I like how he's like "this will be anti-symbolic" and then proceeds to talk about how Odysseus' bed mimics the Garden of Eden and what that has to do with you joining a local church. Love this man.

Homelessness: the relentless quest to not be disappointed. And not finding it.

So cute how Pageau brought his own podium to the talk

Jonathan just explained Ecclesiastes for us.

Despite the lack of symbolic language I feel as if this is Pageau’s most important talk. This is something everyone must understand. I watched it shortly after the birth of my son while watching him sleep.

I like the german word for disappointment, namely "Enttäuschung" Täuschung means "deception", so Enttäuschung = disappointment is the unmasking of this deception (sometimes self-deception) and is therefore actually something positive

Being able to be disappointed in what you deem most important is what’s more important than the selfish need to find importance in your disappointment.

That was amazing!!! It takes on the issue of disappointment head on. This is important for believers to understand.

A great Christian understanding of "detachment". Similar to the calling of the stoics, but without love, stoics ends up being too harsh, and their philosophy practically unliveable. To another point JP makes; I think we can also end up idolising ("resting in") virtue itself. So, my chastity or patience becomes the whole point of the spiritual life. What comes with that is scrupulosity, despair, and guilt - because guess what, I will fall, and I will disappoint myself. So, then, do we detach from this expectation of perfectionism in this virtue? this seems to be the case. What's hard though, is the balance between the two: once we admit that we are imperfect, the danger is that we give up on being virtuous at all. And this cannot be the answer. So, as I see it, it's something like admitting your imperfections while striving towards it - yoked together with Christ.

I really needed this. Jonathan is always helping me get closer to God.

23:23 While listening to this talk I contemplated the pursuit of one more cup of coffee. Then, I realized I didn't need it and luxuriated in the cup I already had. Thank you, Jonathan! 😊

"An eschatological memory" -Pageau "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End" -Revelation 22:13

Real wisdom for young people: any Church is made up of the messiness of people and our foibles. Church at its best provides us with the "pattern" of the Heavenly and Holy as it elevates us above these "disappointments" which are baked into life in this world for our good to keep us stretching, seeking, and yearning for God.

I love "Guru Jonathan" doling out life advice. I'm glad he plays that card close to his chest.

This whole talk was an excellent discription of the critical role for spiritual discipline (ascesis). How can you be ready for disappointment and death if you haven't practiced it over and over? Also, the end of the Hail Mary: "pray for us now and at the hour of our death."

Home is where the mundane becomes sacred.

I am always impressed by Jonathan's ability to explain so many complex thoughts into more digestible ideas. Thanks God bless all of you.

One of his better talks

One of my favorite talks really humbled us all

Keep setting up the tension Jonathan! If we hold the tension we can walk on water.

I dunno man. People disappoint, places disappoint, I disappoint. But the Orthodox Tradition has not disappointed. The prayers, the hymns, the icons, the Fathers, Scripture, the services, the whole body of it. If I am disappointed in it, it's just because I'm not paying attention, or I have failed in humility. But it's an endless gift. And it's always there for when I wake up again.

By far the most charismatic "I forgot to prepare a speech" moment ever 😂

33:14 Not seeking spiritual experience: reminded me of the Road to Emmaus as soon as Jesus broke the bread (Eucharist) and they finally recognized Him... He vanished.

Yes!!!!

I'm so excited to hear this again. Good morning and thank you Pastor Paul

JP and PVK 🎉❤

I re-watched this video today and it was just what I needed.

Absolutely wonderful. Thank you Jonathan, and Paul.

This man is an absolute treasure ❤

I love the evangelical Megachurch vibe 🤣🤣

Always love hearing Jonathan expanding on or extrapoliting his message. So much here resonates with me.

this is one of the most incredible talks i’ve heard

I'm listening to Rod Dreher's "How Dante Can Change Your Life," and he speaks of his breaking point with the Catholic Church, regarding the child molestation scandal and the way that it was mishandled just being too much for him to tolerate. Where is the line drawn between simple disappointment in human messiness and fallibility, and something that's just too much to bear? I'm sure several people would answer this several different ways, but Jonathan's comment about confronting disappointment after the "honeymoon" stage reminded me of Dreher. Anyway, this was a great talk and I'm definitely going to work on the part about grasping onto things, and about God's "concessions" to us while He tries to "drag us up the mountain."

Thanks Jonathan and Paul!

Superb. Humbling. One of my favorite talks thus far.

This is brilliant. Thank you!

Thank you for sharing this with us out in cyberspace. Would have loved to have been there; very glad to be able to consider these thoughts.

Man, the stage lights and auditorium acoustics coupled with Jonathan's voice is giving me the heebie-jeebies

In this world, in which we are on a pilgrimage towards eternal home, wearing our tabernacle of the mortal body, the only constant, abiding rest, through all the tribulations and disappointments in life, is found in personal union with God, as the Saviour said, to love Him above all else, to fix all our hopes for ourselves and for loved ones, in Him, to have Father, Son and Holy Ghost make their home in us now (St John 14.23), for that is eternal life now, knowing the only true God in Jesus Christ.

