Monday, 3 March 2025

It’s a Good Life – Perhaps Not

The ambush that took place in the White House Oval Office last week on the President of the Ukraine by U.S. President Trump and Vice-President Vance, brought to mind one of the classic episodes of the classic T.V. 1960’s series the Twilight Zone.  The episode was, It’s a Good Life, which first aired on November 3, 1961.

Here is a partial plot summary from Wikipedia which give a good summary of why this episode was dredged up from the depths of my memory:

Six-year-old Anthony Fremont has godlike mental powers, including mind-reading. He has isolated his town of Peaksville, Ohio, from the rest of the universe. The people must grow their own food, and supplies of common household items, such as bar soap, have been dwindling. He has blocked television signals and caused cars not to work. He creates grotesque creatures, such as three-headed gophers, which he then kills. Everybody is under his rule, even his parents.

The people live in fear of Anthony, constantly telling him how everything he does is "good", since he banishes anyone thinking unhappy thoughts forever to a place that he calls "the cornfield." Having never experienced any form of discipline, he does not understand that his actions are harmful. He is confused when his father tells him that the neighbors are reluctant to let their children play with him after he sent several of his playmates to the cornfield.

This does seem to be prescient warning about what can happen when someone who has no moral compass and has not been taught no constraints about wanting everything and being given absolute – or almost absolute power.  The havoc that can be wreaked is almost beyond our imagination – but not completely - as shown in the Twilight Zone episode. 

The dangers and challenges of great/absolute power has been recognized since time immemorial.  The famous saying, with great power comes great responsibility, originated with French philosopher Voltaire and spilled into the culture by Uncle Ben's cautionary warning to a young Spider-Man’s altar ego Peter Parker. 

The danger of unchecked power even arose in the apocryphal stories about the life of a divine child i.e. Jesus the future Christ, with the potential for divine abilities.  One example shows him using his divine abilities to less than harmless results:

IV. 1 After that again he went through the village and a child ran and dashed against his shoulder. And Jesus was provoked and said unto him: Thou shalt not finish thy course (lit. go all thy way). And immediately he fell down and died. But certain when they saw what was done said: Whence was this young child born, for that every word of his is an accomplished work? And the parents of him that was dead came unto Joseph, and blamed him, saying: Thou that hast such a child canst not dwell with us in the village: or do thou teach him to bless and not to curse: for he slayeth our children.

So, you can see that great power does not necessarily lead to great irresponsibility and chaos, as in the case of the mature Jesus.  However, it can, as it seems to be manifesting in the current U.S. President.  It led to wonderful things in this case, but it seems less to have good results in the case of President Trump.  However, miracles do happen.

I hope your encounters with power may be a blessing for you on your journey. 

Monday, 24 February 2025

True Forgiveness

 I have just finished rereading, The Return of the Prodigal Son, by Henri Nouwen.  This is a wonderful exploration of Jesus’ parable of the prodigal son which recounts Nouwen’s engagement with Rembrandt’s masterpiece which depicts the homecoming of the Prodigal son.

I will reflect on the book in total another time.  Right now, I want to consider the concept of forgiveness which Nouwen explores in the book.  Nouwen recounts his journey which was initiated by the encounter with the painting. On that journey, Nouwen identified with each of the three principal characters in the parable – the prodigal son, the elder brother, and the father.   In his identification with the father in the parable, Nouwen explores the idea of spiritual fatherhood.  For Nouwen, the key to this is forgiveness.  However, he acknowledges that “Forgiveness from the heart is very, very difficult.  It is next to impossible.”  However, as he states this is one of the commandments that Jesus gives to his followers, “When your brother wrongs you seven times a day and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I am sorry, you must forgive him.”

Nouwen does unpack just how difficult true forgiveness:

I have often said, “I forgive you”, but even as I said these words, my heart remained angry or resentful.  I still wanted to hear the story that tells me that I was right after all; I still wanted to hear apologies and excuses; I still wanted the satisfaction of receiving some praise in return – if only the praise of being so forgiving.

