About the Center for Sacred Psychology...

The Center for Sacred Psychology, in the Palms area of west Los Angeles, serves those interested in the marriage of spirituality and the psychology of C.G.Jung.  It was founded in 1984 by poetry therapist Thomas M. Hedberg and art therapist Betsy Caprio, joined over the years by a network of psychotherapists, spiritual directors, supervisors, friends and colleagues.

This website is designed to be a mini-Center-on-line, offering some of our time-tested aids to psychospiritual growth to those outside southern California. Just as the Center for Sacred Psychology has been designed as an "oasis," where busy seekers can be refreshed and the broad transpersonal backdrop of life renewed, it's hoped that this cyber-version may provide a long-distance rest stop for others.  The website is made possible by collaboration with long-time Center friend, staff member, web designer and ePublisher, Cassi Bassolino of Studiotwentytwo, who holds an M.A. in Clinical Art Therapy.

Betsy and Thomas are a married couple--each, a lifetime explorer of many ways of soul-tending--who, for decades, have shared their adventures in the science of the soul through pastoral and educational ministries. The Hedbergs were brought together in the early 1980s by their mutual love of the work of Morton Kelsey and John Sanford, Episcopal priests who shone the light of Jungian psychology onto many aspects of religion and spirituality.

Thomas, whose doctorate is in psychology, serves as a chaplain to interfaith groups, and has greatly appreciated opportunities to present at two Parliaments of the World's Religions (Barcelona and Melbourne).  He has a special fondness for stories of animals in the psyche--and the Hedbergs' home and office have been blessed by a succession of much-loved animals, including rescue cat Tobias (who has words of wisdom to share, below).  Betsy's doctoral work is in applied spirituality, with a focus on the use of visual imagery in psychospiritual development.  Much of her energy, today, revolves around artmaking--collage, quilting, dance, and other creative forms--as spiritual practice.

Over time, the Soul Food section of this website will feature all these interests, as well as basic Jungian topics such as dreamwork, spiritual traditions of the world, fairy tales and mythology, Sandplay, journaling, and examples of the archetypes in modern dress from popular culture and world news. 

Some ask, "Why so much focus on the interior life when the outer world is so beset with troubles?"  The wisdom traditions of the world address this question. Each answers in its own tongue, saying, "Those who tend their souls are not only better equipped to help others in need, but also send out a ripple effect that helps create consciousness in the world-soul." Over the years, the Center has designed its services as nurture and reinforcement for those in the trenches--that is, the worlds of education, health, ministry and many other service fields (including family life). One of the most important questions we ask, all the time, is "What are the fruits of the inner work?"

The Center is pleased to announce the publication of its first eBook, The Legends of Mary's Girlhood, available for purchase and download.  Please see eBook for details.  Information on the availability of earlier works by Center network authors can be found in Printed Works .

Thomas, Betsy and others of the Center network--including Tobias--can be reached by regular postal mail sent to P.O.Box 643, Gateway Station, Culver City, CA 90232-0643.

For appointments with Thomas (spiritual direction, and supervision for California LMFT interns, spiritual directors, and poetry therapy mentees), please call 310/280-0709.

To contact our eBook editor and publisher Cassi, please

Thank you for visiting our website. We hope you check back for new eBooks, Printed Works and updates on our Soul Food and Online Studies pages.

 

 

*Tobias the Wise and Peaceful (aka Toby), our Center co-spiritual director, likes to read....well, he likes to sit on books.  On this page he shares quotations, his current favorite being the words of a Taos, New Mexico Pueblo chief, whose name means "Mountain Lake."  On Jung's 1925 visit to Taos, this native American spoke of how the Pueblo religious practices are undertaken on behalf of all humankind.  Jung reflects wistfully, in his autobiography (Memories, Dreams, Reflections, 1961,Chapter IX), that these spiritual practices made his host-peoples' lives "cosmologically meaningful."

Previous Tobias quotes include:
(Society is) not changed unless the individual is changed .  ~ Carl Gustav Jung, 1950, in "The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious" (Collected Works, Vol.9i, par.618).

 

Viewers have asked for more details about Tobias. As a ginger tabby, is he like Garfield? Morris? No. Toby is a lover, who's happiest when curled in someone's lap (his vet says yellow cats are the feline equivalent of golden retrievers). His very loud 'motor' makes us suspect his motto to be: "I purr, therefore I am."

Tobias was probably a kitten in 2000. He roamed the streets of west L.A. for several years, not faring very well, until good folks from Kitten Rescue found him and restored his health. Our Center has been blessed by his gentle presence since 2008. This handsome yellow tom is named for the biblical Tobias, who also--guided by the archangel Raphael, patron saint of happy meetings--wandered far and finally returned home. For those who live at and come to the Center, Toby offers peace, love, and a light dusting of golden fur, which we prefer to think of as our fashion signature.

 

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