Dark Splendor

Mistakes, disappointments, suffering, and heartbreak can prevent us from growing physically, emotionally, even spiritually, or they can propel us to a new way of life. Building on the contributions of therapists, holistic healers, and spiritual mentors such as Richard Rohr, James Hollis, Elizabeth Lesser, Bill Plotkin, Ken Wilber, and Thich Nhat Hanh, Dark Splendor takes us on a journey into ""depth"" spirituality, exploring the two halves of life, noting how the perspectives and experiences of the first half of life either leave us frozen emotionally and spiritually, or serve as stepping stones to the vibrant maturity called ""the second half of life.""

This ""further journey"" is not chronological, nor does one magically stumble upon it at midlife or in times of crisis, though these often serve as catalysts. The second journey is largely unknown today, even by people we consider deeply religious, since most individuals and institutions remain stymied in the preoccupations of the first half of life, establishing identity, creating boundary markers, and seeking security. The first-half-of-life task, while essential, is not the full journey. Furthermore, one cannot walk the second journey with first-journey tools. One needs a new toolkit. Dark Splendor provides the transformational tools that help transport us to the mystery and beauty of the second half of life.

The world is more magical, less predictable, more autonomous, less controllable, more varied, less simple, more infinite, less knowable, more wonderfully troubling then we could have imagined being able to tolerate when we were young.
--James Hollis

God comes to you disguised as your life.
--Paula D'Arcy


Robert P. Vande Kappelle, Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, PA and an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church, is the author of ten books, including a trilogy of biblical studies: Hope Revealed (2013), Truth Revealed (2013), and Wisdom Revealed (2014). Dark Splendor represents the culmination of his teaching and writing on the topic of Christian spirituality.