Unfortunately, these words ring true in my ears.  I have found that true forgiveness is not a matter of saying the words.  It is a matter of the heart.  Unfortunately, I believe that, in my experience, the church has not done justice to what true forgiveness is.  It encourages forgiveness in Christian; however, it does not acknowledge how difficult true forgiveness is.  It doesn’t acknowledge that talk is cheap.  True forgiveness does not come easily or without cost – at least for most of us.  True forgiveness is a journey which will require an exploration of the heart, as well as the mind, soul, emotions and the body. 

You are able to tell if you have been blessed with the gift of true forgiveness if you no longer wake up in the middle of the night filled with the thought of how badly someone has treated you; how unfairly you have been treated by that person; and yes, how deep in your heart – or elsewhere  you truly want revenge for what that person has done.  If you no longer are haunted by that ghost visitor, it is likely that you have been blessed by true forgiveness. 

I believe that true forgiveness is a gift from God, and we are blessed if we have received it.  However, even though it is freely given, it is not without cost.  It is the cost of exploring who you truly are and the revelation of some truths about yourself that may not be welcome.  However, as with all that God blesses you with, it is truly a blessing.

May be blessed to find true forgiveness on your journey.  

Monday, 10 February 2025

But Darkness Did Not Overcome It

Recently, the feed in my YouTube channel brought up a podcast on the revelations regarding the actions of Jean Vanier who founded the L’Arche communities for developmentally challenged people.  A report released in 2020 into allegations of sexual abuse by Vanier and Thomas Philippe, a Catholic priest who was Vanier’s spiritual mentor concluded:

The key finding in the report: That Vanier’s founding story about the creation of L’Arche was false. Vanier often said he started L’Arche in response to hearing a “cry” from God and seeing the inhumane conditions prevalent in mental institutions. In reality, the creation of L’Arche provided a means for Vanier to reconstitute a sect Philippe had led earlier but that had been broken up by the Catholic Church.

This news sent shockwaves through the religious and spiritual world and shocked the countless number of people who held Vanier to be a modern saint.  Vanier’s impact has been and continues to be almost immeasurable on those who have been positively impacted by the many L’Arche communities in so many countries and by the writing in the prolific books by Vanier.  Fortunately, one positive aspect of the terrible situation was that the report concluded that the abuse by Vanier and Philippe, “did not involve any of the members or residents that the organization served there or elsewhere.”  They involved vulnerable adults who came under the influence of the specter of holiness enabled by the L’Arche communities. 

I was introduced to the work of L’Arche communities during my theological studies at Huron University College.  I was blessed with the opportunity to experience the wonderful work that is done there when I was able one reading week to live with the L’Arche Daybreak community in Richmond Hill, Ontario.  The life of that community and their wonderful acceptance and upholding of all the members of the community as well as the respect and support for each member has left a lasting impression on me.  In revisiting the exploration of the tragedy, I wanted to see if I could better understand how someone who seemed to be so saintly could be what can only be described as evil at his essence.

I decided to reread one of the books by Jean Vanier which I had on the shelf in my office - Becoming Human.  I reread the book with the awareness of the revelations of the actions of Vanier and the realization he had founded L’Arche as a means to carry out his perverted theology which, “Vanier and Phillipe were fully committed to a spiritual deviance that they fully believed in themselves.” 

I have very mixed emotions rereading Becoming Human.  I found Vanier to be very insightful in understanding the need for love, need for community, and the need for security that is at the heart of human existence.  Vanier shows this in statements such as, “We do not discover who we are, we do not reach true humanness, in a solitary state; we discover it through mutual dependency, in weakness, in learning through belonging.”  Statements confirm that Vanier had a deep understanding of the human condition, “To be human is to be bonded together, each with our weaknesses and strengths, because we need each other.”

Vanier was able to use this knowledge and insight to prey on that very weakness to accomplish his wicked and perverted goals.  The paradox of Vanier is that, in founding L’Arche he has been the source of great goodness for so many and at the same time, he caused great suffering to the victims of Vanier and Phillip’s evil actions. 

All this is a huge red flag warning about placing individuals on saintly pedestals that can cloud the need for discernment and safeguards by institutions and individuals in how and who we place our trust.  The L’Arche organization set an example for how such revelations should be handled once they come to light.  L’Arche funded the investigation in the actions of Vanier and Phillippe and were open and transparent about the findings. 

