Frederic Lenoir

Frederic Lenoir is not in favour of denying emotions; imagine, he suggests, theatre without comedy and tragedy! How arid a life without emotions! An intelligent connection with what one goes through in life and a trust in oneself is what makes one free. He advocates getting to the truth of how we feel, and why we feel, not assume a false positiveness or trying to discard our feelings. Feeling is what makes us human. Even trying to be aware of being aware detract from a core feeling. He looks from a Jungian and a Catholic perspective at how religions should be reinterpreted in the light of modern needs. He writes: ‘I am indeed convinced that we are going in the long term towards a certain interpenetration of Christianity and Buddhism, towards a synthesis between on the one hand the meaning of the person, which is the central message of Jesus, for whom every human being is unique, and on the other hand this work of interiorization.‘ and ‘When you are moved by your emotions, you can allow yourself to be manipulated, which is why you must be careful to keep your critical mind to protect yourself from false prophets. We can also delude ourselves, confuse the magical and the sacred. But that does not prevent reacting against contemporary materialism, against a mechanized world, controlled by technology and by money. That’s the positive side of all this New Age-type alternative religiosity, whatever its excesses.’