Irish Philosopher and Monk MARK PATRICK HEDERMAN speaks on

KISSING THE DARK: THE UNCONSCIOUS AND THE TAROT

An evening presentation for anyone interested in going deeper in their spiritual life journey

Wednesday, April 27th, 7:00PM
Nelson United Church
602 Silica Street
10$  advance tickets
12$ at the door
tickets are available at
Otter Books in Nelson

When an Irish monk takes on the tarot, you know you're going to get an interesting perspective!

Most of us relate to the unconscious in a passive way, through our dreams. Mark Patrick Hederman suggests that there are active ways to engage with this area. One such way is through the Tarot cards. According to Hederman, the Tarot cards are like 'an idiots guide' to the unconscious, an easy way to subvert the rational and allow the energies beneath to creep up through the floorboards. This, he says is where the springs of our creativity are hidden, and where God can enter our lives.  “Understanding our unconscious is essential to being in touch with who we really are, and failure to do so is actually dangerous,” he contends.
 
Abrilliant and engaging speaker, combining heart and mind with wit and humor, Hederman is a delight and inspiration to listen to. He brings with him a deep and generous care for the state of the world and an unquenchable hope in the potential of the human being.

Mark Patrick Hederman

is an internationally acclaimed Irish philosopher, speaker and author.  He has been a Benedictine Monk at Glenstal Abbey, Limerick , Ireland for the last 40 years.  He is founder and editor of The Crane Bag Journal and has taught literature,
philosophy and spirituality programs in America , France , Nigeria and Switzerland as well as Ireland . He has effectively written a book a year since the turn of the century. His many books include Mad Crazy Love, Anchoring the Altar, The Haunted Inkwell, and his bestsellers Kissing the Dark and most recent book Tarot: Talisman or Taboo?

According to Hederman , one of our major tasks at present is to acknowledge and appropriate the darkness which is an integral part of what we are as human beings. Join Mark in discovering ways of facing our own peculiar darkness. Kissing the dark means caring for it, reaching towards it, welcoming it, reassuring it and taming it.

In this talk he will bring us to an awareness of both the gift of the unconscious and the shadow of refusing to engage with it.  Hederman claims that the last century is filled with examples of people in power losing touch with themselves, whether in concentration camps, school, parishes, orphanages, families because of a failure to tap into their unconscious lives. "Everyone of us is potentially an oppressor" he says.  To avoid the "hell" of the last century, vision is required and that demands understanding and a very hard look at ourselves and
our unconscious motivations.
 
Hederman will give an introduction to the Tarot, a history of its uses and abuses and a practical guide to its value as an underground map in navigating the unconscious, which, as he says, is a huge part of who we are. "Understanding our unconscious is essential to being connected to who we really are, and failure to do so is actually dangerous," he contends.
 
Reviews:
'When an Irish monk takes on the Tarot, you know you're going to get an interesting perspective, and Hederman's impressively researched book lives up to such promise… An excellent choice for all spiritual patrons.'   –  Booklist

‘The name of Mark Patrick Hederman is no longer one that rings a bell – it strikes a gong!' – The Furrow