One small but significant question that is raised for me is what should I do with the book in my possession and what should become of the many copies of the works Vanier has authored?  Should they be destroyed?  Book burning is not a great idea under any circumstance that I can imagine.  There is great truth and even wisdom in what Vanier has written.  Unfortunately, it was not reflected in who Vanier was.  Perhaps there should be a warning label pasted in every copy.  I will include a copy of this edition of my blog within the covers of my book. 

Let this be a cautionary tail for us on our journey.  

Friday, 7 February 2025

More Synchronicity and You: Exploring Your Experience

 

 


 Dreamwork Canada presents

 an opportunity via Zoom to explore

our dreams as a means of deepening                  

and expanding our spirituality.

 

 More Synchronicity and You: Exploring Your Experience 

 led by Greg Little

Join us:
     Tuesday, March 11, 2025 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. EST  (two hours) 
     On Zoom
     Cost: $40, or pay what you can

 In his essay, On Synchronicity, Carl Jung declares, “I have therefore directed my attention to certain observations and experiences which, I can fairly say, have forced themselves upon me during the course of my long medical practice. They have to do with spontaneous, meaningful coincidences of so high a degree of improbability as to appear flatly unbelievable.” Jung named these “meaningful coincidences” synchronicity. 

In our last workshop in January, Jung’s concept of synchronicity was introduced and explored using examples that were offered by Jung and by the workshop leader.  In this follow up workshop we will delve more deeply into how to identify synchronicity from mere coincidence and provide opportunity for participants to explore the concept more fully and explore personal experiences of synchronicity.  In small groups, participants will have an opportunity to discuss their experiences of synchronicity and explore the impact on their lives. 

Since Dreamwork Canada believes that exploring our dreams is essential to our psychological health, participants will also have an opportunity to examine dreams in a group experience. We invite participants to bring one of their dreams to share in the small group. 


Led by Greg Little, an Anglican Priest and Honourary assistant at St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church in Strathroy, Ontario. He is a Certified Dream Group Leader and spiritual director from the Haden Institute.

Registration deadline: March 10, 2025 

To register: 
Step 1  Send your name and e-mail address to dreamworkcanada104@gmail.com so we can forward the Zoom link to you.
Step 2  Send your payment by e-transfer to
dreamworkcanada104@gmail.com or request an alternative method of payment.  E-transfers are automatically deposited, no passcode required.
 
Questions?  Contact the registrar at
dreamworkcanada104@gmail.com

Monday, 3 February 2025

On Being Troublesome Priests

"Will no one rid me of this troublesome (or turbulent) priest?"  That famous quote is attributed to King Henry II who was expressing his frustration at the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket in 1170.  Well, some knights took him at his word and murdered Becket.  This was made famous by T.S. Eliot in his play Murder in the Cathedral. 

There have been many troublesome priests and other religious people since that time.  The latest, for the moment, being the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, the Bishop Washington.  Bishop Budde preached a sermon during the National Prayer Service at the Washington National Cathedral on the occasion of the inauguration of Donald J trump as the 47th president of the United States.  In the sermon, Bishop Budde directly addressed President Trump who was in attendance:

In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and Independent families, some who fear for their lives. The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings; who labor in poultry farms and meat packing plants; who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals. They…may not be citizens or have the proper documentation. But the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, gurudwaras and temples. I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away. And that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were all once strangers in this land. May God grant us the strength and courage to honor the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love and walk humbly with each other and our God for the good of all people. Good of all people in this nation and the world. Amen”

As might be expected, this has caused something of a furor amongst certain groups including some in the U.S. House of Representatives.  House Resolution 59, a bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on January 23, condemned the sermon preached by Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde.  “It is the sense of the House of Representatives that the sermon given at the National Prayer service on Jan. 21, 2025, at the National Cathedral was a display of political activism. The House of Representatives condemns the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde’s distorted message,” said the resolution drafted by Rep. Josh Brecheen (R-Okla.).

The negative response has not been restricted to politicians.  As noted in one source, “Other Anglicans have expressed concern or frustration. Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) said on X on January 23, “As a conservative Episcopalian who supports President Trump and his agenda, I am profoundly disappointed that Bishop Mariann Budde politicized today’s inaugural Service of Prayer for the Nation.”

