Opening to Grace:
Transcending
Our Spiritual Malaise
short course
description:
This discussion will explore the dark night of the
soul.
Our spiritual malaise can be described as existential loneliness,
guilt, depression, meaninglessness, emptiness, insecurity, &
despair.
We will take one week to distinguish each of these forms of spiritual
suffering
from it more familiar psychological twin:
interpersonal loneiness, moral conscience,
psychological depression,
practical insecurity, etc.
And each week we will share our glimpses
of life beyond our Existential Predicament.
one-page course description:
Opening
to Grace:
Transcending
Our Spiritual Malaise
Based
on the small study book:
Opening to Grace:
Transcending Our Spiritual Malaise
this seminar will discuss each way
of conceptualizing our inward problem
and how we might move our spirits
in order to get beyond anxiety, guilt, & despair.
We will follow the chapters of the book, as listed
below.
Each of these chapters also has an Internet version,
which is available free of charge on-line.
See the links below:
Introduction: Transcending
Our Spiritual Malaise
Chapter
1
Interpersonal
Loneliness
& Spiritual Loneliness
The complete
text of Chapter
1 is available on-line. Click the title above.
A three-page
article based on
this chapter appears here:
Loneliness
of Spirit: Deeper than the Reach of Love
.
Chapter
2
Pangs of Conscience & Spiritual Guilt
Existential
Guilt: Deeper than the Pangs of Conscience .
Chapter
3
Psychological Depression & Spiritual Depression
Being
Depressed in Spirit: Deeper than Psychological Depression
.
Chapter 4
Relative Meaninglessness & Spiritual Meaninglessness
Looking
for the Meaning of Life
.
Chapter
5
Filling Our Spiritual Void
The Existential
Void.
Chapter
6
Ordinary Insecurity & Spiritual Insecurity
Existential Insecurity.
Chapter
7
Sinking into the River of Despair
Sinking into the
River of Existential Despair
.
Chapter 8
Simple Fear & Spiritual Anxiety
Existential
Anxiety: Angst
.
Afterword:
Obstacles to Grace
The small book Opening
to Grace
is also available in its second printed edition.
Click its title for more information about the book.
It will be available in class for the wholesale price: $7.
PLACE: (Where would be good for you?)
TIME: (When would be best for you?)
COST: Free of charge, unless the room costs something.
Opening to Grace as offered by the Experimental College of the Twin
Cities:
Opening
to Grace:
Transcending
Our Spiritual Malaise
This seminar of a few weeks will be offered
to the
Experimental College of the Twin Cities (EXCO).
Our discussions will begin as soon as enough people
join the e-mailing
list for Opening to Grace.
Those interested will select the best time and place.
The members of the group will decide
exactly how quickly to discuss the
chapters listed above.
We might take 8 weeks, discussing just one chapter per week.
Or we might discuss two chapters each week,
which would make the whole series just 4 weeks long.
course description as prepared for the EXCO website (April 2009):
TITLE OF COURSE:
Opening to Grace:
Transcending Our Spiritual Malaise
BEGINNING MONTH or WHEN ENOUGH SIGN UP:
When Enough Sign Up
TERM (fall, spring, or summer):
Summer 2009
SCHEDULED or PROSPECTIVE (potential):
Possible
CITY (Mpls. or St. Paul):
Minneapolis
BEST CATEGORY:
PHILOSOPHY & RELIGION
NAME OF FACILITATOR:
James Park
E-MAIL ADDRESS:
PARKx032@TC.UMN.EDU
PHONE:
612-871-7275
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This discussion will explore the dark night of the
soul.
Our spiritual malaise can be described as
existential loneliness, guilt, depression,
meaninglessness, emptiness, insecurity, &
despair.
We will take one week to distinguish
each of these forms of spiritual
suffering
from it more familiar psychological twin:
interpersonal loneiness, moral conscience,
psychological depression, practical insecurity, etc.
And each week we will share our glimpses
of life beyond our Existential Predicament.
Here is a comprehensive course description:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~parkx032/D-OG.html
This URL allows you to read all the chapters of our study-book
in slightly different Internet versions.
You will also be able to buy the printed version of this book,
Opening to Grace: Transcending Our Spiritual Malaise
at the class for $7 (the wholesale price).
Is this seminar for you?
Do you notice any of the following in your depths?
existential loneliness, existential guilt,
existential depression, existential meaninglessness,
the existential void, existential insecurity,
existential despair, existential anxiety?
We will discuss these 8 dimensions of our Malaise.
We might take 8 weeks, discussing just one chapter per week.
Or we might discuss two chapters each week,
which would make the whole series just 4 weeks long
after the introductory session.
FACILITATOR:
James Park is an independent
existential philosopher
and author of the text,
Opening to Grace: Transcending Our Spiritual Malaise:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~parkx032/OG.html
During his long career in alternative adult education,
he has led about 200 different discussion groups.
Most of these were in the Minnesota Free University.
See more information about his interest in adult education,
including other possible classes:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~parkx032/JP-AL-ED.html
CLASS TIMES:
To be arranged with everyone on the e-mailing list.
CLASS DATES:
Summer 2009, five consecutive weeks,
arranged with those who have joined
the e-mailing list for this class.
Probably evenings.
PLACE:
Probably in the Stevens Square Neighborhood,
just south of downtown Minneapolis.
CLASS SIZE:
10-20 people
FUNDS REQUESTED:
none
Created
April 2, 2009; Revised 4-8-2009