Scotty Roberts and John Ward on Paradigm, Egypt, Symbolism, Occultism, and more - September 20, 2014
Scotty Roberts and John Ward join us to talk about ancient civilizations, Egypt, and their upcoming Paradigm Symposium. It goes way further than that, as we get into symbolism, occultism, Aleister Crowley, and much more.

Dr. John Ward is an archaeologist and anthropologist residing in Luxor, Egypt. Over the years, Dr. Ward has conducted numerous investigations of ancient Egyptian architecture and symbolism, while also carrying out research into the many mysteries surrounding medieval Templarism. In 2006, Ward was recruited by the Knights Templar of Britannia, which is a modern Templar order affiliated with and has been acknowledged by the Vatican. With the help of his partner, Dr. Maria Nilsson, John has managed to track the use of particular symbols through the various dynasties and the geography of ancient Egypt leading all the way into the present, with similar threads even extending into parts of Western Europe. The symbols that John and Maria have come to recognize play a very important and integral role, based from their studies, regarding ancient Egyptian life. It is through these symbols that they are driven with the passion to continue their work, which has enabled them not only to develop a greater understanding of the various cultures they study, but also to utilize and acknowledge the importance and sanctity of the symbols. These are aspects which, John argues, still remain largely unknown to mainstream academia.

In and throughout his career, he has been involved in theatre and stage drama, and did a stint as a royal character at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival, which lasted over fifteen years. Scotty attributes much of his stage presence and public speaking abilities to his years of interactive street theatre at the festival.
During a subsequent period of working in various ad agencies throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Scotty authored and illustrated a series of graphic novels, The Bloodlore Chronicles.
During the 1990s, Scotty owned The Uptown Marketing Group, a small advertising and marketing studio in the Minneapolis area. During this time he authored a number of newsletters and advertising campaigns, as well as servicing a list of illustration and design clientele.
Scotty is the author and illustrator of The Rollicking Adventures of Tam O’Hare (2007), an illustrated novel originally intended for 8‐14‐year‐old readers, but which found its greater readership with the college‐aged audience and older. He has also authored for New Page Books, The Rise and Fall of the Nephilm (2012) and The Secret History of the Reptilians (2013).
Scotty has written articles for TAPS ParaMagazine (the official publication of SyFy’s Ghost Hunters) and went on to become their Editor‐In‐Chief during 2009 and 2010.
He is a talented public speaker, and has been a featured lecturer with TAPS and Beyond Reality Events, as well as various other paranormal events between 2007 and 2012.
He is father to five children, and lives with his wife and family in rural Wisconsin. Being a native Minnesotan, Scotty considers himself a ‘stranger in a strange land’ filled with Green Bay Packers fans.