The question that arises in my mind is, ‘what would Jesus do’?  If Bishops, and indeed all Christians, are followers of Jesus Christ we need to be guided by the model of his life.  Jesus was someone who was not popular with the authorities – both religious and secular – to put it mildly.  He angered the Pharisees by healing people on the Sabbath and not falling into the traps they laid for him such as asking if it was lawful for Jews to pay the Roman taxes.  Indeed, they plotted to kill him.  Of course, he challenged the religious authority of the Temple economy by throwing out the money changers who had made God’s house a den of thieves.  I do not have to replete here what the result of all this was.  We celebrate it every year at Easter – specifically Good Friday.

Apparently asking people to show mercy is now a political statement.  If that is the case then all I can say is, so be it.  We are called to love our neighbours as ourselves.  This is absolutely a challenge at the best of times especially given that Jesus tells us our neighbours are not just the nice people we approve of.  It may be a challenge, but to show mercy is never a mistake. 

May we be blessed to give and receive mercy on our journey. 

By the way, Becket was canonized as a saint by Pope Alexander III on February 21, 1173, and on July 12, 1174, Henry II did public penance and was scourged at the archbishop's tomb.  Sometimes there are just deserts.  

 

Wednesday, 29 January 2025

The Fight with the Shadow of Trumpism

 

With the recent world events and especially events in our neighbour to the south and the second election of Donald J Trump as president, I was inspired to reread a book we have up on the shelf, Jung on Evil, selected works of Carl Jung on the subject of evil, selected and introduced by Murray Stein.  My initial assessment of the dark possibilities that were contained in the first Trump administration have, regrettably starting to be born out as his second term is poised to begin. 

One of the pieces in the collection is, “The fight with the shadow.”  I was very taken with how relevant it is for the current circumstances in the world political situation, especially the situation in the United States under President Donald J. Trump.  The article is a broadcast talk in the B.B.C., Third Programme on November 3, 1946.  As such it was a commentary on the events of Hitler’s rise to power in pre-WW2 Germany which, of course, led to the terrible events of the war.  The cessation of WW2 conflict had occurred in the previous year. 

First let me give a brief description of the shadow in Jungian psychology.  The shadow is an archetype (or organization of energy common to all people) within the human psyche.  The shadow contains those aspects of the person, usually negative, which are unacknowledged by the individual.  They can be aspects or characteristics which have never come to consciousness in the individual or have been consciously rejected by the person.  The overriding characteristics of the shadow is that they are not something which the ego wants in any way to acknowledge as part of the psyche of the person. 

In the article it is interesting that, despite the title, Jung does not directly address the concept of the shadow in Hitler or Pre-war Germany.  However, he does speak of the power of the unconscious negative energy to affect people individually and collectively.  It is, of course, the collective impact, that Jung is primarily concerned with, in addressing the collective psychosis of the German people that led to Hitler coming to power and the global conflict that followed.

Jung holds, quite rightly, that “the psychology of the masses is rooted in the psychology of the individual” (174). Jung’s primary, but not exclusive method of exploring the content of the unconscious in an individual is through dreams.  He notes that he “noticed peculiar disturbances in the unconscious of my German patients which could not be ascribed to their personal psychology” (175).  He further elucidates that non-personal manifestations will occur in collective culture of a people in such things as fairy tales, legends, and mythologies which he has named the archetypes. He advises that, “There was a disturbance of the collective unconscious in every single one of my German patients” (175).    

Jung is concerned with the collective impact on the German people.  However, he expounds that unconscious events were by no means a solely German phenomenon in the events of WW2.  He does propose that the German people are more susceptible to such developments due to “the marked proneness of the Germans to mass psychology” (175).  Although Jung maintains that the individual is the prime vehicle for the expression of the unconscious energy, he confirms that this becomes truly dangerous when individuals become a group, “I was fully aware of the immense dangers involved when such people crowd together” (175).  The people that Jung is referring to are those in which the “powers of darkness” i.e. the negative content of the unconscious have become active in the psyche.  Jung had been aware of this collective manifestation after WW1, “the tide that rose in the unconscious after the First World War was reflected in the individual dreams, in the forms of collective mythological logical symbols which expressed primitively, violence, cruelty: in short, all the powers of darkness” (175).  He goes on to propose that when these dark symbols manifest in a significant number of individuals they act as a magnet to draw the people together into mass movements. There is, as was seen in Germany leading up to WW2, “immense dangers when such people crowd together” (175). 

