Pesky Projection

As we/the AEA prepare for Working with Barriers to Spiritual Freedom in mid-may in Tucson, I’ve been working on the piece around “Projection” and the Defense Mechanism System.  Doing this, I can’t help recall a statement made by one of our narrative teachers Peter O’Hanrahan – that our problems with each other don’t have so much to do with our Enneagram type, but with our defense mechanisms, that is, the defense mechanism itself, what we avoid and the world view we project out.  Isn’t that the truth!  As a Type 2, I can’t begin to express the shock I experienced when I discovered (at first through my daughter and my husband, and then my boss of many years) that my “help” was not always needed or wanted.  Bigger yet, was coming to terms with my own needs and finding a way to admit them and then to address them!

In my own personal wrangling with the Enneagram I’ve found that this is indeed the biggest and trickiest piece.  The Defense Mechanism System is rife with blind spots, and the trouble is that blind spots are by definition blind.  No matter that everyone else around us has a clear view.  That doesn’t automatically mean we will become aware, even when we’ve done this work for years!  Blind is blind.  This Defense System is what stands between our passion and our virtue.  There is no transformation of the raw energy of the Passion into the Virtue unless we manage to back into our blind spots with a different perspective so that we can actually become aware of them and thus dis-identify from type and recognize what may be arising, such as humility for a Type 2, or Innocence for a Type 8, or Non-attachment for the 5.

The deeper we dig into the process, the more we become aware of that to which we were simply blind.  We begin to recognize the clues – times when we are giving unsolicited advice or trying to fix things; times when we blame others or make our issues about someone else; times when we inquire against our deeply held beliefs, even though intellectually we may not believe those things at all; times when we examine the flip side of our idealizations and come to own our shadow.

I have found this work and practice to be infinitely worth the effort.  The prize is held in the Virtue itself, and once we experience one, they all become available to us.  It may be work, but it is none-the-less a journey of pure joy and grace.

Robin Cameron

What we expect and what we really want - seen through the Enneagram vice/virtues.

Palm Sunday Expectations of a Savior

         

The journey of Holy Week starts with the joy and party spirit of Palm Sunday.  The expectations at the start of the journey will go quickly downhill to the cross and on to the dark tomb before Easter morning shines. 

There is no way to the empty tomb but by way of the cross.  Psalms 23 long ago reminded people that you must travel “through the valley of the shadow of death” before you can reach the other side.  We travel from Vice to Virtue. But the journey to the virtue can never be reached except by letting go of the vice to take hold of a new life in Jesus.  Our vices will never get us to our deepest desires; in fact they make it impossible.  We must go through the cross, by surrender of our self-imposed control to God’s will.  We have to learn to let go of the need for what we have determined we must have. 

The turmoil that blocks us comes out of our own expectations.  When we discover how to let go of our habitual belief in what we think we know, then we begin the road to freedom. What we want, what we deeply desire and what we settle for leaves us longing for authenticity in our life.

EXPECTATIONS

If your deepest Desire (Virtue) is-     You may try to get there by (Vice). . . .

Serenity, a peace that passes understanding – you may try to get there by enforcing a pseudo-peace with rules and regulations.  Being a perfectionist you will not get to Serenity until you learn to let go of resentment and realize your focus on seeing faults must open to allow yourself to see the good that is present. 

Humility, to be loved for your true inner self – you may try to get there by gathering idle praise and affection.  Being full of pride that you don’t need anyone else, you won’t get to Humility until you see that you are as needy as others; it is not a failing to need someone or something.  You can express your inner self with a freedom of the spirit of Humility. 

Honesty, to be loved for who you are – you may try to get there driven by an energy that you must succeed and earn approval.  As you perform one task, you continually need another task to feel worthy; so stop and see that you do not have to earn another’s love, it is freely given.  You are loved for “being” who you are, not “doing” who you are.

Balance, the perfect relationship – you may continue to work to deserve what you can’t truly see, longing for what is always out of reach.  The envy of always missing out will drive you to grief, if you would only stop, look and appreciate what you have in life instead of focusing on what you don’t have.  You stand in the midst of holy if you will only open your eyes. 

Nonattachment, valuing true abundance – you may try to get there by hoarding the intellectual riches and ideas you believe will give you security in what you have. The greed that drives you to collect and keep needs to perceive that less is often more fulfilling. 

Faith, that everything is alright – you may try to get there by living without fear.  You either run from situations that cause anxiety, or you run toward it to rise above such puny dread, defying life to hurt you.  Faith breaks through when you recognize fear is more in your mind than in the world that touches you.  Then you can courageously step forward in true knowing. 