3:54 - 4:47 Re: memory of the Garden Consciousness is memory: remembering (unity) and forgetting (disappointment). A friend shared a line from a poem from Philip Dacey: "[he] wishes away what he gives praise to God by being, poor man."

MT ATHOS: "If you die before you die, you won't die when you die" ΑΓΙΟΡΕΙΤΙΚΗ ΡΥΣΗ -ΣΟΦΙΑ : «Ἄν πεθάνεις πρίν πεθάνεις, δέν θά πεθάνεις ὅταν πεθάνεις» Ο ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΜΑΖΙ ΣΟΥ ΙΩΝΑΘΑΝ

"In order for the world to exist, we cannot own a home." Here we go, Paul...Peter Rollins. This is the libidinal pursuit of the Lack (that which promises to make one whole and complete). And probably "whole" in a quantitative sense.

Just Wow

"I'm trying to make you come" - Jesus, according to Johnny P🤣🤣🤣 This guy is a legend

Wow, so profound but also so practical, all wrapped up in that very Orthodox "bright sadness"...I couldn't resist immediately sending it to my priest and godparents 😅Glory to God for what you're doing, Pageau. And of course thank you, Pastor VanderKlay, for hosting this event and letting us see what happened there

Leave it to Pageau to destroy the premise of the conference in his first appearance 😅 The aim to find a spiritual home is an idolatrous one. "Spirituality" is not a means to supplement ourselves.

Wonderful talk. Think it is v much in tune with McGilchrist's view of left brain dominance which is the grasping hemisphere. Also made me think of LOTR and how there is a Gift/Grasping dynamic throughout. Tolkien knew this.

Abide in Jesus, abide in His love, let His words abide in you, and you will be His abode, in this life and in the next.

The image of the man and the woman finding rest at the bridal chamber is really great, as the segway into eschatology, memory, and letting go of it.

Of course this talk comes out when I'm dealing with two huge disappointments in life

Wow this is awesome!!! No views yet!!!

If you expect to find home on this earth, you will be disappointed. Glory to God! I should never forget to remember that these good things point to Christ. They are not Christ.

14:00 - 14:18 Re: Self-naming and the pursuit of quantitatively full identity (a species of the Satan, the libidinal pursuit of the Lack) This is identitarianism and the autonomous, isolated individual v. the Person. And its spiritual roots are confessionalism. See the Rohlin/Pageau History of Nationalism talk. Group/religious identity moves toward Nationalist identity, moves to individualist identity. (which is all necessary in the evolution of consciousness: remembering/forgetting). As we move to Christ in me/you.

Oh dear! This means I have to let go of my self.

When you die the surprise is found in the emergence of life. Death brings life. Truly, truly, I say to you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it stays alone: but if it die, it brings forth much fruit.

Absolutely necessary talk. Enchantment may be needed but too much shiny advertisement teaches us that dishonesty or at least heavy omission is the norm. Thank you John for talking about the reality. May ironically help the weary find respite.

Not really giving up, more like putting in place.

Based Jonathan:)

Thank you for sharing this! I REALLY wanted to attend the conference, but I wasn’t able to travel to California. I’m excited to watch the other speakers.

I just had a revelation about God not grasping us and how that makes us. 🤯

Maybe we can find a spiritual home in this life. It's certain that it can not in anyway be static and sedentary which may lead people to despondency and to think there is no spiritual home in this reality. But the idea of a spiritual home (meaning Divine Relationship) in motion heading towards the complete consummation of Divine Relationship in Paradise I feel is highly probable.

Not Home but The Feeling of Belonging to..

I'm realizing an interesting paradox in my current state that relates to this very much. I couldn't help but notice that God is taking me through this massive surge of rapidly explaining these key truths about my life and the faith, to the point where I almost can't keep up, and I think it's sort of a concession to a critical error in my attitude, because I really am not interested in following after all these people in the bible who waste decades of their lives learning these lessons the hard way. I almost don't even want to experience my own catechism, I just want to skip ahead to the good part. I'm not saying that I'm doing that, but it's what I want. And the fact that God is sort of giving it to me almost feels like a punishment. But, considering the message of this video, at the same time, I realize that giving up the detour is also a type of dying, that may just lead to an even fuller life compared to trying to really grasp this "growing up" period of time, so I might just be cheating my way into the secret joke solution almost by accident. Intrinsically giving up this period of time by not even wanting it, and forcibly giving up the skipping of it by still participating in it as much as I am able, giving up both of the things and seemingly receiving both as a result. It's all so very odd, but God is wonderful and great within all the strangeness. Praise the Lord.

First ❤❤❤

Where does Heaven meet Earth? Right before your very eyes. Look to the horizon. It is all hidden in plain sight.

28 Grasp, LH

SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHY THE CLOSING SLIDE IS CAPE TOWN HAHAHAHAHA

Sounds a lot like the Buddhist doctrine of impermanence and that life is suffering/inadequate/disappointing

First

You don’t die because you are practicing dying. You die because only in dying can you trample death. See Viktor Frankl.

*tosses a comment to the algorithm*

Has Israel apologized for the USS liberty event yet?

Dr IMcG and the Coincudence of Opposites.

This is far better than a lot of the comedy specials on Netflix at the moment, a brilliant work of satire