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In spite of an interest in Christian spirituality that began during my graduate school years in the mid- to late-1970s, I was completely unaware of the existence of this book until I noticed Carl featuring it recently. The superlatives in praise by writers the likes of Keating, Griffiths, and Pennington immediately moved the book near the top of my spirituality reading list (a list that, admittedly, continues to grow at a rate alarmingly faster than the rate at which I actually read).
My interest in the Tarot goes back even further, to my high school years when a friend spent some time in France for a study-abroad program and brought back a beautiful Marseilles deck as a gift. As the years went by, I kept returning to the cards and I came to appreciate the value of the major arcana as representations of archetypes and as objects of meditation. That someone would structure a book like this around the major arcana makes a lot of sense to me.
I’m ABD (All But Dissertation) in philosophy. I’m retired after about 30 years in Pennsylvania state government (IT management and public safety communications) and about five years in the private sector as a technical writer and consultant. I have a certificate in spiritual direction from Oasis Ministries in Spiritual Development (a kind of offshoot of Shalem Institute). My church affiliation is Episcopal.
Personality-wise, I’m a Myers-Briggs INFJ and an Enneagram Nine.
I really appreciate this opportunity to be part of a community around the study of mystical texts. This particular book seems right for me at this time. Thank you, Carl! Peace, grace, and blessings to all as we begin this journey!
Following the guidelines, I should add a “fun fact”!
Although it’s really not fun at all, I hope it’s forgivable on this anniversary of the public suicide of Pennsylvania Treasurer R. Budd Dwyer in 1987 to recall that I was at work in my role as his IT director at the time it happened. It was a dark, confusing time. I’m thankful not to have been in his office where the press conference took place, as some of my friends and colleagues were.
For those unfamiliar with the event: there’s an informative Wikipedia article, also a documentary available on Amazon Prime Video, “Honest Man: The Life of R. Budd Dwyer.”
RIP, Budd. May God have mercy on you, and on those who live in the aftermath of this horrible event.
Jack, so glad you are here, and I hope you will find MOTT to be a rich and inspiring book. There’s a lot of insight and interesting new ways of seeing things.
Like you, I was drawn to the book by its endorsements. I don’t think my assessment of it is quite as superlative, but I do think it’s a wonderful book and well worth reading on many levels.
Man, what a story (about Budd Dwyer). That had to have been a traumatic event. I lost a couple of friends a few years ago, who died by suicide when one of them was facing sentencing for a conviction. The one who was facing imprisonment was deeply depressed, which probably factored in to his criminal actions. Just a sober reminder that we need better ways to offer mental health care and authentic rehabilitation to those who break the law — not just the shame and horror of punishment.
Carl, thank you so much for your encouraging and sympathetic reply!
Whether Budd was justly convicted remains a point of contention. The documentary “Honest Man” paints a fair picture of the situation, I think, and it tends to evoke some degree of sympathy for him in most viewers. But it stops short of drawing any definite conclusions.
It’s not hard to see how a felony conviction could evoke depression whether there’s genuine wrongdoing or not. As the rambling diatribe he distributed at the press conference suggests, Budd was not in a good mental state after the conviction. But the odd thing about his suicide is how calculated and deliberate it seemed. It was motivated at least in part by wanting to make sure his pension wouldn’t be lost and his wife and two children would be taken care of. In that he decided on the best course of action in the circumstances and followed through with his decision resolutely, his actions were entirely rational.
Not that they were morally justifiable: his death wreaked horrible damage on those close to him, and the alleged corruption and political persecution he meant to draw attention to were largely dismissed without serious consideration.
After all these years, the attempt to arrive at any firm understanding or evaluation of Budd’s actions, or of the morality of suicide generally, remains difficult and confusing. So they continue as engaging and troubling matters for reflection.
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