Description
The book we will study in this group is A Life of Meaning by James Hollis, PhD. In his newest book, Dr. Hollis shares his insights gained over his 40-plus years as a Jungian analyst. He feels that asking questions and searching for answers to these questions is the best way to create a life that is rich and full of meaning. The book is a little more informal than most of his books and is based on a series of lectures first given in Colorado in 2019. Many attendees of this series asked for a text which summarized the wisdom he shared in the lectures. This book is the answer to that request with a few changes for the sake of clarity.
The group will meet every week on Sundays from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm for 5 weeks. It will start on Sunday, January 14, 2024. Note that this group will skip January 21 (the third Sunday of February) and continue on the 3 following Sundays, February 4, 11, and 18.
Learning objectives
By the end of this course, participants will:
- Gain understanding of the formative influences of our early days.
- Describe what happens when things fall apart in midlife.
- Gain understanding of the importance of acknowledging our shadow and working with it.
- Be able to state why, in this modern era, we need to be interested in the topic of sin.
- Gain understanding of how to continue growing and live more fully in the presence of mortality.
Joanne Callahan has been blessed with a Life with Meaning. After teaching English for eight years, she was drawn into pastoral care. She received a Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies from Aquinas Institute and became an accredited chaplain. From 1987 until 2020 Joanne ministered as a chaplain in facilities such as SSM Rehab and Mercy Acute Rehab. During these years she also had the pleasure of offering a workshop for the Jung Society: “Nothing Permanent But Change”—which is still so viable for us all.
In 2000, her husband, Dr. Joe Callahan, and she went to an event of the C.G.Jung Society of St. Louis featuring Dr. Tom Singer. Shortly after that event, they participated in Rose Holt’s study group featuring The Portable Jung. For over 20 years they both enjoyed and studied with all the many analysts who have given conferences and workshops through the St. Louis Jung Society. Joanne found that Jung’s understanding of the psyche allowed and provided great depth for her own professional ministry in Pastoral Care and Spiritual Direction and Retreats.
Her love of and background in literature is amplified by James Hollis’s use of much literature in all his books as well as the one for this study group. Other analysts such as Lionel Corbett in his Psyche and the Sacred: Spirituality Beyond Religion have also given depth and meaning to her life and her work. The many study groups of the Jung Society have been a journey of personal and professional growth for over 20 years. She looks forward to this study group and the experience of all the participants.