“Life is not a problem to be solved; it is an uncontrollable mystery into which we. . . enter in faith, hope, and love.” (Frederick Bauerschmidt)

The older I get, the more I resonate with the notion that life is “an uncontrollable mystery.” I cannot be certain that I fully understand the nature of reality. I perceive that I am conscious as I write this, but maybe I’m dreaming. If I am conscious, as I believe that I am, I cannot know for certain whether what I perceive is completey accurate, due to all sorts of perceptual and cognitive errors that I tend to make as a human. Although I must make assumptions about important spiritual beliefs (everyone does), I cannot say for certain whether there is a god or what happens after I die. I cannot know what the future holds.

Continue reading →

In an article published several years ago, University of California Psychology Professor Bob Emmons described five characteristics of “spiritual intelligence,” one of which includes the ability to “sanctify” aspects of everyday life as “sacred” or “holy.” Perhaps inspired by this idea, as I have gotten older, I have noticed that I increasingly “set apart” various parts of my life in this way. For example, I have observed that certain books function as “holy books” in my life. That is, there is a group of books that I find that I continually return to for guidance and inspiration. I share my top 10 below, with the hope that they may be helpful to others as well.

Continue reading →

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I believe I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. . . Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.” (Thomas Merton)

As I discussed in some ways in my last post, one of my core convictions, for better or worse, is that there is at least a degree of uncertainty in virtually every aspect of life. Nothing can be proven (with the only major exceptions lying in mathematics and logic). In the quotation above, the famed Trappist monk, Thomas Merton, openly struggles with this, particularly in the uncertainties he notes with respect to the future, himself and, by implication, God Himself.

Continue reading →

“Admire and adore the Author of the telescopic universe, love and esteem the work, do all in your power to lessen ill, and increase good, but never assume to comprehend.” (John Adams)

Today, I begin a series of posts in which I reflect on the meaning of a favorite quote. I can’t think of a better place to begin than the one above, from John Adams. In many ways, it summarizes my deepest held beliefs and values.

It increasingly has been important for me to acknowledge the uncertainty of my beliefs. In some ways, psychological science suggests that mystery is an inseparable aspect of human experience. That is, no matter how we try, and no matter our confidence, there seem to be psychological barriers to comprehending reality. For example, perceptual mistakes, cognitive biases, and memory distortions pervade our attempts to understand. For an excellent introduction to some of this research, Dan Ariely’s TED talk is an excellent place to begin. Similarly, Christianity emphasizes the notion of “faith.” The stories of the Bible often portray followers as struggling to understand. Paul insightfully writes, in 1 Corrinthians 13:12, that “now we see through a glass dimly. . . now I know in part, but then I will know, even as I am fully known.”

Continue reading →

I end my recent series of posts on Frederick Bauerschmidt’s book “Why the Mystics Matter Now” by discussing what is maybe the most difficult teacher we face: Death. Perhaps because of the fairly early death of my mom when I was 14, this is a topic that has greatly troubled me personally. It is a topic that has caused me great anxiety, possibly being the core psychological insecurity behind much of my religious and spiritual quest.

I find in Bauerschmidt’s writing the best portray of my personal feelings toward death that I have ever read before. He writes:

“Perhaps. . . the fundamental human desire. . . [is] to in some way to evade that which is most certain about our lives: the fact that they will end. . . But why would this be a difficult thought to face? Perhaps it is because death involves a massive ‘undoing’ of the self. Death involves a ‘dispiriting’ and decomposition of the body in which the fundamental structures of our lives as living beings break down. It severs us from those human ties – parenthood, friendship, vocation – that gives us our identity. Our own death is unthinkable because it is unraveling of the ‘I’ that thinks. . . The fragility of life makes death a constant possibility that other things are not. . . Perhaps death is unthinkable because it would force us to think of ourselves as ultimately, finally, completely without control.”

Continue reading →

“Life is difficult.” (M. Scott Peck)

Most people can at least partly resonate with Peck’s characterization of the human experience. There is no doubt that life can be filled, at least at times, by suffering. Indeed, almost half of the adults in the United States will meet the criteria for a mental illness at some point in their lives. For these individuals, mental illness often is the most common thread that ties together daily experience. And, of course, the effects of mental illness do not stop with the ones afflicted. Mental illness has a major impact on the loved ones of those who are diagnosed as well.

The kind of “unhappiness” that comes with mental illness is the subject of one of the chapters of the book by Frederick Bauerschmidt that I have been discussing in recent posts called “Why the Mystics Matter Now.” In this post, I reflect on the applications of Christian mysticism made in this chapter to the experience of mental illness.

