12 Universal Spiritual Principles to Freedom and Intimacy

Live Session Info

Dates: May 23 – June 27, 2024
Times: Thursdays, 5:00 – 6:30 PM Pacific

Course Summary

Most people experience painful difficulties in life, such as the death of a loved one, conflict within marriage, the loss of a job, or addiction. Such challenges can be overwhelming when faced alone. This six-session course explores 12 spiritual principles that can help one deal with the difficulties they face in a healthy and holistic way.

Course Description

Over the course of life, most people experience serious challenges, like death of a loved one, conflict within marriage, the loss of a job, an addiction, serious problems with a child, loss of life purpose, etc. When such challenges require help beyond one’s own resources, the 12 spiritual principles covered in this course open the path to outside help which solves the challenge. This is the way to deal with the difficulties one faces in a healthy and holistic way.

In this six-session course, Karl will guide participants in a brief study of the twelve spiritual principles for solving any human personal problem and how the solution increases intimacy with oneself, others, and the power of help outside oneself. The twelve universal spiritual principles are generalized from the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. We will link these principles to the writing of Alfred North Whitehead in order to understand them in transreligious spiritual ways that are compatible with process-relational thought. This course is a study of the twelve principles. To actually solve problems, people work and practice the twelve principles in daily life. Millions of people have succeeded in solving their problems through these principles. Karl, who has successfully used the principles for some 35 years, and helped hundreds of others to practice them, will share his experience. A guest who has newly begun practice will share experience. Participants in the course will have the opportunity to follow up the course with sessions for working/practicing the principles and sharing their experiences.

Course Outline

1. Week One: Introduction to the Course
   a. How Whitehead’s Philosophy Applies to these Principles
   b. Overview of the 12 Principles
   c. Why the Principles Work for Regular People, Not Just Addicts
2. Week Two: Principles 1-3: Establishing the Conditions for Transformation
   a. Honesty: Facing and Admitting the Problem
   b. Trust: Embracing trust in the Creative Power of Life could Overcome It
   c. Agency: Making the Decision to Follow the Lure toward Higher Possibility
3. Week Three: Principles 4-5: Acknowledging One’s Humanness
   a. Courage: Finding and Facing One’s Missteps; to Revealing One’s Value and Strengths
   b. Self-Disclosure: Admitting One’s Missteps to Oneself and Another person
4. Week Four: Principles 6-7: Stepping forward in Trust and Embracing Change
   a. Readiness: Making a Decision to Move toward Growth
   b. Humility: Asking for Help to Embrace Growth and Novelty
5. Week Five: Principles 8-9: Healing Relationships with Others
   a. Openness: Adopting an Openness to Reconciliation with Others
   b. Reconciliation: Taking Action to Repair Relationship When Possible/Safe
6. Week Six: Principles 10-12: Commitment to Lifelong Practice and Growth
   a. Resilience: Making a Commitment to Continual Honesty and Growth
   b. Resourcefulness: Developing the Capacity to Source Spiritual Resources when Needed
   c. Service: Helping Others through Example and Action