In the latest episode of the Nostalgia podcast series, Dr Chris Deacy, Head of the Department of Religious Studies, interviews Reverend Dr Justin Lewis-Anthony who did his PhD in Religious Studies at Kent from 2008-12 and was Chris’ first PhD student to complete.
Justin talks about how he ended up doing a PhD with Chris, and why the topic of leadership was something that made him angry. He talks about how cinema is the functioning mythological delivery system of this age and how many people expect Church leaders to function like John Wayne, while Justin would rather teach people to be disciples.
Justin also tells us why he’s bored by dark superheroes, and we find out about the problem with thinking of authenticity as an empirical standard and why it’s not a goal for human flourishing. Justin reveals why he isn’t crippled by memories of the past and having a sensitivity to one’s surroundings and history in the context of having a Welsh father. He talks about ‘disasters survived’ and recognising one’s responsibilities to others rather than introspection.
At the end of the interview, Justin talks about what it is that justifies his own existence, and the danger of living one’s life through one’s children.