Forging Ploughshares

Paul Axton preaches: This sermon traces universal restoration (apokatastasis) and recapitulation, in the way this transforms human thought in the explanation of Origen, Maximus and Eriugena, and illustrated in the case of Peter.

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In this new series of podcasts with Anthony Bartlett, Anthony systematically introduces his extension of the Girardian system into theology and biblical studies. In this first lecture he describes the rise of meaning in the scapegoat and the semiotic shift introduced by Christ.

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Paul Axton preaches: This sermon brings together Paul's picture of creation ex-nihilo and resurrection as the thought behind his notion of epektasis or being stretched out, in the sense of going beyond the self, as further developed by William Desmond in conjunction with John Scotus Eriugena.

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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William Desmond introduces his metaxological philosophy and its implications for religion, ethics and aesthetics.

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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Paul Axton preaches: This sermon develops John Behr's understanding of the Logos along with William Desmond's picture of the betweenness of the intimate universal.

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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In this final class with David Dawson, David answers key question regarding Christ's recovery of language as the Word, the exposure of the victim, and the overcoming of religion.  

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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Paul Axton preaches: Jesus' promise of peace, not as the world gives but his peace, is the beginning of an alternative subjectivity which William Desmond calls the "intimate universal" or an opening of a communicative subjectivity with the transcendent. 

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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In this final conversation with Michael Hardin, Michael's friend David Dawson, author of "Flesh Becomes Word" describes Girard's entry into the discussion of structuralism, poststructuralism, and deconstruction. 

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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Paul Axton preaches: This sermon for Pentecost Sunday, compares life in the Spirit or in the Trinity to life in the absence of the Trinity, as Paul presents it in Romans 7 & 8. 

(Register for the course, Metaxology, taught by William Desmond, which will cover the philosophy and theology of William Desmond as it applies to ethics, aesthetics, peace, and the Christian life. The course will run from 2026/6/20–2026/9/19. Sign up here: https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings)

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Michael Hardin explains how Christ's exposure of the scapegoating mechanism unleashes the potential for a final violence, which can only be disrupted if Christians can resist through the reality of living out the gospel.

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This discussion and attached sermon with Brad and Paul builds upon the work of Raymond Panikkar and William Desmond in their description of the "between" as this applies to the Trinitarian nature of truth. 

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Michael Hardin spells out his key advancement of Girardian theory in his development of a positive view of mimesis as the very mode of salvation. 

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Paul Axton preaches: In this sermon on the necessity of love of enemy to arrive at the perfection of God, the focus is on the possible insight the "enemy" such as Islam and Iran might have into the failures of Western Christianity. 

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Michael Hardin explains how René Girard scapegoated the term sacrifice and the book of Hebrews and how he corrected course in regard to Hebrews. Karl and Paul discuss attachment of fundamentalism to the historical critical method, and then Nate and Paul point out to Michael the same problem with theological liberalism, and propose an alternative Christocentric hermeneutic in place of historicism. 

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Brad and Paul discuss the attached sermon tracing a Jewish understanding of Sabbath as synonymous with God and with being joined to God, as in marriage, and the development of an event oriented understanding degraded into a space surrounding tabernacle and temple taken up and transformed by Christ.

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In this continued discussion with Michael Hardin, Michael lays out a theory of a nonviolent atonement, through Girardian theory. Michael pictures this as key to understanding the cross and the Bible. 

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Brad and Paul discuss the attached sermon, of how it is that the church seems to no longer be a resistant community, as Paul and Origen would have it, "putting on the full armor of God," and how it is that Augustinian just war theory, and its exterior/interior division points to a morally compromised church and culture marked by the rise of Jeffrey Epstein and friends.

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Michael Hardin, an expert and friend of René Girard, explains how a Girardian reading of the Bible solves the problem posed by Marcion, of distinguishing between the violent God of the Jews and the Father of Jesus Christ.

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Paul Axton preaches: In this sermon reversing the usual meaning of Christ "becoming sin for us" the working of the cross is examined at a deep psychoanalytic and personal level, through the lens of Julian of Norwich, and her reversal of theology. 

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Michael Hardin, the friend of and expert on René Girard, explains the comprehensive nature of mimesis, from the novel, to psychology, anthropology, and religion, explaining the scientific background and universal application of the theory.

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Paul Axton preaches: Bringing together the thought of William Desmond with Maximus the Confessor, this sermon traces how the seventh day is the revelation and reflexive divine presence fulfilled in Christ. 

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Michael Hardin leads a discussion on the life and work of René Girard, with whom he was friends, tracing the beginnings of his discovery and then the growth of appreciation and literature dealing with his work.

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Paul Axton preaches: This Easter sermon examines the first Christian proclamation of resurrection in its direct indictment of those who nailed him to the cross, but this scapegoating, nationalistic, religion in its captivity to death and killing exemplifies human religion and the human problem which Christ exposes and resolves in the resurrection. 

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th on from 7 pm to 9 pm centr...

