Hank Unplugged: Essential Christian Conversations The Christian Research Institute

“Before there was a West, there was Christendom.” Fr. John Strickland has written a monumental four-part history of Christendom—from the first millennium of Christendom which he deems “the age of paradise” to our current cultural condition which he labels “the age of nihilism.” telling the story of how both came to be.

On this episode Fr. John Strickland joins Hank to discuss Christendom’s most tumultuous century. As nihilism began to cast its menacing shadow on the eve of the First World War, a self-styled “antichrist” named Friedrich Nietzsche and an obstinately Christian Fyodor Dostoevsky both offered ominous visions of what the West would become if “God is dead” and any moral act thus becomes permissible. Though total warfare seemed to confirm such predictions, a project arose in its wake to rebuild utopia with secular ideologies that, in the case of Nazism, opened the abyss even further. Communism and liberalism were left after the Second World War to compete for ultimate preeminence, but both would ultimately fail to replace the lost transcendence of the West’s deep first-millennium past. As the twenty-first century opened, utopia was as elusive as ever, and a culture of paradise once again beckoned to a civilization exhausted by centuries of secularism.

Topics discussed include: What is the age of nihilism? (2:30); the impact and enduring legacy of Friedrich Nietzsche (9:00); Friedrich Nietzsche and the transvaluation of values (16:35); ideas have consequences—atheism always leads towards self-destruction (21:15); Nietzsche was the leading prophet of nihilism, the destruction of anything with value (31:40); Sigmund Freud’s impact on the age of nihilism (37:50); the rise of communism and the practical consequences of a world without God (43:00); how nihilism emboldens communism to manipulate Truth—as seen with Pravda (47:20); ideological worldbuilding—the efforts of the powers that be to break the influence of traditional values in society (57:25); ideological worldbuilding, Social Darwinism and Nazism (1:05:25); the individualistic legacy of liberalism (1:11:00); abortion as an unassailable value and ideal of liberalism  (1:18:30); how liberalism is a counterfeit of traditional Christianity (1:20:20); “Without God anything is permissible”—Fyodor Dostoevsky and the importance of repentance (1:24:15); Dostoevsky’s conviction (1:29:30); Putin on how progressivism leads to nihilism (1:34:00); transgenderism as the ultimate personification of nihilism (1:41:20); Christians must be a lighthouse in the midst of our current cultural storm—the paradisiacal transformation of the culture through the life of the Church (1:48:40).

For more information on receiving The Age of Paradise, The Age of Division, The Age of Utopia, and the Age of Nihilism individually, as a package of two or three or the full 4 Volume set for your partnering gift please click here.  https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-the-age-of-paradise-the-age-of-division-the-age-of-utopia-the-age-of-nihilism-4-volumes-on-ages-of-christendom-hup/



Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.Archived episodes are  on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.

“Before there was a West, there was Christendom.” Fr. John Strickland has written a monumental four-part history of Christendom—from the first millennium of Christendom which he deems “the age of paradise” to our current cultural condition which he labels “the age of nihilism.” telling the story of how both came to be.On this episode Fr. John Strickland joins Hank to discuss his book The Age of Utopia: Christendom from the Renaissance to the Russian Revolution, which covers the period between the Italian Renaissance of the fourteenth century and the Russian Revolution of the twentieth, when secular humanism displaced Christianity to become the source of modern culture. The result was some of the most illustrious music, science, philosophy, and literature ever produced. But the cultural reorientation from paradise to utopia―from an experience of the kingdom of heaven to one bound exclusively by this world―all but eradicated the traditional culture of the West, leaving it at the beginning of the twentieth century without roots in anything transcendent.

Topics discussed include: Petrarch, the father of humanism, and how the rise of pessimism in Christianity led to the rise of secular humanism (3:30); how anthropological pessimism shaped and influenced Western culture and civilization (15:00); how the wars of Western Christianity—such as the Crusades—helped advance secular humanism (21:00); the radical separation of heaven and earth in Calvin’s sacramental and liturgical theology (26:35); the rise of science as a replacement for religion and a rationalistic explanation for everything (35:00); distinguishing between science and scientism (41:05); Voltaire and the impact of the Thirty Years’ War (44:05); the cult of reason that has replaced God and altered the historical narrative of the world (49:10); the role of the Encyclopedia on the growth of secular humanism (53:30); the unique nature of the French Revolution (58:30); the rise of Romanticism as a response to the loss of transcendence in the world (1:03:00); the dangerous ideals of the Darwinian revolution (1:12:15); the rise of scientism (1:22:00); how liberal Protestantism is shaped by secular humanism (1:26:05); Marx, Marxism and the idea of inevitability whereby violence becomes the engine of progress (1:29:40); how World War I exposed the myth of progress (1:41:00); the secular path to utopia ultimately leads to dystopia (1:49:30); the age of nihilism—an age in which virtually anything is possible (1:56:00).

