Dr. Loncar’s Personal Story

Starting when I was 14, I read a number of Plato’s dialogues, which set me on the path of philosophy as a way of life. Then, after years of studying Søren Kierkegaard, who was a great student and scholar of Plato, I was led to begin studying and teaching Plato seriously in my twenties. He helped me heal from my illness, and is at the center of my scholarly work and my book, which embodies the Becoming Human Project for an academic audience. So I am bringing over two decades of my personal reading, teaching, and learning experience to you, and I’ll also be interviewing great scholars of Plato and Platonism and inviting guest teachers from various traditions to discuss Plato with me and all of you.

Beginning this year (many traditions begin the year in Autumn), we will read through Plato’s entire corpus, the most influential body of writings by a single author in the entire world. Yes, that’s right, the Platonic corpus is something 99.9% of all people, including philosophy Ph.D.s, have not had the chance to study in detail or in depth, guided by a teacher. Yet it represents a coherent body of writings on every important topic one can imagine.

Beginning this week (October 3, 2025) , I’ll guide the public and Becoming Human members through Plato’s full corpus every year with weekly audio, video, and written teachings. The readings are designed and modeled on the way in which, in the Jewish tradition, you read through the Torah (the five Books of Moses) every year, divided into the weekly Torah portion, or parsha. We will have, in comparison, our weekly Plato portions. This comes to 30- 50 pages a week, but you don’t have to do the readings or always finish them.

You can listen and learn with me as I teach publicly on the portions through my Substack, podcast, and YouTube. Paying Substack subscribers and Becoming Human Project members can join me through weekly Zoom symposiums. Becoming Human Project Members will also receive invitations to private courses throughout the year, where I will go into more detail, and will receive an invitation to the an annual Platonic conference, PLATONICON (details for members only)

Who is involved in the project?

The project is hosting interviews with Plato scholars and scholars of the ancient world. Confirmed guests already include:

• Gregory Shaw, Emeritus Professor of Religious Studies at Stonehill College and the author of Theurgy and the Soul: The Neoplatonism of Iamblichus and Hellenic Tantra: The Theurgic Platonism of Iamblichus

• Armand D’Angour, Professor of Classical Languages and Literature and Fellow and Tutor in Classics, Jesus College, Oxford University and the author of Socrates in Love: The Making of a Philosopher and How to Talk About Love: Plato’s Symposium.