In this discussion with Karl, Andy, Jim, and Scott, Paul brings together Christian Anarchy as it coincides with an apocalyptic theology, but fills this out through the work of Ann Jervis, who describes the need to set aside "now and not yet" as a controlling metaphor which does not do justice to victory in Christ.

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th on from 7 pm t...

This is a combination of Brad and Paul discussing the sermon and the upcoming classes along with the sermon on approaching Easter through the cross, or taking up the cross as enabling resurrection faith.

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th from 7 pm to 9 pm central time. This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to https...

Paul, Nate, Karl, Jim, and Andy discuss the work of renegade Catholic Priest Ivan Illich in his criticism of institutional Christianity as giving shape to modern nationalism and the profound failures of modern society. 

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th on from 7 pm to 9 pm central time. This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to htt...

Paul Axton preaches: Mary and Martha illustrate two approaches to life and thought, with Mary representing a Sabbath form of thought in which thought is received, and Mary representing a doing form of thought in which thought is aimed at a product. While Marth thinking is necessary, all Martha and no Mary takes away the center and purpose from thought.

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running thro...

Karl, Jim, Nathan, Andy and Paul discuss the difference an apocalyptic theology makes in regard to natural theology, understandings of sin and salvation, and biblical hermeneutics.

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th. This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings.)

Paul Axton preaches: Building on the picture of salvation in Hebrews as occurring through Sabbath rest, and depicting the unrest or dis-ease of neurosis, war, philosophy, and religion, the resolution to the deadly human predicament through Sabbath is depicted. 

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th. This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to https://p...

Brad and Paul talk with Ethan Vander Leek about his upcoming course on peace in which he will utilize the insights of William Desmond, Rowan Williams, and Raimon Panikkar among others. 

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace” Starting April 8th and running through May 27th. This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings.)

Paul Axton preaches: In Galatians, Paul delineates fleshly Israel from Spiritual Israel, equating fleshly Israel with the children of Hagar, and Christians with Isaac. Isaac points directly to Christ, just as the faith of Abraham in having Isaac points to Christian faith, but to focus on fleshly Israel is to return to idolatry. 

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace”: This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theologic...

Paul Axton preaches: Developing Paul's understanding that we fill up the suffering of Christ, the state of being between an originary unity and a developing fulness is explicated against the background of the philosophy of William Desmond, which is building on this Pauline idea. 

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(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace”: This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offer...

Brad and Paul discuss the work of William Desmond and approach it through his engagement with Hegel, his reading of Flannery O'Connor, and his opposition to the dark reading of Slavoj Žižek.

(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace”: This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. Go to https://pbi.forgingploughshares.org/offerings.)

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Paul Axton preaches: Thomas is a resolute unbeliever who after examining Jesus' wound gives the strongest of affirmations of Jesus' divine identity. As in the story of Flannery O'Connor, Revelation, one world falls apart revealing another. The crack opens up to let in the light. 

(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace”: This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. We will examine various forms of false peace and ask what peace is positively, its metaphysical and religious status as a concept and as a live...

Brad and Paul continue the conversation with John Ashworth, who has spent much of his life in Sudan in practical peacemaking efforts and describes how nonviolence is the real-world solution to conflict. 

(Sign up for “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace”: This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. We will examine various forms of false peace and ask what peace is positively, its metaphysical and religious status as a concept and as a lived reality. Is peace possible? How is it characterized? How does Jesus mak...

Paul Axton preaches: John combines his description of love and God with his picture of its reversal in the Antichrist. Friedrich Nietzsche, in recommending the Antichrist and his work (a recommendation taken up by the Nazis) depicts the reversal embraced by a German and American Christianity which would hate in the name of Christ. Agape love is the only counter to this demonic form of the faith.

(Sign up for "Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled: Perspectives on Peace": This class, with Ethan Vander Leek, examines “peace” from various perspectives: Biblical, theological, philosophical, and inter-religious. We will...

Brad and Paul interview peacemaker John Ashworth, who has spent his life bringing peace to Sudan, long torn by ethnic and political violence. John has been key in negotiating peace settlements and bringing peace to this troubled region and his expertise with the realities of peace as the resolution to violence is grounded in real-world reality and experience. 

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Paul Axton preaches: Jesus encounter with the woman at the well transports her and those who follow the conversation to a world in which God is no longer delimited by religion, place and time, and opens up a direct knowing of God, and Truth in the Spirit.

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In part 2 of our discussion of the physics of David Bohm reflected in the work of Hegel, Brad and I lay out the significance of Bohm's theory as it overlaps with Hegel's philosophy and also discuss the role of preaching, connected to these difficult topics. 

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Paul Axton preaches: The slaying of Renee Good and Alex Pretti and the justification of this slaughter and its denial points us to Christ's exposure of the blind murderers who killed him in the name of law and order. Beyond this evil, there is a third tier of evil which acknowledges Christ's exposure of evil but which is now using this insight to manipulate the blind. 

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