Meister Johannes Eckhart, (c. 1260 – c. 1327), a great mystic, said: "Know that, by nature, every creature seeks to become like God. Nature's intent is neither food nor drinking, nor clothing, nor comfort or anything else in which God is left out. Whether you like it or not, whether you know it or not, secretly nature seeks, hunts, tries to discover the path on which God may be found."
How can we find God, get closer to Him?
The Judeo-Christian forms of getting close to the divine are based on a herd complex. Join the church, believe without questioning in its dogmas, live your life according to the instructions of your priest, pastor or rabbi, and you will go to heaven.
But human beings of the XXI century are becoming more and more individualists, and do not easily accept without discussions some dogmas and procedures that were invented by the early fathers of the Christian church, and that have no connection to Jesus' teachings.
Do you think that Jesus would approve the devaluation of the feminine instituted by the early bishops of the church? Why women cannot be equal to men in what concerns the Christian sacraments? This was a decision made by early bishops that had nothing to do with Jesus' teachings.
Westerners of the XXI century are distancing themselves from some outdated dogmas defined by the early fathers and abandoning their churches. This can be a tragedy if it results in a distancing of the divine. In fact, many modern humans are choosing new gods. Money, status, and power are replacing the Christian God. Even when they keep going regularly to a church, many do it out of habit or social obligation.
The Christian myth that sustained Western civilization for twenty centuries is getting old, losing its appeal. Its symbols are losing its numinous appeal.
A civilization needs a guiding myth. Edward Edinger, a Jungian analyst and prolific writer said: "History and Anthropology teach us that a human society cannot long survive unless its members are psychologically contained within a central living myth. Such a myth provides the individual with a reason for being."
What could be a myth to guide Western civilization in the XXI century, a time when the growth of individualism is a major trend?
Could it be the Arthurian myth? When the nobles of the Arthurian court where sent in search of the Grail, they were instructed to follow a path never used before. It was considered a shame to choose an already trodden path.
We have to find our individual path to happiness. But, as the Arthurian myth suggests, we have to choose our own unique path. Therefore, I cannot teach you a path; I'm also searching for my own. However, I could risk suggesting that spirituality, not necessarily with affiliation to a church, is a place to look for your unique path, and that Jungian psychology can help you in your journey.
I am seventy-two years old and, with so many years of life experience, I risk giving you an advice: talk to the sacred, strengthen your ties with the divine.
According to Jung, the great Swiss psychologist, we carry, inside our psyches, several personalities. The Ego is not the only ruler of our minds. We have archetypes, we have complexes and we have the Self, that Jung called the Image of God inside our psyche. Jung was not the only one to state that we carry the divine inside ourselves. Many saints and illuminated persons confirmed that.
Jung, developed a method - Active Imagination - to talk to the personalities that live inside our psyche. This is an excellent way to develop our spiritual life, that Jung called the symbolic life.
If you want to develop your spiritual life, your symbolic life, I suggest that you read the excellent book by Robert Johnson: Inner Work. There you will find in an easy to understand language the instructions for your journey.
I wish you happiness. Thank you for your attention.
How can we find God, get closer to Him?
The Judeo-Christian forms of getting close to the divine are based on a herd complex. Join the church, believe without questioning in its dogmas, live your life according to the instructions of your priest, pastor or rabbi, and you will go to heaven.
But human beings of the XXI century are becoming more and more individualists, and do not easily accept without discussions some dogmas and procedures that were invented by the early fathers of the Christian church, and that have no connection to Jesus' teachings.
Do you think that Jesus would approve the devaluation of the feminine instituted by the early bishops of the church? Why women cannot be equal to men in what concerns the Christian sacraments? This was a decision made by early bishops that had nothing to do with Jesus' teachings.
Westerners of the XXI century are distancing themselves from some outdated dogmas defined by the early fathers and abandoning their churches. This can be a tragedy if it results in a distancing of the divine. In fact, many modern humans are choosing new gods. Money, status, and power are replacing the Christian God. Even when they keep going regularly to a church, many do it out of habit or social obligation.
The Christian myth that sustained Western civilization for twenty centuries is getting old, losing its appeal. Its symbols are losing its numinous appeal.
A civilization needs a guiding myth. Edward Edinger, a Jungian analyst and prolific writer said: "History and Anthropology teach us that a human society cannot long survive unless its members are psychologically contained within a central living myth. Such a myth provides the individual with a reason for being."
What could be a myth to guide Western civilization in the XXI century, a time when the growth of individualism is a major trend?
Could it be the Arthurian myth? When the nobles of the Arthurian court where sent in search of the Grail, they were instructed to follow a path never used before. It was considered a shame to choose an already trodden path.
We have to find our individual path to happiness. But, as the Arthurian myth suggests, we have to choose our own unique path. Therefore, I cannot teach you a path; I'm also searching for my own. However, I could risk suggesting that spirituality, not necessarily with affiliation to a church, is a place to look for your unique path, and that Jungian psychology can help you in your journey.
I am seventy-two years old and, with so many years of life experience, I risk giving you an advice: talk to the sacred, strengthen your ties with the divine.
According to Jung, the great Swiss psychologist, we carry, inside our psyches, several personalities. The Ego is not the only ruler of our minds. We have archetypes, we have complexes and we have the Self, that Jung called the Image of God inside our psyche. Jung was not the only one to state that we carry the divine inside ourselves. Many saints and illuminated persons confirmed that.
Jung, developed a method - Active Imagination - to talk to the personalities that live inside our psyche. This is an excellent way to develop our spiritual life, that Jung called the symbolic life.
If you want to develop your spiritual life, your symbolic life, I suggest that you read the excellent book by Robert Johnson: Inner Work. There you will find in an easy to understand language the instructions for your journey.
I wish you happiness. Thank you for your attention.
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