Do you ever stop to think why most institutions in 2023 are in lockstep with each other and have the exact same politics, beliefs, morals, and values? Why do CEOs, politicians, and even religious leaders seem to believe and say the same things in 2023?
The short answer is that they are part of The Cathedral. This term was coined by Curtis Yarvin (under the pseudonym Mencius Moldbug) in 2007. Other terms such as oligarchy, new world older, globohomo, zeitgeist, and the spirit of the age come to mind when trying to describe the totality of the Cathedral and its influence.
Spiritus Mundi
The Latin phrase spiritus mundi translates to spirit of the age. One of the most notable uses of this term is in a foreboding poem written in the aftermath of World War I by William Butler Yeats called The Second Coming. This poem is one of the most famous poems ever written. It has been a touchstone for many authors and philosophers since it was written:
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all around it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
Countless essays have been written about this dark poem. Yeats was a modern-day prophet. Even in 1911 when this poem was crafted, people were worried about the impending doom that the spirit of the world was unleashing on earth. He felt that humanity was rushing toward a prophesized tipping point of no return.
Who or What is The Cathedral?
The Cathedral sounds like the name of an international organized crime syndicate from a James Bond or John Wick film. The term conjures up images of shadowy organizations that lurk behind the scenes and control the world like puppet masters. That assessment is not far from the truth.
Author Curtis Yarvin explains on his Stubstack:
The mystery of the cathedral is that all the modern world’s legitimate and prestigious intellectual institutions, even though they have no central organizational connection, behave in many ways as if they were a single organizational structure.
Most notably, this pseudo-structure is synoptic: it has one clear doctrine or perspective. It always agrees with itself. Still more puzzlingly, its doctrine is not static; it evolves; this doctrine has a predictable direction of evolution, and the whole structure moves together.
For instance: in 2021, Harvard, Yale, the Times and the Post are on the same page. If there exists any doctrinal difference between any two of these prestigious American institutions, it is too ineffable for anyone but a Yale man to discern. (Though it may say something that Gray Mirror is not taught at Harvard.)
In 1951, Harvard, Yale, the Times and the Post were on the same page. But Yale in 1951 was on nowhere near the same page as Yale in 2021. If you could teleport either Yale into the other’s time zone, they would see each other as a den of intellectual criminals.
The rest of his article is expansive and gets deep into the weeds. But these 4 paragraphs give you the gist of it.
Perpetual Cultural Revolution
For a person who is alarmed about the current wobbly state of the world, Yarvin’s amplification of the term explains a lot. Western civilization seems to be in a state of perpetual change and cultural revolution. From week to week, the rules and the terminology change. Who dictates this change? The Cathedral.
Nothing is certain. Nothing is static. Today’s progressive is tomorrow’s conservative. People’s preferred pronouns can change every day. We went from so-called “gay marriage” not existing whatsoever in any civilization, to the West fully embracing the concept in the timespan of a mere decade. We are all walking on quicksand.
There is a war on reality right now as men are claiming they are women and women are claiming they are men. The result is the average person feels atomized, alone, bewildered, and powerless. This is all by design.
The trajectory of the Cathedral is towards the end goal of temporal concerns such as equity, secular humanism, and materialism which is essentially Marxism. In order to do that God, His laws, and nature must be eliminated from the public consciousness. Those who resist will be canceled, fired, jailed, and even killed.
Victor David Hansen’s latest video all but names the Cathedral:
The Loss of a Sense of Sin
Slowly but surely, Western civilization is losing its connection to the God of Abraham. In 1946, Pope Pius XII made a speech in Boston, directed at Americans. Here’s an excerpt of what he said:
Perhaps the greatest sin in the world today is that men have begun to lose the sense of sin. Smother that, deaden it — it can hardly be wholly cut out from the heart of man — let it not be awakened by any glimpse of the God-man dying on Golgotha’s cross to pay the penalty of sin, and what is there to hold back the hordes of God’s enemy from over-running the selfishness, the pride, the sensuality and unlawful ambitions of sinful man? Will mere human legislation suffice? Or compacts and treaties?
The loss of the sense of sin is the great collective sin of our age. If we forget that God exists and that heaven and hell exist, it’s much easier to believe whatever we want and do whatever we please because foolishly think we will never be held accountable. The sins of perpetual adolescence, selfishness, materialism, human trafficking, contraception, abortion, fornication, and pornography have all been promoted by those who control the culture.
We can thank the Cathedral for most of the desensitization that allows the contagion of sin to fester. The protected halls of academia and the tentacles of media are the main incubators and transmitters of our culture. What we see on our screens, we eventually internalize. Garbage in garbage out.
The Fork in the Road
We have but two choices: we can either go with the flow dictated by the Cathedral or we resist. Many go with the flow, comply, and internalize whatever is popular at the time such as transgenderism and support for Ukraine. Those who openly resist are shunned, mocked, and persecuted like heretics. Many quietly resist, bide their time, and hope that the Cathedral will shift their ideology in their favor.
