Jungian International Training
Zürich Foundation
presents
CIVILIZATION IN TRANSITION 7
TRUTH AND POWER
The Delicate Dance of Integrity
November 1-4, 2018
Hotel Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
We should know what our convictions are, and stand for them. Upon one's own philosophy, conscious or unconscious, depends one's ultimate interpretation of facts. Therefore, it is wise to be as clear as possible about one's subjective principles.
As the man is, so will be his ultimate truth.
—C.G. Jung
Coined by the Quakers in the 1950’s, ‘’speaking truth to power” is not a new concept, but it has taken on new relevance in the turbulent post-truth era. Current debate seems most often framed by appeals to emotion disconnected to facts, and counteracting this troubling trend requires that we galvanize our courage to speak up, speak out, and be heard. As we witness increasing polarization, insults and sarcasm move us farther and farther from the cooperation needed to find solutions, and it is tempting to give up trying to be heard.
With our future dependent on successful dialogue, we can no longer recoil from the challenge we face. Speaking up to powerful forces—and finding space for meaningful idea exchange—begins by standing in our integrity, speaking from our center, and listening with an open heart and mind. Never has there been a more urgent need for civil discourse about the problems facing our nation and the world. Civilization in Transition 7 will explore and address possible ways to transcend the polarization in our lives and make a difference in the world.
This conference is open to the public, clinicians, and analysts. The conference will focus on underlying elements that drive individual motivation and behavior, the reasons for escalating discord in society, and the dangers of unresolved disagreement. Mental Health Professionals will focus on techniques for positive communication and collaboration, and the therapist’s ability to assess and manage irrational and destructive communication in their clients’ interactions, as well as with their own interactions with discordant individuals and groups.
Join us in Santa Fe for what promises to be a stimulating and provocative weekend.
Conference Program
The conference will be held at Hotel Santa Fe in downtown Santa Fe. Owned by the Picuris Pueblo, the hotel will provide a warm and intimate environment for our gathering. Two pre-conference workshops will be held on Thursday from 9:00 am-3:30 pm for an additional fee. The conference begins Thursday evening with a Welcome Dinner followed by a performance by Storydancer, Zuleikha. Conference presentations will begin on Friday at 9:00 am and end with a panel discussion with all presenters on Sunday at 11:30 am. Optional Social Dreaming Matrix sessions will be held Friday through Sunday mornings at no additional charge.
Thursday, November 1, 5:00-9:00 pm
Friday, November 2, 9:00 am -9:00 pm
Saturday, November 3, 9:00 am-5:00 pm
Sunday, November 4, 9:00-11:30 am
$685
Conference fees include Thursday dinner; Friday lunch and dinner; and Saturday lunch. Breakfasts are included in hotel room rate. Extra meals available are Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday breakfasts ($10 for locals)
9 Continuing Education Credits for Psychologists, social workers, marriage and family therapists, and licensed clinical professional counselors/licensed mental health counselors
Conference Presentations
Psyche’s Inner Kingdom:
Our Shared Global Commonwealth
Josephine Evetts-Secker
In current planetary crises, where trust in what is trustworthy is so problematical, these presentations will try to fathom changing patterns and structures of power—in social, political, religious, and cultural experience. The core concept will be the claim that “what happens in the collective is also taking place in us.” (Shamdasani) Jung echoed Freud in affirming that the psychologist could only tell us what poets have always known. In that spirit, with the help of poetry, art, fairy tale, myth, and dream, in various thematic contexts the presentations will explore ideas and experience of Commonwealth, Nation, Empire, State, Territory and Kingdom: The Basileia of our inner and outer worlds. How do we live with integrity in both? How do we serve soul and promote growth of consciousness in and through confusing times? In his own dark times, Jung challenged us: "…it is our task and duty to understand the psychic situation of our time and to see clearly the problems and challenges with which it faces us. Even if our voice is too weak to make itself heard above the tumult of political strife and fades away ineffectually, we may yet comfort ourselves with the saying of the Chinese Master: "When the enlightened man is alone and thinks rightly, it can be heard a thousand miles away." Mental Health Practitioners will Learn to recognize how collective stressors are internalized and become personal stressors; be able to identify components of power, with their inherent strengths and weaknesses, healthy and diseased fragments; and identify and describe developmental aspects in the formulation of trust.
Lecture 1: "untune that string …" Explorations of Order and Power
Lecture 2: Ceci n'est pas une pipe: Explorations of Truth in Postmodern Times
Lecture 3: Myself, Myselves, Self—Citizens of Psyche’s Democracy: Exploring Individual and Collective Psychological Integrity
The Way of the Rain:
An Homage to Planet Earth
Sibylle Szaggars Redford
Environmental Artist Sibylle Szaggars Redford has spoken up to power in a unique way through her dedication to creating art informed by consciousness of our connection to life, land, and the world, and raising awareness of environmental practices that compromise the delicate balance of nature. Through her art—paintings, performances and film—she invites her audience to remember our physical and spiritual connection to Earth's beauty and raises awareness to the warnings of climate change. Her productions have been assisted by choreographer Desmond Richardson, video artist Floyd Thomas McBee, and her husband, actor Robert Redford. In this presentation, she will share her film, The Way of the Rain—Voices of Hope, which tells the artistic story of the formation of the universe, evolution of the galaxies, and eventually the birth of Planet Earth. The film will be followed by participants’ questions and discussion with the artist.
