After we have tasted the unifying experience of Union with God/Source/Love that we experience at ascension (enlightenment, bliss, etc.) we are cast out of that bliss into a process in which we are “tested like gold that is tested in fire.” The ancients have called this the journey of descent. Here we come face to face with all the aspects of ourselves that are not wholly rooted in love: our unhealed fears, past traumas, societal conditioning, and ego attachments. In this we are invited to confront our own inner “demons” and transform them into vehicles of Love so that we might fulfill the purpose of the human spiritual journey – the embodiment of Love/God.
In this six-week course, you will:
Explore the psychology of the journey of descent as it relates to human development.
Acknowledge and confront the challenges inherent in the journey of descent.
Learn the language and stages of descent through the Tree of Life as articulated in ancient pre-Christian mystical traditions.
Come to understand the Tree of Death as a vehicle of liberation from egoic attachments.
Find support in identifying that which limits your ability to know and be Love.
Provided with tools for transforming the “demons” experienced in the journey of descent into vehicles of Love.
Grow in becoming the embodiment of Love.
This course is:
Inspired by scholarship
Anchored in original source material
Grounded in sound mindfulness and creativity practices
Incorporating tried and tested methods for transformation
Rooted in the psychology of human development
** For those who have already taken the Beyond Ascension course, Tested in Fire stands on its own while going into much greater depth than was able to be covered in the Beyond Ascension class.
The Order of the Magdalene with Lauri Ann Lumby is firmly rooted in the four pillars of:
Spirituality
Science
Psychology
Education
The Order of the Magdalene is founded on the belief that pillars are not meant to contain or control but are intended to uplift while providing ongoing encouragement and support. It is a model based on empowerment, not on oppression.
Psychology – specifically Human Development
The primary focus of the Order of the Magdalene is to provide education, resources, and tools which support human beings in becoming self-actualized. Self-actualization, a term first coined by Kurt Goldstein and then popularized by Abraham Maslow, is a process by which human beings are compelled toward reaching their full potential. Maslow defined self-actualization as:
Self-actualization (also referred to as self-realization or self-cultivation) can be described as the complete realization of one’s potential as manifest in peak experiences which involve the full development of one’s abilities and appreciation for life. (Maslow, 1962)
Self-actualized people know:
Who they are.
How they are uniquely gifted.
How they are called to live out those gifts for the sake of their own fulfillment and in service to the betterment of the world.
Furthermore, self-actualized people have found a deep sense of inner contentment, along with a sense of meaning and purpose in their lives. Becoming self-actualized is the ultimate fulfillment of the human journey.
Spirituality
Spirituality is inherent in every person. Each one of us is driven by an invisible force that compels us to seek meaning and purpose in our lives. Connecting with this invisible force (however we define or identify that force) helps us to access inner guidance, knowledge, understanding, contentment, and peace. The Order of the Magdalene supports the unique spiritual journey and spiritual development of each individual by providing tools and practices that are universal and free of doctrine or dogma. Here western and eastern contemplative practices meet, providing a path consistent with our increasingly wholistic and secular world. Instead of experiencing these practices through the lens of division, we find union in an open dialog and exploration of all the ways in which human beings have nurtured this inherent yearning to explore mystery. In this way, we are empowered to discover our own truth along with the path of our highest good.
Science
History has shown us the endurance of spiritual/contemplative practices including mindfulness, meditation, silence, and contemplation, and the benefits experienced by those dedicated to these practices. With recent advances in science, specifically neurobiology, we can now see the proof of what before were only theories based on subjective observation. Through the science of such pioneers as Zinn, Davidson, and Newberg, the Order of the Magdalene has found validation and support for our methods.
Education
With training in adult education, developmental psychology, spiritual formation, and project-based learning, Lauri Ann Lumby, founder, and spiritual director of the Order of the Magdalene, has created an experiential learning model that is adaptable to the individual learning style and temperament of each participant. One-on-one support provides the additional resources that guarantee that the individual needs of each client and student are met and their formative desires fulfilled.
Putting it All Together
Through a solid foundation built upon the four pillars of psychology, spirituality, science and education, The Order of the Magdalene provides a comprehensive approach to the process of human development. Self-actualization is supported through our online classes, workshops, books, community gatherings and one-on-one support.
Spiritual bypass can best be described as: “the tendency to use spiritual ideas and practices to sidestep or avoid facing unresolved emotional issues, psychological wounds, and unfinished developmental tasks”(Welwood, J. (2000) [1984]. “Between heaven and earth: principles of inner work”. Toward a psychology of awakening: Buddhism, psychotherapy, and the path of personal and spiritual transformation. Boston: Shambhala Publications. pp. 11–21.).
In spiritual bypass, we avoid, ignore, deny, suppress and repress the challenges, difficulties, disappointments, and suffering that are inherent within the human condition. Spiritual bypass also includes avoidance and denial of the shadow. The shadow is made up of our unhealed wounds, unacknowledged fears and includes all the aspects of ourselves that we have rejected because we have deemed them unacceptable.
Spiritual bypass takes many forms, but in essence the action is the same – hoping, believing, acting as if we can simply meditate, pray, chant, or positively affirmation our struggles away. The universal outcome of spiritual bypass is always the same and is best articulated in the Buddhist saying, “What we resist will persist.” Through spiritual bypass, we are not dealing with, confronting, healing or transforming anything; we are simply sweeping it under the rug. As is true of everything we avoid, deny, ignore, the rug can only hold so much. The rug will eventually explode and everything we have shoved under it will come out to haunt us. Even if we are successful in keeping it all under the rug, what we have resisted and ignored will find its way out sideways – usually in non-loving behaviors toward ourselves or others. Often these behaviors become compulsive (ie: addictions), are disproportionate or uncharacteristic of our true nature.
