Freud Jung And Jonah Religion And The Birth Of The Psychoanalytic Periodical

Religion, more than sexuality, cast psychoanalysis in controversy and onto the world stage even as it threatened to dismantle the psychoanalytic collective. In the founding years of the first psychoanalytic periodicals, relational dynamics shaped the psychoanalytic corpus on religion. The psychoanalytic pioneers developed their ideas in tandem even if in protest to one another. Religion is a topic worthy of engagement, not least because the symbolized terrain in the history of religion was so often deployed as a vehicle for motivating, disciplining, or editing out a member of the psychoanalytic community in publication. This book offers an interdisciplinary approach to religion and psychology, including a compelling denouement that reveals new narratives about longstanding rumours in the early history of the psychoanalytic movement. Above all, this volume demonstrates that the first generation of psychoanalysts succeeded in writing themselves into the history of religious thought and sacralizing the origins of psychoanalysis.

A multidisciplinary analysis of the Freud-Jung wars that still rage on the discursive territory of religion.

In this outstanding book, originally published in 1997, and subsequently translated into many languages, Michael Palmer presents a detailed and comparative study of the two most famous theories of religion in the history of psychology: those of Freud and Jung. The first part of the book analyses Freud's claim that religion is an obsessional neurosis—a psychological illness fueled by sexual repression—and the second part considers Jung's rejection of Freud's theory and his own assertion that it is the absence of religion, not its presence, which leads to neurosis. Originally given as a series of lectures at Bristol University, this Classic edition of Freud and Jung on Religion is important reading for general and specialist readers alike, as it assumes no prior knowledge of the theories of Freud or Jung and is an invaluable teaching text.

Dr. Carl Gustav Jung, author of some of the most provocative hypotheses in modern psychology, describes what he regards as an authentic religious function in the unconscious mind. Using a wealth of material from ancient and medieval Gnostic, alchemistic, and occultistic literature, he discusses the religious symbolism of unconscious processes and the possible continuity of religious forms that have appeared and reappeared through the centuries. "These compact vigorous essays constitute Dr. Jung's most sustained interpretation of the religious function in individual experience."-Journal of Social Philosophy

"This book explores the religious underpinnings of psychoanalysis and examines how the tenets of Judaism and Christianity specifically influenced the theories and practices of Freud and Jung, respectively. It demonstrates that secular psychoanalysis is in large measure a revision of religious principles contained within the Judeo-Christian ethic and questions whether Freud's and Jung's approaches may best be suited to the psychological configurations of their fellow religionists." -- Back cover

Social psychologist Erich Fromm probes deep into the roots of religion to find its humanistic essence. In 1950, Erich Fromm attempted to free religion from its social function and to develop a new understanding of religious phenomena. Rather than analyzing what people believe in 'whether they're monotheistic, polytheistic, or atheistic, ' Fromm presents an idea of what religion means in secular terms. In his timeless and straightforward style, Fromm unmasks the alienating effects of any authoritarian religion. He reveals how a humanistic religion is conducive to one's own humanity, and explains why psychoanalysis does not threaten religion. Whether you're a believer or a long-time atheist, Fromm's erudite analysis of religion is sure to reshape your concept of spirituality.

Here is a unique analysis of Carl Jung's thought from the perspective of the history of religions. Using a religious and historical approach, the author identifies the religious goal or ultimate concern of Jung's psychological system, and traces the evolution of that goal throughout his Collected Works. This book focuses on the historical development of a key component of Jung's thought--the quest for wholeness--and shows how it functions as the ultimate concern of his psychotherapeutic system. The relationships among many of Jung's important concepts, such as his "complex" theory, the individuation process, archetypal symbolism, therapeutic concerns, alchemy, and Eastern religions, are given a new sense of order and significance when viewed in this historical light. Rather than presenting a haphazard array of seemingly endless topics, this work emphasizes the continuity underlying Jung's early and later writings. The evolution of Jung's work is divided into three distinct phases: developmental, formative, and elaborative. Whereas the developmental period consists of the time prior to the creation of Jung's ultimate concern, it was during the formative phase that Jung began to consolidate the contours of his newly emerging system. During the elaborative phase, Jung expanded and clarified his ultimate concern and pattern of ultimacy. This book shows that the evolution of Jung's thought moved from a concern with psychic fragmentation, to individual wholeness, and then to cosmic unity.