Review – Diary of a Vampire: The Legacy of Bram Stoker (DVD)

Reality Films

Philip Gardiner’s Diary of a Vampire enters into the intriguing world of Bram Stoker, the renowned Irish author of Dracula (1897).

As possible influences on Stoker’s work, the film looks at European history, Freemasonry, Asian mysticism, mythology, the esoterica of Madame Blavatsky, along with her well documented disagreement with the German scholar of religion, Max Müller.

A great deal of visual and narrative emphasis is given to the idea that, in contrast to the scathing account given in the biblical Book of Genesis, the serpent represents sexual energy that may be transmuted into spiritual power–i.e. the kundalini and seven chakras.

Whether or not this kind of subtle, inner power is healthy, hypnotic or perhaps manipulative is left open to debate.

Along these lines, we’ve all heard about charismatic individuals who use their personal power to manipulate instead of honorably manage situations and other people.

The film’s treatment of the serpent is further developed by mentioning the Christian belief that, as a symbol of evil, the snake’s power is to be overcome through intercessory prayer and, in the past, abject violence.

Dracula, then, is taken as a symbol for the English fear of esoteric cults during a time that saw a resurgence of the ongoing conflict between the ‘Christian West’ and ‘Pagan East.’

To its credit, this thoughtful and well-researched film asks which side Stoker is on–Christian or Pagan. It also asks whether Stoker is merely observing and inadvertently encouraging a nascent consciousness shift that will culminate in a full-fledged Gothic revival in the Victorian era.

Diary of a Vampire is highly recommended for those interested in the ongoing tensions and ambiguities found among Christian and non-Christian beliefs. And this DVD is particularly strong when tracing esoteric, occult and underground influences in the Victorian era.

–MC

Review – The Viking Serpent by Harald S. Boehlke (DVD)

The Viking Serpent takes the viewer into the heart of Norway, where Harald S. Boehlke, son of a Norwegian diplomat, presents his case for a radical reinterpretation of the traditional Biblical symbols for evil.

Longstanding tensions between orthodox and Gnostic Christianity are highlighted with Boehlke favoring the Gnostic position.

Boehlke’s unusual and unique pro-Gnostic argument is backed up with on-site evidence, cartographic analysis and historical data.

At the very least, this DVD is thought-provoking and should serve as a launch pad for those interested in following up on Boehlke’s extraordinary and far-reaching claims.

The DVD also contains some truly beautiful footage, with director and host Philip Gardiner facilitating as a kind of guide to Boehlke’s challenging exposition.

The Viking Serpent is recommended for those wanting to learn more about Gnosticism and the Celtic Church while enjoying some breathtaking scenes of the natural and architectural marvels of Norway, surely one of the most aesthetically pleasing countries in the world today.

–MC

Review – The Cross of Thoth (DVD)

Reality Films

Title: The Cross of Thoth
Interviewer and Director: Philip Gardiner
Media: DVD
Producer: Reality Films

The Cross of Thoth makes esoteric connections among astrology, navigation, archaeology, linguistics, ancient Pagan and early Christian history.

So much material is covered in this DVD that the intelligent layperson might have a hard time assessing each and every one of its assertions.

The host, Crichton E. M. Miller, seems to be a contemporary Gnostic. And Gnostics are a bit different from orthodox Christians.

Not unlike the word orthodoxy, the term Gnosticism is somewhat ambiguous because there have been several different Gnosticisms throughout history.

In the general sense, however, Gnostics are those who apparently learn about spiritual truth through direct, inward experience. Unlike orthodox believers, Gnostics say they don’t believe at all. They know.

While orthodoxy tends to embrace a linear view of history, where Christ is seen as the perfect fulfillment of the Old Testament prophets, contemporary Gnostics tend to emphasize a circular or upwardly spiraling view of time.

Gnostics also say (or imply) that orthodox churches place too much emphasis on externally imposed rules and blind obedience. For Gnostics, orthodox doctrines and well-worn structures apparently squelch out genuine spirituality.

Meanwhile, orthodox churches tend to say (or imply) that Gnostics are fuzzy-minded mavericks, possibly deceived by ungodly spiritual powers–i.e. Satan.

Perhaps alluding to this orthodox idea, Toronto Catholic Archbishop Michael Collins said to a Sikh spiritual leader (in an interfaith dialogue on TVO’s The Agenda) that true spirituality isn’t a mere “glow” but an ongoing commitment to serve God.

The popular author Elaine Pagels attempts to sum up the main differences between Gnosticism and aspects of Western orthodoxy:

When the Jewish theologian Martin Buber sought to explore the sources of religious experience, he characterized the Jewish devotee’s relationship to God as “I and Thou”; but no orthodox Jew, any more than an orthodox Christian, could say, with the Hindu devotee, “I am Thou.” But Gnostic interpreters share with the Hindu…that very conviction (Adam, Eve and the Serpent. New York: Vintage Books, 1989: 65).

This brings to mind a Catholic homily I once heard where a priest said that God doesn’t want “Lone Rangers” but, rather, obedience to the Pope.

Whether or not this is an accurate depiction of what most Catholics actually believe seems debatable. But to my mind Miller would probably be viewed by traditional Catholics as both a Gnostic and a Lone Ranger.

This kind of polarized ‘in-group/out-group’ approach, so common today, probably doesn’t help to lessen the split between orthodox Christians and Gnostics.

But these two groups haven’t always been at loggerheads. Elaine Pagels notes that some early Christians admired their Gnostic counterparts, if not in every respect.

Could contemporary Gnostics and orthodox believers benefit from well-intentioned dialogue?

It seems they could, providing each side checked their biases at the door and looked to the other as fellow human beings instead of mere objects for conversion. Dialogue isn’t really dialogue is one or more parties are utterly convinced they’re right.

Along these lines, some orthodox believers might angrily react to several of Miller’s ideas in this DVD. But sincere seekers of all persuasions should recognize that overblown, emotional reactions often point to something lurking in the unconscious just begging to be brought to light and integrated within consciousness.

Agree or disagree with Miller’s complex observations and far-reaching conclusions, The Cross of Thoth is highly recommended for those wishing to dig a little deeper into the mysteries of the human soul.

–MC

With minor revisions from 2008/06/01

Review – The Spirit of the Serpent: An Exploration of Earth Energy (DVD)

Reality Films

Written, directed and produced by Tim Walter, The Spirit of the Serpent opens with a beautiful sky shot near the megaliths known as the Merry Maidens, a Neolithic stone circle in Cornwall, UK.

Host Rupert Soskin says a team of experts previously investigated the Maidens with the intent of making a TV documentary.

We’re then introduced to the experts.

The first expert, Hamish Miller, gives an utterly credible account of a near death experience (NDE) that he says changed his life for the better.

Miller also forwards theories about the relationship between ritual and energy at sacred sites, Feng Shui, ley lines and differences in ancient vs. contemporary perspectives.

Jim Lyons, the second expert, is an academic specializing in the sciences with an interest in quantum physics. Lyons is primarily concerned with potential correlations between (a) Earth energy and (b) hormonal and neurological changes. He provides an interesting discussion on hypothesized links between consciousness and biophysics within the non-local paradigm that has arisen from the world of subatomic physics.

Julle Soskin, the third expert, is a psychic who prefers to be known as a ‘sensitive’ due to the negative connotations and practical repercussions often associated with the term ‘psychic.’ Soskin gives a candid and, I think, valuable first-hand account of some of the pros and cons that the gifted saint, seer, mystic or psychic may encounter along the course of his or her psychosocial development. In fact, she’s a good reminder that even unusually gifted people are still just people.

The fourth expert, Ba Russell, is a former physiotherapist turned spiritual healer who discusses the need to release the selfish, fearful, controlling and biased aspects of the ego and yet respect boundaries when working with sacred power. Russell claims that everyone has healing abilities (such as the laying on of hands) but adds that some individuals feel especially drawn to developing them.

The final expert and host, Rupert Soskin, is a researcher, outdoorsman and guide interested in diverse forms of energy that he, drawing from the work of Aristotle, defines as “the capacity for movement and change.” Soskin touches on the notion of subtle energy, an idea tacitly assigned to the fringes of Western culture but often embraced and even carefully classified in the spiritual traditions of other, so-called underdeveloped societies.

Next, the DVD turns to the experts’ work at the Merry Maidens site. This portion of the video is presented by Clare Grogan (pictured above with Rupert Soskin) whose lighthearted approach helps to keep things moving at a good, fast pace.

At this point it should be noted that, until watching this DVD, I have been somewhat indifferent to idea of Earth energies and, for that matter, the entire phenomenon of dowsing. Rightly or wrongly, I’ve tended to see dowsing as a curious folkloric practice stemming from a somewhat limited cosmology that excludes the upper reaches of the spirit.

So while watching Mr. Miller traversing the field with dowsing rod in hand, at first it seemed a bit too easy the way his rod dipped along precise points outlining flower and spiral patterns in the turf, patterns which the academic Jim Lyons noted bore some kind of relationship to mathematical formulae (a relationship that I felt might have been better explained).

But not being an ideological ‘control freak’ nor close-minded debunker, I did a bit of research and found that, historically speaking, dowsing has its fair share of supporters and detractors. Like most kinds of paranormal practice, defenders of dowsing say that skeptics and scientific researchers do not appreciate the holistic paradigm required to yield positive results. Experimental research, dowsers say, fails to exhibit significant figures because, quite simply, the vibes aren’t right.

After thinking it over, I concluded that Mr. Miller is either a very talented dowser or perhaps unconsciously engaging in a bit of wish-fulfillment. It’s really impossible to tell from the outside and I’ll have to admit uncertainty on this point.

My main concern with the Serpent, however, isn’t about the truth or falsity of dowsing but with the DVD’s apparent homologizing of the, in my opinion, distinct realities of energy and spirit.

Is energy or even subtle energy qualitatively equivalent to spirit? And what of the Holy Spirit? Might this differ from other spiritual manifestations?

Postmodern thinkers may wrongly suppose that I’m just playing word games. And some New Age enthusiasts might blithely assume, as has been the case in the past, that I’m merely an overzealous Catholic passing on the latest teachings from the Vatican.

I’m definitely not alone, however, in discerning subtle energies from other forms of spirituality that are rightly called Holy.

