The Symbolic World

Jonathan Pageau

Jonathan Pageau looks at symbolism in all its forms, from its source in sacred stories and images to contemporary culture and ultimately how it shapes the world we encounter.

  1. 4 hr ago

    464 - Logos Cinema: Orthodox films, TV shows, and documentaries - streaming now! Get a discount.

    I speak with Andrew Stokich, co-founder of Logo Cinema, about building a home for beautiful Christian storytelling. We discuss the limits of modern Christian film, the need to recover deeper symbolic stories, and Logo Cinema’s vision for supporting Orthodox filmmakers and audiences. Special discount link: https://www.logoscinema.com/the-symbolic-world-summit  YouTube version: https://youtu.be/LATR7_QsQLY Paradise Imagined. Join us from September 24–26, 2026 for a summit, hosted by Symbolic World in St Giles’, Oxford, United Kingdom at Pusey House. Only 150 tickets will be sold. Don't miss out. https://symbolicworldsummit.com/ http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe

    28 min

  2. 1 day ago

    463 - Universal History: What Was Noah's Ark Really?

    In this episode (Part 3 on our series that will soon become about Persia), we continue reading The Cave of Treasures with Deacon Seraphim, looking at Noah, the world before the flood, the strange traditions around the Ark, and how Adam, Paradise, priesthood, and Melchizedek are all carried through the waters into the new world. Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/IMd160ye1OM Register now and get 15% off the Universal History Masterclass! https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/universal-history-masterclass Part 1: https://youtu.be/f--wBUEAxjY?si=thM3QIB4jcwnqpzu Part 2: https://youtu.be/3D2bRWrbKUU?si=odQ6p9ehqS912PEb 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau   Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/  My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    56 min

  3. 6 days ago

    462 - Gregg Hurwitz - The Antihero Meets Christianity

    In this conversation I speak with Gregg Hurwitz about his new Orphan X novel, Antihero, and the surprising role Orthodox Christianity plays in the story. We discuss the assassin who is forced to face mercy, the limits of violence, the exhaustion of modern storytelling, and why we may need a new kind of hero, one who can hold together justice, sacrifice, and humanity. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/lPpZnZWdPGk Gregg Hurwitz books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001IXPXTG Latest Novella, The Delivery: https://www.amazon.com/Delivery-Novella-Gregg-Hurwitz-ebook/dp/B0FX5Y9FQG Antihero: https://www.amazon.com/Antihero-Orphan-Novel-11/dp/1250479916 📢 Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau   Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/  My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    1hr 4min

  4. 1 Jul

    461 - Rachel Wilson - Feminism Is the Political Arm of Witchcraft

    In this conversation with Rachel Wilson, we discuss the strange inversion at the heart of modern feminism, its occult and anti-Christian roots, and the way it has turned women against motherhood, marriage, the family, and even the feminine itself. We also look at abortion, witchcraft, gender, the destruction of womanhood, and the vision of marriage as a path of sacrifice, love, and mutual self-giving. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/DKliIG90YDw Follow Rachel Wilson’s work: X: https://x.com/Rach4Patriarchy  Substack: https://rwilson.substack.com/  Get her book, Occult Feminism: The Secret History of Women’s Liberation: https://www.amazon.com/Occult-Feminism-Secret-History-Liberation/dp/B09NGXZKHB YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@rachel.wilson 📢 Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel  🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau   🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast: -Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5 -Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488  Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/  My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    1hr 5min

  5. 26 Jun

    460 - Dn. Seraphim Rohlin - Universal History: The Origin of the Nephilim

    In this conversation with Deacon Seraphim Rohlin, we continue our exploration of Genesis through the Syrian tradition, looking especially at Seth (Adam and Eve’s son after Cain and Abel), the Nephilim, and the fall of the sons of God. What begins as a discussion of the descendants of Seth becomes a way of understanding the descent from the holy mountain, the corruption of Cain’s line, and the strange traditions around giants, demons, music, desire, and the second fall before the flood. YouTube version of this episode: https://youtu.be/3D2bRWrbKUU Episode 1 of this series: https://youtu.be/f--wBUEAxjY?si=cJE6aczhbDx13AoI Fr. Stephen De Young talking about Nephilim with Tucker Carlson: https://youtu.be/5x9vR5sKHFI?si=nBh9exyV3jkGYtWs 📕 Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/ 📢 Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel  Books (outside of the Bible) mentioned: The Cave of Treasures The Book of the Bee Book of Enoch Book of Adam Kebra Nagast Jubilees 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau   Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/  My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    1hr 15min

  6. 24 Jun

    459 - The Future Belongs to Humans (Ottawa talk)

