Can the Earth Be sacred once again?

An evening seminar with Sean McGrath, PhD
7-9 pm on Tuesday, April 2, 2019
The Colman Building
811 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98104
Please note the seminar is now sold out

sacred flowers

We live in the grip of a form of anxiety unknown to Freud, Jung, and Lacan. It is not anxiety over the self, but anxiety over the world without which there would be no selves to worry about. Nature has become an issue for us, whether it be in the form of climate change, mass extinction, or the disturbing possibility that nature is over. At the same time, we despair for humanity: there appears to be no way to move from our knowledge of the current precarious state of the earth to a practice and politics that would rectify it. The despair itself immobilizes us and renders us powerless to make even the smallest efforts toward solutions. In this seminar, we will discuss the ecological anxiety of our present age and look for ways to unfreeze eco-despair by generating language to articulate our hopes and fears. We will explore in some detail the religious quality of the ecological crisis. In the end, we will ask the question: given the Anthropocene, given the Sixth Great Extinction, given the rise of the technosphere, can the earth be sacred once again?

About the Facilitator

Sean J. McGrath is a specialist in religion and ecology. The author of several books, he teaches philosophy and theology in St. John’s, Newfoundland. https://seanmcgrath.academia.edu/

Sean McGrath

When and Where?

Tuesday, April 2, 2019 from 7-9 pm.
The Coleman Building: 811 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98104.
Because of the intimate setting, participation is limited to 14 people.

How Much?

$60. Participants are eligible for 2 CEUs.

Goal

  • To understand the existential and religious dimensions of the ecological crisis and how it affects anxiety and despair in patients and ourselves.

Objectives

Through assigned readings and discussion, participants will:

  • Understand the nature of ecological anxiety and how it differs from the classical forms described by Freud, Jung, and Lacan.
  • Identify the kinds of despair and grief arising from witnessing the radical changes to our natural world and their implications for future human and non-human life on this planet.
  • Grasp the religious dimension of the ecological crisis.
  • Articulate hopes and fears as a way of working with ecological anxiety and despair.

Contact Sharon Green for more information
206-405-3500/sharon@nsanpsy.com

Location