C.G. Jung: I was immensely honoured and gratified
9th October 1945
Herr Professor Dr. C.G. Jung
Kusnacht-Zurich.
I was immensely honoured and gratified to receive your very kind letter of September 26th.
I had little thought that my impudence in writing to you would elicit any response at all, especially in view of the immense demands
which must be made upon your time and patience.
I had supposed that I should have to remain for ever content with a dream of some months ago in which I was one of half-a-dozen recipients of a medal from your hands!
I need hardly say that any criticism you are ever able to offer will be much more gratefully received than this very agreeable piece of wish-fulfilment!
There is certainly a very considerable and growing interest among Catholics – and others – in this country.
Over a hundred people, including several quite distinguished doctors and psychiatrists, as well as clergy, scientists, teachers and laypeople, turned up for a quite strenuous study-weekend I recently conducted in London on the psychologies of St. Thomas Aquinas and C.G. Jung!
Unfortunately, especially in the therapeutic field, the demand far exceeds the supply.
But the interest among Catholics is not, I need hardly say, unaccompanied by a certain amount of misgiving and distrust.
My own small writings have been mainly directed to meeting some of the more “intellectual” of these misgivings.
I cannot expect you, dear Professor Jung, to wade through all these writings; but it would truly be a very great help to know whether I do or do not misrepresent your position in the matter of the relation of your psychology to “Religion” – or, more precisely, to “God”.
I have in fact epitomised my interpretation of this in my review of Flugel’s new book, a copy of which I have ventured to enclose. I have marked the relevant passage (pp. 384ff.)
I am very interested indeed to hear that Catholic writers on the Continent are similarly interested; and I should be very glad indeed to hear of any books etc. they have written on the subject. (I can read fairly easily French, German, Spanish, Italian, Latin.)
In common with many others, I am very much hoping that you may be able to visit England before long.
My good friend Dr. Gerhard Adler has kindly offered to introduce me to you in that happy event.
I am also in close and friendly contact with Dr. John Layard and Mrs. Sussman!
I am very much impressed by the variety and catholicity to be found among your disciples, though a Papist sometimes finds the note of unity less easy to detect!
Yours very gratefully and sincerely,
VICTOR WHITE, O.P. ~Victor White, Jung-White Letters, Page 11-12