The uprising of these archetypal energies from the unconscious is released and the individual is unable to consciously deal with them.  When this occurs in Jung’s theory, there is a compensating drive by the “archetypes of order.”  However, people are usually unable to incorporate this energy.  Jung declares that “the vast majority are incapable of integrating the forces of order” (176).  There is a battle between these two opposing forces which have the dangerous probability of violence breaking out.  As Jung declares, “We see the first symptoms everywhere: totalitarianism and State slavery.  The value and importance of the individual are rapidly decreasing and the chances of his being heard will vanish more and more” (176). 

Jung posits that this led in Germany to the individual feeling out of control and powerless in the face of the increasing appearance of chaos. This was responded to in an outbreak of a demand for power:

The individual’s feeling of weakness, indeed of non-existence, was compensated by the eruption of hitherto unknown desirers for power.  It was a revolt of the powerless, the insatiable greed of the have-nots. (177)

Into this maelstrom of competing energy came Hitler who proclaimed a “new order”.  This was the convergence made in Hell rather than heaven.  As Jung notes, “The Germans wanted order, but they made the fatal mistake of choosing the principal victim of disorder and unchecked greed for their leader” (178). 

Jung’s description of Hitler is decidedly apt for our purposes in examining the situation of the soon-to be  “Leader of the Free World” who will head the government of the United States:

He was utterly incapable, unadapted, irresponsible, psychopathic personality, full of empty, infantile fantasies, but cursed with a keen intuition of a rat or a guttersnipe.  He represented the shadow, or inferior part of everyone’s personality, in an overwhelming degree, and this reason why they fell for him. (178)

Jung proposes in the companion article, “after the catastrophe,” which appears in the same collection, that Hitler can be diagnosed with the condition of “pseudologia phantastica”, which he describes as:

that form of hysteria which is characterized by a peculiar talent for believing one’s own lies”…A sorry lack of education, conceit that borders on madness, a very mediocre intelligence combined with the hysterics cunning and the power of fantasies of an adolescent, were written all over the demagogue’s face.  His gesticulations were all put on, devised by an hysterical mind intent only on making an impression.  He behaved in public like a man living in his own biography, in this case as the sombre, daemonic “man of iron” of popular fiction, the ideal of an infantile public whose knowledge of the world is derived from the deified heroes of trashy films.  (188) 

I have quoted Jung’s analysis of Hitler at length as it is so apt for our discussion of President Trump and the conditions in the United States that brought him to power.  I want to be clear that at this point there no comparison between the action of Hitler and the actions of Trump at this point.  Trump is constrained by the democratic institutions that exist in the United States and to a certain extent in the world.   However, the similarities between Jung’s description of Hitler and of Trump and the conditions in pre-war Germany and pre-election United States are striking.

Let me start with what strikes me as the dominate trait on Donald Trump.  He could be described with the soubrette of ‘Father of Lies’ which is sometimes given to the devil.  Trump appears to be vying with the devil for this title.  He has been shown to lie constantly as if it is beyond his control.  CNN noted, “For the third consecutive presidential election, the Republican presidential nominee is running a relentlessly dishonest campaign for the world’s most powerful office.” https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/01/politics/analysis-donald-trumps-campaign-of-relentless-lying/index.html.  There has been speculation that he actually does believe the lies that he spouts uncontrollably.  Here we have the primary condition for the definition of Jung’s diagnosis of pseudologia phantastica i.e., peculiar talent for believing one’s own lies.

