Welcome to Raising the Cross!
Raising the Cross is a publication focused on how Christianity can solve the modern meaning crisis. The aim of Raising the Cross is to help both believers and non-believers alike embrace their faith as deeply as possible without sacrificing their intellect.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus predicted that he would be "lifted up from the earth" (John 12:32) in order to draw all men to himself. The mystery of the cross is that in embracing the greatest suffering we get the greatest happiness. Edward Leen described our human condition as being like a broken bone that must be re-broken and set in order to properly heal. Paradoxically the cross, a symbol of profound death and suffering, in Christ’s sacrifice becomes the instrument of our happiness and salvation: we become happy by being like god and to become like God we must take up our cross.
The cross is the symbol that unites all people as suffering mortal beings on a loving pilgrimage home to the infinite. It calls us to particular transformation of the heart and mind, a path that requires self-denial and courage and endurance. It is this transformation that is the alternative to the political extremism or pseudo-religious ideologies which we see offering short-term solutions to the meaning crisis in the modern age. The cross promises redemption through suffering and transformation but all utopian visions try to get the redemption without the suffering and the sacrifice. These short-cuts are doomed because the suffering and the transformation are one and the same: no suffering means no learning and no learning means no healing, and no healing means no salvation.
Topics explored on the publication include Christianity and Catholicism, virtue ethics and virtue traditions, cognitive science, neuroscience and psychology, attention, ancient myths and stories, digital technology technology and artificial intelligence.
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About The Author
Mahon McCann is an Irish Philosophy Phd, writer, playwright and Catholic convert based in Dublin. He is currently a part-time lecturer and PhD candidate at the Dublin City University Institute of Ethics, where he was awarded the DCU School of Theology, Philosophy, and Music Scholarship in 2022 for his research on social media and the attention economy.
He holds a BA in Philosophy & Economics from University College Dublin and an MA in Creative Writing from Queen’s University Belfast. An accomplished dramatist, his plays include “Waiting For The Offo,” which debuted at Dublin’s New Theatre Temple Bar (2023) after winning the Dublin Fringe Festival’s Fringe Lab Fifty Award (2020); “The Estate,”, which was the winner of the Lyric Theatre’s Live-To-Digital initiative in Belfast (2021); and the radio play “Mayonnaise Like This,” produced by the Seamus Heaney Centre (2019).
His writing has appeared in a range of respected publications, including RTE, Gill Education, The Honest Ulsterman, and Goblin Skateboard Magazine. He is also the host of a popular philosophy podcast, which has ranked in the top ten for self-improvement and education in Ireland, and in the top one hundred in Sweden, Spain, Italy, Denmark, Finland, Belgium, and Turkey and he has been interviewed on Dublin South FM, Catholic News Agency and Newstalk.
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All of the essays and podcasts and courses are free on the Dojo but there is an option to become a patron if you agree with and want to support the philosophical mission 👇
What do you get with a subscription?
Either a podcast or essay every Thursday afternoon.
Essays filled with actionable insights (over 10k readers in the first year)
Podcast interviews with world-leading experts like Iain Mcgilchrist, John Vervaeke and Dr Anna Lembke (top-ten Self-improvement and Education in Ireland)
Philosophical courses on the great texts like the Plato’s Republic course.
And, oh yeah, it’s free? So there’s that.
Contact: writing@mahonmccann.com
Testimonials:
“Mahon McCann is a remarkable individual. He is an original thinker, full of passion for his subjects and determination to contribute to our culture.”- Jimmy McAleavey, Award-winning Belfast playwright and Abbey Theatre Resident artist.
“Think of Roddy Doyle, with the somber outlook of a millennial whose experiences have been shaped by previous generations. Add a smattering of Hunter S. Thompson and you have Mahon McCann.” - Paddy H, English Teacher.
“There’s a new Irish writer of perception, intelligence, and wit in town”
- Randall S, Reader of TMWM
Check out my other channels here.
