Whether you are a mental health or medical professional, your main role is to heal wounded hearts, minds, and bodies. This unique symposium will focus on the calling to help people in physical, emotional, and spiritual trouble. Participants will reflect on their own spiritual journeys and explore ways of meditation and contemplation. They will learn the difference between soul and spirit and see how they can blend psychological counseling with spiritual guidance. The shadow elements in psychotherapy and spirituality will be examined both personally and theoretically. The role of dreams and the arts in therapy will be explored. Participants will also consider ways to care for themselves spiritually and emotionally and prepare themselves as persons for the deep work of psychotherapy.

In this symposium, participants will establish an idea of the very nature of healing and ways of becoming an effective healer. The spiritual focus will be very broad and draw on Asklepian, Buddhist, Taoist, Celtic, and Gospel approaches to healing. Participants will also explore the fundamentals of Jungian and archetypal psychology. The “shadow” side of being a counselor or medical professional - problems of eros, power, money, belief, burn-out, and insecurity - will also be addressed.