Now, what about the other vivid, perhaps even lurid description of the character of Hitler that Jung proposes?  Let us examine to what extent they apply to Donald Trump:

·         utterly incapable, unadapted

As Trump was, and apparently continues to be despite his so-called ‘blind trust’, a successful businessman can he be considered to the incapable?  There is the assessment that Trump’s business success is not as great as it appears to be.  However, he is successful by most standards today, having accumulated great wealth through his business endeavours.   His capability as the President of the United States is certainly in question.  His first term as President proved that he was less than capable of putting together an effective team around himself and led to a revolving door for the Executive Branch of the United States Government.  His nominations for cabinet positions in his second term have proven to be similarly headed for chaos. 

 irresponsible, psychopathic personality

Trump has continually shown himself to be irresponsible in the statements he makes on social media primarily through X, formerly Twitter.  He “shoots from the lip” in a seemingly uncontrolled, impulsive manner with no concern for the truth or the consequences of the musing e.g. his declaration on X that he plans to impose a 25% tariffs on all products coming into the U.S. from Mexico and Canada as one of his first acts back in the White House.  Trump demands that the two countries stop illegal immigrants and fentanyl  entering the U.S.  He seems to have no concern regarding the disastrous  effects this would have on the U.S. economy.

In the matter of psychopathology, I am not qualified to make such a clinical diagnosis of Trump.  However, let us look at one definition of a psychopath and see if it fits:

symptoms of psychopathy include: lack of a conscience or sense of guilt, lack of empathy, egocentricity, pathological lying, repeated violations of social norms, disregard for the law, shallow emotions, and a history of victimizing others.[1]

Trump does appear to generally fit this definition.  He does what he pleases without concern for the effect on others.  He recently seemed to be moved by the plight of child victims of chemical attacks on Syria.  His response to this has been without apparent thought to the long-term consequences.  However, he has notable lack empathy for those he considers against him and   vindictiveness for those who have not have treated him with the respect and adulation he believes he deserves.  This reflects his overriding egocentricity in which he presents himself as the best at everything he does and is.  I have already addressed his tendency to lie.  The violation of social norms may be open to debate but he seems to live by his own rules as his operating in his first term as if the norms of the presidency did not apply to him e.g. maintaining ownership of his business empire with the faux blind trust; the refusal to release his tax returns; the outrageous nepotism of close family members in official and quasi-official position in his administration; the approval of official White House endorsement of his daughters business endeavours. He victimized others in his business dealing e.g. the students of Trump University which were sold a pig in a poke regarding their education and job prospects. 

 full of empty, infantile fantasies

Trump has consistently fed his fantasies to a gullible public who bought them hook line and sinker e.g. building a wall to keep out Mexican immigrants and making Mexico pay for it; locking up “lying Hillary” (with an apparent unawareness of the irony, after becoming President; immediately repealing and replacing Obamacare with “something terrific” the first attempt to have it repealed failed dramatically with something that, by any assessment, was certainly less that terrific; his admiration for and perhaps envy of the totalitarian powers of Vladimir Putin; Global warming being a plot by China; and most recently the tariffs being paid for by the foreign producers of the goods rather than the American consumer.    

 cursed with a keen intuition of a rat or a guttersnipe

Trump certainly has been acknowledged to have a genius for reading his audience and the mood of his followers and the public in general.  This has been the key to his success.  In the crowds at his rallies he has consistently intuitively know what tone to strike with outrageous declarations about the lying press; Mexico sending the United States its rapists and murderers; lying Hillary; draining the swamp of Capitol Hill, illegal immigrants in Springfield eating the cats and dogs of residents, and on and on and on. 

I believe this has established the appropriateness of applying Jung’s analysis of Hitler to Trump.  If their still remains some doubt in some reader’s minds I will add a few references to his gesticulations during his public performances which certainly appear to be put on for effect.  He does not appear to have been educated effectively, with there being questions about his ability to read and write coherently with reports of others actually doing his on-going and never ceasing X posts for him.  Here is the iron man of fiction who is the self-proclaimed only one who can save the nation from the chaos that is threatening it from the inside and the outside—If not superman, he is certainly Mighty Mouse who has “come to save the day”, although he certainly would not ever style himself a mouse of any kind regardless of its abilities. 

