Pop Apocalypse

In Pop Apocalypse, Ep. 18, we welcome theologian, author, and Episcopal priest Cynthia Bourgeault, whose work combines the Christian contemplative and wisdom traditions, “The Work” of GI Gurdjieff, and the philosophy of Henry Corbin into a lived mystical theology. Throughout the episode (2:38), we explore Cynthia’s religious upbringing and early mystical awakening, her academic training in Medieval sacred drama, and her decision to pursue the priesthood. Then we take a deep dive (14:01) into Bourgeault’s relationship with the practice and theory of The Work, and how she has integrated them into the Christian wisdom tradition. As the interview ends (55:37), Cynthia and I discuss the benefits of a hermit's life, the influence of the Gospel of Thomas, and how contemplative Christianity resonates with the spiritual concerns of many in the early twenty-first century. Watch the episode on YouTubeBio:Cynthia Bourgeault is a modern-day mystic, Episcopal priest, writer, and internationally known retreat leader. She is the author of numerous books, including Eye of the Heart: A Spiritual Journey into the Imaginal Realm(Shambhala, 2020)and The Heart of Centering Prayer: Nondual Christianity in Theory and Practice (Shambhala, 2016).She divides her time between solitude and sailing the waters around her seaside hermitage in Maine, and a demanding schedule traveling globally to teach and spread the recovery of the Christian contemplative and Wisdom paths.LinksWisdom WaypointsCynthia Bourgeault's SubstackCynthiaBourgeault.orgBourgeault's published books.Jacob Needleman's Lost Christianity.YouTube links to the G.I. Gurdjieff conference at the CSWR (Dec. 2024) 

Do we live inside a Matrix-like simulation? For Episode 17 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome one of the leading theorists behind the simulation hypothesis, Rizwan Virk, to discuss that question. Virk is an entrepreneur, videogame pioneer, and academic author of two major works on simulation theory:The Simulation Hypothesis (Tarcher, 2025) and The Simulated Multiverse (Bayview Books, 2021). In the interview (3:51), we discuss the technologies necessary to make a Matrix-like simulation possible and how close we are to achieving them. Then we turn to the religious and mystical dimensions of simulation theory (29:43), exploring reincarnation, out-of-body experiences, UAPs, angels, and the anthropocentrism and ethical pitfalls of simulation theory.Rizwan Virk bioA graduate of MIT and Stanford University,  Rizwan Virk, PhD, is a successful entrepreneur, video game pioneer, film producer, venture capitalist, professor, and bestselling author of The Simulation Hypothesis (Tarcher, 2025), Wisdom of a Yogi(Bayview Books, 2023), and The Simulated Multiverse (Bayview Books, 2021). Virk’s video games, including Tap Fish and Penny Dreadful: Demimonde, have been played by millions. He is the founder and executive director of Play Labs @ MIT, a video game accelerator at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and currently teaches at Arizona State University.Rizwan Virk's HomepagePop Apocalypse linktree

For Episode 16 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome composer, artist, and media theorist Paul Miller. Miller is best known for his music as DJ Spooky, the avant-garde turntableist who has collaborated with artists ranging from Chuck D to Yoko Ono. He has also re-scored classic films, such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, and his art has been showcased in exhibitions at the Whitney Museum of American Art. In this wide-ranging conversation (6:12), we asked Paul to explore the eeriness of life in the digital age. We touch on the perils and possibilities of artificial intelligence, the role of the DJ, Japanese Butoh as a response to nuclear tragedy, re-scoring D.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation, and how Einstein, science fiction, and Sun Ra have shaped Miller’s work. Paul Miller bioPaul D. Miller, aka DJ Spooky, is currently at work on two books: one about the impact of algorithms on how we think of storytelling, Digital Fiction for Duke University Press, and The Future of Food, about the impact of AI on how we think of the production of food in the twenty-first century. He was Artist in Residence at Yale University Center for Collaborative Arts and Media (2023-2024). He is a composer, multimedia artist, and writer whose work engages audiences in a blend of genres, global culture, and environmental and social issues. Miller has collaborated with an array of recording artists, including Ryuichi Sakamoto, Metallica, Chuck D from Public Enemy, Steve Reich, and Yoko Ono, among many others. His 2018 album, DJ Spooky Presents: Phantom Dancehall, debuted at No. 3 on Billboard Reggae.Paul Miller linksHomepageSongs of a Dead DreamerJapanese ButohRebirth of a NationRhythm ScienceSound UnboundPop Apocalypse linksLinktreeYouTubeInstagramCSWR landing pageEmail us at [email protected] 

For episode 15 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome assistant professor, Fryderyk Kwiatkowski, on to discuss the relationship between ancient Gnostic myth and modern cinema. Fryderyk takes us through the impact European intellectuals 20:29 Carl Jung, Hans Jonas, and Eric Voegelin on popular conceptions of Gnosticism. We then dive into analyses of the Gnostic elements in films 34:34 like the Matrix, Dark City, Truman Show, and more recent cinema like Free Guy, Chappie, and the television series Silo.BIOFryderyk Kwiatkowski is an Assistant at AGH University of Krakow. He earned a joint doctoral degree from the University of Groningen and the Jagiellonian University in 2023 with a thesis entitled Gnosticism in Hollywood: From European Academia to American Popular Culture. His research interests encompass the cultural reception of late antique esoteric traditions, their intersections with discourses on utopias and dystopias, and the (not-so-obvious) intertwinement of popular media, philosophy, and religion. He is currently developing a project on the role of imagination in contemporary technoculture, with a focus on the feedback loops between transhumanism, science fiction, and esotericism. He has published his research in venues such as Gnosis: Journal of Gnostic Studies, CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture, Journal of Religion and Film.NOTESFryderyk KwiatkowskiAcademia.eduGnosticism in Hollywood: From European Academia to American Popular Culture"Eric Voegelin and Gnostic Hollywood""How to Attain Liberation from a False World? The Gnostic Myth of Sophia in Dark City."

For episode 14 of Pop Apocalypse, we welcome the linguist and philosopher Wouter Kusters. Kusters is the author of Pure Madness (2004) and A Philosophy of Madness (2014), both of which won the Dutch Socrates Award for best philosophy book of the year. We discuss (5:26) how the experience of psychotic thinking challenges and illuminates our notions of language, philosophy, and mysticism. Along the way, we touch on the similarities between mystical and mad experiences, apophatic and psychotic uses of language, the phenomenology of time, and the impact of Kusters’ books on mental health specialists.Wouter Kusters, PhD, is a linguist and philosopher based in the Netherlands. Two of his books received the Dutch Socrates Award for the best and most inspiring philosophy book of the year: Pure Madness (2004) and A Philosophy of Madness (2014). The English version of this latter work was released in 2020 by MIT Press. In 2022, an Arabic version was released, and a Chinese translation is expected this year. Kusters writes on a range of themes in various outlets that explore perennial questions of meaning, madness, mysticism, and language.LINKSWouter Kusters' homepageA Philosophy of Madness