Non-fiction/Spirituality/Psychology
A Primer of Psychology According to a Course in Miracles
Joe R. Jesseph, Ph.D
Outskirts Press. Inc.
2008
ISBN: 978-1-4327-1673-8
Soft cover
336 pages
Joe R. Jesseph's A Primer of Psychology According to a Course in Miracles, is intended for the student of the Course, which is a thought-system that provides its followers with a "better way" to exist in the world. Jesseph, a retired psychologist and former staff member at the Foundation for A Course in Miracles, has been a student of the Course for over 20 years. The author effectively integrates his personal and professional experience to produce this well written, informative book.
"Indeed, the Course can be understood as offering both a philosophy of life and a way of life, the central practical aspect of this being its psychology of forgiveness (xi)."
To get the most out of Jesseph's book, the reader must be familiar with A Course in Miracles. For those who are not, it is best to begin in the appendix. Jesseph offers an overview of A Course in Miracles as well as a glossary of the Course's primary concepts. The overview briefly recounts the background of A Course in Miracles' founders, Helen Schucman and William Thetford then explains the Course's message of love and forgiveness.
In the body of the text, Jesseph speaks at length about the ideology of the ego thought system, which states that humans are separate from God. In contrast, the Spirit thought system of the Course suggests the body is not real, the world we live in is an illusion, and the only thing that is real is the part of the mind identified as Spirit. "Spirit is the part that is still in contact with God through the Holy Spirit... (14)."
When addressing the psychology of A Course in Miracles, Jesseph pulls heavily from the work of Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalytical theory. Freudian concepts such as defense mechanisms, ego, id, and superego are compared with the Course's ideology of ego and guilt.
Jesseph's writing style is approachable, not overly academic. The layman exploring A Course in Miracles will find this book to be a beneficial companion piece to the study materials around which the Course is structured. Jesseph's dissection of the psychological components that make up the foundation of human behavior provides value-added information for the student and teacher of A Course in Miracles.
A Primer of Psychology According to A Course in Miracles is a powerful tool for the new or seasoned student as well as a compelling introduction to A Course in Miracles for the uninformed but curious.
Melissa Levine
For Independent Professional Book Reviewers
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