Customer Reviews

Evil: The Shadow Side of Reality

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Sanford is an Episcopal priest and Jungian analyst. This book is his attempt to reconcile CG Jung's conception of the psychological Shadow with the Christian theology of evil. Though written for a popular audience, this book succeeds to a large degree.

In turn Sanford covers the perceptions of evil from a mythological perspective (dualism), from the Old Testament perspective (monotheism), and from the New Testament perspective (dualism beneath a monotheistic umbrella). He contrasts the views of Jesus and Paul, finding in Jesus support for the Jungian concept of persona, while condemning Paul as the originator of the Church's historical denial of the duality of human nature. He evaluates patristic and more recent emendations of the devil legend, going so far as to skillfully retell and analyze the Jekyll/Hyde story.

Sanford takes a very balanced perspective on both the Christian and Jungian side of this issue. He presents both cases fairly and critically. Both traditions are personally valued by Sanford, and this respect shines through his presentation.

In the end he concludes with a persuasive reading of Christian theology through a Jungian lens, finding in crucifixion/resurrection a theological statement of wholeness compatible with Jung's integration of the Shadow.

A book like this is likely to be based upon many technical, scholarly works. While there are a few footnotes, I wish Sanford had included more biographical information for those wishing to dig more deeply.

We today prefer "to believe that the evils of our time somehow do not exist in the human soul...but have political or economic causes, and could be eliminated by a different political system, more education, the correct psychological conditioning, or one more war to wipe out the enemy..." (p. 15). So begins Sanford's remarkable endeavor to explain how denial of negative feelings and attributes can lead to the projection of "villains out there." Explaining Jungian theory in relation to Christian belief is a difficult job (he points out that St. Paul urged people to deny their shadows), but Sanford mostly manages it. The section on theories and theologies of evil was tough going at times, but the chapter that used the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as an illustration made it all worthwhile. This is a remarkable book on a difficult topic.

Like all of John Sanford's books, this one combines a Jungian approach with a Christian one ... but not the cut-and-dried, live-by-rote Christianity that shuts down thought & exploration. Sanford isn't interested in comfirming the mindset (or rut) of the unquestioning & self-satisfied Christian. He calls for a living faith, one which examines & challenges the inner being of the individual.

Here he delves into the question of Evil: what is it, really? And how do we cope with it? Refusing to take the easy route of placing it all Out There Somewhere, he explains the need to face the darkness within ourselves -- and more, to accept it as part of ourselves, to learn from it, to integrate it into our lives & so lessen its power over us.

This won't be a book for those who believe in safety, or in living by dogma & authority. It places the responsibility for understanding Evil & coming to terms with it squarely in our hands alone. It requires that we question what we've been taught, what we've believed, in order to come to a living, personally meaningful truth. For those willing to walk this more difficult path, the rewards will be great. Highly recommended!

John Sanford brilliantly crafts a study on the nature of evil in our world. Instead of being preachy and trite, he make valuable points about the importance of understanding the origins of evil in a detached manner.
I feel the approach to understanding evil is a necessary and healthy one. We must all see our shadow side and understand that evil in not something we need fear but attempt to understand and analyze.
Powerful and helpful, Sanford's ideas are conveyed in a basic yet deep manner. I highly recommend this book.
It will help the reader to understand others and themselves and the evil which is always with us in our world.

John A. Sanford is a first rank scholar with an ability to simplify complex ideas and show they relate to real life. He is also been a profilic writter with many excellent books to his credit, especially books that relate or reinterpret Christianity through the lens of Jungian Psychology.

I work in the psychology field myself and I am extremely impressed with this author's work. His writing is straightforward, balanced, impartial, open, curious and often intimate. This is a man who has more than academic knowledge and a deep intellectual understanding of Christianity.

While I acknowledge that this author is best-of-breed, as with any other, I don't worship him or his opinions. However, he does what any good author does in this area, provoke meaningful questions, ignite the imagination and present well argued ways of looking at things that are often novel without imposing his beliefs on anyone else.

This look at EVIL while more psychological than religious in the conventional sense of the word is definitely a worthwhile read. Mr. Sanford enters this mysterious territory with humility and deep respect for all we don't know and may never know completely.

If the question of EVIL to you is interesting, you will enjoy this book no matter what your level of education, understanding of psychology, etc. A nice lighter read to go along with it is When Bad Things Happen to Good People. You may also find Jung's Map of the Soul: An Introduction a very helpful in-depth reference, if you want to have a deeper understanding of Jung.

This is one of the best books I have ever read and although the subject matter seems heavy, Sanford presents it in a light manner.
I found this book compelling. It was hard to put it down. It really gets into the idea of the shadow in a way I have not seen before.
I whole-heartedly recommend this book!

This is one of the best books I have ever read and although the subject matter seems heavy, Sanford presents it in a light manner.
I found this book compelling. It was hard to put it down. It really gets into the idea of the shadow in a way I have not seen before.
I whole-heartedly recommend this book!

When I first entered Seminary, I was told to pick up any books by John Sanford that ended up on my reading list, and I picked this one up as reading for my class in counseling.

Over the years, psychology and Christianity have often been perceived as being at odds, so it is unique to find an author that touches on both.

Perhaps one of the most critical ideas I brought away from this book came from the chapter, "Jesus, Paul, and the Shadow." He speaks of how, in 1 Timothy, Paul talks about the importance of impeccable character in clergy and leaders of the church.

What touched me was his comments concerning the ideals that clergy feel compelled to follow, and the fact that as a result, we often end up living a facade and mask to our congregations, since they are shocked to discover that God created Clergy with "an ordinary amount of mud on their feet."

He speaks of the importance of understanding salvation and grace, and how putting these unreasonable expectations upon Clergy is to deny their own dark side.

Partly as a result of this book, I made a commitment to be an imperfect pastor. No, not deliberately imperfect, but rather ready to be vulnerable and open and to allow members of my congregations to understand that God loves me in the same way that God loves them, imperfect people, struggling for perfection. This mirrors another book I recently read, Jesus + Nothing = Everything, and I recommend exploring both books for pastors.

Although this book was originally written in 1981, it is an excellent resource in investigating the history, the ontology, and the understanding of sin and who we are as a real people.

I'm not done reading this book yet. I read at least a half dozen books at a time and this is the book I am reading most the time. It is well written so it is entertaining and easy to read. Anyone can learn something from the book. Though I'm not done with this book I am coming to the end and wish there were more. The findings make sense with other writings on psychology I've read. It's enlightening and my pick for suggested reading for everyone.

The author points out that many of the things we call evil are actually the hand of God at work. What we call evil should be called inconvenient in many cases.

This book, the Bible, the Koran and "The Prince and Other Discourses" have made the most profound impact on my philosphy. Pretty heady company.