Video Replay: Critical Thinking and the Spiritual Importance of Discernment (10/24/2021)
Thank you to all who joined us for this discussion! Please scroll down to view the video replay and download the PPT that Jules used for his presentation.
Topic: Critical Thinking and the Spiritual Importance of Discernment
Hosts: Jules Evans and Dr. Dan Wilson
Date: Sunday, October 24, 2021
Cost: Free – donations are gratefully accepted (buttons are below)
Description:
The title “Paramahansa”, as in “Paramahansa Yogananda”, refers to a legendary swan that was said to have been able to separate milk from water. This symbolizes the yogi’s refined discriminative faculties, which enable him or her to discern the Real from the unreal – Truth from falsehood. Many spiritual traditions and teachers emphasize that developing these faculties is essential on the spiritual path, and caution that failing to do so can throw us off course.
Today, the importance of developing discernment, or critical thinking skills, is playing out on the world stage. As documentaries such as “The Social Dilemma” have portrayed, social media connect and inform us but can also distract and divide us.
One might think that spiritual leaders and aspirants would be somewhat immune to such manipulative agendas, but in fact, many of us may be susceptible. Has spirituality eroded our critical thinking skills or failed to encourage their development? Does knowing that spirituality can reveal deep, hidden truths incline some of us to believe dubious assertions, simply because they have allegedly been concealed? How can we tell if our critical thinking skills are deficient, and what can we do to strengthen them?
This webinar will address these points.
About Jules Evans
Jules Evans is a practical philosopher and the author of books including Philosophy for Life and Other Dangerous Situations, and The Art of Losing Control. He’s an honorary research fellow at the Centre for the History of the Emotions at Queen Mary University of London. He has written and spoken on the revival of Ancient Greek philosophy, particularly Stoicism, in modern life, and organized the first Stoic gatherings in two millennia. He’s also written on ecstatic experiences and psychedelics and teaches psychedelic history at Synthesis Institute and other organizations. He was a BBC New Generation Thinker and has written and spoken for BBC 2, Radio 4, Vice, Financial Times, Audible, The Times and many other publications. In the last 18 months he has written and spoken a lot about ‘conspirituality’ and the shadow aspects of New Age spirituality. His website is philosophyforlife.org.
About Dr. Dan Wilson
Dan Wilson is a scientist and science communicator who earned his B.S. in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology from Clarion University and his Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University studying ribosome biogenesis. Currently, he works as a scientist at a Biotech company called Eurofins but his passion is science communication. Dan has always been fascinated by conspiracy theories, claims of the paranormal, etc., and as a teenager, was a conspiracy theorist himself. After coming out of his conspiracy mindset, he started a YouTube channel with the goal of communicating science with a focus on debunking the many harmful claims which have become all too common during the COVID pandemic. His YouTube channel is: Debunk the Funk with Dr. Wilson.
Suggested Donation
While we offer this special online event for free for everyone to attend, please consider making a suggested donation of $10 or more to support the Association for Spiritual Integrity to continue sponsoring more events like this one. All donations are made in USD funds. The ASI is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt corporation. Thank you 🙏
Suggested Donation: $20
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Video Replay & PowerPoint
Download the PPT presentation that Jules Evan used for his discussion here (right-click and choose “Save as…” or click to open in a new browser window): Critical Thinking and Discernment in Spirituality
Please enjoy the video replay: