Episodes

Caius Gracchus works his way through the Roman ranks until, following in his older brother's footsteps, he is elected as a young tribune of the people. Immediately, he begins to propose legislation that will both avenge his b...

Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus returns home from war to find his nation in decline. The rich have imported immigrants and slaves into Italy to displace the native citizens. The rise of plantations drives free Romans into urban ...

Tiberius Gracchus returns home from the Third Punic War and finds his nation in decline. The wealthy have imported immigrants and slaves to replace the native-born Romans in the countryside. Ex-soldiers and their families hav...

How the process of optimization ultimately ruins everything. Beginning with examples from Mexican politics and President Gustavo Diaz, the podcast goes on to consider business, sports, diet, religion, marriage and technology ...

The speaker explores the dark theology of Cormac McCarthy. The sources of influence include William Faulkner, Herman Melville's Moby Dick, ancient gnosticism. Cited works include The Orchard Keeper, The Outer Dark, Suttree, B...

A reflection on the post-apocalyptic trend in modern fiction, starting with an epiphany experienced while rereading Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. The speaker explores technological trends in history, prehistory and the fu...

Jacob returns to the Promised Land, after surviving the reunion with his brother Esau. He meets a muysterious stranger and earns a new name at the river Yabbok. His daughter, Dinah, is violated near Shechem. His sons stir up ...

Jacob reaches the middle of his life and comes into conflict with Laban, his father-in-law. He gathers his wives and household and returns to the Promised Land. Digressions on repetition in Scripture and the flexible morality...

Jacob begins his odyssey, traveling to the lands of the East, where his uncle Laban and his cousins live. The fragile youth becomes a man. He marries Leah and Rachel, and has numerous children through them and their handmaids...

Carthago delenda est. Marcus Cato dies before he can see his apocalyptic dream come true. Scipio Aemilianus rises to the office of consul and leads the Roman legions in their final assault on the city of Carthage.

Marcus Cato makes memorable observations on the decline of Roman traditions. Wealth and power are concentrated in the hands of fewer and fewer men. The author reflects on the changing nature of the Roman upper and lower class...

The victors of the Macedonian wars bring back more than treasure and tribute. Greek culture flows into Roman society. Men like Flamininus and Aemilius Paulus embrace it. Marcus Cato reviles this Greek immigration of values an...

The scriptures transition from the grand story of Abraham to the very human, realistic story of a family torn, a dying father, a scheming mother and two brothers in conflict. The tale of Jacob and Esau begins.

Scipio and Hannibal finally come face to face in Africa. Carthage is totally defeated. The Roman Senate takes another step to becoming the governing body of the known world.

Publius Cornelius Scipio the Younger, someday to be known as Scipio Africanus, engages and defeats the Carthaginians in Spain. He stands for election to the consulship, demanding the right to carry the war into Africa. The ch...

In which the speaker meanders from topic to topic, skirts dangerously close to misogyny, espouses various unorthodox viewpoints and talks a lot about sex. Mostly, though, he rages against the walls of the prison that he built...

The Second Punic War spreads into Greece, Sicily, Africa and Spain. The Illyrian Wars and the Macedonian Wars break out. Fabius and Marcellus are not alone among the men who come forward to serve Rome in this moment of need. ...

Rome commits to the war, raising more troops than ever before and pushing the limits of their constitution. Hannibal is victorious over Rome again and again. Fabius Maximus manages to slow the destruction, until Carthage's gr...

Hannibal sacks the Roman-allied city of Saguntum. Rome and Carthage officially declare war. The Gauls rebel in northern Italy. Hannibal marches eastward to glory or defeat.

This episode covers the fragile peace after the First Punic War, focusing on Carthage’s internal rebellions, Hamilcar Barca’s campaigns in Spain, and Rome’s expansion in northern Italy. It introduces key figures like Hamilcar...

Abraham and Isaac as types of God the Father and His son, Jesus. The love story of Isaac and Rebecca. The death of Abraham and Sarah.

Isaac is finally born to Sarah. Almost immediately, Abraham‘s legacy is threatened when God commands him to sacrifice his newborn son.

Abraham meets the Holy Trinity by the sacred trees of Mamre. Lot is saved from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. RECOMMENDED READS:

Abram deepens his relationship with God. Rituals of animal sacrifice and human circumcision seal the covenant. Abram becomes Abraham, the father of nations. RECOMMENDED READS: