***
Hey friends — welcome back to the podcast about Traces of the Trinity. Over this whole journey with Peter Leithart, we’ve explored how the pattern of mutual indwelling — this Trinitarian swirl — shows up in bodies, time, language, music, family, ethics, love.
Today, in Chapter 8, Leithart asks: what kind of mind does it take to see this pattern? What kind of imagination can follow the curves of a world that doesn’t stay inside straight lines?
This is The Supple Imagination.
***
So much modern thinking tries to chop reality into sharp angles — neat boxes, clear walls, rigid boundaries. Plato did it with forms and shadows. Descartes did it with mind vs. body.
We do it too — making categories that lock things in place: true vs. false, right vs. wrong, inside vs. outside. And yes — some lines are needed. Without difference, there’s just a blob.
But Leithart says: the real world won’t fit cleanly into our grids. Try it — rain or not? Mist sits in between. Blue or green? Some colors hover on the edge.
Inside and outside? They define each other. There’s no “inside” without an “outside.” There’s no father without a son, no word without another word to shape it.
Reality is full of edges — but they bend, swirl, fold.
***
To see this, Leithart says we need a supple imagination — an inner flexibility. The courage to hold opposites together without collapsing them into mush.
Think of words: “woman” contains “man.” “Up” implies “down.” “White” means “not-black.” Even absence leaves a trace in presence.
The same goes for arguments. Too often, we treat debates like trench warfare: my fortress vs. yours, lobbing grenades until someone wins.
But if reality itself is curved, maybe arguments should be too. Not blunt force, but jujitsu — using your opponent’s claim to flip the conversation, to find the deeper pattern beneath the clash.
***
Leithart shows how this works. Free will vs. God’s sovereignty? Some say they clash — that if God knows everything, we can’t be free.
But what if it’s because God knows all things that we are free — not in spite of it? Maybe divine foreknowledge and human freedom dwell inside each other.
It’s a puzzle — but it’s supple. It invites wonder instead of a stalemate.
***
Same with politics. We debate “state” vs. “economy.” But every contract sits inside a legal system. Every law shapes markets. There is no pure “economy” walled off from politics.
A supple mind sees the overlap, the folded edges. It flips the debate from “should the state interfere?” to “how are they already indwelling each other?”
***
It’s the same in faith. Leithart shows that the supple imagination doesn’t flatten truth. It honors real differences — but sees how they weave together.
Arguments don’t need to be hammers. They can be keys — unlocking hidden connections.
***
So here’s the big point: the real world is not a grid of blocks. It’s more like music — flowing lines, chords that interpenetrate. More like language — word inside word inside world.
A supple imagination moves with the folds. It sees the lines, but it also sees the Möbius strip — the swirl that links inside and outside.
To think like this is to think with the grain of the world. To see the Trinitarian pattern not just in church doctrine — but in every street, every conversation, every argument, every chord.
That’s the kind of mind Leithart invites us to grow: supple, patient, alert. Able to bend with reality instead of snapping it to fit our boxes.
***
So, friends — next time you’re tempted to grab the hammer and pound your point home — pause. Take a deep breath. Look for the curve. The overlap. The trace of the other side hiding in what seems opposite.
That’s the supple imagination — and maybe, just maybe, it’s one more echo of the Triune dance.
Next time, we’ll wrap this whole journey up and glimpse the peak — what happens when the pattern leads us all the way to the Source.
Until then — keep your mind supple, your eyes open, and your heart tuned for the whispers of the Word in the world.
The Trinity leaves fingerprints on every inch of creation.
***
Next – I in Thee, Thou in Me – Episode 9 (coming soon)
I welcome any questions or comments. [Don’t worry, your personal info will not be given to anyone.] Thanks!