Moore pens foreword to book about maturity

Thomas Moore writes the foreword to Paul Dunion's new book, Dare to Grow Up: Learn to Become Who You are Meant to Be, published by Bartleby Press. Today's press release quotes Moore: “'[Dunion] presents a deep and comprehensive view of the human person in relationship with others, and in doing so he doesn’t leave out soul,' says Thomas Moore, author of the bestseller Care of the Soul ..."

In his foreword, Moore confesses:

"May I say that I have a certain affection for my neurotic tendencies. They make me who I am as much as any gifts or talents I may have. I feel humbled reading Paul’s book, because I realize how difficult it has been to mature as a person. I’m almost seventy, but inwardly I’m forty-two. That’s the age I feel myself to be. I’m surprised on the street when an old man talks to me as though we share something in common. How could that be? I’m forty-two.
. . .
Of course, Paul doesn’t mean just getting older. He’s talking about being mature enough to handle boundaries, to occupy a decent psychological geography, and to know the difference between moral positioning and ethical engagement. These are real achievements. I would call them soul talents and acquisitions."

Read Moore's foreword and Dunion's introduction to Dare to Grow Up on Dunion's site.

At Amazon.com:
Dare to Grow Up: 
Learn to Become who You are Meant to Be
by Paul Dunion
Foreword by Thomas Moore
Paperback: 324 pages
Publisher: Bartleby Press (February 25, 2012)
ISBN-10: 0910155879
ISBN-13: 978-0910155878

Moore visits Findhorn for Love, Magic, Miracles

Scotland's Findhorn Foundation marks its 50th anniversary this year by hosting the conference Love, Magic, Miracles to "explore and celebrate the spiritual truth that love is the greatest power on earth." Thomas Moore makes his first visit to Findhorn for this conference, 29 September - 5 October 2012. According to the Foundation:

"The conference will explore how magic flows from love, and how synchronicity and manifestation occur when our will is aligned with divine will. Magic will be explored as that certain something we feel in the presence of beauty and mystery, when a moment is so special that we feel its power. 

We are in a period of unprecedented global change, when there is much that is seemingly despairing, unloving, grotesque and unacceptable in the world. By focusing on Love, Magic and Miracles, the energies birthed and sent out will serve the world. 

The conference description for Moore includes, "He considers himself a new brand of theologian, drawing from many traditions as well as secular literature and arts. He is known around the world for his efforts to promote and deepen spirituality and make a more soulful society."

The Findhorn Foundation is self-described as "a spiritual community, ecovillage and an international centre for holistic learning, helping to unfold a new human consciousness and create a positive and sustainable future."

Registration for Love, Magic, Miracles is available online with income-related pricing: £595, £695 or £795. Cost includes 7 nights accommodation and all meals.

Do psychological terms hinder enchantment?

"If we must talk about projections, I’d like to see them as interesting forms of imagination, not always negative and not always representative of a person’s repressed unconscious."
— Thomas Moore

Thomas Moore unpacks the popular term projection in his blog post "Is Psychological Projection a Good Idea?" today by giving different examples of the word's psychological use and suggesting alternatives to understand its value. Moore writes about his own experiences as an author and includes one of his current favourite images from Thoreau.

He concludes, "We are simply trying to see and say something and getting it rather wrong. But if we stay on the track, instead of withdrawing it, we may arrive at the desired and accurate observation. I never noticed James Hillman, the sharpest psychologist of all time, or Ernest Hemingway, the sharpest observer and narrator of all time, ever use the word projection."

Follow Moore's daily tweets about soulful living

5 February 2012

@thomasmooreSoul
"On this blue marble of Earth we need a politics of service for the world community. If any one person is suffering, we are all affected."
— Thomas Moore