Transliminality and Transcendence
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TRANSLIMINALITY AND TRANSCENDENCE: AN EXPLORATION OF THE CONNECTIONS AMONG CREATIVITY, MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE, AND PSYCHO“PATHOLOGY” By Laura Rosser Kreiselmaier Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Vanderbilt University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Religion May, 2016 Nashville, Tennessee Approved: Volney P. Gay, PhD Sohee Park, PhD John S. McClure, PhD Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore, PhD Copyright © 2016 Laura Rosser Kreiselmaier All Rights Reserved ii GRATITUDE & ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am deeply grateful to my dissertation “cloud of witnesses,” some of whom have been an integral part of this project, others of whom have cheered me on from the sidelines, and still others of whom have unknowingly inspired me from the shadows of their own paths. My heartfelt thanks is expressed: To my committee members, Professors Volney P. Gay, Sohee Park, John S. McClure, and Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore, who embody not only a remarkable breadth of interdisciplinary scholarship but also the invaluable gift of humankindness. And to Evon O. Flesberg and Bruce Rogers-Vaughn, who first inspired and trained me in our sacred profession. To the Tennessee Association of Pastoral Therapists, for supporting the vital work of pastoral psychotherapy and those who share this calling, and for turning an inauspicious bend in the road into a new pathway for state licensure. Especially to Donna Scott for your generous mentoring and friendship, Ron McDonald for your creativity and vision, and Dick Bruehl for your clinical wisdom (how wonderful to have a supervisor in the direct lineage of Anton Boisen!). To Charles Davidson and Cliff Edwards, who flew me to Richmond for the honor of participating in their April 2015 Van Gogh panel to speak on transliminality. To Harry T. Hunt, for your pioneering scholarship and your trust in sending me your life story. To Lauren Martin, whose brilliant 28-day accountability scheme provided the external structure I needed to write an academic book. iii To Coco Greens Vegan Café and Wellness Center and owner, Amy Kiger, for lending me an ideal private practice setting these past three years. To my treasured therapy clients, for the privilege of knowing, accompanying, and learning from each of you. To Jon Erdman, who sent me early and enthusiastic feedback from Alaska. To Libby Maxey, Sherry Cothran, Cindy Mundy Keisler, and Michelle Mundy, who saw the importance of this work and urged me to keep going. To my parents, Mark and Robin Rosser, for many forms of encouragement through what turned out to be a 7.5-year marathon. To Carolyn LaBarbera, Donna Michael, Sandra Griggs, Rebekah Jenkins, Myounghun Yun, and Dorothy Dean, for being my much-needed professional and personal support system. To KCPW, assistant extraordinaire, for befriending me and Wisteria Heights. To our (never officially named) Enneagroup – Reb Buxton, Doug Taylor, Merrill Farnsworth, Lynnette Davidson, Johnathan Johnson – you all were my knight’s move. To both Mary M.’s, for a taste of the Divine Feminine. To Kent Kreiselmaier, who was my colleague before becoming my husband, who first believed I could be a “master psychotherapist,” who helped me find my own voice. And to Zach, Hannah, and all my other “orange transliminals” whose vibrant, creative spirits compelled me to study this topic before I knew there was a word for it. * * * * * * * Soli Deo Gloria iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page GRATITUDE & ACKNOWLEDGMENTS………..……..……………………………..iii LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………..viii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION…………...…………………………………………………….….1 The Problem……………………………………………………………………….1 The Project………………………………………………………………………...3 Thesis……………………………………………………………………...3 Transliminality…………………………………………………….5 The Three Case Studies…………………………………………...6 Methodological Approach………………………………………………...7 Orienting Values…………………………………………………..7 Interdisciplinary Location…………………………………………8 Methods……………………………………………………………9 The Parameters…………………………………………………………………...10 Definitions………………………………………………………………..10 Creativity…………………………………………………………10 Mystical (or Transcendent or Spiritual) Experience……………..12 Psychosis, Psychosis-Proneness, Psycho“pathology”…………...15 Contribution…………………………………………………………...…18 Limitations……………………………………………………………….18 The Plan………………………………………………………………………….19 2. TRANSLIMINALITY THEORY…….…..