I asked ChatGPT to give me a synopsis of the Cathedral and this is what it came up with:
The Cathedral represents an informal and decentralized but nonetheless powerful and coordinated mechanism that enforces cultural norms and values, often sidelining or suppressing dissenting views. They believe that it operates similarly to how a religious institution might (hence the ecclesiastical metaphor), promulgating a set of “secular” beliefs and punishing heretics, though not through excommunication but rather through mechanisms like public shaming, cancel culture, and institutional gatekeeping.
ChatGPT, despite being an AI tool with strong left-leaning biases, pretty much nailed it. The rise of cancel culture in recent years confirms the ever-growing power and influence of the Cathedral.
The Regime
Another term that is gaining more acceptance these days is The Regime. The Regime is the physical manifestation and enforcement arm of The Cathedral. They are like the Gestapo or the KGB. The Regime is run by the Deep State with politicians as mere puppets and figureheads. Yarvin calls the Cathedral the head, and the Deep State is the body. The head controls the body.
The election of Donald Trump as president of the U.S.A. was a glitch in the Matrix. It was never supposed to happen as Hillary Clinton was pre-selected to be the next figurehead. The Cathedral failed just this once and vowed never to let it happen again.
Are the members of the Cathedral allied together or are they autonomous?
I have a feeling that they operate independently and they have no idea who they serve. This is akin to what is known as the clandestine cell system but far more effective. As culture is upstream from politics, those who feed the river of culture with their poison are the unwitting accomplices of the Cathedral.
The Narcotic of Bandwagonism
Status, tribalism, and a sense of belonging are powerful drugs. Jumping on the cultural bandwagon is the fastest way to get your fix. Everyone wants to be on the bandwagon because nobody wants to be left behind. Everyone wants to be on the right side of history™. People like to be on the side of the winner, the powerful, the rich, the influential.
A good example of this is how many celebrities want to have transgender kids so they can appear relevant and hip.
Who Controls the Cathedral and What is its Purpose?
For me, this is the real question. There can be no doubt that the Cathedral is real. If we discover the real power behind the Cathedral we can deduce its purpose.
One clue is that the values of the Cathedral are on a downward trajectory that devalues Christianity and Christians. It promotes division, lawlessness, licentiousness, heresy, secular humanism, atheism, Marxism, environmentalism idolatry, and globalism. The rise of Western civilization is proportional to the rise of Christendom. As Christendom goes, so goes Western civilization.
According to Yarvin, the Cathedral has existed for the last 100 years It is safe to say that the increase in its power is proportional to the growing secularization of the West.
Find out who benefits — cui bono — from attacking Christianity and Western civilization and you’ll find out who is behind this.
The Lord of the World Runs the Cathedral
I do not believe that there is a scientific explanation for this that is plausible and ultimately useful. As a Christian, I believe I know who is behind the Cathedral. The Apostle Paul warned Christians (bold emphasis is mine):
We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. —1 John 5:9
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. —Romans 12:2
Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. —John 12:31
The prince of this world is none other than the fallen angel Satan otherwise known as Lucifer. (During various exorcisms performed by Roman Catholic priests, it has been learned that Satan is no longer permitted to use the name Lucifer by God.) Satan is the temporal ruler of this world which is also shared by fallen humanity. God gave him temporary dominion over this kingdom after he was cast out of Heaven after rebelling against Him.
Until Jesus who is the King of Kings returns to reclaim his earthly throne, Satan controls the world and his purpose is to lead men away from God and eternal salvation purchased through the atonement of Jesus Christ dying on the cross.
Everything Satan does is in diametric opposition to the perfect will of God who created all things in the universe. All of the world’s institutions — even the Holy Church — are under his sway in varying degrees. Satan and his hierarchy of demons try to tempt and influence most of the world’s leaders including popes and other Christian leaders. It has always been this way as St. Paul warned the Ephesians:
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
—Ephesians 6:12
According to exorcist Fr. Chad Ripperberger, Satan has five generals who are charged with corrupting mankind. They are as follows: Ba’al, Asmodeus, Leviathan, Lilith, and Baphomet.
Of particular interest to readers of this site is the name Lilith. This demon is the main villain of the new Diablo IV video game from Blizzard Entertainment. I’ve seen many Blizzard employees foolishly use the term “Hail Lilith” and mock the Blessed Virgin Mary to promote this demonic game. I’ve written a few articles on this in the past.
I’m sure many of these lost souls have no idea that this demon is real.
The Devil and His Disciples Use Deception
Power is obtained by many means. Deception is one of those means. The devil has used guile and deception since he tricked Adam and Eve into disobeying God in the Garden of Eden. Sun Tzu counsels us:
All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.
The popular film The Usual Suspects included a bit of unexpected wisdom when Verbal Kint AKA Keyser Söze said:
The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was to convince the world he didn’t exist.
