Johnathan Bi

Rescued by Christianity, modernity is distinctly different than the violent, deceitful, and stagnant societies of yore. We are the most loving, truthful, and innovative culture ever to exist. Resting uneasily alongside this fundamental affirmation of modernity, however, is Girard’s puzzling insistence that things have barely changed at all: we now simply persecute victims under the banner of love, rigidly adhere to scientific dogmas under the guise of free inquiry, and package trivialities as radical innovations. Despite our high-minded ideals, stubborn human nature refuses to budge and, so, the perversions of modernity take on the shape of hypocrisy. Even humanity’s greatest triumph is terribly ambivalent and limited.Some links to further guide your study:* Join my email list to be notified of future episodes: greatbooks.io* Full transcript: https://open.substack.com/pub/johnathanbi/p/transcript-of-girard-lecture-vi Get full access to Johnathan Bi at www.johnathanbi.com/subscribe

For Girard, Christianity is radically different from all other religions in one crucial aspect: it takes the side of the innocent victim and, in doing so, exposes the violence and deceit of worldly order. We will explore how this intuition of innocence begins to take root in the Hebrew bible and blossoms into a resounding declaration in the Crucifixion. Girard presents us with an anthropology of the Cross: a translation of Christian phenomena into this-worldly, humanistic language. Girard’s success in placing this world in the foreground, however, forces the other world and even God himself to retreat into the background. In Girard’s unorthodox Christianity, God’s absence is just as loud and jarring as humanity’s presence.Some links to further guide your study:* Join my email list to be notified of future episodes: greatbooks.io* Full transcript: https://open.substack.com/pub/johnathanbi/p/transcript-of-girard-lecture-v Get full access to Johnathan Bi at www.johnathanbi.com/subscribe

Starting from lecture IV, we will move away from psychology and into Girard’s history, beginning with the very first human societies. In times of internal turmoil, these early societies would converge on an innocent victim, attribute to him all the blame, murder this scapegoat in a brutal killing, and achieve peace through violent catharsis. These founding murders gave rise to institutions, cultures, and even gods themselves. Far are we from the comfort of social contracts. Girard’s unsettling conclusion is that peace is built on the corpses of innocent victims. Worldly order demands violence and deceit.Some links to further guide your study:* Join my email list to be notified of future episodes: greatbooks.io* Full transcript: https://open.substack.com/pub/johnathanbi/p/transcript-of-girard-lecture-iv Get full access to Johnathan Bi at www.johnathanbi.com/subscribe

In this lecture, we will finish painting the picture of Girardian psychology by understanding mimetic rivalry and negative mimesis. This picture will expose humans as fallen and certain psycho-social pathologies as inevitable: fetishization, alienation, bipolarity, masochism, oppression, and inequity. Girard’s psychology, then, is also a theodicy — an inquiry into the origins of evil. For Girard, evil is not contingent on poorly designed societies but an inevitable consequence of corrupt human nature. We will never escape these pathologies no matter how much social “progress” is made. Girard’s theodicy tampers our expectations of the world and inoculates us against a whole host of, what we can loosely call, critical theories. This is a critique of critique. Some links to further guide your study:* Join my email list to be notified of future episodes: greatbooks.io* Full transcript: https://open.substack.com/pub/johnathanbi/p/transcript-of-girard-lecture-iii Get full access to Johnathan Bi at www.johnathanbi.com/subscribe

Mimesis, mimetic desire, and metaphysical desire are the fundamental building blocks of Girard’s psychology. They will show us how even the most intimate aspects of our identity can be radically shaped by others and how to distinguish vanity from authenticity. These psychological fundaments are what make humans social animals, why prestige and recognition matter so much to us, and how we are able to form cultures and even language itself. They are responsible for humanity’s greatest achievements, but they also render us helplessly fallen. Under scrutiny, metaphysical desire will reveal itself to be none other than original sin. Some links to further guide your study:* Join my email list to be notified of future episodes: greatbooks.io* Full transcript: https://open.substack.com/pub/johnathanbi/p/transcript-of-girard-lecture-ii Get full access to Johnathan Bi at www.johnathanbi.com/subscribe

David Perel, a passionate moderator of a lecture series on René Girard's mimetic theory, shares his enlightening journey through Girard's transformative work. They dive deep into how mimetic desire shapes our ambitions and societal interactions. Perel discusses the scapegoat mechanism, demonstrating its cyclical nature and influence on group dynamics, while contrasting ancient narratives with contemporary challenges. The conversation highlights the interplay of faith and science, revealing layers of morality and the complexities of human relationships in a modern context.