Prof. Garry Trompf: Gods and Demons - The Need to Believe

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I’m really excited to share this brilliant lecture from Professor Garry Trompf — a warm, lucid and humane exploration of why people believe. Trompf, Emeritus Professor in the history of ideas and adjunct in peace and conflict studies at the University of Sydney, draws on decades of comparative work (especially in Melanesia and the wider Sahul region) to celebrate belief as one of humanity’s great riches. He explains his scholarly method — the art of ‘placing’ other people’s minds and making an initial, generous concession (as his mentor Eric Sharpe put it, ‘the believer is always right’) — and shows how that attitude helps us build a mental dictionary for understanding gods, demons and everyday theology. Full of anecdote, humility and sharp observation, this talk sits at the crossroads of history, anthropology and theology. If you’re curious about religion, cultural thought-forms, or simply why humans keep inventing gods and demons, this one’s for you. Watch, enjoy and please tell us what you think — I’d love to hear your take!

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Hey everyone — thrilled to put this one up! In this recorded lecture Professor Garry Trompf (Emeritus Professor in the history of ideas, adjunct in peace and conflict studies at the University of Sydney) gives a generous, clear and deeply humane account of why people believe. Drawing on lifelong comparative research, particularly fieldwork in Melanesia and reflections about the peoples of Sahul, Trompf celebrates belief as a fundamental and rich dimension of human consciousness.

This talk is not polemic — it’s methodological. Trompf explains the scholar’s craft of ‘placing’ people’s thought-worlds, the importance of starting with an act of concession (his old teacher Eric Sharpe’s memorable claim: “the believer is always right”) and how that opening lets us better understand mental dictionaries, religious specialists versus everyday storytellers, and the theological contours of ordinary life. He speaks as an ecumenical Christian who takes both religious and non-religious positions seriously, and he models humility, curiosity and a scholar’s love for human difference.

Why watch? If you’re interested in comparative religion, ethnohistory, anthropology, the history of ideas or Australian/Sahul perspectives on belief, Trompf’s lecture is a brilliant primer — accessible, thoughtful and full of small, memorable insights.

If you enjoy this, please like, share and subscribe for more lectures and discussions. Drop your thoughts in the comments below: have you encountered similar ways of ‘placing’ other minds? What surprised you about belief in Melanesian contexts or about the idea that the believer is always right? I’ll be reading and replying. Cheers!

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