Personal Certainty
On the Way, the Truth, and the Life
Delivery estimate
Please enter a valid 4-digit Australian postcode.
to ·
Delivery estimate
Please enter a valid 4-digit Australian postcode.
to ·
Personal Certainty
Description
On the Feast of the Assumption in 1956, Valentin Tomberg began to work on the hitherto unpublished text which is set before the reader in this book. Written in the second half of his life (a decade or so following his conversion to Catholicism), this text documents an essential, transitional stage in the development of his work. Here Tomberg gives an account of how far, and in what way, he might be truly certain of matters pertaining to the great questions humanity faces. He wanted to discover and set out the method by means of which other seekers might also arrive at authentic certainty regarding the great questions.
Personal Certainty strikes me as a work of astonishing maturity, humility, texture, and insight. It maps the human-making curriculum required of and inhabited by a specific writer of consummate merit and unique destiny. Tomberg consistently moved forward-evolved-through internal and external experience of war and upheaval, turbulence and concentration, migration and choice, ideals and possibilities, hope and disappointment, truth and deception, strength and fragility, hypocrisy and integrity. Most of all, he was able to share intimately regarding the mystery of prayer, meditation, contemplation, liturgy, the rosary, while reflecting upon the communion of saints, the Risen Christ, Mary and all that is Sophianic, and more. As his perspectives widened and deepened, Certainty traces how and why new capacities rooted and were liberated in his life and how he sustained human, intellectual, psychological, and spiritual growth. In tracing how he learned to diagnose personal error, how he learned to change, how he found the courage to reconsider his personal religious commitment, how he learned to re-adjust and self-correct, we learn of the consciousness required to actually inhabit and shoulder freedom in a new and living way. Were he here today, he would face similar difficulties, requiring other conscious and costly "free" decisions, each heroic, valoric, and loving. Since history has labeled this the post-truth era, the testimony of one man's Personal Certainty could not be more urgently needed. As such, it is sacred medicine. -Therese Schroeder-Sheker, Chalice of Repose Project
In his late work, Valentin Tomberg makes much clearer the relationship of his orthodox Christian esotericism to ancient and modern philosophical traditions. Somewhat like Vladimir Solovyov, he points to the paradox of invisible explanation of visible experience as something that unites science with religion. Out of this insight he develops a symbolist metaphysics that refuses any sundering of the personal from the cosmological, albeit in a distinctly post-Kantian fashion. No one concerned with philosophical theology should ignore this attempt at a rather more speculative Grammar of Assent-John Milbank, author of The Future of Love: Essays in Political Theology, etc.
In Tomberg's view, personal certainty is not a science. It is wisdom, which for him is not compelled by "proofs" but is born and grows in the soil of freedom. Wisdom shows itself to be true in the course of life: it is not a matter of firmly circumscribed concepts, but of growth, achieved by what he called the "total method," which leads to the symbol. We find this emphasis on the symbol vastly expanded in the author's later, magisterial Meditations on the Tarot, now considered one of the classic spiritual texts of the twentieth century.-Michael Frensch, author of Weisheit in Person
Shipping & Processing
This item is in stock with our supplier and usually ships within 3–5 business days.
Processing times
- In stock: Items marked “In Stock” are on our shelves. We pick, pack and ship them within 1–2 business days.
- In stock with our supplier: Items not marked “In Stock” are held by one of our Australian or overseas suppliers. We order them in for you and they usually dispatch within 2–5 business days (3–5 for some suppliers). The estimate next to the price is for this item.
- Special orders: Some supplier items, such as specialist and imported items, titles awaiting reprint and print-on-demand titles, take longer to arrive. If your order includes one, we’ll update you as soon as we hear from our supplier.
- Supplier delays: Occasionally a supplier is delayed, or their stock information turns out to be inaccurate. We’ll keep your order open for up to 60 days. If an item hasn’t shipped or isn’t on its way to us by then, we’ll cancel that item and refund it.
How accurate is availability?
Availability is based on the stock levels our suppliers tell us they hold, and we update it regularly. If a supplier issue affects your order, we’ll let you know with an updated estimate.
Delivery
- As soon as your order ships you’ll get an email with tracking.
- Australia Post usually delivers within 2–10 business days of shipping (around 4 in metro areas and around 6 in regional areas).
- If your order has more than one item, we hold the in-stock items until everything is ready, so we can ship your whole order together in one parcel.
- Shipping cost: Free on orders over $100 within Australia, otherwise $9.95 flat rate per order however many items you buy. Free shipping applies to Australian addresses only; delivery to New Zealand is $14.95 per order.
- Check your address: If an order goes to an incorrect address you gave us, or isn’t collected and Australia Post returns it to us, you’ll need to pay the postage to send it again.
Cancellations
Need to change or cancel an order? Contact us as soon as possible at contact@bookloop.com.au or through our contact page.
- Within 30 minutes: You can change or cancel your order for a full refund within 30 minutes of placing it.
- After 30 minutes: Your order is already being processed, so it can no longer be changed or cancelled. If we can accept a late cancellation, we may offer store credit instead of a refund.
- Items in transit: Once an item is on its way, either from our supplier to us or from us to you, it can’t be cancelled. If you no longer want it once it arrives, you can return it as a change of mind, with return postage at your cost. See Returns.
- Separate orders can’t be combined once they’ve been placed, and adding or swapping items can change the delivery estimate.
- Supplier delays: Occasionally a supplier is delayed, or their stock information turns out to be inaccurate. We’ll keep your order open for up to 60 days. If an item hasn’t shipped or isn’t on its way to us by then, we’ll cancel that item and refund it.
Faulty or damaged items are always covered. See Returns.
Returns
Damaged or incorrect items (within 30 days)
If an item arrives damaged or isn’t what you ordered, contact us within 30 days of delivery. We may ask for a photo, and if we need the item back we’ll send a prepaid return label, so it costs you nothing. You’ll receive a replacement or refund, as guaranteed under the Australian Consumer Law.
Change of mind (within 30 days)
We offer a refund or store credit for change of mind within 30 days of purchase when:
- you have your proof of purchase;
- the item is unused and in its original condition and packaging;
- it isn’t a sale item, special order, custom item or gift voucher.
You pay the postage to return change-of-mind items. Change-of-mind returns aren’t available for print-on-demand titles or bulk orders with special pricing.
Returned to sender
If an order is sent to an incorrect address you gave us, or isn’t collected and Australia Post returns it to us, you’ll need to pay the postage to send it again.