Rusty Reno offers insight into "our crisis of solidarity" that I haven't found anywhere else. In his book Return of the Strong Gods, he tackles the post-WWII liberal consensus that Karl Popper called The Open Society. It is an essential resource to help you understand our times.
Reno is also articulate on post-liberalism. It's not the simplistic idea you see dismissed in most of the legacy media. We also touch on secularism, and I tried to get him to use the contrast between Catholic and Protestant political theology to explain the issues in Quebec over Bill 21. He's too smart and didn't take the bait.
I hope you enjoy this one. Let me know what you think!
Thanks again
Shawn
Chapters and AI summary:
Host Shawn Whatley interviews Rusty Reno, editor of First Things and author of Return of the Strong Gods (2019; updated 2021), on how liberalism struggles to generate solidarity amid a “meta-crisis” of disintegration. Reno explains his critique of the postwar “open society” consensus shaped by Popper and Hayek and unpacks “neoliberalism” as a left-right, technocratic, globalization-era economic and cultural project that promoted openness, porous borders, and creative destruction, helping set the stage for populist backlash where immigration fuses economic and cultural concerns. They discuss universalism vs particularism, the “order of loves,” and why civic loyalty and a “pre-political we” matter for freedom. The conversation also addresses post-liberalism’s varieties, liberalism’s limits, and Quebec’s laïcité/Bill 21 tensions in a multicultural society.
00:00 Liberalism Lacks Solidarity
00:52 Meet Rusty Reno
01:16 Episode Roadmap
03:45 Rock Climbing Icebreaker
05:13 Introducing Strong Gods
07:04 Praise Words And God Terms
10:07 Neoliberalism And Weakening
15:42 Populism And Open Society
21:47 Universalism Versus Particularism
27:01 Political We And Self Interest
32:39 Crisis Of Disintegration
33:41 Canada And Multicultural Identity
34:34 Freedom and Solidarity
36:07 Critiques of Liberal Mind
37:28 Defining Post Liberalism
38:43 Post Liberal Theology Roots
42:55 Liberalism Not Enough
43:50 War Immigration Nationalism
46:45 Totalitarianism Debate
48:43 Quebec Bill 21 Laicite
55:10 Multiculturalism Managed Diversity
59:41 Republican We and Civic Virtue
01:02:04 Platonism and Real Nations
01:06:38 Metaphysical Density and Youth
01:10:34 Closing Thoughts and Farewell
