Saturday, June 21, 2003

The Basic Enneagram at Unity of Chicago Enneagram Connections of Chicago will be presenting a half-day workshop, The Enneagram Basic, at Unity Church of Chicago, on Sunday, July 27, 1:30-5:00 p.m.  Deborah Ooten and Merri Monks will present speakers for the nine Types in the Narrative Tradition, a teaching method developed by Helen Palmer.  Both Deborah and Merri are certified Enneagram teachers in Helen's program.  A variety of presentation methods and audience participation exercises will be included in the seminar.  Deborah is a therapist/coach in private practice in Cincinnati, who teaches occasionally with Merri in Chicago.  Merri is an educator, writer and consultant. Unity Church is located at 1925 W. Thome Avenue, near Ridge and Devon Avenues in Chicago. 9:04:05 PM     Three Spiritual Traditions The first of the two-day conference at Loyola University in Chicago, on underlying and remarkably similar patterns in the contemplative branches of Judaism, Islam and Christianity (in the life and work of Ramon Llull), featured three excellent speakers.  The group attending may seem small--about 40 people--but given that today was the first warm Saturday of the summer, and the weather was as perfect as it gets in Chicago, the turn-out was excellent. Rabbi Howard Addison of Temple University presented material on the Kabbalah, and its numeric and energetic similarities to the Enneagram.  The Rabbi also guided us in a spiritual practice.  Marcia Hermansen, professor in Loyola's theological department, presented Sufi principles, including spiritual practices. Mark Johnston of DePaul University presented material on Ramon Llull, a 13th Century lay Franciscan who developed a complex system that bears significant resemblances to the Enneagram, including nine vices and virtues.  The study of Llull's material--over 300 articles and books--was sustained for over 600 years, and while aspects of the psychological model he developed are no longer of interest other than in a historical context, his spiritual and ethical system is attracting renewed interest.  One of the most remarkable aspects of Llull's work is that he was not affiliated with either the Church or a university. Each speaker commented on the exchange of religious ideas at that time (13th Century), and each commented on the parallels in Europe at that time to our own period of history, but each pointed out signficant differences. 8:53:14 PM     "Three Spiritual Traditions: Tracing the Roots of the Enneagram" I'll be attending this conference at Loyola University in Chicago tomorrow and Sunday and will include a report here on the proceedings at the end of each day.  It promises to be excellent, with examinations of the history of the development of the Enneagram in three major world religions:  Christianity, Islam and Judaism.  This conference is sponsored by the First Analysis Institute of Integrative Studies and the Institute of Pastorial Studies, Loyola University, Chicago.   1:03:55 AM

© Copyright 2003 Merri Monks. Last update: 7/5/2003; 6:16:11 AM.