Face to Face with a Predatory Narcissist:
Be Informed, Stand Up, Speak Out
Jacqueline West
In our tumultuous times, Dr. West has turned her analytic focus toward the dynamics of today’s individual and collective life. This presentation concentrates on archetypal patterns underlying narcissism generally, and differentiating three forms of the disorder. In Alpha Narcissism, the general dynamics of exhibitionism, omnipotence, grandiosity, and entitlement revolve around a determination to dominate, with the archetypal predator, typically cast as a trickster (as well as a killer) being a primary component. This profile will be described in clinical terms as well as in the mythopoetic image of folk tale, Bluebeard. Special emphasis will be on recognizing these dynamics honestly in ourselves, in others, and in our national psyche, refusing to be their “prey.” Mental Health Professionals will learn the characteristics of Alpha narcissism; identify the interplay and dynamic between trickster aspects of political leaders and the personal lacuna of nonconsciousness; and learn interventions to temper individual grandiosity and sense of entitlement.
A Physicist’s Search for Simplicity and Unity in the Complexity of Life from Cells to Cities…and to Psyche?
Geoffrey West
Questions addressed in this lecture are why do we stop growing, live for 100 years, and sleep 8 hours a day? Why do all companies and people die whereas cities keep growing, and the pace of life continues to accelerate? How are these related to innovation, wealth creation and sustainability? Although life is probably the most complex phenomenon in the Universe, many of its characteristics act in a surprisingly simple fashion: for example, metabolic rate (the 2000 food calories you need each day) scales systematically from single cells to whales, while time-scales, from lifespans to growth-rates, from genome lengths to tree heights, do likewise. Remarkably, cities and companies also exhibit systematic scaling: wages, profits, patents, crime, disease, and roads all scale in an approximately “universal” fashion. The origin of these laws will be examined as underlying principles of the networks that sustain life: from circulatory systems, to tumors, to forests to social networks of cities and companies. Their dynamics transcend history, geography and culture, and have dramatic implications for growth, development, paradigm shifts and global sustainability.
The Complex-ities of Life and Death,
of Self and Psyche
Geoffrey West and Jacqueline West
In this joint presentation, Geoffrey West, a physicist who studies complex adaptive systems, and Jacqueline West, a Jungian analyst, will explore how the conceptual landscapes that inform each of their worlds may also inform each other’s. Beginning with a discussion about the science of complexity and psychological complexes, they will also venture into explorations about the centrality of the number “4” that emerges from mathematical analyses as the defining number of life and, in the Jungian world view, as the archetypal paradigm of wholeness. They will consider how their ideas pertain to self-organizing structures and the nature of consciousness, as well as to the unus mundus, to the role of singularities, death, innovation and transformation. These considerations will include reflections about networks and psycho-political analyses. Mental Health Professionals will learn the relationship between cellular and psychic death and transformation and be able to articulate the unus mundus principle and its therapeutic role in analysis.
Mythos of the Ancients and the Dance of Truth
Zuleikha
Zuleikha is a singular figure on the horizon of sacred theater and dance, a mistress of countless faces, who moves effortlessly through space—Edinburgh Guide
Against the backdrop of the emotional times we find ourselves in, this performance will draw from the mythos of the ancients and weave them through a panorama of archetypal wisdom stories to find the inherent intelligence found in the world’s myths. Storydancer, Zuleikha enchants audiences with her weavings of story, dance, music and humor that uplift the human spirit.
Speaking Truth Through Music
Jacqui Hairston
For generations, artists and musicians have used their music to speak their truth. In this session, Jacqui will discuss and illustrate through music how people who have had no other voice or power expressed themselves through music and song. The American Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, the semi-slavery of railroad workers, black slaves in America, the Civil War, the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the struggle for women’s rights—all of these struggles were accompanied by inspiring music.
Once again, Jacqui Hairston will be with us throughout the conference to provide optional sessions to engage in and musical interludes to weave the thread of continuity through our weekend.
Social Dreaming Matrix:
Dreams Listening to Dreams (OPTIONAL)
Kate Burns and Kathryn Cook-Deegan
Throughout human history, people have been telling dreams in community. This ancient lineage of dreams and dreaming carries great significance in many of the world's older cultures and this lineage is trying to find a voice in our modern world today. The Social Dreaming Matrix is an experimental container for sharing dreams and images arising from the deep psyche. This opportunity to share dreams, without interpretation, with a dream calling out its response through another dream or an image, helps us to see into each other and into ourselves in compelling and evocative ways. Sharing this process can seed our dreams and inner experiences for long periods to come, offering us inspiration and meaning. Optional social dreaming matrix sessions will be held on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings before the program begins and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Conference Objectives
The 2018 Civilization in Transition program focuses on attitude and action in approaching the chaos and dissension of our current world. We will focus on (1) recognizing social trends and their predictable patterns;
(2) identifying realistic and unrealistic fears in conflictual interactions;
(3) determining subtle, sometimes unconscious responses to intimidation; and (4) examining the arts as a constructive way to express fear, hope, confusion, and connection.
The annual Civilization in Transition Conference is sponsored by the Jungian International Training Zürich Foundation. Conference proceeds and the monies generated by the annual fundraiser support ISAPZürich. JITZ Foundation underwrites the cost of the Zürich Lecture Series for Candidates, subsidizes the Counseling Center, and provides interest-free loans to trainees as well as other tangible and direct support.
Jungian International Training Zürich is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Board members on this completely voluntary board are Wynette Barton, Co-Chair; Kathryn Cook-Deegan, Co-Chair; Murray Stein, Vice-Chairman; Kate Burns, Treasurer; Patricia Burrell, Secretary; David Barton; and Barbara Lane.
Please consider contributing to this important mission by designating a donation or sponsorship to our students, ensuring that our faculty can produce the next generation of Jungian analysts. For more information or to make a contribution online or by mail, visit www.jitzurich.org, email jitzurich@gmail.com, or call Kathryn Cook-Deegan at 202.738.0301.
Photographs Feather and Stone and Aspens courtesy of Dreamstime.