Core Curriculum

The Western Mystical Tradition invites participants to ground themselves solidly in the wide and diverse tradition of Judeo-Christian mystical spirituality. Classics, both traditional and contemporary, are studied and discussed. Writers are selected who describe their experiences of God’s love and how they practice and sustain God’s presence in their lives. Contemplative wisdom provides a rich resource for genuine spirituality that is available to all and calls us toward a just and caring community.

Jungian Depth Psychology includes a summary of Carl Jung’s essential thought, his theories of individual development, depth psychology’s perspective on the spiritual component of the psyche and the individual’s relationship to the unconscious. Special emphasis is given to the role of archetypal symbols and the psyche’s images in spiritual guidance and transformation.

Teilhard de Chardin’s Vision has emerged as one of the most illuminating guides for the 21st century. He provides a vision that situates the individual spiritual journey within a global and cosmic context. The energy of evolution, which he describes as love, places us in creative relationship with ourselves, other persons, the physical universe and God. Thinkers and movements of evolutionary cosmology influenced by Teilhard are also studied.