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A People's Guide to An Interfaith Christian Theology in a Time of Transformation by Harvey H. Honig, PhD
Harvey H. Honig began his life's work as a Lutheran minister but soon recognized his need for a more spacious and inclusive approach through which to heal and understand his inner self. This led him to spend many years exploring and experiencing other paths of religion and spirituality. In recent years, though, he found that the message, mission, and being of Jesus still played a powerful and transformative role in his life. Since common understandings of the life of Jesus are embedded within a biblical and historical framework, Honig wanted to explore the meaning of Christianity within the framework of our current world. An Interfaith Christian Theology is for fellow seekers who are drawn to the being and message of Jesus but can no longer relate to the dissonance between reality and belief that so many churches require. Honig's approach differs from traditional Christian theology in two ways: first, it does not stem from the framework of a specific denomination, and second, it presents itself as a way of thinking about Christianity rather than the only way. After several years as a minister, Honig began Jungian analytic training and earned a PhD in psychology at Loyola University Chicago. Jung gave Honig the tools he needed to continue his personal search for a life-affirming view of Christianity and to assist others in their search for inner truth and healing. ReLIGION / Christian Theology / General
ISBN: 978-1-956056-33-4 (print; softcover; perfect bound) Released May 24, 2022 | Copyright 2022 140 pages |
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“For over seven decades I have tried to gain both a deeper, broader understanding of Christianity and how it relates to other spiritual and religious practices. I was excited to learn that Dr. Harvey Honig has written about this and even more enthused upon reading his work . . . I particularly appreciate gaining a broader, more mature and enlightened understanding of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, who they are and what they share with central figures of other faiths. With a thorough grounding in Christianity and Jungian psychology, his work is infused with refreshing, integral approaches to the essence of Christianity itself, to what it shares with other religions as well with science. He provides a unifying vision for bridging religious and political division to bring about more cooperative approaches to addressing current common problems, including the serious threats to the health of our planet. My perspective on Christianity has grown both wider and more unified, while my understanding has deepened.” “As relevant as today’s breaking news, in a time of what seems like increasing fragmentation of reality and cultural divisiveness, Harvey Honig offers us an elegant, integrative, and inclusive exposition on the essence of Christian theology, incorporating current evolutionary and scientific understandings with contemporary cultural, social, and psychological knowledge. Utilizing traditional Christian sources of knowledge in conjunction with his facile understanding of Jungian psychology, Honig offers a fresh and unitary vision for Christianity within our increasingly diverse global community. Honig invites readers of all faiths—or none at all—who are drawn to the being and message of Jesus to a more mature and universal understanding of Christian faith. Spiritual seekers and those of the Christian faith will be energized by its summons to live a life of divine consciousness in harmony with our planet and global community.” “Harvey Honig brings us the Good News. He puts new wine—science, psychology, and feminism—in old bottles—father, son, and holy spirit. This is the gospel as Jesus lived it: loving one’s neighbor as oneself, forgiveness, joy, and life abundant. He shows how we might redeem the prodigal—the fundamentalist in all of us—by raising our consciousness from othering, fear and violence, and toxic masculinity to empathy, love and connection, and honoring the feminine, our earth, and our bodies. This is the second coming. Not an angry Jesus falling from the sky and smiting the wicked, but the rising of the Christ energy in all our hearts. Justice, stewardship, and mercy reign. Amen. Blessed be.” “Harvey Honig’s spiritual compass has led him to be in many right places at the right times with the right people. These personal meetings flavor his deep studies in psychology and comparative religion. An Interfaith Christian Theology is an eagle’s eye view of our spiritual moment as well as an on-the-ground companion to finding our own path. If you’re confused or frustrated with formal religion, Honig’s work can feed your soul and lift your spirit.” “If you, like me, prioritize separating the gold from the dross, then read An Interfaith Christian Theology. In Harvey Honig’s life journey, you will likely discover a mirror of your own, and to a great extent, the trajectory of our Judeo-Christian culture in recent centuries. In Honig’s sharing of his life’s work, you will also find an exploration, perhaps similar to your own, helping to resolve the conflicting values of our culture, religious institutions, and other entities toward the holistically centered life. His shared journey and gleanings have helped me resolve forces that in our time are at the heart of our alienation from our religious and spiritual roots. So many of us have been left out in the cold in our search for wholeness. I trust that you, like myself, will share the excitement and joy that accompanies our movement into the transcendental. If you approach this book with an open mind, surprises will abound. Bon voyage.” “An Interfaith Christian Theology will help to dispel a lot of confusion about Christianity and its meaning today. Honig applies psychological and historical insight to Christian theology while at the same time making it personal and readable. I want my men’s group to read it!” “Whether one's knowledge of Christianity and the Bible is large or small, Harvey Honig leads his readers through history, cultural thought, and the human condition in a respectful and integrative manner. Unpacking the rift between religion and science, as well as exploring Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit, Honig brings his readers into a clearing that will expand their own understanding.” “Once you've experienced a dimension full of mystery and love, the secular world seems flat. Many years of spiritual wandering taught me that spiritual truth is found in many teachings and practices, but none brought me the joy that I had felt in Christianity. While saying I didn't believe in God, I returned. I concentrated on the calming rituals, music, and art. I listened when I heard ‘love’ and blocked out most of the other words. An Interfaith Christian Theology provides a guide for making sense of the words, perhaps even the theology, that arose from the teachings of Jesus, his predecessors, and his followers—especially Paul. It describes a way to think about how spiritual understanding evolves as scientific knowledge expands and psychology and neurology increase our understanding of the human mind.” |
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Harvey H. Honig is a former Jungian Analyst/Psychologist who retired after decades of private practice and teaching in order to answer the call to write this book. He spent five years as a Lutheran minister before moving to Chicago to begin analysis with June Singer and training as an analyst while earning a Ph.D. in Psychology from Loyola University of Chicago. He also received a Masters in Divinity from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, and an STM in Pastoral Counseling at Oberlin School of Theology. He was in private practice in Madison, Wisconsin, where he still lives with his wife, Jean. He is also author of the chapter “Inner Dialogue and the Psychology of Carl Jung” in the book Inner Dialogue in Daily Life.