Having said that, I would urge some conservative Catholics and fundamentalist Christians to think again before denouncing the notion of Earth energies as a mere Satanic deception or perhaps as an instance of unsound magical thinking. Surely there must be some middle ground where adherents of these disparate cosmologies could meet and learn from one another.

How dull, insipid and perhaps oppressive life would be if we uncritically agreed with any religious or professional group pretending to have all the answers to our essentially mysterious universe.

In short, The Spirit of the Serpent is a thought-provoking, wide-ranging DVD that any serious paranormal researcher will surely want to add to their collection.

–MC

With minor stylistic revisions from original post of 2008/05/08

Review – Legend of the Serpent: The Biggest Religious Cover Up in History (DVD)

Reality Films

Ride the snake, ride the snake
To the lake, the ancient lake…

–The End (The Doors)

Anyone interested in the work of C. G. Jung is bound to encounter a great deal of serpent symbolism.

Jung was fascinated with alchemy, among other things, and the old alchemists are often depicted in drawings and woodcuts as somehow transformed into almost freakish, hybridized creatures.

This is all imagery, of course. The alchemists didn’t undergo strange physical changes, not observable ones at any rate.

But they did, so many believe, endure and ultimately overcome sometimes trying and bizarre experiences on an inner pilgrimage toward wholeness.

Adam McLean from The Alchemy Web Site nicely sums up the Jungian attitude on spiritual alchemy, the union of psychological opposites and the serpent.

The hermaphrodite stands upon a mound below which is a triple-headed serpent, each head of which is mutually feeding upon the others. This symbolizes that the Spirit, Soul and Body are becoming united and penetrate each other, though this being still polarized in the form of the serpent (the head and tail polarity), indicates that final harmonization of these realms is yet to be achieved (Source: The Alchemy Web Site).

Enter author and film director Philip Gardiner, whose Legend of the Serpent: The Biggest Religious Cover Up in History looks at orthodox and esoteric serpent symbolism with a decidedly gnostic bent.

Gardiner’s impressive historical and anthropological studies and on-site travels take the viewer back through time and around the globe as he explores the ubiquitous presence of archetypal serpent symbols.

From belief systems including the Gnostics, Sufis and Jews; the religious art of India, Egypt, China, Greece and Rome; right through to the precolonial Americas and many other cultures and places too numerous to mention here, this video is a fantastic ride for serpent motif enthusiasts.

One could pay thousands of dollars traveling to the dusty archives and remote temple locations that this film brings to light. The DVD also comes with bonus features on snake etymology, symbolism, a colorful snake handbook and an outtake with material not mentioned in the main program.

Thankfully, Legend of the Serpent isn’t one of those reckless, trippy videos suggesting we drug ourselves silly with hallucinogenic mushrooms to conjure up altered states, self-administer pure snake venom for healing or ceremonially dance with poisonous snakes like the old American folk hero, Billy Jack.

Legend of the Serpent is stone cold sober, and that’s what makes this innovative documentary unique and effective.

While watching Legend of the Serpent I couldn’t help but get the impression that this movie, itself, is something of an archetype for even greater things to come. Not only does the DVD take us on a journey through the past. Quite possibly it points to something even more important.

Where we’re headed.

–MC

The Unconscious – Rethinking the Unthinkable

in the Marais by Frederic Argazzi

In common parlance the terms unconscious and subconscious are used as if they expressed some kind of scientific or even religious certainty.

This may be convenient. After all, we wouldn’t get very far if we always stopped to analyze every word we use.

Tacit conceptual agreements facilitate conversation and make for easier reading. Obviously there’s some advantage to our collective unthinking.

But there’s a downside too. All too often socially accepted words become more than mere tropes and catchphrases. Their repeated use can lead to reification.

Reification occurs whenever social groups assume that mere ideas represent a real entity or thing–for instance, the idea of the ’state.’ Reified concepts may also point to detailed legal entities or religious teachings.

But the question remains: Does the thing written and talked about actually exist as its described?

Is ‘unconscious’ just a word that we’ve unwittingly incorporated into our belief systems due to its repeated usage?

We can’t exactly see, hear, smell, taste or touch the unconscious. Instead, it seems we merely experience images and reflections of its mysterious workings.

Some Definitions

Black’s Medical Dictionary defines the unconscious as “a description of mental activities of which an individual is unaware” (“Unconscious.” Black’s Medical Dictionary, 41st Edition. London: A&C Black, 2006. Credo Reference.) And medicinenet.com describes it as “that part of thought and emotion that happens outside everyday awareness.”

Psychoanalytic theories of the unconscious, while not always recognized as scientific nor convincingly proven to be therapeutic, are often included in medical definitions.

Unconscious is also used in psychoanalysis to characterize that section of a person’s mind in which memories and motives reside. They are normally inaccessible, protected by inbuilt mental resistance (Black’s, op cit.).

John F. Abess, M.D. describes it as:

That part of the mind or mental functioning of which the content is only rarely subject to awareness. It is a repository for data that have never been conscious (primary repression) or that may have been conscious and are later repressed (secondary repression).

David Macey says the term is “widely used to refer to any element of mental activity that is not present within the field of the conscious mind at a given moment” (The Penguin Dictionary of Critical Theory, p. 386 [emphasis added]).

This presents a more dynamic view. Instead of an unconscious only rarely subject to consciousness, Macey’s description portrays the mind as if it were a switched circuit. At one moment we plan to brush our teeth, the next moment the doorbell rings and we completely forget until the evening.

This leads to the notion of the subconscious. The unconscious is often contrasted with the subconscious although some writers, particularly novelists, use the two terms interchangeably. Black’s continues:

This [the unconscious] contrasts with the subconscious where a person’s memories and motives, while temporarily suppressed, can usually be recalled.

All very well and good. But already we see subtle variations in the idea of the unconscious. And if psychoanalytic theories of the unconscious are invoked, then a whole host of uncertainties can arise.

For instance, some writers take into account Carl Jung’s notion of the collective unconscious. And from Jung the more recent idea of transcultural psychiatry has arisen, where the unconscious seems collective and yet culturally specific.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

- click on images to enlarge -

History Recalls

From a historical perspective, the unconscious is a centuries-old idea where few agree as to its precise character. Raymond E. Fancher notes that the philosopher Leibniz (1646-1716)

postulated a continuum of consciousness, ranging from the clear, distinct and rational apperceptions through the more mechanical and indistinct perceptions and terminating in what he called minute perceptions (Pioneers of Psychology, p. 68).

This differs from contemporary definitions of the unconscious. But it paved the way for conceptualizing the subconscious, selective attention and the autonomic nervous system, ideas which later would emerge in psychology and physiology.

Along these lines, Arthur Koestler wrote that before the word unconscious was coined, people already knew about it. Koestler cites several examples where the idea of the unconscious is implied in the arts and philosophy–e.g., Sophocles, Dante, Shakespeare, Kepler and Kant.

Koestler also says that consciousness and unconsciousness are not discrete states but exist along a continuum (“Thinking Aside” in The Act of Creation, pp. 147 -177).

From Koestler it seems reasonable to suppose that the range of this experiential continuum varies from person to person. That is, some individuals consciously access different thoughts and emotions than others.

Freud is usually credited with being the first to conceptualize the unconscious as something beyond mere subliminal perceptions and autonomic functions.

Both he and Jung believe that the task of analysis is to bring unconscious contents to the light of consciousness. By doing so a person gains mastery over impulses and tendencies which formerly controlled or unduly influenced them.

The implication here is that conscious and unconscious contents are forever changing. From this we can say that one person’s idea of consciousness could be another’s about unconsciousness. Moreover, these discrepancies could occur both within and across cultures.

The Hero and the Underworld

Another seminal thinker to appear with Freud and Jung was Joseph Campbell. While some (probably jealous) academics still trash Campbell as a ‘popularizer,’ in recent years this dismissive evaluation has taken a turn for the better.

Freud, Jung and Campbell each in their own way were fascinated with the unconscious. It’s not commonly known, however, that all three of these theorists believed that the contents of the unconscious were essentially collective. And all three used the language of myth to express the unconscious.

Jung and Campbell likened the successful integration of unconsciousness within consciousness to myths about the hero.

The hero’s quest entails a journey into some strange, exotic landscape. Traditionally, this takes the form of a descent into the underworld.

This symbolic voyage below ‘normal’ consciousness is potentially dangerous. One can feel totally lost along the way and unusual or hard to recognize allies and enemies typically arise, each possessing paranormal abilities.

In this enchanted or, perhaps, cursed land, the hero must hold fast and remain true.

Figure 4

Figure 5

- click on images to enlarge -

Most hero myths entail a precarious journey in search of the pearl of wisdom, elixir of immortality or sacred object or magical key that is jealously guarded by a horrible creature–usually a dragon, an ogre or, in underwater variants, a sea monster.

After defeating the enemy and attaining the proverbial pearl of wisdom (i.e. knowledge of the eternal self), the hero returns to everyday life with enhanced wisdom.

To account for this dynamic in psychological terms, Jung developed his theory of the archetypes and archetypal images.

Archetypes are unconscious powers, themselves. As the German philosopher Kant put it, the ding an sich. Although we can’t see these directly we can infer their existence.

Archetypal images, on the other hand, are those expressions of archetypal power that are represented through psycho-cultural filters (e.g. dreams, the arts and architecture).

It is true that Campbell popularized Jung’s approach. But he also added his own insights into the many ways that consciousness relates to unconsciousness.

The Romanian author and scholar of religion Mircea Eliade met reguarly with Jung, Campbell and other leading figures like Karl Kerényi.

Along with Jung and Campbell, Eliade realized that the ancient hero motif was alive and well in the media. But Eliade focused less on the idea of psychological transformation. Instead, Eliade outlined how hero mythology adds thrill and adventure to everyday life.

The characters of the comic strips present the modern version of mythological or folklore Heroes…The myth of Superman satisfies the secret longings of modern man who, though he knows that he is a fallen, limited creature, dreams of one day proving himself an “exceptional person,” a “Hero.” Much the same could be said of the detective novel. On the one hand, the reader witnesses the exemplary struggle between Good and Evil, between the Hero (= the Detective) and the criminal (the modern incarnation of the Demon). On the other, through an unconscious process of projection and identification, he takes part in the mystery and the drama and has the feeling that he is personally involved in a pardigmatic-that is, a dangerous, “heroic”-action (Myth and Reality, p. 185).

