69: Andrew Kern - On How Harmony Guides Education
Join James as he sits down with Andrew Kern, the president of the CiRCE Institute, to discuss the place of harmony within the classroom.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane. Check out Difff's other podcast: Chiron, conversations about the past to help make sense of the present.And James' other podcast: The Art of Inquiry, inquiries into the nature of the world and humanity with expert level guests passionate about their field.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0
68. Saving Science from Scientism - part 1: 'Does Science need saving?'
Does science need saving from scientism? What is science and what is scientism? How did we find ourselves with the materialist and technocratic vision of science of today? Join James as he discusses these questions in the first of two episodes on saving science from scientismPlease consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane. Check out Difff's other podcast: Chiron, conversations about the past to help make sense of the present.And James' other podcast: The Art of Inquiry, inquiries into the nature of the world and humanity with expert level guests passionate about their field.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0
67. The Power of Reading in a Post-Literate World
Why should we read? In this episode, Difff and James discuss the startling statistics on the decline of reading across the West, as well as the power that developing our reading capacity can hold.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane. Check out Difff's other podcast: Chiron, conversations about the past to help make sense of the present.And James' other podcast: The Art of Inquiry, inquiries into the nature of the world and humanity with expert level guests passionate about their field.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0
66. Medieval Enchantment, Difff's PhD
Difff explains his PhD, The Paradox of Enchantment: Syncretising Meteorology, Humoralism, and Demonology on the Early Modern English Stage. The discussion covers questions of enchantment and the 'discarded image' of the medieval mind, Shakespeare, astrology in King Lear, the role of enchantment in education, the importance of continuing to pursue learning into adulthood, and much more.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane. Check out Difff's other podcast: Chiron, conversations about the past to help make sense of the present.And James' other podcast: The Art of Inquiry, inquiries into the nature of the world and humanity with expert level guests passionate about their field.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0
65. Brian Williams and Peter Crawford on the Poetic Mode
This episode was recorded live at the 2025 Education for Human Flourishing Conference. James was joined by Dr Brian Williams (Templeton Honors College) and Peter Crawford (Institute for Catholic Liberal Education) to discuss poetry and the poetic mode.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane. Check out Difff's other podcast: Chiron, conversations about the past to help make sense of the present.And James' other podcast: The Art of Inquiry, inquiries into the nature of the world and humanity with expert level guests passionate about their field.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0