Welcome back to Behind Greatness.

Carlos is a Professor of History and Religious Studies at Yale University. At 11, during the height of the Cold War, he became one of the 14,000 unaccompanied children airlifted from the Soviet colony of Cuba to the US. He is now a historian of late medieval and early modern Europe who focuses on the Protestant and Catholic Reformations; the history of popular piety; the supernatural, and death.

His book, They Flew, was awarded the prize for Best Book in the History of Religion by the American Academy of Religion and has been nominated for the Book Prize in Science and Religion awarded by the International Society for Science and Religion. All of his writings are banned in Cuba, where he has been proclaimed an enemy of the state. Carlos is also the Co-Host of the Christian Mysticism podcast.

Discussion Highlights

Lots of scintillating topics in this discussion:

  • His Cuban parents and Santeria as a problem-solving religion
  • “Curses and cures” and the malocchio (el mal de ojo)
  • Bringing your beliefs into the afterlife
  • Exploring “the weird vs. the Weird”
  • His personal Near Death Experience while on an operating table

Previous Episodes Mentioned

Explore more conversations on the Behind Greatness Episodes Page.