It should be no surprise that filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola directed a movie, Youth Without Youth (2007), based on an Eliade novella.

While Campbell and Jung have been accused of glossing over cross-cultural nuances in depth psychology, Eliade focused on the historical contexts out of which myth and cosmology arose.

Despite their differences, all three thinkers recognized that, at some point, the psyche becomes a mystery. And perhaps most important, each acknowledged the limits of his own theorizing.

This leaves to present and future generations the task of rethinking the nature of consciousness, unconsciousness and their ever-changing connection.

Further Reading

• Franz G. Alexander and Sheldon T. Selesnick’s The History of Psychiatry: An Evaluation of Psychiatric Thought And Practice From Prehistoric Times To The Present (Harper & Row, 1966).
• Joseph Campbell’s The Hero With a Thousand Faces (1949).
• Eliade, Mircea. Myth and Reality (1963).
• Henri F. Ellenberger’s landmark study, The Discovery of the Unconscious (Basic Books, 1970) suggests that the unconscious was never discovered, per se, but was created by a handful of 18th-20th century Europeans such as Adler, Binet, Carus, Fechner, Flournoy, Freud, Janet and Jung.
• Fancher, Raymond E. Pioneers of Psychology, 3rd Ed. (1996).
• Freud, Sigmund. The Ego and the Id (revised by James Strachey, 1960).
• Jung’s Memories, Dreams, Reflections (1961) provides a good summation of his life’s work.
• Koestler, Arthur. The Act of Creation. New York: Penguin [Arkana], 1989.

Figures

1. Detail from Aztec calendar showing deity (Xipe Totec) clothed in human skin and massive serpent devouring human being. Color version can be seen here » http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/calendar.htm
2. Jonah being swallowed by the whale.
3. German alchemical illustration, circa 1600, of the spiritus mercurialis “and his transformations” as found on the front cover of C. G. Jung’s Aspects of the Masculine.
4. Contemporary writers follow Jung, Eliade and Campbell in viewing superhero comics and B-movies as modern myths. Most see sci-fi, horror and fantasy as manifestations of a collective unconscious. Along these lines, Jung felt that the UFO craze of the 1950’s for the most part could be explained by manifestations of a mandala archetype (UFOs in that era were primarily saucer-shaped).  Campbell was particularly inspired by Star Wars and the film’s creator, George Lucas, consulted with him to ensure that the archetypal characters conformed to existing mythic cycles.
5. Freud likened fundamental contents of the unconscious to ancient archaeological ruins. His psychoanalytic and Jung’s archetypal theory resemble one another on many points.

“The Unconscious – Rethinking the Unthinkable” © Michael W. Clark. All rights reserved.

C. G. Jung and Numinosity

Copyright © Michael W. Clark
All rights reserved.

This essay was written in 1994 at the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Ottawa, Canada.

My thinking has matured since that time but I post it here (with some minor edits) for its sound coverage of Jung’s ideas and also for several interesting asides.

When citing this essay please use one of the standard citation styles for online sources.

–MC

In the Beginning…God said, “Let there be light”

~ Genesis 1-3

This paper will outline the significance of numinosity in C. G. Jung’s analytical psychology and, by implication, its relevance for those who may be termed, ‘persons of numinosity.’ It will be suggested, ala Jung, that both the positive and negative aspects of numinosity may be potentially useful for human psychological and spiritual development. Last, Jung’s stance on inflation and numinosity will be applied and contrasted to the Christian – especially Catholic – view of numinosity as spiritual influence.

* * *

Jung’s use of numinosity is modified from its long standing roots in the etymological tree. According to The Encyclopedia of Religion,(1) Numinosity is adapted from the Latin term numen, based on the Indo-European root neu-, from which the similar Greek term, neuma, arose.(2) Numen is further derived from the verbs adnuere and abnuere which respectively translate to “agree with a nod of the head” and “refuse with a nod in the head;” the term therefore has encoded within its linguistic past a dual meaning which as we shall see, is reflected in Jung’s definition of numinosity.

Before we look at Jung, however, mention of the German scholar, Rudolf Otto, is essential. Otto popularized the term numinosity*(3) [fn* A similar form was used by philosopher Immanuel Kant (see endnote 3)] in his ‘classic’(4) The Idea of the Holy,(5) which bears the test of time perhaps partly due to Otto’s travels in the Asian subcontinent and his knowledge of Sanskrit, the language which Indian scholars claim is phonetically suited to communicate the experience of the numinous.(6) As a Lutheran interested in the mystical aspects of Martin Luther’s life, however, Otto reveals a distinct bias for his own tradition; while for Otto the Judeo-Christian tradition contains a mature, “supreme and unparalleled”(7) form of religious mysticism, he suggests experience of the numinous may not be confined to it.

In defining numinosity, Otto designates it as an actual and powerful aspect of religion. That is, unlike his French contemporary, Emile Durkheim,(8 ) who saw religious experience as a fundamentally biological, emotional “effervescence” generated by socio-religious rites and rituals,(9) Otto terms the numinous in the converse–not in the Durkheimian ‘below to above’ (essential ‘ground of being’ resting in the physical, empirical world), but in an ‘above to below’ mode (essential ground in a non-physical, supramundane locus or loci). This “science/religion” dichotomy,(10) initiated perhaps at the dawn of human history,(11) is continued throughout social and intellectual history and remains today with diverse paradigms and systems of approach co-existing – often uneasily – within the international political, denominational, and pedagogical spheres: i.e. in the overall societal scene.(12)

For Otto, the numinous does not replace, but supplements and vivifies the socio-structures of religion. Otto describes the numinous as an awe-filled encounter with ultimate reality (UR).(13) UR is designated by Otto as a mysterium tremendum(14) and a majestus(15) as it is experienced as a powerful sentient force, worthy of utmost respect. It inspires not only awe, but also fear. While the subject is urgently attracted to this ineffable source of creation, it may in some instances frighten, humble and ‘purify.’ Otto also notes subjects may perceive some sense of creaturely wretchedness and unworthiness, standing naked, as it were, in the face of a great and powerful, “wholly other”(16) UR-Creator-God.(17)

This is Otto’s version of UR as found within Christianity. The numinous, however, may take an ‘inferior,’ ‘dark’ form; for Otto, this is found in other religious systems and in pantheism.(18 ) The human psychological experience of the presence of a ‘lesser’ pagan god may translate into an impressive instance of numinosity, but not necessarily equal in character and quality to the Christian variety.(19) This rather basic distinction of Otto’s is important, for Jung too makes a somewhat elementary distinction between types of numinosity, and like Otto, he too displays what I shall term a ‘Christocentric’ preference.

Jung’s concept of numinosity is essential to the dynamic of change and growth within his model of the Self.(20) According to Jung, through what he metaphorically describes as an ‘alchemical’(21) process, the Self undergoes something akin to the ordeal of a lobster, or the dismemberment of Osiris–it ‘dies,’ ‘cooks,’ ‘boils,’ is torn apart, and yet through numinosity it is also properly cooked or reconfigured; in psychological parlance, it is restored to a new and balanced sense of life–what Jung terms ‘wholeness.’(22) Jung adapts Otto’s definition of numinosity to refer to unusual, non-ordinary or heightened modes of psychological awareness. To fully understand Jung’s development of the term numinosity, however, we must briefly look at his notion of the archetype.(23)

The archetype acts as an underlying organizing principle where constellations of collectively unconscious libido(24) impulses are rendered into recognizable and meaningful gestalts to be grasped by the human ego. According to Jung

Archetypes, so far as we can observe and experience them at all, manifest themselves only through their ability to organize images and ideas, and this will always be an unconscious process which cannot be detected until afterward.(25)

Jung differentiates the archetypal image from the archetype itself by suggesting the archetype proper is never amenable to representation(26) and cannot reach ego consciousness.(27) The diverse ‘crystal lattice’ structures of the archetypes are represented through various archetypal images and ideas.(28 ) These imagos are expressed in art, architecture, religion – i.e, human civilization – and are individually experienced either in dream or waking consciousness with corresponding ‘feeling values.’ It is these feeling values which may take the form of the ‘numinous.’

For Jung, the precipitating object of numinosity may be externally or inwardly perceived stimuli. In the latter, the object is not immediately subject to verification through observable consensus.(29)

The numinosum is either a quality belonging to a visible object or the influence of an invisible presence that causes a peculiar alteration of consciousness.(30)

Thus not perceptible in itself, one of the hallmarks of the archetype’s influence on the ego is numinosity.

Numinosity from archetypal experience may appear simply destructive, but if properly guided through the analytical, or some other functional process, it aids the individuation process of the Self. Success for, and the uniquely individual outcome of, individuation depends on many factors. One’s cultural location – to include gender, ethnic, and socio-economic status – to a large extent influences the optimal relation between the numinous and the ego.(31)

For Westerners, then, if regulated and made conscious by the ego, Jung says archetypal numinosity is enriching; on the negative side, it may invoke regression or a host of other psychological maladies.(32) Concerning one of these, Jungian inflation, I would like to elaborate on its relation to numinosity. For this, Jung’s account of inflation is useful:

An inflated consciousness is always egocentric and conscious of nothing but its own existence. It is incapable of learning from the past, incapable of understanding contemporary events, and incapable of drawing right conclusions about the future. It is hypnotized by itself and therefore cannot be argued with…inflation is a regression of consciousness into unconsciousness(33)

Elsewhere(34) I have noted the monumental role the ego plays in mediating the various internal and external demands of the psyche/world continuum as postulated by Jung’s theory. While inflation represents one of the dangers involved in the individuation process, Jung says it should not be confused with conscious self-aggrandizement.(35) Inflation is entirely hidden and unconscious. The distinguishing feature is the subject’s ability or inability to “discriminate” between conscious and unconscious contents, which for Jung is the “sin qua non of all consciousness.”(36)