For more information on receiving The Age of Paradise, The Age of Division, The Age of Utopia, and the Age of Nihilism individually, as a package of two or three or the full 4 Volume set for your partnering gift please click here. https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-the-age-of-paradise-the-age-of-division-the-age-of-utopia-the-age-of-nihilism-4-volumes-on-ages-of-christendom-hup/​




Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.Archived episodes are  on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.

Before there was a West, there was Christendom.” Fr. John Strickland has written a monumental four-part history of Christendom—from the first millennium of Christendom which he deems “the age of paradise” to our current cultural condition which he labels “the age of nihilism.” telling the story of how both came to be.Fr. John Strickland joins Hank to discuss his book The Age of Division: Christendom from the Great Schism to the Protestant Reformation, which provides an overview of the break in unity that occurred within Christendom after the Great Schism to the continued fracturing that occurred through the Protestant Reformation.If you have ever wondered exactly how we got from the Christian society of the early centuries, united in its faithfulness to apostolic tradition, to the fragmented and secular state of the West today, this episode on The Age of Division is an absolute must listen—tracing the decline and disintegration of both East and West after the momentous but often neglected Great Schism. For five centuries, a divided Christendom was led further and further from the culture of paradise that defined its first millennium, resulting in the Protestant Reformation and the secularization that defines our society today.For more information on receiving The Age of Paradise, The Age of Division, The Age of Utopia, and the Age of Nihilism individually, as a package of two or three or the full 4 Volume set for your partnering gift please click here.


Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.Archived episodes are on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.

“Before there was a West, there was Christendom.” Fr. John Strickland has written a monumental four-part history of Christendom—from the first millennium of Christendom which he deems “the age of paradise” to our current cultural condition which he labels “the age of nihilism.” telling the story of how both came to be.

On this episode Fr. John Strickland joins Hank to discuss his book The Age of Paradise: Christendom from Pentecost to the First Millennium, which provides an overview of the first thousand years of Christendom ranging from Pentecost to the Great Schism. The Age of Paradise is the first of a four-volume history of Christendom, a civilization with a supporting culture that gave rise to what we now call the West. At a time of renewed interest in the future of Western culture, author John Strickland—an Orthodox scholar, professor, and priest—offers a vision rooted in the deep past of the first millennium. At the heart of his story is the early Church’s “culture of paradise,” an experience of the world in which the kingdom of heaven was tangible and familiar. Drawing not only on worship and theology but statecraft and the arts, Fr. John Strickland reveals the remarkably affirmative character Western culture once had under the influence of Christianity - in particular, of Eastern Christendom, which served the West not only as a cradle but as a tutor and guardian as well.


For more information on receiving The Age of Paradise, The Age of Division, The Age of Utopia, and the Age of Nihilism individually, as a package of two or three or the full 4 Volume set for your partnering gift please click here. https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-the-age-of-paradise-the-age-of-division-the-age-of-utopia-the-age-of-nihilism-4-volumes-on-ages-of-christendom-hup/



