Conspirituality

Bonus Sample: Mark Carney’s Secular Catholicism

February 16, 2026

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  • The episode analyzes Mark Carney's economic spirituality, rooted in his devout Catholicism and a mission received from Pope Francis, as detailed in his book *Values: Building a Better World for All*. 
  • Carney advocates for a 'purpose-driven approach to capitalism' that uses state regulation and fiscal levers to direct markets toward societal goals like climate sustainability, while rejecting 20th-century state socialism as a failure. 
  • Carney's proposed solution—marshalling markets through legal reforms and mandatory reporting to achieve societal goals—is presented as a means to dispel the possibility of class conflict inherent in capitalism. 

Segments

Podcast Introduction and Focus
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(00:00:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Conspirituality investigates intersections of conspiracy theories, spiritual influence, cults, pseudoscience, and authoritarian extremism.
  • Summary: The podcast Conspirituality aims to investigate the roots and intersections of conspiracy theories and spiritual influence, specifically focusing on cults, pseudoscience, and authoritarian extremism. The host, Matthew Remsky, introduces the short bonus episode’s focus on religious influences within Mark Carney’s technocratic charisma. The episode is a sample leading to further content on Patreon.
Carney’s Book and Catholic Mission
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(00:00:30)
  • Key Takeaway: Mark Carney, a devout Catholic, bases his economic vision in his 2022 book Values on a spiritual mission received from Pope Francis.
  • Summary: The episode flags religious influences in Mark Carney’s technocratic charisma, noting he is a devout Catholic who opens his book with an anecdote about receiving a spiritual mission from Pope Francis. Carney’s book, Values: Building a Better World for All, meditates on the tension between market values and human values, observing that market values have overridden human values in modern society.
Carney’s Economic Critique and Prescription
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(00:01:06)
  • Key Takeaway: Carney uses Marxist concepts like surplus labor value to critique market instability but rejects state socialism, advocating for markets grounded in solidarity and purpose.
  • Summary: Carney relies on Marxist theories regarding surplus labor value and market instability to explain his critique, yet dismisses 20th-century state socialist projects as failures. His proposed medicine is liberal: markets must be social constructs grounded in solidarity, responsibility, and resilience to serve the public good. He promotes a purpose-driven capitalism prioritizing long-term goals like climate sustainability and social equity.
Critique of State Socialism and Market Fundamentalism
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(00:01:44)
  • Key Takeaway: Carney adheres to capitalist exceptionalism, viewing managed economies as inefficient, agreeing with Fukuyama that the Berlin Wall collapse ended the capitalist-socialist struggle.
  • Summary: Carney maintains that managed economies are inefficient and hostile to innovation, asserting that Smith’s invisible hand is superior to planned production. He views the collapse of communist regimes as reinforcing a global shift toward market fundamentalism, suggesting the economic pendulum has swung too far from the center. His solution involves imbuing economic activities with purpose and values rather than relying solely on management or planning.
Enforcing Purpose-Driven Capitalism
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(00:02:41)
  • Key Takeaway: Achieving a purpose-driven economy requires more than voluntary corporate social responsibility, necessitating state intervention through legal reforms and mandatory reporting.
  • Summary: Carney admits that voluntary corporate social responsibility is insufficient to achieve his goals for a purpose-driven economy. He believes enforcement requires marshalling markets through legal reforms, mandatory reporting, and restructured financial incentives. This results in a system where the state sets clear societal goals (like net zero) and uses regulatory levers to direct market power toward those ends.
Underlying Premise and Conclusion
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(00:03:21)
  • Key Takeaway: The overriding premise of Carney’s approach is that collective action can persuade capital in a beneficent direction, serving to dispel the possibility of class conflict.
  • Summary: The core premise of Carney’s guidance is that everyone can pull together to persuade capital in a beneficent direction through technical tweaking. This approach aims to dispel any possibility that capitalism, in any form, foments class conflict. The segment concludes by directing listeners to Patreon to continue listening to the full Conspirituality bonus episode sample.