In comparison with the Christian aspiring towards the ideal of perfection instead of completeness, in this instance the power of discrimination does not vanish; it is, however, altered and renamed. Discrimination becomes ‘discernment’ (“the gift for judging spirits”)(37) and instead of ‘discriminating’ between consciousness and unconsciousness, certain sectors of Christian faith(38 ) contend the ego ‘discerns’ between things good (of God) and evil (of Satan). This discernment ideally takes place both within one’s own self and towards other selves. That is, the true discerner recognizes the influence of evil spirits within her or his own consciousness and has also been given the ability to recognize this dynamic in others.(39)

Unfortunately this monochromatic world view is contradicted within both the parameters of Christianity in general, and Catholicism in particular. The Anglican, Baptist, Pentecostal, Presbyterian and United Churches disagree on key and fundamental issues – for example the role of women, lesbians/dikes, and gays/queers(40) in the “good vs. evil” diad – and the Catholic Church which claims legitimate authority to deliver a chosen portion of individuals to salvation through discernment itself lacks integration, and despite its newly released catechism, is rife with internal disagreement, sometimes taking the form of protectionism and other alleged issues.(41)

The official Papal response to such failings asserts that faulty praxis does not invalidate infallible doctrine. That is, it attempts to incorporate evil within the original premises of Catholicism, these being reinforced by various ‘church-verified’ apparitional appearances said to have emanated from Mary, the Madonna.* [fn* At Mudjegorje the apparitions but not the messages are authorized by the church. The overall discourse, nonetheless, is important to Catholic belief and practice]. In essence, these alleged contemporary manifestations of Mary inform believers, “excuse me for this, but you must realize that Satan exists”…this is “the hour of Satan.”(42) To summarize the discourse reportedly given to Mirjana Dragicevic at Medjugorje:

Lucifer went to God’s throne and asked permission to unleash his minions of evil – demons – throughout the Church for one century [ours]. God granted his evil and fallen archangel such license so as to submit the Church to a period of trial and to fulfil Old and New Testament scripture for ultimately good reasons impossible to mortal comprehension.(43)

Satan, Catholics(44) now believe, is present in the Church. His evil influence makes the importance of discernment even greater than before, where the church apparently could be relied on for ‘good counsel.’(45)

If Satan has just recently infiltrated the church, internal myopia to the greed and horrors of the crusades, inquisitions and political poisonings makes Jung and specifically, inflation, again relevant. The Catholic discernment of evil spirits adhering to the true self is loosely analogous to Jung’s differentiation of the shadow from mature ego consciousness. From Jung’s standpoint, however, rather than being “wise like serpents and harmless as doves,”(46) Catholics are the opposite. They are hypnotized by their own unconsciousness, and their ‘discernments’ emerge from within the bounds of a relatively small archetypal area–that is, they are unwittingly fixated in an unconscious type and must view everything external from within the ‘borders’ and highly intransigent, more or less rigid and largely inert rules and regulations of that socio-psychological structure, or ’space.’(47) Interestingly, they retain ego consciousness, but as Jung suggests, it seems limited and un-whole,(48 ) at times discerning between ‘good’ and ‘evil’ on what from a scholarly perspective seems not merely insipid, but unethical and perhaps even clannishly destructive. Consider ex-journalist and Catholic Michael H. Brown’s lamentations concerning the influence of Satan in postwar popular culture:

Instead of Yoruba drums, we had movies, the stereo, the television. One of the hit TV shows was called Bewitched.(49)

As exemplifying the careless – or perhaps careful – selectivity of the Catholic approach, Brown overlooks the fact that the Yoruba themselves distinguish between good and evil,(50) that stereos and televisions may be used to further one’s relation to a believed in God (for surely that same Catholic-defined omniscient God directs all of creation), and concerning Bewitched, he also overlooks the fact that the protagonist, ‘Samantha,’ was depicted as a good witch who declined to use her powers unless absolutely necessary–usually as a countermeasure to her meddling Mother, Endora.(51) While Judeo-Christian saints and wonder-workers with similar powers emphasise personal humility, attributing all agency to God, Brown disregards the NT statement of “ye are gods.”(52) For the NT Son of God himself says the ‘gods’ may act as he does–in the service of the creator-God.(53) Regarding the possibility of miraculous abilities, Jung would contend such ‘powers’ originate from an archetype.(54) In occidental societies that often misconstrue numinosity as indicative of deviance, popular depictions of unearthly abilities – as in Bewitched – could inspire personal and mass acceptance of the potentially numinous aspects of psychological growth.*(55) [fn* See my graduate paper, "Synchronicity: Carl Jung, Consciousness and Chance" for Dr. Naomi R. Goldenberg at the University of Ottawa (April, 1994:10) re the temporary utility of inflation for the traumatized personal unconscious. I would suggest that personal complexes created in the childhood/family/significant-other spheres and deposed to the 'personal' unconscious ultimately stem from both interpersonal and collective-historical forces of human development. That is, a seemingly personal cumulative trauma may be transmitted - unconsciously - to progeny, throughout generations (studies of child molestation demonstrate a statistically high percentage of repeated generational abuse. And if not physically repeated, it may be psychologically)]

Concerning inflation, Jung links it to numinosity when it evokes the experience of an archetype. Although rendered in a philosophical-scientific code for acceptance for a primarily scientific audience, Jung’s “archetype” is alternately represented within other discursive areas – both positively and negatively – by such competing terms as ‘ghost’ ’spirit,’ ‘god,’ ‘Devil,’ and ‘God,’(56) to note a just a few. And with Jung’s division of the archetypal ‘image’ from the ‘archetype proper,’ theological philosophers such as St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine likewise suggest that ‘angels’ manifest themselves in forms recognizable to humans, yet not in accordance with their true unmanifest angelic character,(57) which is comparable – but not identical -to Jung’s description of the archetypal image–a numinous psychological content which mediates a tension of opposites via the ‘transcendent function,’ leading the ego but never fully connecting it to the ‘psychoid’ aspect of the archetype. However, Jung’s recency does not instantly provide his ideas a higher degree of accuracy over Aquinas’ ideas, or any other so-called ‘great’ thought. This fallacy of chronological progress over linear time(58 ) is often used to justify scholarly emphasis on “current thought” while valuable insights from the past may be overlooked or simply and unknowingly reiterated.

At any rate, to close with a challenge to, instead of a mere summary of, Jung’s thoughts on numinosity, the Indian guru and the Judeo-Christian nun, monk, saint, or religious/spiritually-minded lay-person offer alternatives to Jung’s view. Here a human individual is, as Max Weber puts it, “empowered to distribute grace,” and to some extent sanctified – and/or rejected(59) – by others. In this interactive model, the Jungian shadow contents, or in the Catholic sense, ‘hindering spirits’ and ‘demons’ are transferred from the afflicted person to an apparently benevolent religious who in the process of prayer, ritual and/or concentration on God (or some godly manifestation of God) rids her or himself – and by implication, the first person – of the evil and is propelled to a higher level of self-knowledge.(60) We could imagine such a system of reciprocal yet upwardly sequential sanctification to increase endlessly, or near endlessly up to the heavens (as the OT account of Jacob’s Ladder might be interpreted to indicate).(61)

A tentative parallel of this to Jungian thought is found in his distinction between devouring (regressive or inflatory) and nurturing (healing, purifying and/or humbling)(62) types of numinosity, and Jung mentions, if in a comparatively underdeveloped way, the possibility of an interactive, interpersonal dynamic to numinosity.(63) Yet while the other-worldly theodicean doctrine of St. Irenaeus views ‘necessary evil’ as something that propels believers towards an eternal afterlife in a paradisal heaven, Jung suggests in a more worldly vein that if regulated, the entire ‘alchemical’ process of both devouring and nurturing archetypal numinosity is conducive to individuation in this world. Moreover, while many Catholics(64) might see the numinous influences of various archetypes as the workings of evil gods, Jung suggests these ‘lesser gods’ may be integrated within his concept of the Self as a psychic totality, consisting of the conjunctio oppositorium. As Jung sees it:

On account of his sinlessness Christ…lives in the Platonic realm of pure ideas whither only man’s thoughts can reach but not he himself in his totality.(65)

* * *

This brief survey of the various goals and orientations of Jungian and religious models of the psyche will be developed in subsequent work. The key, and it must be stressed, general difference, however, seems to be an increased concern for one’s afterlife status in most religious models,(66) while Jung emphasizes this-worldly life, describing it as a possible but unproved(67) precursor to other-worldly afterlife.

With his discussion on numinosity, Jung continues the ongoing science vs. religion debate noted at the outset. As a psychologist, he hopes to harness the psychological power and grace of the numinous by appropriating philosophies and religions of antiquity. By so doing he attempts to straddle positivist and mystical methodologies as most of his cosmological data suggest a temporal, effete, earthly ‘becoming’ which undergirds, supports,(68 ) or precedes finer afterlife realms of ‘true being.’(69) Thus claiming to use but extending positivism to the edge of the ineffable, Jung echoes Plato’s view on life as something of a ‘preparation’ for death–that is, new life in an eternal world of Forms.(70)

Endnotes

1) The Encyclopedia of Religion, Vol. 11, Mircea Eliade ed. (New York: Macmillan Pub. Co., 1987: 21-22, 178 ).

2) Daryl Sharp, C. G. Jung Lexicon (Toronto: Inner City Books, 1991: 92).

3) Immanuel Kant’s realm of the noumena is ineffable in itself but ‘practically’ known by the “intelligible order of things” in the world of phenomena. Immanuel Kant cited in Roger Scruton, A Short History of Modern Philosophy: From Descartes to Wittgenstein (London: Ark Paperbacks 1984: 157).

4) See endnote 20(a) and (b).

5) Rudolf Otto, The Idea of the Holy, John W. Harvey, trans. (London: Oxford University Press, 1973 (1923)).

6) Ibid., 192-193.

7) Ibid., 142.

8 ) Durkheim was the first Jew admitted to the Catholic École Normal Superieure in France.

9) Originally a Jew, Durkheim converted to Catholicism. In his theoretical work, however, he argued the ’science’ of sociology could justifiably describe religious and economic activity as ’social facts.’ See the discussion on ‘totemism’ in Emile Durkheim, The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life, Joseph Ward Swain trans. (London: Allen & Unwin 1964).

