Fr. Seán ÓLaoire, a former Catholic priest with a PhD in transpersonal psychology, shares his multifaceted journey from priesthood to exploring spirituality and reincarnation. He discusses the vibrant Irish customs surrounding death, the role of storytelling in preserving culture, and the interplay of masculine and feminine energies. Seán reflects on living in Africa, encounters with the Vatican, and the significance of language in personal growth. A captivating conversation that challenges conventional beliefs and embraces a holistic view of life and death.
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The Irish Wake Tradition
Traditional Irish wakes involved keeping the body at home for three days with neighbors visiting for food, drink, music, storytelling, and dancing with the corpse.
The Catholic Church banned this practice in the early 1900s for perceived disrespect towards the dead.
insights INSIGHT
Fusing Feminine and Masculine Energy
Spirituality should fuse feminine and masculine energies rather than substitute one for the other.
Different situations call for demonstrating either yin or yang energy in balance.
insights INSIGHT
Stories as Wisdom Archives
Stories archive a culture's wisdom and allow listeners to journey through imagination and transformation.
Imagination is a volitional shift in consciousness, unlike fantasy which invents unreal things.
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Ulysses is a groundbreaking and complex modernist novel that chronicles the experiences of three Dubliners over a single day. The novel is loosely based on Homer's epic poem 'The Odyssey', with Leopold Bloom paralleling Odysseus, Stephen Dedalus paralleling Telemachus, and Molly Bloom paralleling Penelope. It explores themes such as antisemitism, human sexuality, British rule in Ireland, Catholicism, and Irish nationalism. The novel is known for its innovative use of language and narrative techniques, including stream-of-consciousness and multiple literary styles. It captures the essence of early 20th-century Dublin, providing a detailed snapshot of the city's social, political, and cultural landscape[2][3][5].
Setting God Free
Moving Beyond the Caricature We've Created in Our Own Image
Father Seán ÓLaoire
In this book, Father Seán ÓLaoire puts God on trial for crimes against humanity, using the Torah/Pentateuch as evidence. The book is divided into four parts: Setting Psychology Free, Setting God Free, Setting Spirituality Free, and Setting Science Free. It delves into how we know what we know, decide what is true, and organize our beliefs into a coherent paradigm. The author, drawing from his background in mathematics, clinical psychology, and Catholic priesthood, offers a unique perspective that integrates science, spirituality, and personal experience to redefine the concept of God[2][3][4].
Why? What Your Life Is Telling You About Who You Are and Why You're Here
Why? What Your Life Is Telling You About Who You Are and Why You're Here
Matt McKay
Fr. Seán ÓLaoire
Welcome back to Behind Greatness. We chat with Fr. Sean O’Laoire, joining us from his mountain side home in California. We delight in the dance with this conversation. Sean has a background in math, a PhD in transpersonal psychology, he speaks multiple languages and is an ordained catholic priest. We learn about his experience living in Africa, cataloging hundreds of Gaelic proverbs, dealing with death threats from politicians, receiving that letter from the Vatican and everything in between. We talk STATE vs STAGE of consciousness, churches and graveyards, “Irishing” Christianity, his druid grandfather, reincarnation and the early Church, the banning of Irish funerals, telepathy, stories and culture, language as a blessing and a curse, the masculine and the feminine, imagination, dancing with the dead and the Lioness …. What a dance.
Behind Greatness by Inspire North 