With this assessment of Trump, what then of the people of the United States who re-elected him president as the people of German enabled Hitler to gain power?  What dark forces lie in the collective psyche of the American people?  Jung proposes that he, “noticed particular disturbances in the unconscious of my German patients” (174).  Was there a similar disturbance in a significant number of American people?  Unfortunately, I have no access to such data or access to the dreams of Americans.   There is certainly evidence of a mass movement as people were drawn together as if by a magnetic force as the came in droves to the rallies held by the Trump campaign in the election.  The response by the assembled crowds certainly had more than a tinge of hysteria as Trump urged them to violently throw out anyone who dared oppose him.  There was also the odour of a Roman circus with the media substituting for Christians in the spectacle.  On the other hand, there are also the two assassination attempts in response to him. 

Jung declares that, “The individual’s feeling of weakness, indeed of non-existence, compensated by the eruption of hitherto unknown desires for power. It was the revolt of the powerless, the insatiable greed of the have-nots” (177).  Trumps attraction to the disaffected middle class who have lost their manufacturing and other blue-collar jobs has certainly been affirmed if not completely quantified.  The further divisions between those with a high school diploma and a four-year college degree and those affected negatively by inflation certainly mirror that assessment by Jung.

The lack of a voice in the seats of power have reflected the sense of powerlessness and affirms Trump’s claim that he would “drain the swamp” in Washington.  These are people who have been left behind by developments in the economy and the major loss of manufacturing jobs in the United States due to outsourcing and robotics.  I do not agree that these people have an “insatiable greed’ despite being what could be described as being have-nots.  They are, more accurately, people who have been deprived, through no fault of their own, of a secure existence in society where their basic needs are met and where the expectations that their children would have a future that was on par or better they had come to expect.  Undoubtedly, they felt powerless as they, in reality, are. 

If there are many people in these blue-collar classes that feel powerless is there anything in the American people collectively that reflects a feeling of powerlessness?  It seems perhaps ridiculous to think that the most powerful nation on earth would feel powerless.  However, it is this very power that the sense of powerlessness stares back at us.  The sense of exceptionalism, of being perhaps God’s new chosen people, which contains the seeds of fear that informs the need to build walls and armies and missile systems to defend themselves against those that would attack their very exceptionalism.  What is at work here, according to Jung, is a natural process aimed at establishing or maintaining balance within the psyche.  Jung insightfully addresses this process of compensation in the individual, “The world-wide confusion and disorder reflect a similar condition in the mind of the individual, but this lack of orientation is compensated in the unconscious by archetypes of order” (176).  This is just as true for the collective people.  This desire for protection against the threats, perceived and real, from outside means that they put their trust in the concrete security of collective defense.  Individually the increasing obsession with personal protection through the ever more outrageous interpretation of the Second Amendment to the Constitution compensates for their personal fear and dread of outside threats to their personal safety.

This collective powerlessness was crystalized in the events of 9-11.  The fact that this event can be symbolized by these two numbers connotes its archetypal nature for the United States and consequently for the world.  A new world order has resulted from this act which, although it resulted in a significant number of deaths pales in comparison to the lives that are lost in other non-external ways e.g. in 2010, guns took the lives of 31,076 Americans in homicides, suicides and unintentional shootings. This was approximately ten times the number of lives lost in the 9-11 attacks as reported by The Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence[2].    The fact this event was from the outside the U.S. and not from within gave it the power to transform the nation and the world.  In contrast look at the Oklahoma bombing which was also devastating but had relatively little impact on the psyche of the American people.  It was perpetrated by one of their own people rather than dark skinned Arabs from another countrynot Iraq which the United States attacked but their ally Saudi Arabia, an inconvenience that was quickly overlooked in the mass hysteria that followed.    

This analysis of the current state of the collective psyche of the American people (it is tempting to call it psychosis) does not leave us with much hope for the near future in any case.  Jung notes the danger in not facing the internal (either personal or collective) forces that arise, “Anything that disappears from your psychological inventory is apt to turn up in the guise of a hostile neighbour” (179).