10) P. D. Ouspensky suggests this split may be traced to the ‘Scholastic’ philosophy of Aristotelian logic where truth was approached by reasoning from “seemingly incontestable premises,” vs. the “more or less occult” approach of Platonic and Pythagorian schools apparently derived from Egyptian philosophy (the ‘Hermetic’ philosophy founded by Hermes Trismegistus). P. D. Ouspensky, A New Model of the Universe (New York: Vintage Books, 1971 (1931): 196).

11) Perhaps cave-persons debated the relative importance of sketching gods on cave walls versus tool-making and hunting. Likely, the two were seen as intertwined–i.e. the ‘god’ represented on the wall was also believed to inspire (via spiritual influence) technological inventions. Whether or not the cave-persons saw it as such, or if this indeed was so, is open to debate.

12) On the ’scientific’ side of the spectrum, current studies link specific types of numinous experience to physio-biological alterations. Henry James, for example, notes a relationship between neuroendocrine activity, emotion, and the religious archetype. He suggests early family/social events engender biological “triggers” that internally enhance psychological experience during such “sacred moments” as mother-infant bonding. In the event of psychic trauma, access to emotions and archetypes [Jung postulates these as biologically encoded] is inhibited. See Henry P. James, “Religious Experience, Archetypes and the Neurophysiology of Emotions” Zygon, 1986 Mar Vol 21(1) 47-74 in PsycLIT Database, American Psychological Assn. (1987). Disregarding the reference to archetypes, James’ study may be partially explained by Freudian theory. Freud, himself a neurologist, precursed the notion of afferent and efferent neurons with his theory of defence mechanisms. For Freud trauma blocks libidinal energy and in fact re-directs it to protect the stricken area through the defence mechanism of repression or any one of the various other types of defences which stem from and/or are elaborations of this ‘master’ mechanism. Notes from undergraduate course conducted by Dr. Donald Carveth (York University: Fall, 1981). While Jung is often seen as underemphasizing what he terms the personal unconscious, he does point out that an undifferentiated personal unconscious will distort one’s perceptions of an essential archetypal purity, and potentially project the distortion onto objects in one’s surroundings. C. G. Jung, Alchemical Studies in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 13, 348; and C. G. Jung, in Sharp, Jung Lexicon, 104.

13) The term ‘ultimate reality’ is borrowed from the Christian scholar, Joachim Wach, who separates religious from magical experience: The former is a continuous (yet with intermittences) response to a “powerful, comprehensive, shattering, and profound” experience of UR that must simultaneously involve the hierarchical elements of intellect, affect, and volition, and which leads to definite and imperative action, while the latter is a mere series of “unconnected thrills.” Interestingly, Wach’s ‘action’ includes contemplation, and in distinguishing this from slothful indifference, Wach notes William James’ pragmatism: “Our practice is the only sure evidence even to ourselves, that we are genuinely Christians.” In Joachim Wach, The Comparative Study of Religions, Joseph M. Kitagawa ed. (New York: Columbia University Press, 1958: 31-35).

14) Otto, The Idea of the Holy, 12.

15) Ibid., 19.

16) Ibid., 25-27, 28.

17) Ibid., 8-49.

18 ) Ibid., 29, 31-33.

19) Ibid., 142.

20) (a) Various current publications on numinosity seem to reinforce both Otto and, as we shall see, Jung’s position. This is impressive for both Otto and Jung, who could be seen as the ‘Founding Fathers’ [see (b) below] for the discursive formulation of an apparently non-discursive phenomenon. In comparing the near-death experience to the numinosum, for instance, Sally Leighton argues a high degree of similarity. Sally M. Leighton, “God and the God Image,” Journal of Near-Death Studies, 1991 Sum Vol. 9(4) 233-246 in PsycLIT Database APA (1992). Likewise, in contrast to the experience of artists, Paul Pruyser suggests aspects of the artistic process may relate to the numinous element of religious experience, yet the latter apparently has a unique and indivisible quality not found in the former. Paul W. Pruyser, “Lessons from Art Theory for the Psychology of Religion,” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 1976 Mar Vol. 15(1) 1-14 in PsycLIT Database APA (1976). In this connection, William Henkin describes a personal semi-conscious encounter with a numinous female figure which later fostered his artistic creativity. William A. Henkin, “Two Non-Ordinary Experiences of Reality and their Integration,” Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 1983 Vol. 15(2) 137-142 in PsycLIT Database APA (1985). From this it would seem the numinous spawns creativity and not the converse. (b)Feminist scholars point out that most intellectual and social history is written within a patriarchal context (attributed to men, by men, from a male perspective), and does not credit novel ideas to women by largely ignoring their contributions, persepectives, and actual accounts (except a salient few, such as Joan of Arc).

21) Jung, The Collected Works, Vol. 8, 427-428.

22) Not to be confused with the Christian sense of the term, wholeness. As described more fully in pp. 5-7, Christian ‘wholeness’ implies complete rejection of all ‘evil’ and the reception of a new level of existential grace to be carried into afterlife, while Jung’s term advocates an at times volatile integration of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ to realistically combat the pressures of earthly life, and to prevent the projection of one’s shadow onto others.

23) The three paragraphs following this note have been modified from my unpublished graduate paper “Ego, Archetype and Self: C. G. Jung and Modernity” for Dr. Naomi R. Goldenberg at the University of Ottawa (May, 1993:2-3).

24) Jung’s definition of libido has been critically assessed in my unpublished paper, “Plumbing the Depths: Carl Jung, Freud and Hinduism” for Dr. N. Goldenberg, Graduate Studies in Religious Studies, University of Ottawa. Jung defines libido as: …an energy value which is able to communicate itself to any field of activity whatsoever, be it power, hunger, hatred, sexuality, or religion, without ever being a specific instinct. Jung, Symbols of Transformation in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 5, 137.

25) Ibid, 231.

26) C. G. Jung, The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 8, 214. Jung seems to overlook the fact that the words he writes are a type of representation.

27) Ibid, 213. Granted Jung’s formulation of archetypal images and ideas, we must still ask: if the numinosity of the archetypal image or idea originates from the archetype, is not the ego at least dimly aware of that archetypal source which it ‘feels’?

28 ) Ibid, 214.

29) Jung claims to have to overcome the problem of consensus by correlating a vast amount of what he interprets as analogous dream and mythological material. As only a select few dreams were published, we are impelled to trust he did indeed observe a great number of them. See Jung, Psychology and Alchemy in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 12, 46.

30) C. G. Jung, Psychology and Religion: West and East in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 11, 7.

31) Ibid, 205.

32) C. G. Jung, Civilization in Transition in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 10, 237.

33) Jung, The Collected Works Vol. 12, 480-481.

34) Unpublished graduate paper “Ego, Archetype and Self” (2, 9-10).

35) In a similar vein, Joseph Campbell argues that cultural notions of God’s (or gods’) immanence may take the form of mythic identification (ego absorbed by spirit), mythic inflation (spirit overcome by aggrandized ego), mythic subordination (ego is instrument of spirit) or mythic dissociation (ego has a ‘relationship’ with God). Whether or not the examples Campbell provides to support these categories indeed reflect actual social-historical conditions remains open to question. See Joseph Campbell, The Masks of God: Oriental Mythology (New York: Penguin Books, 1962: 80, 101-107).

36) Jung, The Collected Works, Vol. 12, 480-481.

37) Michael H. Brown, Prayer of the Warrior (Milford, OH: Faith Publishing Co., 1993: 193).

38 ) Michael Brown being an excellent example.

39) Compare to Jung’s definition of ‘demonism.’ As Jung contends: Demonism (synonomous with daemonomania=possession) denotes a peculiar state of mind characterized by the fact that certain psychic contents, the so-called complexes, take over the control of the total personality in place of the ego, at least temporarily, to such a degree that the free will of the ego is suspended. In certain of these states ego-consciousness is present, in others it is eclipsed. C. G. Jung, The Symbolic Life in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 18, 648.

40) In citing 1 Corinthians 6:9,10 and Romans 1:26,27, Catholic writer Michael H. Brown views homosexuality as possession by a contrasexual spirit or spirits. See Brown, Prayer, 180-186.

41) To the point of sheltering numerous priest and brother child molesters from public notice and other allegations. Brown, Prayer 129-131. We must remember that the only publicly verified allegations are about sex abuse and sheltering offenders. All the rest outlined by Brown in Prayer remain mere allegations strongly denied by the Vatican (Michael Clark, November 2, 2008 ).

42) Brown, Prayer, 67-68.

43) Ibid.

44) My observations on “Catholics” are in part from an ongoing participant observational study conducted for approximately 1 year, in both Ottawa and Toronto. This involved ‘undercover’ practice as a pseudo Catholic (as far as Papally permitted for non-Catholics) and interviews with several priests, the Vicar General of Ottawa, a current Cistercian monk, an ex-Franciscan monk, and with various laity in bookstores, churches, and devotional outlets.

45) A major 20th century and ‘Church-approved’ mystic, Sister Mary Faustina Kowalska writes in the context of confession, now re-termed reconciliation: “A priest who is not at peace with himself will not be able to inspire peace in another soul.” Sister Mary Faustina Kowalska, Divine Mercy in My Soul: The Diary of the Servant of God Sister M. Faustina Kowalska (Stockbridge, Mass.: Marian Press, 1987: 38 ). This rather heroic statement made by a 1920’s convent nun implies one should regulate the openness of one’s confidences in confession according to the purity of the priest–perhaps a truism for secular individuals confiding amongst themselves. If uttered in the medieval era, Faustina likely would have been branded as a witch, tortured by trial, and executed for heresy, in accordance with legitimized church practice. See Stuart Gordon, The Encyclopedia of Myths and Legends (London: Headline House, 1993: 735-737).

46) Matt. 10:16

47) Jung, The Collected Works, Vol. 11, 109-200.

48 ) Ibid.

49) (a) Brown, Prayer 103. This type of cultural and individual scapegoating is hardly unprecedented. See J. G. Frazer, “The Transference of Evil,” “The Public Expulsion of Evils” and “On Scapegoats in General” in The Golden Bough, abridged (London: Papermac, 1987: 538-582).

50) Ulli Beier, ed. Yoruba Myths (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1980).

51) Endora embodies the Jungian ‘trickster’ archetype: not evil, but mischievous ultimately to a good end.

