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Rating: 
Summary: Christian symbolism in a nut shell
Review: According to Edinger the individual ego is the the stable wherein the Christ-child is born. That view can turn the stomach on any Christian or Jungian. Edinger is not really a Jungian. He says in the book: (ch."Resurrection..." concerning Paulus''heavenly body' (my tr. from Swedish))"My own hypothesis is that they mean the goal of individuation, i.e the transformation of the personal ego to archetype". That the personal ego should transform to an archetype does certainly not comply with Jungian theory. This is not how archetypes form. The book is not much more than a compilation of excerpts from the Bible, Jung's books, etcetera. The author does some amplification, but he omits discussing to any depth the intriguing theological and psychological implications of the Passion of Christ. This book was not at all needed. He must have been a lazy dog, this Edward F. Edinger. Any student of Comparative History of Religion could have created this little compilation in a few days. It is not worth the money. If you are a Christian it will hurt your religious feelings. If you are a Jungian it will hurt your intellect.
Rating: 
Summary: A superficial book conveying a reductive view of Christendom
Review: According to Edinger the individual ego is the the stable wherein the Christ-child is born. That view can turn the stomach on any Christian or Jungian. Edinger is not really a Jungian. He says in the book: (ch."Resurrection..." concerning Paulus''heavenly body' (my tr. from Swedish)) "My own hypothesis is that they mean the goal of individuation, i.e the transformation of the personal ego to archetype". That the personal ego should transform to an archetype does certainly not comply with Jungian theory. This is not how archetypes form. The book is not much more than a compilation of excerpts from the Bible, Jung's books, etcetera. The author does some amplification, but he omits discussing to any depth the intriguing theological and psychological implications of the Passion of Christ. This book was not at all needed. He must have been a lazy dog, this Edward F. Edinger. Any student of Comparative History of Religion could have created this little compilation in a few days. It is not worth the money. If you are a Christian it will hurt your religious feelings. If you are a Jungian it will hurt your intellect.
Rating: 
Summary: Something Not For The Literal-Minded
Review: I've often referred to Edward Edinger as "the primier theologian of Jungian psychology." By this, I don't mean that Edinger knows a lot about theology (which he does). Rather, I mean that Edinger is one of those earlier Jungians who accepted Jung's views as gospel facts to be believed. Fortunately, he was also a highly intelligent man who was capable of expounding the details of Jung's personal psychology. Many of his books explored various aspects of Western myth and religion. THE CHRISTIAN ARCHETYPE is one of the few that looked at New Testament themes. It's deceptively brief. None of the individual chapters gets hugely into depth. But, Edinger subtly pulls the rug out from under the expected interpretation of these scenes from the life of Jesus. Edinger, you may know, was raised a Jehovah's Witness, and thus he was steeped in the kind of purely literal interpretation of the Bible that most American Christianity promotes. So, it's long been of interest to me that he ended up a Jungian analyst, on the far other end of the spectrum, examining the purely symbolic meaning of religion. Whether one is or isn't a believer is really irrelevent when approaching this material. Adding the symbolic to your current world view will create a more balanced whole. Yes, and it also makes life remarkably more interesting.
Rating:
Summary: Something Not For The Literal-Minded
Review: I've often referred to Edward Edinger as "the primier theologian of Jungian psychology." By this, I don't mean that Edinger knows a lot about theology (which he does). Rather, I mean that Edinger is one of those earlier Jungians who accepted Jung's views as gospel facts to be believed. Fortunately, he was also a highly intelligent man who was capable of expounding the details of Jung's personal psychology. Many of his books explored various aspects of Western myth and religion. THE CHRISTIAN ARCHETYPE is one of the few that looked at New Testament themes. It's deceptively brief. None of the individual chapters gets hugely into depth. But, Edinger subtly pulls the rug out from under the expected interpretation of these scenes from the life of Jesus. Edinger, you may know, was raised a Jehovah's Witness, and thus he was steeped in the kind of purely literal interpretation of the Bible that most American Christianity promotes. So, it's long been of interest to me that he ended up a Jungian analyst, on the far other end of the spectrum, examining the purely symbolic meaning of religion. Whether one is or isn't a believer is really irrelevent when approaching this material. Adding the symbolic to your current world view will create a more balanced whole. Yes, and it also makes life remarkably more interesting.
Rating:
Summary: Christian symbolism in a nut shell
Review: If you wants to understand the symbolism of the christian myth and don't want to spend hours reading in depth, this is your book It answers the question, what is the point of Christ's message from Jungs perspective, writings and indepth study. Dr. Edinger has many other books that go much deeper if your curiosity is tweaked. If anyone understood the complex implications and meaning of the "archetype" as Jung used it, it would be Dr. Edinger He tries to reach a audience with varying degrees of exposure to Jungian ideas. He should be applauded for that effort. I realize he doesn't need me to champion his work.. But I will anyway. In the Swedish review previous to mine Dr. Edinger is accused of perhaps being a "lazy dog". Well, perhaps the writer should read Dr. Edinger's writing that speaks to the reality of projection in the psyche. I am a christian and I loved the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Studies in Jungian Psychology by Jungian Analysts, no. 28
Review: In prose and in pictures carefully selected from traditional art, the author examines in depth some essential stages -
from Annunciation through Crucifixion to Resurrection - in the life of Christ and in those who by choice or fate become
immersed in their own destiny. 34 illustrations. Index.
"Certainly a must-read for the thoughtful Christian." - Mission Bell.
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