Origen’s Revenge: The Greek and Hebrew Roots of Christian Thinking on Male and Female, Brian Patrick Mitchell (Pickwick, 2021). The following is an email exchange between the Psmiths, edited slightly for clarity. John: You know dear, we’ve been writing this book review Substack for six months now, ever since that crazy New Year’s resolution of ours, but we still haven’t done “the gender one.” And I feel like we have a real competitive advantage at this, since both side of the unbridgeable epistemic chasm are represented here. So let’s settle some of the eternal questions: Can men and women be friends? Who got the worse deal out of the curse in the Garden of Eden? And what’s up with your
I love that you all work so well together. I'm waiting for the book/tv show/movie which frames husband and wife as a team against the world, instead of a couple at odds with each other until the end of the story.
Been doing a bit of reading of late on adjacent subjects like Carl Truman's the Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self. You all might enjoy that work as it traces the modern view of self starting with the Greeks to the present.
As a husband and father, the most important lesson for me was to sacrifice my "needs" for the benefit of my wife and family. Well, that and deliberately structuring my house as a place that gives praise to our Savior and Creator. This fundamentally transforms the home for the better.
Re: “Love your enemies and bless those that curse you”
This makes a lot of sense from an esoteric point of view as it is well-known that what you project on others is a reflection of yourself (cf Jungian shadow) and what you wish for others tends to reflect back on you (a well-known Druid’s raspberry jam principle) - so if you wish disaster/justice on others then your focus on disaster/justice will tend to also bring it upon yourself. Thus focussing on blessings and raising people up is psychologically good for you - something Christ understood well.
Regarding the opening texts of Paul, in Christianity there is a distinction between the bodily person and the eternal soul (also reflected in the give unto Caesar…) which is reflected in these texts - hence it is easy to argue that there is no inconsistency.
Awesome work. Thank you.
I love that you all work so well together. I'm waiting for the book/tv show/movie which frames husband and wife as a team against the world, instead of a couple at odds with each other until the end of the story.
Been doing a bit of reading of late on adjacent subjects like Carl Truman's the Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self. You all might enjoy that work as it traces the modern view of self starting with the Greeks to the present.
As a husband and father, the most important lesson for me was to sacrifice my "needs" for the benefit of my wife and family. Well, that and deliberately structuring my house as a place that gives praise to our Savior and Creator. This fundamentally transforms the home for the better.
Thanks again.
“between the sexes, the husband takes the archic role and the wife the eucharistic.” I think this nails it, in a blurry way 😂
Re: “Love your enemies and bless those that curse you”
This makes a lot of sense from an esoteric point of view as it is well-known that what you project on others is a reflection of yourself (cf Jungian shadow) and what you wish for others tends to reflect back on you (a well-known Druid’s raspberry jam principle) - so if you wish disaster/justice on others then your focus on disaster/justice will tend to also bring it upon yourself. Thus focussing on blessings and raising people up is psychologically good for you - something Christ understood well.
Regarding the opening texts of Paul, in Christianity there is a distinction between the bodily person and the eternal soul (also reflected in the give unto Caesar…) which is reflected in these texts - hence it is easy to argue that there is no inconsistency.
You guys are book review rock stars. Have you considered writing for the annual ACX book review contest?