52) John 10:34; Brown, Prayer, 149.

53) John, 10:34.

54) In less contemporary terms, Greek pre-Socratics believed this power emanated from a ‘god’ (in the OT sense of pagan ‘gods’) and operated in the service of a master deity, Zeus. This idea is repeated in Virgil where various superhuman beings must inevitably “submit to the divine will.” Virgil, The Aeneid, Betty Radice and Robert Baldick eds. (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1956: 133).

55) (a) Using abstract mathematics to argue the limits of rationalistic materialism, Robin Robertson argues that common, ‘physical reality’ is no more nor less actual than common ‘mystical realities.’ Robin Robertson. “Godel and Jung: The Twilight of Rational Consciousness?” in Psychological Perspectives, Fall Vol. 18/2, 1987: 304-318 in PsycLIT Database APA, 1988. (b) Jung defines the numinous as if it occurs rarely, yet seems to imply its recurrence throughout his own and the life of his patients. See Daniel Hoy, “Numinous Experience, Frequent or Rare?” in Journal of Analytical Psychology, Jan. Vol. 28/1, 1983: 17-32 in PsycLIT Database APA, 1983.

56) Vera M. Buhrmann suggests occidental fear of the numinous has lead to its general rejection, with acceptance only in highly circumscribed social contexts–such as Jungian analysis. Vera M. Buhrmann’s “correspondence” to Daniel Hoy [see endnote 55 (b)] in Journal of Analytical Psychology Jan: Vol. 29/1 1984:79-80 in PsycLIT Database APA, 1985.

57) See St. Thomas Aquinas, “Whether Angels Assume Bodies” in The Basic Writings of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Anton C. Pegis ed. (New York: Random House, 1945:493) where it is argued angels intercede via imagination -Jung’s archetypal image – or in bodily form. St. Augustine makes a simpler distinction between angelic ‘celestial’ and ‘earthly’ bodies. St. Augustine, On the Free Choice of the Will, Anna S. Benjamin and L. H. Hackstaff, trans. (Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merril Co., 1984:114).

58 ) See the discussion on temporality in my unpublished graduate paper “Synchronicity: Carl Jung, Consciousness and Chance” for Dr. Naomi R. Goldenberg, at the University of Ottawa (April, 1994:8 ).

59) (a) Weber notes in his treatment of prophets that miraculous powers are said to originate from the godhead; the socio-political system and the specific nature of the prophet, he contends, determines their expression. See Max Weber, “The Prophet” and “Soteriology and Types of Salvation” in The Sociology of Religion, Ephraim Fischoff, trans. (Boston: Beacon Press, 1964 (1922):46-59, 184-206, 189). (b) Mircea Eliade notes that Tungus shamans abandon their special vocation if not recognized nor supported by their culture. He further notes that potential shamans usually undergo a spiritual crisis marked by confusion; an experienced spiritual teacher acts as guide towards the disciple’s new supramundane vocation. See Mircea Eliade, Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy, trans. Willard R. Trask, Bollingen Series LXVIII (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1964: 17, 33. (c) The influence of greater socio-cultural evaluation of ‘nonordinary experience’ is noted by Larry G. Peters, “The Tamang Shamanism of Nepal” in Shamanism: An Expanded View of Reality, Shirley Nicholson, ed. (Wheaton, IL.: Theosophical Publishing House, 1987: 166-167).

60) (a) In the case of the Shaman, s/he is believed to ‘travel’ – while in inviolate trance – to an otherworld abode of spirits to recover ’stolen’ souls to the rightful bodies of afflicted individuals. See Eliade, Shamanism, 309. (b) In discussion with two Catholic monks and one Catholic religious layperson, they suggested one would receive ‘evil’ and ‘human spirits’ from other people, but ultimately benefit from the process.

61) Here angels are described as “ascending and descending.” Gen. 28:12

62) C. G. Jung, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, revised, ed. Aniela Jaffé, trans. Richard and Clara Winston (New York: Vintage Books, 1961:154).

63) Jung says projected psychic facts may influence others in a magical manner. See C. G. Jung, Alchemical Studies in The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, ed. William McGuire et al., trans. R. F. C. Hull, Bollingen Series XX (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954-79) Vol. 13, 24-25.

64) This is based on statements made in the field of actual practice by lay, priestly and monastic Catholics in discussing Jung and non-Catholic and non-Christian religions (See endnote 44). Opinions varied, from non-Catholic ‘otherness’ representing or partially representing Satan, to being highly acceptable; interestingly, the Cistercian Monastery in Orangeville, Ontario, sells non-Catholic books, and the liason Monk-Priest appreciated Japanese art and seemed to convey approval when informed I had lived in India. Likewise, the Catholic monk Thomas Merton advocates the poetic discourse of the Chinese philosopher Chaung Tzu (circa 300 B.C.) and expresses kinship with other non-Catholics who find “something they vastly prefer in solitude.” The Way of Chuang Tzu, Thomas Merton, ed., secondary trans. (New York: Penguin, 1965: 10).

65) Jung, The Collected Works, Vol. 11, 177. Jung overlooks that Plato’s ‘pure ideas’ exist on a wholly different ontological level than imperfect ‘human thoughts.’ Likewise, Judeo-Christian scripture (and most mystics of that tradition) claim heaven to be ‘higher’ than human thoughts. See for instance, Isaiah 55:6-9.

66) Hindu and Judeo-Christian perspectives contain ‘this-worldly’ elements: for example, Swami Vivekananda’s ‘Practical Vedanta’ and the Protestant emphasis on ‘good works.’ Believing Jehovah’s Witness anticipate an immortal physical, earth-bound life on the basis of OT passages pertaining to inheritances of land “for ever and ever.” Sam. 7:16, 1 Chron. 17:23-27. See Swami Vivekananda, Karma Yoga and Bhakti Yoga (New York: Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, 1955: 54-55), and Max Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Talcott Parsons, trans. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1958:53-54, 108 ).

67) Elizabeth Kübler-Ross would disagree; she claims to have studied 20,000 cases of people declared clinically dead and then restored to life, and regards their testimonials as proof of an afterlife. Regarding visions of dead friends and relatives she suggests: The only thing that prevents…people from sharing their experience…is the incredible tendency to label, to belittle, or to deny such stories when they make us uncomfortable and don’t fit into our own scientific or religious model. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, On Life After Death (Berkeley: Celestial Arts, 1991: 9, 55-56).

68 ) Both Egyptian and Indian ‘gods’ reportedly require human devotees to sustain their divine life. Frazer, The Golden Bough 52.

69) (a) A view proposed by Platonic, Christian, and much ‘New Age’ discourse. Not to imply these to be identical, however. In Orhpic and Homeric cosmologies, for instance, one goes to the abode of death in much the same manner as he or she existed in earthly life (warriors take their human form and even weapons) whereas in the NT the faithful believer is transformed into something like an angel, “neither male nor female.” See Vittorio D. Macchioro, From Orpheus to Paul: A History of Orphism (New York: Henry Holt & Co., 1930: 32-52); Matt. 22:30, Mark 12:25, Luke 20:36. (b) Jung speaks of blissful “deliriums and visions” experienced while ill and likens death to “stepping out of a tight shoe.” See Jung, Memories, 289-298.

70) Jungian legend has it that as Jung died his favourite tree in the garden at Küsnacht was struck by lightning, and on the day before hearing of Jung’s death his old friend Laurens van der Post dreamed Jung waved to him and said ‘I’ll be seeing you.’ Gordon, Encyclopedia of Myths, 385.

Elements of prophecy – reflections on the interior life

a prophet

Originally uploaded by mararie

Copyright © Michael W. Clark 2008. All rights reserved.

Steven Spielberg’s science fiction film Minority Report (2002) contains an interesting idea.

Three clairvoyants called PreCogs (i.e. precognitives) spend their lives floating in a pool of water, wired up to a kind of amplifier in a state of deep meditation.

The PreCogs’ job is to predict murders that could happen in the future.

Tom Cruise, a good and honest cop, relies on the PreCogs’ leads to arrest would-be criminals just before they’re about to commit a homicide.

The film puts an interesting twist on the idea of precognition, mostly because in today’s society people with such gifts are often treated with suspicion and even disrespect.

But the PreCogs’ abilities are esteemed and they enjoy a kind of eerie reverence.

In my journey on and offline, many complex, fascinating – and even a few disturbed – seekers have crossed my path.

Some say that spirit beings or God appears or speaks to them. Others claim to see objects, places and souls through astral travel. Several believe they can read minds. And some say have had a vision of Christ or the Holy Trinity.

And like the PreCogs, others claim to foresee the future.

I studied these topics in school. It’s one thing to read about them, another to actually interact with people claiming to possess so-called paranormal gifts and abilities.

Believers in God would probably say that I’m providentially hooked up with the right people at the right time to continue to learn and grow.¹

Dealing with alleged psychics and mind-readers can be rewarding but also challenging. If psi abilities are real, to my mind there’s no guarantee they’ll be used in a sane or ethical manner. For instance, those who haven’t dealt with personal pain could take a compensatory turn to self-aggrandizement–and that kind of self-delusion could lead even the best down a very dark lane to nowhere.²

One might regard visionary and prophetic claims as a sure sign of mental instability, perhaps even insanity. But in my adult years I don’t dismiss this end of the human spectrum without careful investigation and, perhaps more importantly, recognizing the limits of conceptual understanding.

While a graduate student I became acquainted with some of the homeless in the cold streets of Ottawa, Canada. Before graduate school, I did volunteer work in a psychiatric ward in Peterborough, Canada.

All the while I’ve tried to talk to people as people, rather than as sterile objects scoped out by the clinical gaze of 21st century medicine.

Nor have I fallen into the common practice of scapegoating those who happen to be different. Scapegoating is an age-old practice alive and well today, one perpetuated by ignorance, cowardice and a brutish mentality.

But some folks do take wrong turns in the spiritual life, and some might even be continually deceived. Interior perception is an exacting process and it seems not everyone can do it very well.

Leading writers on mysticism such as Evelyn Underhill say that the sincere mystic must be humble and painstakingly analytical to avoid deception, either by the imagination or by negative spiritual influences.

