Christ the turning point. Owen Barfield in a secular age. A conversation with Ashton Arnoldy

Listen to this episode from Inner Life, Talks and Thoughts on Spotify. Owen Barfield was the genius Inkling, said CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien. But why does he so much matter today?They consider how Owen Barfield addresses the idea of secularism developed by Charles Taylor and why that might matter in a cultural moment that feels like a folk in the road. They speak personally of how Barfield touched them and why his insights might matter to the psychedelic renaissance.A central idea is that of polarity - moving beyond the dualisms that trap people, on the left and on the right, in a flatland mentality.They ask how Barfield’s vision of final participation can be understood, even experienced, in language, in nature, with Indigenous traditions, in sacrament. They also consider how Rudolf Steiner, so important to Barfield, might be appreciated critically.Fundamental is the Christian insight that the transcendent is also immanent, the many are reflections of the one, and that humanity shares in divine purposes.For more on Mark, including his book on Barfield’s understanding of Christianity - www.markvernon.comFor more on Ashton - https://ciis.academia.edu/ashtonkohlarnoldy0:00 Barfield's relevance today06:47 Monotheism and the singular self12:02 Encountering worlds of spirit20:26 The task of integration27:49 The ongoing Christian revelation32:34 Steiner and politics today44:03 The experience of polarity49:22 Barfield and ecology53:03 Taylor's interspace and imagination56: 29 The divine power of language01:01:08 Poetry and the evolution of consciousness01:06:54 The past in the present and the future01:11:09 Questions of identity01:16:44 The future orientation of Christianity01:21:09 Residual unprocessed positivism01:25:38 Critical readings of Steiner01:30:42 Concluding remarks