Is there not a conflict of interest when someone who is directly and/or indirectly profiting from a book publishes a glowing (but non-informational) review of the same book? The review dated July 13, 1999 and entitled, "The most hopeful thing ever on being an older adult!" (see below) includes an E-mail address--pmcdonne@ehs.org--which belongs to Sr. Pat McDonnell, CSJ, who is acknowledged as a contributor in the Introduction of this book. She is in the same community of sisters as the authors!

This book is a rehash of the Gnosticism of Carl Jung (an early 20th-century psychology theorist (who was heavily dependent on the Occult, Alchemy, Astrology, Gnosticism, etc.) by two Catholic nuns who are neither psychologists nor theologians. They have "chosen Carl Jung's psychology because it is about the second half of life," and that is the limits of insight and scholarship that pervades this publication. It is a psychology that negates mainstream modern psychology and is not accepted by any modern scientific or medical field. Beginning with the Dedication Page that announces, "For many years we have been training others to facilitate Mid-Life Directions Workshops for Personal and Spiritual Growth and Long Life Directions Workshops for Personal and Spiritual Growth. They are an international group of outstanding professionals. We dedicate this book to these Mid-Life Directions Certified Consultants around the country and around the world." and ending on the last page reserved for seminar information, the book is further interspersed throughout with reports of seminar participants and their outcomes. Observing that in their seminars "most people have awful feelings of apathy, boredom, lethargy, disillusionment, bitter anxiety, anger and regret," the authors extrapolate that "we have come to believe that most people go through a crisis of negative feelings . . . ." and (by suggestion) need their seimnars too. "Carl Jung says, "(a phrase repeated all too often in this book) that "this is due to a loss of faith." It was this, the authors state, that inspired Jung to weave his whole system of pseudo-religious theory of the psyche modeled on the ancient pagan beliefs of Gnosticism, mythology, alchemy, astrology and psychoanalysis. That sets the Gnostic theme of this book--that finding Self through self-analysis leads one to the secret Jungian-Gnostic knowledge of God who is our essence. (What?) Thus, we are draggd down a long dead-end corridor of psycho-romantic theorizing with adjoining rooms full of pagan, Gnostic and New Age spiritualities, all rolling on waves of vague, undocumented, unexplained, self-serving speculations. The most blatant of these is: 1. WE ARE GOD--"an enfleshment of: the offspring of: an epiphany of: and the incarnatin of: God." The authors misinterpret the phrase from Genesis "made in the image and likeness of God" to mean that man's essence is God. However, Christianity's interpretation is that man is made TO the image of God by our capacity to know Him and love Him and His creation. We are God's creatures and that is how we are to relate to Him, whereas the original sin of Adam and Eve was that they wanted to BE God. 2. SELF IS WHERE GOD EXISTS. "The Kingdom of God is within you," it is argued, means that God is in your essence (as did the Gnostics), whereas the Church teaches that we have the Indewelling of God through Sanctifying Grace, but not as our essence. 3. SELF IS FOUNDTHROUGH PSYCHO- ANALYSIS. But Carl Jung is "not accepted by any scientific or medical field" according to Richard Knoll in his book, The Jung Cult. Psychoanalysis is rarely attempted today by psychiatrists, and, generally, it does not work; to some degree because many people simply are not candidates for that process. But while Jung taught that psychoanalysis is useful for "integration," even he never suggested that one should try to analyze himself, as do these authors. 4. WHEN WE FIND SELF, they say, WE FIND THE "GROUND OF OUR BEING," i.e., GOD. So, in this book finding God within the Self is the fulfillment of the "myths" of Creation, Incarnation and Resurrection. It is not explained why the authors refer to the mysteries as "myths." However, in an oddity for putative Catholic authors, the Crucifixion, the central mystery of Christianity, is never mentioned. 5. SIN IS MERELY THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF GOOD. In a posture suggestive of Manicheism, the authors explain sin as being the shadow side of something else that is good. Everything in the world, they elaborate, is in a polarity, a dualty, with something else. Accordingly, goodness is presented as the unification of the shadow with its opposite; even Christ is included as having a shadow. 6. ALL HUMANS SHARE IN A COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS, UNIVERSAL MIND. The authors treat this as credible. In Jung's adoption of this quasi-scientific concept, Archetypes have been passed down to all humans and function much as instincts. The authors do not, of course, support the notion of its descent with any explanation, not even an incoherent one. 7. THE SACRED MYSTERIES OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION ARE REFERRED TO AS MYTHS! Jung and the authors interpret the Catholic mysteries as being meaningful ONLY because mythologies passed down to us through universal Archetypes provide those meanings. Without those Archetypes and myths, according to Jung and the authors, the sacred mysteries would have no meaning for us. 8. HOLINESS IS "WHOLENESS." In this book holiness is attained by man as he "integrates" his consciousness with his unconsciousness--when he "unifies" his opposites, thus becoming a "whole" person. 9. "BOTH JESUS AND BUDDHA PROVIDED IDENTICAL ADVICE ON LOVING . . . AND EXPERIENCING THE SACRED." ? Then, the authors provide that Buddha did that six centuries before Jesus! To further confirm this point, they recommend readers meditate on a "wonderful little book,"--Jesus and Buddha: the Parallel Savings--by the "celebrated Christian writer, Marcus Borg," (to whom Christ is a mere spirit-person) and, according to the authors, is a "non-exclusivist Christian." Terrific! How did God ever get himself into such a mess as to be in need of this book? I do not recommend it. It is nonsense.