Satisfaction, that you have enough – you may try to get it by always doing, seeing, planning for more to fill in a perceived emptiness.  The fear of missing out and being limited by life only exacerbates your need for more.  The need for more is a race to avoid pain and boredom through rationalizing your motives.  What is needed is recognition to stop, cut back and enjoy the beauty of commitments and sober work. 

Justice, for yourself and others – you may try to impose your own sense of justice on everyone.  There is a rush to make things work, to protect and take revenge for the innocent.  Recognizing and accepting your own vulnerability is key to finding the road to justice and grace endowed from within. 

Harmony/Unity, a sense of belonging to all – you may accept a false sense of harmony by ignoring the problem, going to sleep to let time make the decisions.  Dropping the comfort of false unity empowers you to take right action and participate in your own transformation. 

So how do you reach your deepest desire?

·         Let go of the methods you are using to keep your vice in place. (Spiritual Disciplines)

·         Recognize how you are settling for second best. 

·         Practice opening your eyes to see life from a fuller realm of possibilities

·         Ask God to help you see and perceive personal habits that cause you harm. 

·         Live in the present moment; not in the past, not in the future, and not in your imagination.

By Rev. Andrea Andress

The Narrative Tradition in Arizona

By Carole Whittaker, PhD (printed in TALK)

In four short and busy years the Arizona Enneagram Association (AEA) has gone from a start-up organization to offering in 2013 a 5 day experiential, residential program on Working with the Barriers to Spiritual Freedom and hosting David Daniels and Russ Hudson – together!!! – this November.

How did we get here? The AEA was formed during the fall of 2008 through the dedication, talent, and energy of 10 women trained in the Narrative Tradition (affectionately known as “the founding mothers”) who were determined to preserve and nourish the teaching of the Enneagram in Arizona.  You will no doubt recognize at least some of their names: Jaye Andres, Andrea Andress, Robin Cameron, Gloria Cuevas-Barnett, Gerry Fathauer, Linda Frazee, Fran Lyons, Barbara (Mira) Rossman, Judy Shoob, and Carole Whittaker. Gerry, Linda, Fran and Barbara have since “retired” from Board service and been replaced by a new generation of willing servants.

During its first year the AEA was incorporated as a non-profit organization, sponsored workshops by Helen Palmer and David Daniels, established a membership program for general and professional members, set up a scholarship account and launched a website (www.azenneagram.com).  Helen and David were vital presenters that first year as they not only brought the excellence of their teaching but also attracted audiences who contributed to the financial viability of the organization and the fledgling scholarship fund. 

We’ve come a long way in a short time. We now have a home at the adult education Transformational Learning Center of the Paradise Valley United Methodist Church (thanks to Andrea Andress, who is the assistant pastor there). The AEA has 100 professional, general and associate members, a mailing list of over 1200 and, miracle of all miracles, a part-time administrator to relieve the all-volunteer board members.

From an initial goal of simply keeping the Enneagram work alive in Arizona it is now our intention to form a community of practice among members and board, teachers and students that contributes to the expansion of consciousness through the understanding of human personality and spirituality.

Helen and David have continued to come for special events and have been joined recently by Jack Killen, Terry Saracino and Marion Gilbert.  We have even ventured out a bit from our core Narrative Tradition teachers and invited Richard Rohr and Jerry Wagner in 2011 and 2012.  Russ Hudson will be joining David Daniels for a much-anticipated workshop November 9 and 10 of this year.

In addition to special events, the AEA offers classes at an introductory level and beyond to help seekers understand the Enneagram and use it in their personal lives and relationships.

Professional members (those in the fields of psychology, coaching, teaching, spiritual direction or the like who have at least 50 hours of participation in Narrative Tradition Enneagram courses) provide ongoing financial support for the administration of the AEA and serve as links in marketing programs.  More importantly, professional membership in the AEA provides a network of relationships whereby the professional members make their work known as counselors, teachers, coaches or spiritual directors and have access to advanced Enneagram trainings.

Genesis of the Spiritual Freedom Work

To our intention of raising consciousness, we are absolutely delighted to be launching a unique opportunity for Enneagram devotees to deepen their understanding of type, in community with others, through process work. “Working with the Barriers to Spiritual Freedom,” is being offered as an intensive 5-day program May 17-21, 2013 at the beautiful Redemptorist Renewal Center in Picture Rocks, just north of Tucson, Arizona.

