Carl Jung

The only psychologist/psychiatrist I had heard of growing up was of course Sigmund Freud. Later in college when I took psychology courses the one that really caught my eye was Carl Jung. Later I lived eleven years in Bern, Switzerland which had a Carl Jung Institute.

Psychology is just about the newest life science. Freud pretty much blazed the trail. Jung was one of his proteges. But still Jung is the one that interests me. I read one of his books a couple of years ago and am rereading one from my student days again now.

It is so fascinating to see how psychology relates to many religions. Since religions take themselves, rightfully, so seriously, how much so may be a problem, sometimes they resent any scientist, including Jung, who disagrees with them. But as I read his theories of the psyche, it just flabbergasts me how related to so many religions they are. Jung even thinks that is a major purpose of religion. The psyche thing in them.

I won't give examples.

I'm also reading an archaelogical account of the Bible. This is a very religiously biased account, no complaint, a lot of interest. I'm still in the Old Testament part of it and you want to take your hat off in awe and gratitude to the Jewish contribution to the world.

It is a mind boggler how this tiny, picked on, bumpkin group in a sliver of the world that world powers wanted, came up with some of the most socially prominent doctrines and systems in the world. I'm not just talking the religious part. But they were the first in world history that had such an elaborate social system. One that cared for even the most insignificant and weakest segments of their society. It is now engrained in world religions.