Thursday, April 28, 2005
FR. ROHR AND THE ENNEAGRAM
Fr. Richard Rohr's theology, as Fr. Sibley explains, is heretical at least in part. His radical grace that abandons "strict dogma and highly structured formulae" is in fact antinomian. He perceives himself above the dictates of the Church of Jesus Christ, and eligible to generate his own version of theology while calling himself Catholic.
How many does he infect with this faulty theology through his talks about radical grace at the Center for Pastoral Leadership in the Cleveland Diocese? We may never know.
But it doesn't stop there.
Fr. Rohr is also a proponent of the occult enneagram. His website indicates:
Scripture as liberation, the integration of action and contemplation, community building, peace and justice issues, male spirituality, the enneagram, and eco-spirituality would all be themes that he addresses in service of the Gospel.
Mary Jo Anderson explains:
Shrouded in an ancient, semimysterious past, the Enneagram Theory of Personality is often compared to the better-known Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory. What most Catholics do not know is that the Enneagram has its origins in the occult, specifically in alchemy, Sufi mysticism, whirling dervishes, astrology, Hindu mantras, and the occult Kabbala. ...
As the popularity of the Enneagram grows, so does the concern that this bogus New Age practice is being more widely accepted among Catholics. That's the opinion of Fr. Mitch Pacwa, S.J., of the University of Dallas. Pacwa is best known for his witty and intelligent debunking of the New Age movement. "I was one of the first teachers of the Enneagram in this country," he reports, "and I learned it in Chicago from Father Bob Ochs. I taught it to Father Richard Rohr in his kitchen! Now he is an Enneagram expert with books and tapes, hopping across the country giving workshops." ...
Pacwa's book, Catholics and the New Age Movement, devotes a chapter to the Enneagram, "Occult Roots of the Enneagram." An enigmatic Greek Armenian, George Gurdjieff, born in Russia about 1870, is generally acknowledged as the bearer of the enneagram to the West.
Bernice Glatzer Rosenthal mentions Gurdjieff in her book The Occult in Russian and Soviet Culture:
Destalinization and the collapse of communism created favorable conditions for the occult revival that is so apparent in Russia today. Open interest in the occult surged in the Gorbachev years (1985-91). ...
Theosophists, Anthroposophists, and followers of Gurdjieff and Uspensky have emerged from the underground. The Symbolists and the God-seekers are in vogue, so the occult ideas embedded in their writings are finding a new audience. (p. 29)
This is further evidence of the antinomianism embraced by Fr. Richard Rohr. What place does this have in the beliefs of a Catholic? Yet there is little doubt that it has gotten into seminaries and retreats as Anderson's article indicates. The occult has found a warm and embracing home in Catholic spirituality through deluded priests like Fr. Richard Rohr.
The Catholic Culture document library also reports on Rohr's efforts to spread the enneagram:
The Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC) is situated on the parish property of Holy Family Church in Albuquerque. From this site, retreats and workshops are made available to the city's progressive Catholics. The center is New Mexico's Call to Action hub, and well-known CTA personalities, such as radical feminist Rosemary Radford Ruether and '60s war protester Daniel Berrigan, have been speakers at the center in the last several years; also offered are alternative spirituality programs, such as Dr. Ruben Habito's annual retreat weekend at the center that includes "instruction in the elements of Zen practice."
CAC's founder, Fr. Richard Rohr, is a prolific writer and retreat master. He has done as much as anyone to spread the study of the enneagram around the United States.
It would seem, then, that The Cardinal Suenens Center, an institution with the sonsorship of John Carroll University, is promoting occultism to Catholic pastoral leaders with Bishop Pilla's blessing, or at the very least without Bishop Pilla's censorship. The Diocese of Cleveland website's official calendar announces the March 8, 2005 Richard Rohr event.
The Cardinal Suenens Center and the Charismatic Movement would seem to be of a piece.
Cardinal Suenens' support was the backbone of the fledgling Charismatic Movement. He did as much as any member of the hierarchy to make the Charismatic Movement happen. The Center dedicated to his name is also dedicated to carrying out his ideals. The involvement of the Holy Spirit is paramount to the work of this center.
Fr. Rohr is scheduled to lecture at a Catholic Charismatic Renewal event in England on September 10-11, 2005 titled "Come and See" at the Cathedral in Liverpool. Apparently the Catholic Charismatic Renewal across the pond is comfortable with occultism as well.
The Harvesters, a men's organization which comes out of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal features a team member who has studied the Enneagram:
GREG McCRAVE I was born and brought up on the Wirral 40 years ago. I live in Preston and am married to Rose. Together we have two children Joseph (14) and Bethany (12)."... "I've a degree in Religious Studies and my list of spiritual interests are: involvement in every parish ministry known to man (except flower arranging but wouldn't mind trying to prove that I am in touch with my feminine side!); the Enneagram (a great tool - especially for men - as gives permission for us to talk about and discover more about ourselves); Justice & Peace and Fairtrade; Scripture study; Contemplation and Meditation; Contemporary Christian Music.
Again it is obvious that occultism has found a home in the Charismatic Renewal.
Last October the Advanced Enneagram was on the calendar of the Diocese of Oakland, specifically on October 30. Occultism is apparently at home in the Oakland Diocese as well as the Cleveland Diocese.
In San Francisco the online magazine "Charismatic" features a story on page 10 titled "Vocation--The Call" by Rich Heffern which references the Enneagram:
I wonder if the whole identity-in-diversity question doesn't go much further than just the four or nine types we see in the Myers-Briggs or Enneagram models...down to that unique individual image that resides in each and every one of us many billions on the planet.
The article also references radical Eco-spirituality promoter Brian Swimme as well, but that's a matter for another day.
In light of the Swimme reference, it's worth noting however, that on Richard Rohr's website, Center for Action and Contemplation, there is ample reference to centering prayer, and the calendar features a "Summer Solstice Celebration scheduled for June 15, 6-9, which includes walking the labyrinth. It is scheduled to be held in the CAC garden/labyrinth. More evidence the center is comfortable with occultism.
Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us!