When it comes to prophets, it seems most speak in such roundabout terms that their predictions could mean a thousand different things to a thousand different people. And when flat wrong, the hokey prophet tends to fudge it.

False prophecies once brazenly proclaimed as fact are quickly swept under the rug or perhaps recast as “symbolic” predictions.

Philosophers of reasoning call this an ad hoc hypothesis or possibly an instance of ex post facto [after the fact] reasoning. Rather than openly admitting mistakes as an emotionally mature psi researcher would, sham mystics usually do their best to cover it all up. Sometimes intelligently, but it’s still a cover-up, still a deception.

Genuine forms of prophecy involve a supernatural source of revealed or infused information. But this information likely passes through and is reinterpreted by the recipient’s personality.

In some instances, arguably not all, the degree of prophetic accuracy is directly proportional to the spiritual purity of (a) the recipient’s personality and (b) the information source. In other words, a message may be subject to personal interpretation, gross distortion, or worse, distorted to begin with.

But it’s not quite that simple.

If God is all-powerful, weak and tawdry personalities could be chosen for genuine prophecy, even for a short while, like a temporary override or “download” from above.

To draw an analogy, a hostile spy uses the internet illicitly but once in a while visits life affirming web sites. Recall from the Biblical tradition that the young David slew Goliath in the name of the Lord, later to become an adulterous King. David wasn’t a prophet, per se, but he’s a good example of God doing miraculous things through a weak personality.

An integrated model of prophecy sees the prophetic content and the personality of the prophet as two items in dynamic relationship where two events happen as they should.

According to this schema, God knows in advance how a prophet will interpret a given revelation; therefore God tailors the style and content of that revelation to fit with the prophet’s psychological makeup. The final result is a message appropriate for a given culture at a specific historical time and place.

Most Muslims, for instance, believe that Muhammed is God’s perfect messenger. The Koran says that Moses and later Jesus were prophets right for their time, but a much-needed update was provided in the person and teachings of Muhammed.

Meanwhile Jews tend to see Jesus as a very wise man–nothing less, nothing more. And Hindus tend to see Christ as another avatar or messenger who is special but not unique.

Often glossed over by well-meaning seekers and dignitaries, these three interpretations differ from the Christian tenet that Jesus is not just another prophet, messenger or nice guy but the long-awaited messiah and savior.

Some get upset over this kind of statement, probably because of Christian abuses throughout history, and perhaps in some cases because people are angry at a significant other or event and transfer that unresolved anger onto Christianity as a whole.

But facts are facts. Different faith groups see Jesus differently. And politically correct or not to say so, non-Christian religions often directly or subtly challenge the Christian belief that Jesus is the unique incarnation of God and man.

Further to Christianity, another issue arises concerning prophecy. For believers, Jesus’ accurate predictions were often misunderstood and mocked. But for Christians the greater meaning of the message more than compensates for any initial misunderstanding. For Christians, Jesus’ prophecy is about the triumph of good over evil.

Consider the following:

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19)

Later, Christian theologians would say the ‘temple’ is God’s own body. Three days after Jesus’ crucifixion (i.e. the destruction of the temple), he rises again (i.e. the rebuilding of the temple).³

While the meaning of this particular prophecy isn’t clear at the outset, believers say it is couched in symbolic terms for soteriological purposes.

The Jesus of scripture doesn’t use his gifts to maintain a comfortable lifestyle, nor does he try to conscript workers for overt sociopolitical activism (at that time Judea was under military occupation by the Romans). His mission is about leading souls to their rightful place in everlasting heaven.

Not just a good man or another avatar, Jesus, so Christians believe, is perfect and unique. As God’s only son and as part of the Holy Trinity, he is both fully human and fully divine.

Christians, on the other hand, are imperfect. Thus for sincere Christians the issue of prophecy occurring after the time of Jesus becomes problematic because imperfect believers can be easily deceived.

In Catholicism, personal revelations among common folk are called private revelations. Private revelations occurring after the time of Christ are said to add nothing to the Christian faith as defined by the Catholic Church.

But revelations declared authentic may contain personal, inspirational or cultural value.

Throughout the ages, there have been so-called “private” revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or complete Christ’s definitive revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church. Christian faith cannot accept “revelations” that claim to surpass or correct the revelation of which Christ is the fulfillment, as is the case in certain non-Christian religions and also in certain recent sects which base themselves on such “revelations”⁴

Of course, many question the teaching authority of a body of individuals who’ve proved to be susceptible to temptation and prone to human error just like everybody else.

Viewed historically, it the Catholic Church has made gruesome mistakes, only to apologize hundreds of years later. Joan of Arc, for instance, was terrorized, brutalized and burned alive at the stake in 1431 as a heretic. In 1920, almost 500 years later, Joan was canonized.

Could a more subtle kind of persecution occur if a sincere saint were alive today?

The Church will find itself attacked by waves of a secret sect,
and corrupted priests will scandalize the Church

- Sr. Marianne de Jesus Torres (17^th century)

This prophecy of St. Marianne de Jesus Torres has proved to be at least partially true.⁵ And it might point to one of the reasons why so many intelligent and caring people are asking tough questions about not only Catholic, but most forms of organized religion in the 21^st century.⁶

Notes

1. It’s always been my hope that others will gain something positive from these interactions.

2. Many saints lament that vanity and jealousy figure in the spiritual life. Apparently the more we open to spiritual realities, the more we become vulnerable to temptation and deception. Because evil is about destroying souls, the saints say that it uses every trick in the book to trap souls in astral realms or worse, hell itself. As the Book of Genesis suggests, the serpent is the subtlest of all creatures in the garden of Eden.

3. (a) Related passages:

“We heard Him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands.’ ” (Mark 14:58)

“for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and alter the customs which Moses handed down to us.” (Acts 6:14)

“You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross” (Matthew 27:40).Those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads, and saying, “Ha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, (Mark 15:29).

Source: New American Standard Bible.

(b) This is not the place to outline theological debates about the apparent harmony or, on the other hand, contradictions of the Christian Bible. Much has been written both for and against the many slight and significant discrepancies which, depending on one’s theological position, do or do not occur.

(c) Various issues arise when we consider that some of the early Christians mistakenly believed that Jesus would return within their generation (see, for instance, Matthew 10:22-23; 16: 27-28; 24: 30-34, 1 Peter 4:7, 1 Corinthians 7:29-31, Hebrews 1:1-2). The following questions have been asked: With regard to Matthew, were Jesus’ words meant to be taken literally? Was Jesus, himself, mistaken? What did Jesus really say (if anything) before this gospel was written? Did Jesus convey these words through the vehicle of the gospel writer? Concerning Matthew and the remaining passages, did powerful spiritual experiences eclipse the gospel writers’ better judgment? On this point, human beings often make interpretive mistakes when confronted with overwhelming experiences. Did the early Christians literally interpret revelations which later took on theological meanings?

4. Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 67. Catholic theology has looked at the problem of prophecy in its own unique way. St. Thomas Aquinas is often cited in Catholic discourse about prophecy. But we should recall that Aquinas apparently said that his voluminous writings seemed like a “house of straw” after he had a direct encounter with God toward the end of his life.

5. While some try to downplay pedophilia among the priesthood and subsequent cover-ups, there really is no way to put a good face on this perverse and shameful phenomenon.

6. Jeffrey Mishlove reviewed Speilberg’s Minority Report from a different angle. The review is informative and has some good links.

Farewell to Karma – ‘past lives’ are just so yesterday…

An Eye On Time Originally uploaded by badboy6

Can you hear me (can you hear me)
Through the spaces (through the spaces)
Wondering in this wonderland…

–Appleton

Reincarnation

Reincarnation is an old idea that some people love and others hate.

Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Taoists and many New Age enthusiasts from
around the world believe in this well-worn idea.¹

The theory of reincarnation takes several forms but, generally speaking, the soul is said to enter creation like a spark from a fire, beginning its long journey through life on a low plane of awareness.

As the soul passes through repeated cycles of bodily death and rebirth, it gradually increases in knowledge and moral goodness until achieving perfection.

Once perfected, the soul apparently is liberated from worldly suffering and desire as it breaks free from the chain of death and rebirth.

At this point, the soul is no longer unique nor bound by time–instead, it merges with the eternal godhead.

Some Indian schools of philosophy differ, however.

Ramanuja (1017-1137 CE), for instance, forwarded the notion of ‘qualified monism’ where the soul retains a sense of individuality and rests – as opposed to merges – within the godhead.

And most schools of Buddhism assert that there never was any reincarnating soul in the first place, only the illusion of one. For Buddhists enlightenment means ridding oneself of a whole host of false notions, including those of self, soul, God and individuality.

Karma Defined

Karma is a Sanskrit term that means “deed.”

Essentially, karma is the accumulated merit and demerit of one’s past life actions.

Morally good and bad deeds add up on a kind of cosmic balance sheet. Good deeds bring future benefits. Bad deeds bring misfortune and suffering.

But it’s not quite that simple nor mechanistic because in theistic religions God’s grace can mitigate the negative effects of bad karma.

And even though Buddhists tend to see God as a mere conceptual construct instead of an all-powerful being, within some Buddhist schools the compassionate gaze of the bodhisattva roughly parallels the idea of God’s grace.

Not entirely unlike an all-powerful creator God, the bodhisattva may lessen the negative impact of bad karma.

Popup Illustrations

• A Taoist Tale about Bad Karma
• Karma Transfer
• Taking Sins

Another Possibility

Some people are convinced that they have had past lives and it is conceivable that they have. But it’s also possible that they interpret unusual experiences so as to believe in reincarnation when in actual fact they haven’t lived through any past lives at all.

In addition to alleged ‘flashbacks’ and ‘past life regressions,’ most have heard stories about individuals claiming to have located objects in distant countries they’ve never visited. And some speak of esoteric but seemingly rational connections from a past to a present life, as if there’s a great mystical thread weaving everything together, time after time.

But none of this proves a belief in past lives.

Another equally plausible explanation is that these believers are being deceived by a demonic being.

The idea of demonic deception probably sounds a bit less weird these days with the rise of successful TV shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural.

And if it does sound weird, it’s arguably no more so than the idea of reincarnation, which so many seem to readily accept.

Discernment

One of the most valuable ideas found in theology is that of discernment.