This is a spirit filled book to keep by your side for a long life. Its a deceptively easy read that hits in a deep place. Stories make its insights real, powerful, practical. Over 40..50..60..70..? look no further if your enthusiasm for life and newness are flagging, Brennan and Brewi are right where its at. Don't miss this one!

The title of this book is very misleading - it should have been Mid-Life CHRISTIAN Spirituality. While I have no qualms with an occasional quote from the Bible when it makes a point, this book was littered with biblical references that had little relevance other than to proselytize. In fact I was downright offended that a book geared toward people experiencing a mid-life crisis (and thus more vulnerable) would contain such a heavy Christian-only overtone. This book may interest Christians but since the book seems to take the stance of the fundamentalist or born again, the reader should be made aware of this before buying the book.

Simply put, this book is more about preaching a form of Christianity as a solution than a fair presentation of spirituality and mid-life. The description of the book, and the positive reviews were very misleading and the book itself very disappointing. The author should, not assume that Christianity is the answer to everyone's spiritual needs, for it certainly is not.

This book directly opposes the teachings of the Catholic Church and all orthodox Christianity! It is Gnostic. Boring, illogical and hard-to-follow, it is written in a third-grade style, presumably to accommodate that confused, vulnerable, unlettered populace who frequents money-making seminars hosted by "experts." Indeed, in this New Age milieu, Jung sells! For a comprehensive history and understanding of Carl Jung and his teachings, read Richard Noll, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and Post-doctoral Fellow in the History of Science at Harvard University. His two books are scholarly, detailed, logical and highly documented with primary sources. They are: "The Aryan Christ: The Secret Life of Carl Jung" and "The Jung Cullt: Origins of a Charismatic Movement." (Also, access "Yahoo" then "Carl Jung") Do not buy and, thus, support this New Age book. If you must, get it in the library under its former title: "Celebrate Mid-Life: Jungian Archetypes and Mid-Life Spirituallity." You see, the 1999 book is a reprint of the 1989 title, which quickly went out of print, and has been given a new chance by, of course, the Jung Society.

Even if you've very little understanding of Jung's ideas, you'll be able to follow this book. It's easy to read, interesting, and thought provoking. More important, it addresses some of the questions I've asked as I moved into my, uh, twilight years. Further, corroberation of the ideas put forth are drawn from a wide variety of sacred and secular texts.

The book is broken into four sections: The Life Cycle, The Shadow, The Child, and Emerging Wisdom. I quite enjoyed the "Reflective Exercises" at the end of each section that gave me a chance to think about, and integrate, what I'd just read.

And like anything that goes to the core of our own personal belief system, we should remember we can take the best and leave the rest. Me? I'm taking a lot away from this book!