Jungian Conference 2015
Psyche, Spirit, and Science: negotiating contemporary social and cultural concerns
The Fourth Joint Conference of the International Association for Analytical Psychology (IAAP) (www.iaap.org) with
the International Association for Jungian Studies
"The decisive question for man is: Is he related to something infinite or not?" (C. G. Jung, Memories Dreams, Reflections)
“No matter what the world thinks about religious experience, the one who has it possesses a great treasure, a thing that has become for him a source of life, meaning, and beauty, and that has given a new splendor to the world and to mankind.” (C. G. Jung “Psychology and Religion”, CW 11:167)
9th-12th July 2015
Yale University
New Haven, Connecticut
Conference Theme and Objectives
This conference seeks to assess, extend, and revise Jung’s original insights into the relationship between religion and psyche. Arguably, the world in which we find ourselves has become increasingly complex in the 53 years since Jung’s death. In the face of a host of emerging crises, from the resurgence of ethnic and religious violence, to economic and ecological disasters, the need for orientation and a stable inner life as facilitated by the ‘religious function’, as Jung called it, is as pressing as ever. Yet, how are we to make sense of this religious function in light of our increasing reliance on external mechanisms of orientation, such as the development of digital technology, and discoveries or revelations in the name of ‘science’? Must we revise the notion of Jung’s religious function for our increasingly global society of multi-faith and multiculturalism? Can soul inhabit our society today? What is the current state of the Anima Mundi? How can contemporary understandings of spirituality from the perspective of analytical psychology offer new pathways for meaningful life in the 21st century?
In addition to these broad questions, we welcome subjects in and related to the following areas.
- Ecology and Mental Health
- Religious, scientific and ethical experience within clinical work
- Peace-keeping and international relations.
- Negotiating social, economic, ecological disasters
- Relationships (and lack of relations) with the infinite
- The limits of our existence and boundaries of psyche
- Religious experience in contemporary life