In one sense discernment is described as a gift and developed ability where one learns to differentiate among

1. Evil spiritual influences
2. Divine spiritual influences
3. One’s true self

Father Edward Malatesta, S. J. writes on the deeper, fuller meaning of discernment.

By the discernment of spirits is meant the process by which we examine, in the light of faith and in the connaturality of love, the nature of the spiritual states we experience in ourselves and in others. The purpose of such examination is to decide, as far as possible, which of the movements we experience lead us to the Lord and to a more perfect service of Him and our brothers, and which deflect us from this goal (cited in Green, p. 41).

Fine and dandy, but a very real problem arises.

Many people claim to discern but their alleged messages from the Divine often prove to be false or at odds with others also claiming to discern the true light and will of God.

In fact, ‘discernment’ may degenerate into nothing more than taking an alarmist view of issues one doesn’t understand, projecting bad habits and transferring unsavory psychological contents onto scapegoats.

Needless to say, this has little, if anything, to do with mature discernment³ and is arguably the dynamic of an overzealous, hypocritical or underdeveloped personality.⁴

Now to return to the idea of reincarnation, many believers say that destructive personality traits carry over from past to present lives.

Within Catholic mystical theology, however, bad things experienced in one’s present life could be taken as evidence of obsession or possession.

In the Catholic sense, obsession is the unhealthy and significant influence of evil spiritual powers or beings, whereas possession is a permanent, temporary or sporadic loss of self-control due to spiritual attack.

Catholicism has no need to postulate ‘past lives’ when obsession and possession explain just as well, if not better, what reincarnationalists attribute to bad karma.

Rethinking Space-Time

There’s another way to explain the unusual experiences often taken as evidence for reincarnation.

Instead of falling prey to demonic deception, it’s possible that sensitive individuals might be piercing through the veil of space-time and wrongly interpreting this as proof for reincarnation.

According to recent subatomic cosmologies, past, present and future don’t necessarily follow a one-way vector nor do we experience linear time at a consistent rate.

Instead, past, present and future apparently exist in an interactive field. That is, space-time is regarded as a continuum.

In his book Deep Time the physicist and astronomer David Darling says questions about the origins of the universe are misleading because past, present and future exist in a unified loop.

Surely there had to have been some special point of origin? But no. What was needed was a more panoramic view in which the universe, past, present, and future, was seen as having always been there–a permanent, all-encompassing, space-time eternity. Of course, it was natural for man, whose left-brain consciousness produced the illusion of “passing” time to think of past and future as somehow different in status. To dwell, moreover, on that elusive moment called now which transformed the potentiality of future events into the actuality of the past. But “now” was, in truth, only a chimera. Every point in space and time coexisted with equal importance. The future was there from the beginning as surely as was the past.⁵

Not unlike Darling, many theologians, mystics, philosophers and artists speak to the possibility of intimate connections among space, time and eternity.

The German mystic Meister Eckhart (1260-1327) wrote:

The Now in which God created the first man and the Now in which the last man will disappear and the Now in which I am speaking–all are the same in God, and there is only one Now.

But to say, as Darling does, that the past still exists and the future is already ‘out there’ doesn’t sit well with some theologians. For them it’s more sagacious to say that God simply knows the past (which no longer exists) and the future (which does not yet exist).

And we can only wonder if these theologians are just regimented and afraid of change or whether they’re on to something true.

Part of the problem here relates to how one defines God.

Natural pantheists say that God’s mind is the universe, while theistic “I-Thou” schools maintain that the mind and creation of God are very different.

Reason to Believe

Roderick Main, a leading Jung scholar, says that Jung “concludes that under certain psychic conditions time and space can both become relative and can even appear to be transcended altogether.”⁶

We can’t know for sure if the past and the future exist right now, but we can at least consider the possibility that they do, and moreover, that they influence or even interact with our lives as experienced in the present.

Individuals perhaps genetically hard-wired for a different kind of sensitivity could be more attuned to other time periods and souls living therein.⁷

If all events potentially interact within space-time and eternity, this would mean that the present influences future and past situations along a kind of ‘horizontal’ axis.

But we need another axis to fully account for the moral dimension. Thus ethical choices made in the present could also impact not just the past and future but various heavens and hells along a kind of ‘vertical’ axis.

For instance, Satan and his demons cackle with glee when we do bad things, and the angels and saints in heaven rejoice when we choose the good. Traditional, maybe. But possible.

This notion of ‘horizontal’ and ‘vertical’ axes helps to conceptualize things but shouldn’t be taken as an absolute or complete schema.

We could, in fact, radically simplify this model by hypothesizing that each aspect of space-time-eternity has a potential influence on all other points.⁸

An interactive, multidimensional model no doubt challenges conventional assumptions about life, the afterlife, past and future.⁹

It cannot be proved through conventional forms of experimentation¹⁰ but those experiencing unusual psychological phenomena nevertheless could apply logic to their experiences, thus giving them reason to believe.

In like manner, the Protestant theologian Paul Tillich distinguishes experiential from experimental verification.

In experiential verification we cannot quantify data and construct repeatable experiments, but we can make observation, accumulate knowledge, and learn from our experience.¹¹

Of course, there’s a stumbling block here that might never be fully overcome but only improved upon. This is the problem of extricating oneself from one’s current beliefs and related theoretical constructions.

In such a reflection on the ultimate in hermeneutics of the subject matter, the writer will be undoubtedly influenced by his/her own hermeneutics and idea of ultimate reality and meaning. This may lead to an unwarranted conclusion specially if one’s own hermeneutic of ultimate reality and meaning is not consciously differentiated from that of the other. But one-sidedness can be remedied in certain degree by inviting more than one specialist to study the same topic.¹²

Taking this into consideration, the multidimensional model seems more current and flexible than the age-old belief in reincarnation.

Although some people try to justify their religious beliefs by saying they’re ancient and predate other religions, this argument doesn’t make much sense.

Just because something is ancient doesn’t make it true.

And with regard to ethics, the current schema doesn’t allow for the avoidance of personal responsibility on the basis of hypothesized karma from equally hypothesized past lives.¹³

One of the most striking features this author has noticed when trying to have intelligent conversations with some believers in karma is their complete unwillingness to step away from their belief structures and consider alternatives.

Indeed, some believers in reincarnation seem just as dogmatic and intransigent as extremists of any stripe, be they materialists, environmentalists, fundamentalists, liberals or conservatives.

Clannish unthinking and ‘following the crowd’ rarely paves the way toward better theory.

Conclusion

The above may seem to dwell on esoteric points of little or no practical value. But considering human evolution and our existence within the extended universe can we really afford, morally or economically, to stop developing our cosmology?

Old, outmoded models usually hurt good people and waste good money. And it seems the only way to change that is to modify our deeply ingrained ways of thinking.

Instead of clinging to the past or being analytically stunned by the latest technological gadgets, multidimensional theory combines science, religion and philosophy in a new kind of holism more appropriate to the 21st-century.

This new approach could have a tremendous impact on social spheres such as education, psychiatry and religion–providing the keepers of the keys are willing to admit that the old ways just aren’t working any more.

—

1. (a) While Buddhists speak of becoming ensnared in cycles of rebirth, anatman theory says that the very notion of the soul is ultimately illusory. Therefore reincarnation doesn’t really occur. It only seems to occur until one is liberated from a false belief in individuality.

2. An inner spiritual body.

3. If we’re all imperfect, the development of true discernment is probably a lifelong process. Some believe that the Holy Spirit can override personal biases-i.e. an imperfect person makes a perfect discernment. We can also differentiate between (a) the initial discernment and (b) one’s reaction to and interpretation of that discernment.

4. Those political and religious figures behind the Inquisitions and the cruel torture of so-called witches in the Middle Ages would fall into this juvenile and horrific personality type.

5. (a) David Darling, Deep Time (New York: Delacorte Press, 1989), pp. 187-188.
6. Roderick Main. Jung on Synchroncity and the Paranormal (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1997), p. 18.

7. Subjects whose brainwaves are measured during meditative states reportedly feel as if they travel though time. However, it’s possible (if one is willing to consider the influence of departed souls on the living) that one could confuse the presence of a departed person for the presence of a person living in another historical time period.

8. By way of contrast, the Cambridge biochemist Rupert Sheldrake says in Dog’s That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home that past habits, not the future, influence the present (New York: Crown Publishers, 1999: 305).

9. The idea of multidimensionality was forwarded by Jane Roberts with some interesting differences, most notably Roberts’ advocacy of interactive parallel universes and corresponding rainbow-like variations of the self.

10. (a) This would not upset the Austrian philosopher of science Karl Popper. Popper says that scientific statements cannot be proved, only disproved. Of course, Popper’s assertion is open to various avenues of debate, beyond the scope of this article.
(b) George P. Hansen recounts a lab experiment that could be taken as support for the idea of the future influencing the present. See George P. Hansen, The Trickster and the Paranormal (Xlibris, 2001: 328-336, 342).

11. Andrew J. Peck, Tibor Horvarth et. al., eds. American Philosophers’ Ideas of Ultimate Reality and Meaning. URAM Monographs, No. 1. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994, p. 7. Several strands of Western philosophy challenge the distinction between experimental and experiential verification–for instance, Solipsism, Berkeley’s Idealism and, to some extent, John Locke’s critique of “secondary qualities.”

12. Ibid., p. 10.

13. It should be noted that conscientious believers in the idea of reincarnation say we must make positive choices to overcome bad karma. And, again, it’s believed that God’s grace can lessen the negative effects of bad karma. But still, the idea of karma is often abused around the world in a unforgivable attempt to legitimize disparity.

Further Readings about Time

Benford, Gregory, Timescape (Bantam, 1992). A sci-fi novel informed by scientists.

Flood, Raymond and Michael Lockwood (eds.), The Nature of Time (Blackwell, 1988). A good, popular book.

Hawking, Stephen, A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes (Bantam, 1990). Hawking is a great popularizer who somehow doesn’t sacrifice precision.

Paige, Huw, Time’s Arrow and Archimedes’ Point: New Directions for the Physics of Time (Oxford, 1996). A somewhat more technical book but not exceedingly so.

“Farewell to Karma – ‘past lives’ are just so yesterday…” © Michael Clark. All rights reserved.