Let me give you a little background on how this developed. The AEA is the “heir” to an important body of work developed during the ten years prior to its own formation that included an in-depth introductory workshop and a series of classes developed in conjunction with Helen Palmer.  From 2001-2005, Helen presented her series of workshops on spiritual freedom in the Phoenix area.  It was a masterful synthesis of how the psychology of personality is related to our spiritual dimensions and how to work with personality type to open the barriers to spiritual freedom. 

After each of her public workshops, Helen worked with local teachers to develop 6-session “follow-on” classes to help students integrate their experience and learning.  I (Carole) had a previous stint as a curriculum developer in the physical sciences for UCLA’s continuing education division.  So by the time we were teaching the 2^nd follow-on for Helen’s series, I recognized that these classes were deeply related to one another and needed to be offered as an on-going, integrated curriculum of Enneagram study.  Over the ensuing years, we offered all of the classes on a regular basis.  To date, our local teachers have facilitated over 35 of these classes in small group settings, reaching hundreds of participants.

The Spiritual Freedom Curriculum

Part of Helen’s great insight is that the Virtues are permanent qualities of the life force, that the Holy Ideas are permanent qualities of Being, and that a barrier exists between our everyday, mental-rational-personality consciousness and our inner realms of consciousness where these qualities reside.  The first three courses, which we call “Working with the Barriers to Spiritual Freedom,” work in turn with the mental center, the heart center and then the instinctual center, reversing the order in which personality is formed. The work done by students and facilitators goes well beyond the descriptions of personality type and its structure and focuses on the process of non-judgmental observation of the phenomenon of Type.  This strengthens the capacity of one’s Inner Observer and allows one to let go of identification with Type.

Having worked with and through the barriers and strengthened the capacity for inner observation, students are helped to awaken their own experience of and cooperation with the Virtues and Holy Ideas in the fourth and fifth courses that we call “Experiencing Spiritual Freedom.” 

Each of the 6-session courses allows at least a week between meetings for practice and inner observation.  Class sessions include an extensive report-back from participants on their experience as well as attention practice, brief didactic presentations, dyad exercises and debriefs.

Students who have participated in this work have experienced great freedom!  Their personalities do not “disappear” but open up to manifest the lovely qualities which are their inner foundation.  They rejoice in experiencing reduced reactivity and in finding a more authentic expression of their Self in everyday life, especially in their relationships.  Teachers have been amazed at the transformation experienced by students.

Making the Spiritual Freedom Work Available to a Wider Audience

Due to the 6-week format for these classes, participation has been limited to a local Arizona audience.  In order to make this valuable work available to a wider audience, we are condensing the curriculum and offering it in the form of 2 intensive retreats plus an opportunity for practice through phone groups in the interim between the two.

As I said earlier, the first part of the curriculum, “Working with the Barriers to Spiritual Freedom,” is being offered as an intensive 5-day program May 17-21, 2013 at the Redemptorist Renewal Center in Picture Rocks, AZ. The second part of the curriculum, “Experiencing Spiritual Freedom,” will be offered in May, 2014 for those who want to continue with the work. 

Gloria Cuevas-Barnett, Robin Cameron and I will be teaching the class and most of the AEA Board will be attending.  Having three teachers will allow us to work in small groups for our process work. We sent preliminary announcements to members of AENT as well as AEA students so there is a strong participation from Narrative Tradition folks.  Interestingly, a number of people are coming who have already taken (even taught!) the entire series.  There are still a few spaces remaining so if you are interested in participating we would love to have you.  Check out the AEA website at www.azenneagram.com or call me directly at 480 502-4446. 

 

Special Resource for Enneagram Professionals

The materials and processes used in the spiritual freedom work are great resources for Enneagram professionals to use in their practice, especially in any kind of small group meeting.  They provide an effective way of working with the Enneagram, in the Narrative Tradition, without needing a large audience.  They are really effective in helping to integrate our ordinary consciousness with the inner realms. 

Some of these materials originated from Helen Palmer who has now passed them on to the use of teachers.  I am claiming no copyright over the materials I have contributed. Participants are welcome and encouraged to use the materials they will receive in their class workbooks in their own work.  In addition, a special materials package will be available (for an additional cost) that will include all of the class materials in Word and/or PDF format on a CD, a DVR teaching session and PowerPoint presentation on CD of the introductory foundations on the development of Type.

We would love to see you in Tucson in May.  In any event, please send us your blessing to help extend this work.

Hi There!

Postings from the Arizona Enneagram Community in the Narrative Tradition.