Why Your Soul Needs Physical Things: The Hidden Power of Objects

You stare at a screen all day, yet feel empty. This video unpacks the book 'The Material Culture of Religion' by Sonja Keller and Antje Roggenkamp. It reveals a shocking truth: your spiritual and emotional health depends not on abstract thoughts, but on the tangible world around you. We explore how objects—from a child’s shoe buried in a 1685 threshold to a sand cross in a Hamburg church—actively shape your beliefs and behaviors. Discover why the Protestant Reformation’s purge of physical objects created a modern crisis, and how a 47-million-euro Berlin project uses geometry to force peace between religions. Learn why touching a replica rosary can resurrect centuries-old memories, and why replacing textbooks with iPads may be amputating your capacity for empathy. If you’ve ever felt disconnected, this deep dive will change how you see everything you touch.