“Shiny and Chrome”: The Cult of the V8 in Mad Max: Fury Road, Before and Behind the Cameras

Trevor Talley’s new article for CBR.com reveals the intense, cult-like preparations undergone by actors and stuntmen who played the fearsome War Boys in George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). More details on the War Boys’ behind-the-scenes training is available in the book Blood, Sweat & Chrome: The Wild and True Story of Mad Max: … Read more“Shiny and Chrome”: The Cult of the V8 in Mad Max: Fury Road, Before and Behind the Cameras

“Tutorial: How to Create Your Own Religion?”

Rémi Sussan’s 2014 article for Tryangle (here translated from French into English) explores many avenues and possibilities of CultPunk/Poetic Faith: The creation of mythological pantheons is therefore the first step towards a true DIY religion. But it is very rare to encounter entirely original pantheons, with no link to the past. In general, it is … Read more“Tutorial: How to Create Your Own Religion?”

The Spring 2024 Metamodern Spirituality Lab at Sky Meadow

I’ve recently returned from Sky Meadow, a soulful home-away-from-home retreat center deep in Vermont’s magical Northeast Kingdom. The Spring ’24 retreat was part of an ongoing series conceived and hosted by Brendan Graham Dempsey and Layman Pascal (whose own reflection upon the event is available here). The theme for this season was “God” (or perhaps … Read moreThe Spring 2024 Metamodern Spirituality Lab at Sky Meadow

“Be Open to Spiritual Experience. Also, Be Really Careful.”

An elegant expression of the CultPunk/Poetic Faith perspective courtesy of Ross Douthat, writing for The New York Times: Start with the broad youthful impulse toward what you might call magical thinking, ranging from the vogue for astrology to the TikTok craze for manifesting desired outcomes in your life. In certain ways this is an extension of the … Read more“Be Open to Spiritual Experience. Also, Be Really Careful.”

“The Witches of Baltimore”

Sigal Samuel writes for The Atlantic: Modern black witches are practicing Yoruba-based faiths, with a few Millennial touches. They build altars to ancestors so they can seek their advice on everything from romance to professional advancement, cast spells using emoji to help banish depression, surround themselves with crystals in the hope that they will relieve stress, and … Read more“The Witches of Baltimore”

“Church of the Flying Saucer” (May 2024)

The Church of the Flying Saucer follows Carol Klodie, a former film school student who has hit a slump in her life. By happenstance, she finds a pamphlet under the windshield of her car advertising what seems to be a support group for UFO abductees and alien conspiracy theorists. She finds the pamphlet ridiculous and … Read more“Church of the Flying Saucer” (May 2024)

“How to Find Your Faith: the key to transcendence starts with a practice, not your feelings”

Arthur C. Brooks writes for The Atlantic, pointing out that spiritual practice is at least as important as feeling and faith; perhaps no more so than for the growing demographic of those who profess to be “spiritual but not religious”. The right approach is to start practicing, notwithstanding your current state of belief and feeling. … Read more“How to Find Your Faith: the key to transcendence starts with a practice, not your feelings”