    This is a talk I presented at Chesterton Academy of Ottawa earlier this year.  YouTube version: https://youtu.be/ETaRAauDxS0 Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/ Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel  Timestamps: 00:00 - Coming up 00:51 - Intro music 01:05 - Chesterton Academy introduction 03:28 - Jonathan begins: art, AI, education, and the Pope’s encyclical 05:53 - Why AI is not human intelligence 08:18 - AI lacks embodied understanding 10:47 - Money, efficiency, power, and the values behind AI 13:07 - The Moloch trap and the AI arms race 15:32 - AI’s impact on work and education 17:01 - The anti-human vision of technocracy 18:40 - What education is really for 21:05 - Why learn art in the age of AI? 23:50 - Little Red Riding Hood promotion 24:46 - Remember, celebrate, and create 25:57 - Remembering our stories and traditions 29:36 - Celebrate what is good 33:16 - Create in service of remembrance and celebration 37:11 - Sincerity after irony and cynicism 39:32 - Fairy tales, icons, and Christian visual language 42:58 - Graphic novels, saints, and medieval storytelling 44:28 - The challenge and opportunity of our time 46:27 - Q: Is pessimism about AI justified? 48:32 - Q: How can remembrance, celebration, and creation be transmitted practically in schools and families? 53:23 - Q: Should schools return to oral exams and oral presentations because of AI? 55:52 - Q: How much can we participate in or use AI without falling into the trap? 58:31 - Q: What does cave art reveal about the relationship between man and art? Is art the signature of man? 01:03:02 - Q: What is the difference between inventing something new and creating? 01:07:20 - Q: Do strict rules in art stifle creativity? Why do people say beauty is subjective? 01:10:04 - Q: How can we recover a true remembrance of the Middle Ages rather than seeing them as dark or backward? 01:14:55 - Q: What is the difference between reading traditional stories and watching movies for entertainment? 01:19:02 - Q: Why was beauty dismissed from art, and why is our built environment so ugly? 01:21:07 - Q: What is your favorite piece of art in your home? 01:23:28 - Q: Can AI be used as a Socratic interlocutor in education? 01:26:36 - Q: What is the value of teaching classical languages like Latin and ancient Greek? 01:27:45 - Q: How should young artists balance pursuing art with the need to make money? 01:30:50 - Q: What is the importance of boredom, rest, silence, and imagination? 01:33:15 - Q: Is re-enchantment, post-irony, and sincerity possible in an intentional way? 01:37:08 - Q: How can different traditions unite against AI without losing their distinctiveness? 01:41:39 - Q: How do we discern beauty in imperfect work, especially in a performative society focused on excellence? 01:44:02 - Q: Where do you think AI is going, especially in education and culture? 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau   🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast: -Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5 -Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488  Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/  My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    1hr 49min

  7. 20 Jun

    458 - What's at stake with The Odyssey (2026) by Christopher Nolan

    There’s a lot of expectation and noise around Christopher Nolan’s upcoming movie, The Odyssey (2026). For decades after WW2 we were unable to tell many stories about kingship and fatherhood. As we move through the turbulent end of the WW2 consensus, stories like this form part of how we process the return of the father and identity. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/6prGX3wZKI8 Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free. More than our other fairy tales, this one emphasizes the importance of the father’s role in protecting his family from the strange and subversive. https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/ Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast: -Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5 -Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    20 min

  8. 20 Jun

    457 - Backrooms (2026): A Strange Return to Normal

    Backrooms (2026) is a recent horror/thriller film based on a creepypasta —an internet urban legend— that emerged around the time of the Covid lockdowns. A man discovers an infinite, labyrinthine expanse of "backrooms" that becomes increasingly disturbing. In this video, I analyze the symbolism of the film and explore the deeper reasons why it is so popular, outshining major blockbusters with much larger budgets and marketing campaigns. Enjoy. YouTube version: https://youtu.be/ZK6NaFsBGaM Buy Little Red Riding Hood now during the month of June and get the audiobook with for free: https://store.thesymbolicworld.com/ Join Seraphim Hamilton in studying the Book of Isaiah this June. Register now: https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/the-fifth-gospel 🔓 Become a patron to support us and unlock exclusive monthly symbolism content: https://thesymbolicworld.com/subscribe 💻 Website and blog: http://www.thesymbolicworld.com 🔗 Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonathanpageau 🎧 Listen to and review The Symbolic World podcast: -Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0gI8bUwPtT3gkduHqNh6M5 -Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-symbolic-world/id1386867488 Our website designers: https://www.resonancehq.io/ My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/

    25 min
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Hosts & Guests

Ratings & Reviews

4.5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Jonathan Pageau looks at symbolism in all its forms, from its source in sacred stories and images to contemporary culture and ultimately how it shapes the world we encounter.

Information

  • Creator
    Jonathan Pageau
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    462
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright Jonathan Pageau
  • Show Website
    The Symbolic World

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