Catharsis A Concoction Of Psychology And Mythology

This book is an amalgamation of psychology and mythology. The characters of Mahabharata are intricately woven with the emotions we feel today to enlighten us about the spectrum of human conscience. The book is divided into seven chapters, each chapter rich in its own theme. *Authors note*: Try to read between the lines and understand the meaning of the book by putting yourself in each character’s shoes. I hope I am able to enchant you through my words spilt on 45 pages.

The origin of this book goes back to the fall of 1971. I was beginning my fourth year as an Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Florida when I became depressed. I went into psychotherapy, and after much emotional pain, learned to grieve for my handicapped son. While in therapy I read widely in hopes of understanding and helping myself; after my recovery, I continued my interest in psychotherapy at a professional level. In 1975, I attended a workshop by Albert Ellis on rational-emotive therapy and was impressed by his approach. I decided to study rational psychotherapy with Maxie Maltsby at the University of Kentucky. After 4 months I returned to the Uni versity of Florida, teaching courses in the area of personality and beginning to write this book, which at that time was to be only about the rational approach to change. However, by early 1978, I was depressed again. I returned to my original therapist, who had recently become interested in a variation of primal therapy. I found this therapy very powerful and lengthy; 2 years later, I ended the ther apy, feeling fit, but unsure what to make of my experience. I still found the ideas in rational therapy useful, but was certain that cathartic approaches were also helpful. I returned to writing the book, this time seeking to explain how these two different approaches could both be therapeutic.

Mythic Imagination Today is an illustrated guide to the interpenetration of mythology and science throughout the ages. This monograph brings alive our collective need for story as a guide to the rules, roles, and relationships of everyday life.

Since its inception in Roman Catholic Spain in the 1940s, the Cursillo movement has been a steadily-growing phenomenon and has spread into many Protestant churches worldwide under various names. The weekend initiation is often a deeply-felt experience that boasts of many conversions and recommitments. Yet in this comprehensive analysis of Cursillo the author finds theological concerns, questions about the propriety of the methods, and complications such as disaffection from the local church, transfer of loyalty to the Cursillo community, and a significant drop-out rate, raising implications for similar, spiritual movements. Interviews with former Cursillo participants confirmed many of these conclusions but also raised a challenge to the church: many Cursillo participants do not perceive vital faith in their local church. The author suggests that the Cursillo attempts to imitate the work of the church in an extraordinary form and that this might initiate some of the unhelpful results. The church would be better served by seeking to revitalize its ordinary ministries of Word and sacrament, prayer, community, and Sabbath observance.