Topics discussed include: Peter’s Pentecost sermon and the importance of repentance in the Christian life (3:00); the significance of definite articles in translations and how it impacts our understanding of Christian history and tradition (8:15); why did the early Church grow so rapidly? Is it possible to experience a similar Pentecost in the 21st century? (11:30); what was the attraction of the early Christian Church for women? (18:30); the Great Persecution—the last and most severe persecution of the Roman Empire by Diocletian (23:50); the unpredictable impact of Constantine on Christianity (29:00); Constantinianism—why are some Christians so critical of Constantine? (37:25); symphony and caesaropapism—different models of Christian statecraft (42:10); how either a pessimistic or optimistic view of the world can dramatically impact Christian tradition (46:25); iconoclasm—Christianity’s first reformation (52:00); the significance of the Ecumenical councils—and why are they ignored by many modern Christians (1:00:00); the significance of doctrinal precision and integrity defined by the Church councils (1:05:30); what is the significance of the filioque—the insertion of “and the son” in the Nicene Creed (1:09:55); the Nicolaitan Schism vs the Photian Schism (1:14:20); how escapism became a key paradigmatic distinction between Eastern and Western Christians (1:17:00); the eschatological direction of the Old Christendom vs. the New Christendom (1:27:25); the model for missions provided by Cyril and Methodius and what we can learn from it today (1:31:00); reformational Christianity vs traditional Christianity (1:34:20); a preview of the upcoming podcast with Fr. John Strickland on his book The Age of Division: Christendom from the Great Schism to the Protestant Reformation (1:38:45); the importance of historical literacy for Christians (1:41:00).

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​Does Church history matter? In an age marked by division, Christians of all traditions can almost assuredly agree that we are currently living in an age of cultural decline. Believing in the transformational power of historical understanding, Fr. John Strickland has written a monumental four-part history of Christendom—from the first millennium of Christendom which he deems “the age of paradise” to our current cultural condition which he labels “the age of nihilism.” In addition to this podcast, Fr. John Strickland will join Hank Hanegraaff on Hank Unplugged for four subsequent episodes focused on four individual periods of Church history. On this introductory episode Fr. John Strickland provides an overview of his analysis and answers the question of whether or not church history matters with a resounding yes, while encouraging Christians to seek the solution to our current cultural decline by returning to the deep past of early Christendom—the age of paradise. Topics discussed include: Why did Fr. John Strickland write a four-volume history of Christianity from Pentecost to the present day? (9:15); how the three major secular ideologies of the 20th century—Communism, Nazism and Secularism—are all the byproducts of a false view of Christianity (14:45); the distinction between culture and civilization (22:00); NOT SURE (30:00); Pentecost and the significance of the liturgical life of the early Christians (36:15); an overview of the Great Schism of 1054—the Great Divide of Christendom (41:35); the conciliar fashion of the early Church leadership (47:00); the Filioque and the importance of apostolic doctrinal integrity (55:15); the Papal reformation—the time from the Great Schism to the Protestant Reformation (58:20); the importance of perpetuating the faith of the early Christians and the dangers of doctrinal innovation (1:06:15); the iconoclastic reformation—creating further artistic and ideological division between the East and the West (1:12:45); a good place without God is nowhere—the answers to our current cultural decline is to look to the deep past of early Christendom (1:17:15); our current age of nihilism is what happens when you try to create a utopia without God (1:22:15); why is the Sacramental life so important? (1:25:15); The Age of Paradise: Christendom from Pentecost to the First Millennium (1:28:00); The Age of Division: Christendom from the Great Schism to the Protestant Reformation (1:30:45); The Age of Utopia: Christendom from the Renaissance to the Russian Revolution (1:34:15); The Age of Nihilism: Christendom from the Great War to the Culture Wars (1:40:15). For more information on receiving The Age of Paradise, The Age of Division, The Age of Utopia, and the Age of Nihilism individually, as a package of two or three or the full 4 Volume set for your partnering gift please click here. https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-the-age-of-paradise-the-age-of-division-the-age-of-utopia-the-age-of-nihilism-4-volumes-on-ages-of-christendom-hup/



Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.Archived episodes are on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.

As we celebrate the Christmas season, we encourage you to contemplate the meaning and the magnitude of the Incarnation—the climax of divine revelation: God with us! The very thought that the one who spoke and galaxies leapt into existence should cloak Himself in human flesh is unthinkable. To imagine that the one who knit me together in my mother’s womb would Himself inhabit Mary’s womb boggles the mind. Yet this is precisely what Christianity proclaims—a Creator beyond comprehension who has revealed Himself in Incarnation. In taking on human flesh, God gives us more than the clearest image of who He is. He gives us Himself. To learn more about receiving the book that this is adapted from for your partnering gift, please click here.https://www.equip.org/product/cri-resource-incarnation/


Listen to Hank’s podcast and follow Hank off the grid where he is joined by some of the brightest minds discussing topics you care about. Get equipped to be a cultural change agent.Archived episodes are on our Website and available at the additional channels listed below.You can help spread the word about Hank Unplugged by giving us a rating and review from the other channels we are listed on.