The hottest Religious Philosophy Substack posts right now

Treating beliefs as probabilities (not absolute 0s or 1s) lets you update with evidence and avoids the kind of suffering that comes from being unable to change your mind.
Intentionally making fixed commitments—treating some choices as decision variables immune to evidence—can build discipline and agency but also creates deliberate suffering when reality conflicts with those commitments.
There’s a trade‑off: letting go of rigid beliefs (a Buddhist move) reduces suffering, while choosing to hold some 0/1 commitments (a Christian move) aims for a coherent, fully engaged life even at the cost of suffering.

The battle for gun rights is viewed as a spiritual conflict where men should not outsource their security to external systems or organizations
Teaching boys skills for protection and the importance of taking personal responsibility is crucial for their transition into manhood
There is a call for individuals to embrace the idea of spiritual combat, taking responsibility for their own safety and facing the battle against their inner demons

Sometimes people think it’s okay to hide or distort the truth if they believe the lie will lead to better social outcomes, a practice often called "virtuous fraud".
That temptation appears in many contexts — from denying evolution to preserve religion, to editors weighing publication of risky science, to politicians exaggerating facts to win support for policies.
Deciding whether deception is justified relies on uncertain empirical beliefs and invites hypocrisy and misuse, because good intentions can produce bad results or be applied selectively.

The author prefers to focus on personal experiences over political opinions.
The walk home from church in New York is described as pleasant and filled with love for fellow neighbors.
The author emphasizes the importance of serving and helping others, rather than seeking revenge or judgment.

Girard's mimetic theory explains how people copy desires from others, leading to a cycle of scapegoating in communities.
The Christian story transformed how societies perceive innocence and persecution, changing the axis of rulership from strong vs. weak to good vs. evil.
Girard's concept of the antichrist warns of a corruption of Christian teachings, leading to persecution disguised as defense of victims.

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Dzogchen, a branch of Buddhism, is difficult to understand because it lacks a conceptual framework and makes no explicit claims.
Explaining Dzogchen involves discovering meaning through inexplicit instructions rather than traditional philosophical or religious concepts.
Attending a Dzogchen retreat at Drala Mountain Center in Colorado provides an opportunity for theory, discussion, and practice with a knowledgeable instructor.

The idea of evil as an active, independent force was elaborated in ancient Iran and shaped Zoroastrian and later religious thought, turning history into a cosmic struggle between good and evil.
Philosophers and mystics argued over whether the world is a single rational whole or split between competing principles, with some seeing God as a necessary, impersonal cause and others insisting on a free, personal God and a tragic, sympathetic devil.
Those metaphysical debates still matter politically: Iran’s revolutionary regime casts itself as fighting cosmic evil, which shapes repression and makes contemporary protests into conflicts about freedom, moral choice, and what it means to be free to do wrong.