In 1856, Pastor William Ramsey’s work titled “Spiritualism, a Satanic Delusion, and a Sign of the Times” made a similar observation:
One of the most striking proofs of the personal existence of Satan, which our times afford us, is found in the fact, that he has so influenced the minds of multitudes in reference to his existence and doings, as to make them believe that he does not exist; and that the hosts of Demons or Evil Spirits, over whom Satan presides as Prince, are only the fantasies of the brain, some hallucination of mind. Could we have a stronger proof of the existence of a mind so mighty as to produce such results?
It’s in the best interests of the devil to get mankind to believe he does not exist. If you realize he exists, then you must conclude that God exists. If God exists, you have to consider that eternity exists and then you must act accordingly.
As Satan was originally infused with the highest degree of angelic wisdom and intellect, he is not to be underestimated. Only he and his demons have the supernatural power to create, influence, and steer the Cathedral.
God is real. The devil is real. Planet Earth is the battleground between two opposing but unequal forces of light and darkness and good and evil. Globalism is Satanic. Once you figure this out, you have taken the first step towards victory.
Conclusion
This is a difficult subject to discuss because the Cathedral has one foot in the visible natural world and another in the veiled supernatural world. The spiritual dimension that I have outlined will be even more difficult to grasp for those who do not believe in the supernatural. For those that do not, I suggest considering the wisdom in Pascal’s Wager.
Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. Let us estimate these two chances. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation, that He is.
Before you can fight the enemy, you have to know who the enemy is.
Knowledge is power, and as Sun Tzu said: “know thy enemy”. If you don’t know who the real enemy is and how to defeat that enemy, you don’t stand a chance in this world and in the next.
—Wolfshead
St. Benedict Medal
Vade retro Satana! Nunquam suade mihi vana! Sunt mala quae libas. Ipse venena bibas!
Hello! You have written many great articles; this one is for sure among the best. Also, one of the most troubling.
About The Second Coming.
The poem, though famous, has never joined standard high school texts or popular movies/literature, despite countless essays about it. Interpretations were often very far reaching or centered on WW1 experiences.
In the Cathedral context it makes the most sense. By far. Also, kind of answering why it isn’t discussed much in schools or universities. More about them later. By now “teaching people how to think” has rather become “indoctrinating them to think and act according to the current narrative”.
Universities have been infiltrated, particularly in the social and language/literature sciences. I am quite shocked to report that Medieval Studies now also focus on Climate Change and Gender… in the Middle Ages. Yeah, seriously… It is a terrible angle of attack, as it is slowly worming its way into other historical subjects as well. Geophysics are also a strong target, they are heavily getting influenced to get onto the climate change bandwagon, as it offers funds for institutes blabbering about it.
While I was studying, I was a bit older than most of my fellow students. Had already worked before studying. I felt something was wrong. Free thinking? Open debate? Passionate students with convictions? Leaders of tomorrow? Science, study, knowledge? This must have existed, but it is getting dismantled.
Most were apolitical. Young, inexperienced. You wrote about this: “Jumping on the cultural bandwagon is the fastest way to get your fix. Everyone wants to be on the bandwagon because nobody wants to be left behind. ”
Exactly. The way it works is like that: You must be a leftist. There are other leftists, particularly tutors, professors, student councils… you must be one of us or you must shut up.
This is how it works. You either hop on the bandwagon or you get left behind. You must not deviate, or you will be punished in the ways described. Cancelled at least.
Celebrities do it, quite some Blizzard devs do it, studio bosses do it… virtue signaling by bowing to the rainbow, pronouns, diversity… oh well.
The sense of sin, right and wrong, is also a massive attack on core tenets. If the moral compass of a person is compromised, it is open to all kinds of evil. People have a natural understanding of right and wrong, from the very beginning! Men are women, perverts leading others with nipple clamps through the streets are the hallmark of freedom… it is sick. This twisting is vile.
ChatGPT is sometimes incredible. Now that synopsis is spot on.
I do not know the mortal agents of this “Cathedral” or whatever we want to call this concept of what is going on. You are right about the supernatural force behind it. There are people still not believing in this struggle, it’s hard to blame them, but hopefully sooner than later more and more people will realize it.
Even if they deny anything religious or supernatural background, people can feel and see the actions and smart people analyze the system. The figurehead is beyond mortal comprehension, but so powerful, ever more mocking people straight in the face, you have already posted some examples.
Important is to see that one can be unwillingly and often rather unknowingly be an agent of this evil. Bowing to wrongness, hopping on the bandwagon. Or just doing nothing or little due to feeling powerless. I confess I am feeling like that in the face of evil.
It is a monumental task to fight this, but YOU potentially reading this are not alone. Even if you think you are doing too little or cannot achieve anything, stop nothing. Don’t be afraid. You are not alone. There are good people in this world and God is always with you.
“God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength but with your testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13)
Thanks for your kind comments and terrific insights! Big thumbs up.
The only way to survive this madness is put our full trust in God. It will probably get worse as The Cathedral has been at work over centuries and what we see is the chickens coming home to roost.