Introduction to Dante's Purgatorio with Dr. Jason Baxter

Today on Ascend: The Great Books Podcast, Dr. Jason Baxter and Dcn. Harrison Garlick come together to introduce Dante's Purgatorio and Dr. Baxter's new translation!

We are reading Dante's Purgatorio for Lent. Join us!

Visit thegreatbookspodcast.com for our reading schedule!

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DISCOUNT: Check out Dr. Jason Baxter's website and enter "Ascend" to receive **20%** off the Purgatorio audiobook read by Dr. Baxter!

Check out Dr. Baxter's Substack article on his new translation.

And thank you to the Center of Beauty and Culture at Benedictine College for promoting this reading of the Purgatorio!

Dr. Baxter first describes the Center for Beauty and Culture at Benedictine College as a fellowship program (Angelico Fellows) that immerses students in beauty across the arts, music, literature, and theology—through concerts, museums, and pilgrimages—to foster interiority and the conviction that “beauty can save the world.”

The conversation then contrasts Purgatorio with the Inferno: while the latter is dark, lurid, and focused on judgment, Purgatorio is a place of hope, mercy, transformation, and “eternal New Year’s resolutions,” where repentant souls engage in spiritual exercises to purify their tarnished mirrors, learn authentic love and prayer, and prepare for Paradise. Baxter likens the shift to moving from heavy metal to Schubert, emphasizing greenness, brightness, and unexpected mercy.

Baxter explains that his translation began as a personal quest for mastery—going word-by-word to internalize Dante like memorizing a piano piece—but evolved into a philosophy capturing Dante’s “fugue” of style: ascending, prolix syntax with lofty classical allusions layered over humble, earthy words that reflect Franciscan humility and incarnational Christian poetics. Examples include goats ruminating on the “foco d’amore” (fire of love) amid elevated star imagery, or Statius calling Virgil’s Aeneid “una mamma” (translated “mommy”).

He describes Purgatorio as spiritual surgery—painfully removing the soul’s “carcinogenic” elements through grace-filled cooperation—and a map for configuring to Christ beyond mere sin avoidance. Baxter advises first-time readers to pause at puzzling images or word choices, ask “why would Dante do that here?,” trust their instincts, and consider his audiobook for the text’s soundscape, while Deacon Garlick stresses the canticle’s role as a spiritual guide that mirrors one’s own maturation toward God.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Ascend and Dante's Purgatorio

03:43 The Center for Beauty and Culture

05:40 Understanding Dante's Purgatorio

07:54 The Nature of Purgatorio

14:54 Dante the Pilgrim vs. Dante the Poet

19:32 The Spirituality of Translation

20:14 The Philosophy of Translation

30:02 Dante's Christian Poetics

34:22 Exploring Dante's Poetic Style

36:51 Juxtaposition in Dante's Imagery

41:42 The Concept of Spiritual Surgery

44:49 The Journey of Holiness

48:13 The Role of Love in Dante's Theology

52:00 Eros and the Ascent to Divine Beauty

55:29 Engaging with Dante: Tips for First-Time Readers

Join us next week as we start Dante's Purgatorio for Lent!

SCHEDULE:

2.10.26: Introduction with Dr. Jason Baxter, Benedictine College

2.17.26: Cantos 1-5 (Ante-Purgatory) with Dr. Donald Prudlo, University of Tulsa

2.24.26: Cantos 6-12 (Ante-Purgatory, Gate, First Terrace) with Luke Heintschel, Headmaster, Coeur du Christ Academy

3.3.26: Cantos 13-17 (Envy and Wrath) with Dr. Jessica Hooten Wilson, Pepperdine University

3.10.26: Cantos 18-22 (Avarice and Prodigality) with Dr. Sarah Berry, University of Dallas

3.17.26: Cantos 23-27 (Gluttony and Lust) with Fr. Patrick Briscoe, OP

3.24.26: Cantos 28-31 (Earthly Paradise) with Dr. Michael West, University of Dallas.

3.31.26: Cantos 32-33 (Beatrice) with Joshua Charles and Dr. Frank Grabowski, Holy Family Classical School

DISCOUNT: Check out Dr. Jason Baxter's website and enter "Ascend" to receive **20%** off the Purgatorio audiobook read by Dr. Baxter!

PS - Like the icon in the background? Check out Joey Bremer's incredible hand painted icons!