2 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

25 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   2 Oct 2026

   EP26 | The Return of Magic and the Myth of the Secular World

   Why are astrology, witchcraft, and psychedelics making a massive comeback in the modern, scientifically advanced West? In this episode, Joshua Farris explains why the secularization story failed and why modern disenchantment only created a hungry market for re-enchantment. We explore why supposedly material creatures remain so stubbornly interested in an unseen world, and how this persistent hunger points directly to the reality of the human soul. We discuss how every attempt to construct spiritual meaning apart from God highlights our innate design. As part of the "Why Souls" series, we explore the fundamental differences between the New Age desire for mastery and the Christian call to receive a truly enchanted, God-given reality. SUBSCRIBE for more deep dives into theology, philosophy, and the soul. IN THIS EPISODE: The Failure of Secularism: Why scientific advancement didn't eliminate the human longing for transcendence and the supernatural. The New Spiritual Marketplace: How modern people construct individualized spiritual worlds through astrology, psychedelics, and manifestation. Magic vs. Christianity: Understanding how scientism and magic seek mastery and control, while Christianity focuses on receiving reality. Recovering an Enchanted Faith: Why Christians don't need to manufacture a new supernatural worldview, but simply recover the rich, sacramental, and meaningful creation they already believe in. CHAPTERS: 0:00 Intro: Why is magic making a comeback? 1:57 The myth of secularization and the return of spirituality 5:52 Disenchantment and the new spiritual marketplace 10:35 How methodological science became a materialist ontology 15:42 Why the soul is central to experiencing reality 18:24 Astrology, psychedelics, and the hunger for transcendence 22:53 Christianity's enchanted world and the reception of reality 28:04 The ultimate question: What kind of beings are we? RESOURCES MENTIONED: Why Souls: A Mirror to the Universe by Joshua Farris Check out my book, Why Souls?, where I take a deeper look at the nature and significance of the human soul. 👉 Get your copy here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Why-Souls/Joshua-R-Farris/9781903816417 Take the Next Step in Your Education If this conversation has sparked a desire to go deeper into the intersection of theology, science, and the soul, I want to invite you to explore our advanced programs. Equip yourself to engage the modern world with intellectual rigour and spiritual depth. Explore Our Degree Programs Here: https://degrees.soulscienceministries.com/ #WhySouls #TheologyMatters #ChristianWorldview #Transcendence #Apologetics #TheSoul

2. 

   26 Sept 2026

   EP25 | You Are Not Your Brain (The Hard Problem of Consciousness)

   Are you nothing more than the firing neurons inside your head? In an age where neuroscience has seemingly mapped every function of the human mind, many have concluded that the brain is the whole story of who we are. But is that actually true? In this episode of It's a Theological World After All, Joshua Farris unpacks the “hard problem of consciousness” and explains why a purely scientific, third-person perspective can never fully account for the reality of subjective, first-person experience. While the brain is unquestionably necessary for embodied human life, discovering the neural correlates of an experience is not the same thing as explaining the experiencer. IN THIS EPISODE: The Inside vs. The Outside: Why science can observe your brain, but it cannot observe you looking at the world. Correlation Does Not Equal Identity: Why demonstrating that consciousness depends on the brain doesn't prove that consciousness is the brain. The Hard Problem: Why does matter have an inside? Why isn't all of our neural processing happening in the dark? The Case for the Soul: Why the soul isn't just a "God of the gaps" argument, but the most robust metaphysical explanation for the human person. CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Introduction: Your Brain Isn't You 02:16 - Where is the "You" on a Brain Scan? 03:57 - The Story We've Been Told by Neuroscience 08:09 - Why Correlation Does Not Equal Identity 10:26 - The First-Person Perspective vs. Third-Person Science 14:49 - The "Hard Problem" of Consciousness 17:03 - Information vs. Knowledge: Who is the Knower? 18:31 - What Happens When the Brain Changes? 22:20 - The Soul as a Metaphysical Proposal 25:46 - Reclaiming Human Anthropology in the 21st Century RESOURCES MENTIONED: Why Souls: A Mirror to the Universe by Joshua Farris Grab your copy of Joshua Farris's latest book, Why Souls: A Mirror to the Universe, available now!Check out my book, Why Souls?, where I take a deeper look at the nature and significance of the human soul. 👉 Get your copy here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Why-Souls/Joshua-R-Farris/9781903816417 #TheologicalWorld #JoshuaFarris #Consciousness #PhilosophyOfMind #ChristianWorldview #Apologetics #Neuroscience #TheSoul

3. 

   31 Aug 2026

   EP24 | What Burning Man Reveals About the Human Soul

   Is the modern world really secular, or just differently enchanted? In this episode of It's a Theological World After All, Joshua Farris explains why the cultural fascination with events like Burning Man reveals a deep, ongoing human hunger for transcendence, ritual, beauty, and meaning. We discuss how every attempt to construct meaning apart from God actually highlights our innate design as image-bearers made for communion with Him. As part of the "Why Souls" series, we explore the ultimate question that sits underneath every cultural debate regarding AI, consciousness, and ethics: What is a human being? If we want to navigate the future, we must recover a richer, more compelling Christian vision of the human person. SUBSCRIBE for more deep dives into theology, philosophy, and the soul. IN THIS EPISODE: The Search for Transcendence: Why humans have not stopped longing for meaning, belonging, and experiences that lift us beyond the ordinary. Differently Enchanted: How the modern world has not become disenchanted, but has simply redirected its spirituality. Created for Communion: Why our restlessness points back to the reality that men and women are created in the image of God. The Core Question: Why understanding what it means to be human must come before we can answer questions about artificial intelligence, identity, and politics. CHAPTERS: 0:00 Intro: Why this conversation was never merely about Burning Man 0:25 A differently enchanted world and the hunger for meaning 0:40 Created in the image of God and our search for home 0:55 The ultimate question: What is a human being? 1:10 Upcoming topics: AI, neuroscience, and the return of spirituality RESOURCES MENTIONED: Why Souls series by Joshua Farris Take the Next Step in Your EducationIf this conversation has sparked a desire to go deeper into the intersection of theology, science, and the soul, I want to invite you to explore our advanced programs. Equip yourself to engage the modern world with intellectual rigour and spiritual depth. Explore Our Degree Programs Here: https://degrees.soulscienceministries.com/ #BurningMan #Transcendence #Theology #JoshuaFarris #ChristianWorldview #Anthropology #TheSoul

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Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

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1 ratings

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Guest appearances

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