Jung’s assessment of post-WW2 Germany and the German people also paints a seriously doubtful picture for the future of the United States:

If you compare the present state of the mind of Germans with my argument you will appreciate the enormous task with which the world is confronted.  We can hardly expect the demoralized German masses to realize the importance of such psychological truths, no matter how simple.  But the great Western democracies have a better chance, so long as they can keep out of those wars that always tempt them to believe in external enemies and the desirability of internal peace. (179)

The American people certainly seem to be demoralized, if not to the extent of post-war Germany.  In addition, the Western democracies have given no indication of the ability to avoid wars, especially recently.  However, there is hope in the fact that Germany did rise from the ashes of the post war era to become a marker of hope for as one of the leading Western Democracies in which Jung placed his hope.  It has joined with other European countries to been a shining beacon of hope in the current Ukrainian war with Russia.  However, even the great expression of humanity expressed by Germany is being threatened by similar forces from the far right which I believe can be accurately called the Shadow of Trumpism given that the support for Ukraine under the new Trump presidency is definitely uncertain.  We can only hope (and yes even pray) that there will be a similar compensating force that will eventually lead to a new world order which is not grounded in fear but rather is grounded in hope.    



[1] http://www.minddisorders.com/Flu-Inv/Hare-Psychopathy-Checklist.html

[2] http://smartgunlaws.org/gun-deaths-and-injuries-statistics/

Monday, 27 January 2025

More Synchronicity: More Than Mere Coincidence

 Last time, I introduced the concept of synchronicity.  Psychologist Carl Jung introduced the concept of synchronicity to describe meaningful coincidences that cannot be explained by conventional notions of cause and effect. This time, I want to give some guidelines on how synchronicity can be distinguished from mere coincidence.

As I noted last time, In his essay, On Synchronicity, Carl Jung declares, “I have therefore directed my attention to certain observations and experiences which, I can fairly say, have forced themselves upon me during the course of my long medical practice. They have to do with spontaneous, meaningful coincidences of so high a degree of improbability as to appear flatly unbelievable.” Jung named these “meaningful coincidences” synchronicity. 

Distinguishing between synchronicity and mere coincidence can be challenging, as both involve events occurring without a clear causal relationship. However, there are some key factors to consider when trying to determine whether an event is synchronicity or simply a coincidence:

1.            Meaningfulness: Synchronicity often involves events that have a deep, personal, or symbolic meaning to an individual. These events resonate with the person on a profound level, and they may feel a sense of significance or connection to their own life journey. Coincidences, on the other hand, may lack this meaningful or symbolic quality and are often perceived as random or trivial.

2.            Frequency: The frequency of occurrence can be a factor to consider. If similar meaningful coincidences happen repeatedly in your life, it may suggest a pattern of synchronicity rather than isolated coincidences. However, a single meaningful event can still be considered synchronicity if it has a profound impact.

3.            Timing: Synchronicity is often associated with events that occur at a particularly timely moment when an individual is facing a decision, dilemma, or emotional state. The event seems to offer guidance or insight just when it is needed most. Coincidences, on the other hand, may not have this element of timing.

4.            Intuition and Gut Feeling: Many people report a sense of intuition or inner knowing when they encounter synchronicity. They may feel that the event is significant, even before fully understanding why. Trusting your gut feeling about an event can be an indicator that it's more than just a coincidence.

5.            Personal Significance: Synchronicity often involves events that are personally significant or relevant to an individual's life circumstances or questions. These events may provide answers to questions, offer guidance, or reinforce a sense of purpose. Coincidences, on the other hand, may not have such personal relevance.

6.            Emotional Impact: Synchronicity events can evoke strong emotions, such as awe, wonder, or a sense of being guided or protected. Pay attention to your emotional response to an event, as it can provide insights into its significance.

7.            Pattern Recognition: Synchronicity often involves the recognition of patterns or connections between seemingly unrelated events. If you notice recurring themes or symbols in your life that seem to be associated with meaningful coincidences, it may indicate synchronicity.

8.            Reflective Inquiry: Take time to reflect on the event and its significance in your life. Ask yourself whether it has provided guidance, triggered personal growth, or helped you gain a new perspective. This reflective process can help you discern whether it's synchronicity or coincidence.

It's important to note that the distinction between synchronicity and coincidence can be highly subjective and depends on individual interpretation and perception. What one person views as synchronicity, another may see as mere chance. Ultimately, whether an event is considered synchronicity or coincidence, the key is to derive personal meaning and growth from it and use it as a source of inspiration or guidance in your life.

Synchronicity can open the door to mystery in our lives and that, for me, is a good thing.  May you be blessed to have mystery in your life.