Gerald May

It's no secret that I love to read. It seems I have a constantly growing list of books and an even larger number of books which find their way into my apartment and next to my bed. This summer, I want to establish a list of books to read (I think I read 2 of the 10 books I set for my goal last summer), but I think I should probably just try to finish off some of the half-dozen or so books that I've already begun. It's not that I don't enjoy the books I begin, but simply find another that catches my attention on any given day and allow my attention to shift. But it is true that I do finish some of the books I begin. Over the last two years, I have read three books by one author who has quickly become one of my favorites: Gerald May.

May, who passed away in 2005, "practiced medicine and psychiatry for twenty-five years before becoming a senior fellow in contemplative theology and psychology at the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation in Bethseda, Maryland." I gather that May grew disillusioned with various aspects of psychology, and I appreciate his frankness in that area. And yet his psychological understanding adds a unique depth to his various writings. Here are the three books I've read so far:

1. The Wisdom of Wilderness: Experiencing the Healing Power of Nature. This book May's final, and it is beautifully written. May explores his own journey into the wilderness, both the literal wild of nature and the most existential wild of his being. He wonderfully weaves these two together as he discusses what he calls the "Power of the Slowing," something I think may benefit us all. One of my favorite quotes from the book is found on the penultimate page, where he discusses how "love dances in freedom." "Love is the pervading passion of all things that draws diversity into oneness, that knows and pleads for union, that aches for goodness and beauty, that suffers loss and destruction. Love is the Power that births and grieves, the laughter that fills the heavens, the tears that water the earth. Love is the energy that fuels, fills, and embraces everything everywhere. And there is no end to it, ever" (p. 189). Knowing that he was about to die as he wrote this book, I appreciate May's honesty and candidness with some very prevalent existential issues.
2. Addiction & Grace: Love and Spirituality in the Healing of Addictions. This book is likely May's most famous, and deservedly so. May draws on his solid medical and psychological understanding of addictions and integrates this understanding into a spiritual framework. The final piece is a must-read for anyone interested in not only a broader understanding of addictions, but also interested in understanding the spiritual components that are at play. This book educates and informs, but also challenges the reader to examine their own addictions. May proposes that we are all addicted as we all displace onto something that which is rightfully God's. It is when we face and understand our addictions which makes grace all that more beautiful. May writes, "To be alive is to be addicted, and to be alive and addicted is to stand in need of grace" (p.11). This work also helps to relieve some of the stigma associated with addictions. As a clinician, my addictions may not be as daily inhibiting or socially problematic as the heroin addict or the alcoholic, but that doesn't mean I don't have my own addictions or stand in the exact same need of grace.
3. The Dark Night of the Soul: A Psychiatrist Explores the Connection Between Darkness and Spiritual Growth. If I have to be honest, this was my least favorite of the three books mentioned here, but I still read through the entire thing in 3 days, which says something. In this work, May examines the lives of Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross, who both lived in Spain in the fourteenth century. Sounds exciting, right? Stay with it. It is common within Christian circles to hear mention of the "dark night of the soul," and May examines it's origins from a historical context, and the examination is often illuminating. When we hear "dark night of the soul," we usually conjure up connotations of depression and darkness, times when we feel spiritually naked and alone. While these connotations may have some relevance, May's description of the dark night is much more complex, and much more captivating. He describes the dark night as a "romance between God and the human soul that liberates us to love one another" (Introduction). In short, it's worth reading.

Well, those are my 3 picks from the author Gerald May. Thanks for reading.