The Direction of Desire

John of the Cross, Jacques Lacan and the Contemporary Understanding of Spiritual Direction

Mark Gerard Murphy (Autor)

Buch | Softcover

XVIII, 315 Seiten

2024
Springer International Publishing (Verlag)
978-3-031-33109-1 (ISBN)

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This book examines Lacanian psychoanalysis and Christian mystical theology demonstrating the former's potential for reinvigorating spiritual direction. The author outlines how current methods of spiritual direction become saturated with self-help psycho-pop methodologies, and that desire has therefore been foreclosed in these practices. He suggests that the root of this is a focus on 'positive affective experientialism', which means spiritual direction must focus on emotional wholeness, healing and positivity. Finally, he argues that a new dialogue between John of the Cross (a mystic whose writings on spiritual direction formulate part of the core of the Catholic spiritual tradition) and Jacques Lacan can open the way for a spiritual direction beyond the confines of experientialism. The book concludes that we can only escape the experiential commodification of spiritual direction by critiquing the drive to experience in and of itself. This novel work will appeal in particular to students and scholars of psychoanalysis, religion, philosophy and critical theory.

Mark Gerard Murphy is an editor for the political journal and blog Taiwan Insight and a Lecturer at St Mary's University, Scotland, Gillis Centre, where he convenes courses on ethics, philosophy, and mystical theology and spirituality. His research interests include the relationship between psychoanalysis and mystical theology. He has published in the Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory and the European Journal of Psychoanalysis.

1. Introduction.- Part I The Loss Of Mystical Desire In Christian Spiritual Direction.- 2. The Shift In Spiritual Direction.- 3. Desire In Pre-Modern Spiritual Direction.- Part II Recovering Mystical Desire In Spiritual Direction: A Juanist-Lacanian Approach.- 4. Lacan's Conception Of Psychoanalysis.- 5. Lacan And Spiritual Direction.- 6. The Mystical Speech Of Lacan.- 7. Listening And Speaking In Juanist-Lacanian Spiritual Direction.- 8. Conclusion.

Erscheinungsdatum	28.09.2024
Reihe/Serie	The Palgrave Lacan Series
Zusatzinfo	XVIII, 315 p. 22 illus.
Verlagsort	Cham
Sprache	englisch
Maße	148 x 210 mm
Themenwelt	Geisteswissenschaften ► Psychologie ► Psychoanalyse / Tiefenpsychologie
Schlagworte	Apophasis • carmelites • Dark night of the soul • John of the Cross • Lacanian psychoanalysis • mystical theology • Negative theology • positive affective experientialism • Spiritual direction • Spirituality • the Catholic Mystical tradition
ISBN-10	3-031-33109-5 / 3031331095
ISBN-13	978-3-031-33109-1 / 9783031331091
Zustand	Neuware