The Violence Inherent in the System (And the Path Out) GodArchy Podcast 25

Come see the violence inherent in the system!

You’ve may have seen the famous Monty Python scene from the Quest for the Holy Grail where Dennis shouts that line as King Arthur roughs him up. (If you haven’t the video is in the show notes.) The bit is pretty funny, but also poignant. Because it does often seem the system is inherently violent, doesn’t it?

And it doesn’t matter which system it is. Violence seems to be cross-cultural and even ritualized.

The work of historian, literary critic, and anthropological philosopher René Girard sheds light on this seemingly ubiquitous violence. He work revolves around two ideas – mimetic theory and scapegoat theory.

Libertarian entrepreneur, speaker, and writer David Gronoski has studied Girard’s work extensively and applied it to our modern world. As David puts it on A Neighbor’s Choice website, “Jesus offers a way of life not only for personal transformation but also a roadmap for how our neighborhoods and nations should be socially ordered.”

In this episode of the GodArchy podcast, I talk to David about mimetic desire, how that leads to scapegoating, how Jesus breaks the cycle of systemic violence and how we can apply these ideas in our modern world.

Show Notes

• A Neighbor’s Choice
• David’s email: David@aneighborschoice.com
• David’s YouTube
• I See Satan Fall Like Lightning – René Girard
• The Scapegoat – René Girard