FoC 155: Answering New Ageism: The Draw of Spirituality Without Religion with Matt Nelson

Why is New Age spirituality so appealing to millennials (and other generations!)? What is it about human beings that makes us wired for spirituality and a desire to know that we are significant in the universe–even when we reject religious faith? We’re chatting about everything from looking to the stars for meaning to looking to personality types for meaning and what’s at the heart of these longings with Matt Nelson!

Matt is a full-time Fellow of the Word on Fire Institute. He is the author of Just Whatever: How to Help the Spiritually Indifferent Find Beliefs That Really Matter (Catholic Answers Press, 2018), and the forthcoming book On the Far Side of Reason (Word on Fire Press, 2022). In 2019, he moved from Saskatchewan to Texas with his wife Amanda and their three children–(and Christy and Haley got to meet Amanda at the Raspberry Cordial Gathering!) .

In this episode we dive into a thought-provoking piece Matt wrote recently about New Ageism and we chat about Madeleine L’Engle’s take on the subject. We also discuss why we’re all fascinated by personality types like Myers-Briggs, the four temperaments, or the Enneagram–and how to be aware of the limits (and potential pitfalls) of these ways of understanding and categorizing ourselves. And we talk about how to evangelize a culture that rejects organized religion but is still drawn to spirituality.

So grab a cup of tea and enjoy the conversation!

Things we talked about: The Vatican’s document: Jesus Christ, the Bearer of the Water of Life

Sponsor

Today’s episode is sponsored by House of Joppa, a Catholic gift shop that exists to share the beauty of our Catholic faith in our homes through a variety of home decor pieces, Catholic art, Saint candles, statues, paper goods and beautifully crafted jewelry.  

Why House of Joppa?

“What’s in a name?” as Shakespeare so famously asked.  House of Joppa is rooted in scripture.

Acts 9:36-42 tells the story of a faithful disciple named Tabitha from Joppa who was known for her good works and helping the poor.  In a few short verses, Scripture tells us the miraculous story of how Tabitha died and was raised to life again by St. Peter.  The story spread throughout the region and “many believed in the Lord.”  

House of Joppa is designed to inspire you to live your faith boldly in a world in such desperate need of beauty and that by doing so, many will come to believe in our Lord!

About Our Products

Every House of Joppa product is curated from artisans throughout the world, many of whom share our Catholic faith. They make wonderful gifts for special occasions or to simply raise the spirits of a friend who needs a little reminder of their faith.

Head on over to House of Joppa and get 15% off with discount code CARROTS15

Connect with Matt:

Patreon!

Do you love FoC and want to help us keep doing what we’re doing (and more!)? Well, we have just the thing for you!

Head on over to support the podcast as a patron and get access to special episodes available exclusively to patrons as well as to the FoC Slack community! You’ll also have access to our patron book clubs and receive a cute sticker in the mail from us. We’ll be reading Muriel Spark’s Memento Mori next and we’d love for you to participate so join today.

Come hang out with us!

Haven’t joined in on the fun with 4,800+ other FoC listeners in our facebook group? It’s your direct line to some fantastic folks who also care about faith, culture, books, and whatever our current masterpiece theatre craze might be! Join in with the link below.

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.

FoC 154: Intentional Fatherhood, Vocation, and Gilbert Blythe with Tyler Blanski

What makes Gilbert Blythe the ultimate literary husband and father? How can we treat our vocations with more intentionality and commitment? Why are there so many resources for Catholic moms and not Catholic dads? All this AND the world’s cutest love story coming your way in today’s episode of the podcast!

We are so pleased to welcome back Tyler Blanski, friend of the show, fellow Anne of Green Gables fan, and all-around delightful guy. Tyler is an author (if you haven’t read his conversion story, treat yourself), a husband and father, and the founder of the new apostolate Fight for Milk created to equip and encourage Catholic fatherhood.

In this episode we dive into our undying love for Anne and Gilbert, why Gilbert’s attitude toward marriage and fatherhood is so refreshing, and why so many parents (including us!) enter parenthood feeling so ill-equipped. Tyler is such a fun conversation partner and this episode is uplifting and a lot of fun.

So grab a cup of tea and enjoy the conversation!

Sponsor

Today’s episode is sponsored by House of Joppa, a Catholic gift shop that exists to share the beauty of our Catholic faith in our homes through a variety of home decor pieces, Catholic art, Saint candles, statues, paper goods and beautifully crafted jewelry.  

Why House of Joppa?

“What’s in a name?” as Shakespeare so famously asked.  House of Joppa is rooted in scripture.

Acts 9:36-42 tells the story of a faithful disciple named Tabitha from Joppa who was known for her good works and helping the poor.  In a few short verses, Scripture tells us the miraculous story of how Tabitha died and was raised to life again by St. Peter.  The story spread throughout the region and “many believed in the Lord.”  

House of Joppa is designed to inspire you to live your faith boldly in a world in such desperate need of beauty and that by doing so, many will come to believe in our Lord!

About Our Products

Every House of Joppa product is curated from artisans throughout the world, many of whom share our Catholic faith. They make wonderful gifts for special occasions or to simply raise the spirits of a friend who needs a little reminder of their faith.

Head on over to House of Joppa and get 15% off with discount code CARROTS15

Connect with Tyler:

Patreon!

Do you love FoC and want to help us keep doing what we’re doing (and more!)? Well, we have just the thing for you!

Head on over to support the podcast as a patron and get access to special episodes available exclusively to patrons as well as to the FoC Slack community! You’ll also have access to our patron book clubs and receive a cute sticker in the mail from us. We’ll be reading Muriel Spark’s Memento Mori next and we’d love for you to participate so join today.

Come hang out with us!

Haven’t joined in on the fun with 4,800+ other FoC listeners in our facebook group? It’s your direct line to some fantastic folks who also care about faith, culture, books, and whatever our current masterpiece theatre craze might be! Join in with the link below.

You can listen to us on iTunes, and we’d love a quick rating or review. If you have an android device we’re also on Stitcher. And as always, you can find all links, show notes, upcoming guests, and listen to all episodes at Fountains of Carrots.com.