St. Augustine sometimes wrote as someone who understood mental illness from the inside. In his “Confessions,” Augustine writes of his younger self:

“I had become to myself a vast problem. . . I found myself heavily weighed down by a sense of being tired of living and scared of dying. . . I had become to myself a place of unhappiness in which I could not bear to be; but I could not escape from myself.”

This sense of frustration with one’s self, feeling that one is a “vast problem” from which one cannot “escape” provides an insightful analysis of the experience of mental illness.

Continue reading →

“Love in action is a harsh and dreadful thing compared with love in my dreams.” (Fyodor Doestoevsky)

It seems that many people in our culture have difficulties with love, particularly in close relationships. People increasingly seem to seek and expect an almost fairytale kind of love with a focus on pleasurable experience. However, as Doestoevsky reminds us, real love often can be “harsh and dreadful.”

Continue reading →

Detachment is a powerful psychological and spiritual process that is discussed in many modern day psychological treatments. Much of this comes from Buddhism’s huge modern influence in Psychology. Surely, there is much to gain from an understanding of detachment.

Detachment and receiving are the subject of this entry, which continues a series I started a few weeks ago on Christian mysticism, based on Frederick Bauerschmidt’s book, “Why the Mystics Matter Now.” The chapter begins with a passage from Eckhart’s “Counsels on Discernment:”

“A man ought not to have a God who is just the product of his thought, nor should he be satisfied with that, because if the thought vanished, God too would vanish. But one ought to have a God who is present, a God who is far above the notions of men and of all created things. That God does not vanish, if a man does not willfully turn away from him.”

Continue reading →

“Purity of heart is to will one thing.” (Soren Kierkegaard)

In my last post, I started a series of reflections (that I plan to continue) on mysticism, drawing largely from Frederick Bauerschmidt’s brilliant book “Why the Mystics Matter Now.” In this post, I reflect on the ideas of Ignatius of Loyola.

I long have been fascinated in the pursuit of personal goals. In fact, goals were a central component of my dissertation research. In general, it seems to me that one of the most important issues in life is to decide to what one is going to commit. There obviously are many options! However, it long has seemed to me that some goals are more likely to create a good life than others and that conflict among goals or conflict between a goal and certain  circumstances explains a lot of the problems people experience in life. Given this, and following the advice of Stephen Covey in his outstanding book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” I have spent a good amount of time in the past 20 years reflecting on the overall mission of my life and the specific goals that would contribute to this mission. The details of my commitments have changed over time, but the process of reflecting in this way has been one of the most helpful disciplines of my life.

Continue reading →

In the last few years, I’ve noticed that my interests have shifted somewhat from the purely intellectual to a greater focus on aesthetic pursuits. In my faith, this shift has led me from being virtually consumed with apologetics (an intellectual defense of the faith, which, by the way, still interests me) to greater focus on Christian spirituality, including an interest in Christian mysticism.

Recently, my friend and colleague, Dr. Ruth Schiller, lent me a book that really is astounding me at every turn: “Why the Mystics Matter Now,” by Frederick Bauerschmidt. I know I love this book because I find myself daydreaming about giving it as a present to every serious Christian that I know! Basically, the book attempts to connect some of the thinking of some of the great Christian mystics to problems commonly encountered today. I cannot remember reading something so honest, insightful, or novel. Given this, I want to begin a series of posts on each major chapter, allowing myself space to more fully reflect on the meaning and applicability of its major ideas.

Before beginning discussion of the first major topic, I want to address an introductory issue: What is mysticism? It is fascinating to me that Bauerschmidt notes that the adjective “mystical” wasn’t used widely until the 16th or 17th centuries. Before this time, the term “mystical” was used to refer to a depth of experience of God, but it was something expected of all Christians. As he states: “. . . the path of the mystical tradition is simply a way of recognizing one’s fundamental receptivity before God and of entrusting oneself to God’s Spirit.”

The first major chapter of the book is a reflection on “How to Live in a World Without God.” To help with this, Therese of Lisieux’s trials of faith are discussed. I reflect on the major ideas presented below.

An important feature of Therese’s life story is from one of a pure, almost childlike faith in God to a sincere struggle with doubt. As she one time wrote:

“He permitted my soul to be invaded by the thickest darkness, and that the thought of heaven, up until then so sweet to me, be no longer anything but the cause of struggle and torment. This trial was not to last a few days or a few weeks, it was not to be extinguished until the hour set by God Himself and this hour has not yet come. . .”

Continue reading →