Sacred Desire
Sacred Desire
Growing in Compassionate Living
Is the call to spirituality embedded in human biology? Authors Nancy K. Morrison and Sally K. Severino draw on cutting-edge research, including the recent discovery of brain "mirror neurons" and the elucidation of the physiology of social affiliation and attachment, to make a bold case that we are, in fact, biologically wired to seek oneness with the divine. They have termed this innate urge "sacred Desire."
In their new book on the subject, ,em>Sacred Desire: Growing in Compassionate Living, Morrison and Severino, both highly esteemed academic psychiatrists, draw on neurophysiology, relationship studies, research on spiritual development, and psychotherapy to show how spirituality is intimately connected with our physical being. The authors offer several clinical examples of how recognizing sacred Desire can advance a person's healing and they provide an action plan for using Desire to move from fear to love of self, others, and all creation.
In addition to psychiatrists and neurophysiologists, who will undoubtedly welcome this significant contribution to their fields of study, Sacred Desire is sure to appeal as well to the much wider audience of spiritual seekers looking for intellectually and scientifically credible ways to understand spirituality in today's world.
Nancy K. Morrison, MD, is associate professor of psychiatry at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, where she serves as director of both residency training and psychotherapy training. Currently in private practice, she focuses on issues of attunement and shame. She has spoken widely on these issues and psychopathology, particularly in the area of post-traumatic stress disorder. Dr. Morrison is also an ordained priest in the Evangelical Anglican Church in America.
Sally K. Severino, MD, is professor emeritus of psychiatry at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center. Dr. Severino is certified by the American Psychoanalytic Association and served as the first woman president of the American College of Psychoanalysts. She is also a Felician Associate of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Province in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Together with Dr. Nancy Morrison, she leads retreats and workshops based on their collaborative work.
Foreword by Paula Huston / ix
Introduction / xi
1. Womb of Compassion: The Beginning of Life and Love / 3
2. The Grace of Gazing / 10
3. The Widening Boundaries of Life and Love / 23
4. Living in Sacred Desire / 34
5. The Distortion of Desire / 46
6. Beyond Distortion: Reconfiguring Our Past Today / 61
7. The Healing Power of Desire: Practical Steps to Loving Self and Others / 73
8. Redemptive Attuning: Desire’s Continuing Journey / 102
9. Incarnated Spirit: The Work of Restoring Community / 123
10. Toward a World of Compassion: Beginning to Live and Love Globally / 138
Glossary / 157
Acknowledgments / 161
Notes / 163
Index / 175