………………………………………….21 Chapter Agenda………………………………………………………………….21 Michael A. Thalbourne and Colleagues’ Discovery of Transliminality…………22 Evidence That Transliminality Is a Valid Construct……………………………..25 Surveys and Statistics……………………………………………………25 Baseline EEG Differences……………………………………………….29 Probable Mechanisms of Transliminality………………………………………..31 Reduced D2 Gating………………………………………………………32 Altered Neurocognitive Patterns…………………………………………34 Where Transliminality Comes From…………………………………………….36 To Flourish or to Perish?: What Factors Interact with Transliminality to Determine Outcome?.............................................................................................38 v Hypothesized Connection with the Already-Established Trait of Sensitivity…...42 Highly Sensitive Person(ality)…………………………………………….42 HSP + HSS = TL?.......................................................................................46 Synthesis: Transliminality Theory………………………………………………48 Benefits of This Model…………………………………………………………..53 Summary…………………………………………………………………………56 3. ST. TERESA OF ÁVILA, MEDIEVAL MYSTIC…………….……………………57 St. Teresa of Ávila……………………………………………………………….57 Her Life…………………………………………………………………..57 Her Creativity…………………………………………………………….61 Her Experiences of Transcendence………………………………………63 Her Possible Psycho“pathology”………………………………………...66 Her Psychological and Spiritual Self-Understanding and Interpretations…………………………………………………………....69 Through the Lens of Transliminality Theory…………………………………….72 Teresa and Transliminality………………………………………………73 Teresa’s Flourishing and “Perishing”……………………………………79 Contextual Factors……………………………………………………….80 Parting Thoughts…………………………………………………………82 4. C. G. JUNG, ARCHETYPAL ANALYST…………………………..………………84 Carl Gustav Jung…………………………………………………………………84 His Life…………………………………………………………………..85 His Creativity…………………………………………………………….88 His Experiences of Transcendence………………………………………93 His Possible Psycho“pathology”…………………………………………97 His Psychological and Spiritual Self-Understanding and Interpretations………………………………………………………..…100 Through the Lens of Transliminality Theory…………………………………...103 Jung and Transliminality………………………………………………..104 Jung’s Flourishing and “Perishing”…………………………………….112 Contextual Factors……………………………………………………...113 Parting Thoughts………………………………………………………..116 5. ALANIS MORISSETTE, SPIRITUAL SONGSTRESS…………………………...118 Alanis Morissette……………………………………………………………….118 Her Life So Far…………………………………………………………120 Her Creativity…………………………………………………………...124 Her Experiences of Transcendence……………………………………..126 vi Her Possible Psycho“pathology”……………………………………….129 Her Psychological and Spiritual Self-Understanding and Interpretations…………………………………………………………..131 Through the Lens of Transliminality Theory…………………………………...134 Morissette and Transliminality…………………………………………134 Morissette’s Flourishing and “Perishing”………………………………140 Contextual Factors……………………………………………………...141 Parting Thoughts………………………………………………………..144 6. PSYCHOLOGICAL AND THEOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON TRANSLIMINALITY: A CORRELATIONAL CONVERSATION……………..146 Review………………………………………………………………………….146 James E. Loder………………………………………………………………….148 His Life…………………………………………………………………148 His Thought…………………………………………………………….150 Main Ideas………………………………………………………150 Relevance to Transliminality…………………………………...153 Harry T. Hunt…………………………………………………………………...155 His Life…………………………………………………………………155 His Thought…………………………………………………………….156 Main Ideas………………………………………………………157 Relevance to Transliminality…………………………………...160 Loder and Hunt in (Imaginary) Dialogue………………………………………160 The Nature of Transcendent States or Transforming Moments………..163 The (Potential) Purpose of Transcendent States or Transforming Moments………………………………………………………………..166 Further Distinctions between Loder and Hunt………………………….172 St. Teresa’s, Jung’s, and Morissette’s Contributions to the Conversation……..177 Summary………………………………………………………………………..181 7. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS……………………………………………………182 A Deepened, Integrative Understanding of Transliminality……………………182 Tending the Transliminal Temperament………………………………………..186 Recommendations for Pastoral Caregivers……………………………..187 Recommendations for Therapists………………………………………194 Remaining Questions and Future Work………………………………………...201 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...203 REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………206 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Transliminality Diagram………………………………………………………....50 2. Transliminality Diagram with Moderating Factors…………………..………….52 viii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION “Equations governing the turbulence of heated gases existed long before the problems of such gases had been precisely investigated. Similarly, we have long been in possession of mythologems which express the dynamics of certain subliminal processes, though these processes were only given names in very recent times.” —C.G. Jung1 The Problem In my previous and sometimes current life as a professional pianist, I have had some fascinating friends and colleagues. Immensely gifted, highly intelligent, passionate about their life and their art, with unique perspectives and perceptions often bordering on the mystical, these same individuals were usually eccentric, occasionally manic, often addicted to