Ep 187 - Tolkien Was Warning Us: AI, Vice, and the War for Men’s Souls
What if The Lord of the Rings was never just a story?
What if Tolkien was encoding a spiritual map for men living in the modern war for the soul?
In this episode of The Manly Catholic, James Caldwell speaks with author and philosopher Paul List, co-author of Mount Doom: The Prophecy of Tolkien Revealed, to expose what Tolkien was really writing about: original sin, virtue and vice, artificial intelligence, and so much more.
Paul reveals how Tolkien’s mythology is a Catholic psychological map of the human soul. Hobbits as habits. The Ring as addiction. Sauron as AI. Middle-earth as the mind. Vice as Orcs. Virtue as the Fellowship. Faith and reason as elves and men.
Temperance, fortitude, prudence, and justice as the cardinal virtues sent on a mission to destroy the Ring.
This conversation connects Tolkien to Aquinas, Aristotle, St. Augustine, and how prophetic his beloved stories really are for the modern man.
James also issues a direct challenge to men:
Stop living passively. Clean up your habits. Reject pornography. Reject the virtual world. Build competence. Build virtue. Cultivate discipline. Become dangerous in holiness.
This is not entertainment.
This is formation.
And neutrality is no longer an option.
Push play if you're done being comfortable and ready to become dangerous for Christ.
📚 Products & References Mentioned
- Book: Mount Doom: The Prophecy of Tolkien Revealed – Paul List
- Website: readmountdoom.com
- Documentary: The Great Indoctrination (Pelican Plus)
- Coffee Sponsor: Mystic Monk Coffee
🧱 3 Powerful Quotes from the Episode
- “Real men are competent. Real men cultivate discipline, virtue, and mastery over themselves.”
- “Tolkien’s work is fundamentally Catholic. It’s about the fall, original sin, the fear of death, and the machine.”
- “This mythology is here now to combat AI and transhumanism and to save young men’s souls from the internal fire.”
⚔️ One Immediate Action for Men
Eliminate one vice today and replace it with one discipline.
Cut one destructive habit (pornography, digital addiction, laziness, impurity, gluttony, passivity).
Replace it with prayer, physical training, fasting, Scripture, silence, or structured work.
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