Peter Thiel, billionaire venture capitalist and early supporter of former President Donald Trump, has launched a series of closed-door lectures in Rome exploring the concept of the Antichrist. The invitation-only conference, which runs until Wednesday, has drawn scrutiny from Catholic commentators and institutions.
Key Takeaways
Peter Thiel has launched a series of closed-door lectures in Rome exploring the concept of the Antichrist, drawing scrutiny from Catholic institutions. The event is organized by an Italian cultural association and the Cluny Institute at the Catholic University of America (CUA), though several Catholic universities have denied involvement.
The event is organized by an Italian cultural association dedicated to promoting classical and Christian thought and the Cluny Institute at the Catholic University of America (CUA). However, several Catholic universities in Rome have denied any involvement or official connection to the conference. The Pontifical St. Thomas Aquinas University, known as the Angelicum, clarified that it is not organizing or hosting the event.
Thiel's lectures delve into the theological and philosophical aspects of the Antichrist, drawing from religious thinkers such as René Girard, Francis Bacon, Jonathan Swift, Carl Schmitt, and John Henry Newman. The conference follows a similar series Thiel held in San Francisco last year. According to an invitation seen by multiple sources, his remarks will be anchored on science and technology and will comment on the theology, history, literature, and politics of the Antichrist.
Thiel's visit has caught the attention of the Roman Catholic Church, particularly under Pope Leo XIV, who has openly criticized some of Trump's right-wing policies. Father Paolo Benanti, an advisor to the pope on artificial intelligence, wrote in an essay that Thiel operates as a 'political theologian' within Silicon Valley and challenges the foundations of civil coexistence.
Thiel’s talks are closed to the media and taking place at an undisclosed location. An invitation seen by multiple sources says the co-founder of PayPal and Palantir Technologies will focus on the Antichrist, a figure in Christian teaching who comes to oppose Jesus Christ before the Second Coming. Thiel has previously written and lectured on the subject, arguing that the Antichrist is not necessarily a person but could come as a global government system.
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