Against Doom
Deep Dives
Explore related topics with these Wikipedia articles, rewritten for enjoyable reading:
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Paul Kingsnorth
12 min read
The article is a detailed critique of Kingsnorth's book and worldview. Understanding his background as an environmental activist, his conversion journey through Buddhism and Wicca to Orthodox Christianity, and his literary career would provide essential context for evaluating the author's arguments against him.
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Neo-Luddism
12 min read
Kingsnorth's philosophy as described—his hatred of screens, opposition to technological progress, and advocacy for destroying data centers—represents a form of neo-Luddism. Understanding this modern anti-technology movement and its intellectual roots would help readers contextualize his arguments within a broader tradition of technological skepticism.
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Christianity in the United States
13 min read
The article opens with a critique of certain American converts to Orthodox Christianity who use it to justify reactionary politics. Understanding the history and demographics of Orthodox Christianity in America, including the phenomenon of converts from other Christian traditions, would illuminate this cultural observation.
A few years ago, I attended a Christmastime service at an Orthodox church in Washington, D.C. The liturgy was beautiful and the clergy welcoming and gracious. The icons decorating the church’s interior were indeed evocative, and the long, slender candles parishioners placed in sand added to the atmosphere. As I was walking back home I encountered a young man who had been there too, and explained that he was a convert. “In Orthodox Christianity,” he gushed, his eyes widening, “it’s like the Enlightenment never existed.”
Cool story, bro. While I know there are sincere Orthodox converts who are gentle, believing people (a girlfriend who cuts my hair is one of them), there does seem to be a contingent of dudes who find their way into this denomination in order to justify reactionary politics. What’s ironic about these types, especially in America, is that it never occurs to them to pay homage to the First Amendment with its guarantee of religious freedom (a product of the Enlightenment) — the very condition on which their license to worship rests.
The manosphere beard should have been a dead giveaway. I parted ways with the young pilgrim and his unkempt facial hair and happily returned the next day to my own Catholic church. I told a woman there about my conversation and she smiled knowingly.
Most of us are familiar with people who use belief in God as a tool of dominion over others, or try to. Or maybe domination isn’t their jam and they want to retreat from the world, not participating at all. Religion can be used as a cloak for this too — a great justifier. Maybe they have an utterly negative, dystopian view of the world, and in a backwards way, they tell a conversion story to make it all “make sense.” They then write from a spiritual perspective, purporting to carry God’s message, while in fact doing the opposite. Only God can know the contours of someone’s heart, but when a book claims to promote faith and instead exhales darkness, its nature should be questioned.
Paul Kingsnorth’s Against The Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity is without a doubt the most depressing, discouraging, negative, and nihilistic book I have ever read. Save for a few chapters at the end which offer
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