Some very clear examples of spiritual bypass and the negative consequence of this pattern of behavior includes: the clergy sex abuse crisis, narcissistic behaviors, abuse, co-dependency, homophobia, violence against children, school shootings and other forms of terrorism. What we resist will persist and what we suppress will find its way out whether we want it to or not. I would further suggest that we are currently living in a world seriously caught up in its own bypass – ignoring, denying, projecting away the darkness and pretending that it is all ok when in fact it is not! Societal bypass is exhibited in our divisive culture where many refuse to see the truth that is staring them in the face because it makes them feel uncomfortable (triggering their own unacknowledged anxiety or unhealed fears), or who instead of acknowledging their role in darkness that exists in our society, either ignore it or project the blame onto someone else. The bottom line is that we cannot meditate, mantra, pray,“beam love,” think good thoughts, repeat positive affirmations, “La La” the darkness away. Until we learn to face our darkness (individually and collectively) we are guilty of bypass and the darkness will not only persist, it will become worse.
Now, I will wholeheartedly admit that I am not innocent as it relates to spiritual bypass. I too have ventured down its path. I will admit that it felt good there – for awhile – but eventually it kicked my ass! I have since learned that the only way out is through. If we want to be free of our inner fears, unhealed wounds, and perceived imperfections, we have to go deep into them, feel them, wallow in them, and THEN through our spiritual practices, find our way through them. In this, we are not covering the darkness with the light; neither are we turning the darkness into the light. Instead, we are finding the light that is already present within the darkness – if only we have the courage to go there.
The work of dealing with our shadow and confronting all that is broken within us is hard! It requires personal accountability, self-knowledge, courageous honesty, humility, vulnerability, and discipline. It also requires the understanding and belief that in the overall scheme of things, what we are tempted to call “darkness” is in fact our light. Within the struggle, suffering, struggles, challenges and all the things we want to deny or reject about our human experience is there to serve the light. It is within these perceived challenges where we find our greatest gifts.
People often ask me, “How do you know this stuff?” The short answer is – a lifetime of study. The longer answer is what I have come to call “embodied learning.” Yes, I have read literally hundreds of books on the topics I teach and in the areas that I counsel. But more than just reading, I have done my best to embody the best of what scholars before me have articulated through their words, and have applied the practices of the mystics and contemplators and experienced the benefit of these practices in my own life.
Below is just a glimpse into the many books I have studied in forming the foundation of the offerings of Soul School. The benefit to my client and students is that they don’t have to read all these books. They can just show up for the classes and enjoy the distillation of all I have accumulated and gathered in a lifetime of study, integration, and practice.
Lauri Ann Lumby Reading List 2022
Books Related to Mary Magdalene:
Scholarly Works:
Begg, Ean, The Cult of the Black Virgin, Chiron Publications, 2006.
Bourgeault, Cynthia, The Meaning of Mary Magdalene – Discovering the Woman at the Heart of
Christianity, Shambhala Publications, 2010.
Haskins, Susan, Mary Magdalene – Myth and Metaphor, Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993.
King, Karen, L., The Gospel of Mary of Magdala – Jesus and the First Woman Apostle,
Polebridge Press, 2003.
Leloup, Jean-Yves, Judas and Jesus – Two Faces of a Single Revelation, Inner Traditions, 2006.
Leloup, Jean-Yves, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Inner Traditions, 2002.
Leloup, Jean-Yves, The Gospel of Philip, Inner Traditions, 2003.
Leloup, Jean-Yves, The Gospel of Thomas, Inner Traditions, 2005.
Leloup, Jean-Yves, The Sacred Embrace of Jesus and Mary – The Sexual Mystery at the Heart of
the Christian Tradition, Inner Traditions, 2005.
MacDermot, Violet, The Fall of Sophia – A Gnostic Text on the Redemption of Universal
Consciousness, Lindisfarne Books, 2001.
Starbird, Margaret, The Woman with the Alabaster Jar, Bear & Company, 1993.
Starbird, Margaret, The Goddess in the Gospels – Reclaiming the Sacred Feminine, Bear &
Company, 1998.
Starbird, Margaret, Mary Magdalene – Bride in Exile, Bear & Company, 2005.
Fiction or Channeled Works:
Heartsong, Claire, Anna – Grandmother of Jesus. S.E.E. Publishing, 2002.
Heartsong, Claire, Anna – the Voice of the Magdalenes, S.E.E Publishing, 2010.
Kenyon, Thomas & Sion, Judi, The Magdalen Manuscript, Tom Kenyon Orb, 2006.
McGowan, Kathleen, The Expected One, Touchstone, 2007.
McGowan, Kathleen, The Book of Love, Touchstone, 2010.
Pevehouse, Dolores, I, The Christ, Hampton Roads, 2000.
Wilson, Stuart, Essenes – Children of the Light, Ozark Mountain Publishing, 2005.
Wilson, Stuart & Prentis, Joanna, Power of the Magdalene, Ozark Mountain Publishing, 2008.
Unitive Gnosticism/Gnostic Christianity:
Douglas-Klotz, Neil, The Hidden Gospel: Decoding the Spiritual Message of the Aramaic Jesus,
Quest Books, 1999.
Douglas-Klotz, Neil, Prayers of the Cosmos, Harper One 1993.
Eisler, Riane, The Chalice and the Blade, Harper Collins, 1987.
Lauri Ann Lumby 