I love telling stories.
I’ve always known the enneagram as one way to tell my story. Not the only way, and it certainly can’t tell the complete story. But it gives space for imagination, creativity, and a fluid understanding of myself and others.
I’ve heard criticism about the enneagram, specifically in regards to Catholic teaching. As a practicing Catholic, this troubled me, and I took to research, thought, and reflection.
I don’t have all the answers, but here’s a go at how I view the Enneagram in light of what I could find within Catholic belief and tradition.
First of all, here’s the document that has been cited to question the use of the enneagram in Catholic life:
It’s labeled as a “provisional document.” I don’t exactly know what that means, but I think it’s worth noting. (If anyone reading does know what this means, please comment below).
The enneagram is mentioned twice, and this quote is the most substantial for questioning and a critical look.
John Paul II warns with regard to the “return of ancient gnostic ideas under the guise of the so-called New Age: We cannot delude ourselves that this will lead toward a renewal of religion. It is only a new way of practising gnosticism – that attitude of the spirit that, in the name of a profound knowledge of God, results in distorting His Word and replacing it with purely human words. Gnosticism never completely abandoned the realm of Christianity. Instead, it has always existed side by side with Christianity, sometimes taking the shape of a philosophical movement, but more often assuming the characteristics of a religion or a para-religion in distinct, if not declared, conflict with all that is essentially Christian”. An example of this can be seen in the enneagram, the nine-type tool for character analysis, which when used as a means of spiritual growth introduces an ambiguity in the doctrine and the life of the Christian faith.
A few questions emerged, specifically from the last portion of the quote:
Do I use the enneagram as “a spiritual practice?”
Do I find myself trusting in the explanations of the enneagram before the mercy of God?
Am I replacing the words of God with “purely human words?”
For me, the answers are “not really.”
The only story I can tell is my own. I can’t speak for you and how the enneagram might impact you or might not be right for you.
Other criticism I’ve received about the enneagram is the roots and origins of it, and whether that deems it appropriate for Catholics. There are lots of guesses, and it’s not clear. Divination, Eastern tradition, Sufi mysticism, or a Jesuit priest.
A few thoughts about the uncertainty of the enneagram’s origin.
If we’re going strictly by the document posted above, then would it not be fair to also question Myers Briggs and other personality type indicators, as the same document makes similar claims about the work and practice of Carl Jung, of which MBTI has its origin? I haven’t known the Catholic circles I have resided in to have the same fear of MBTI as the enneagram, and my suspicion is that this due to the enneagram’s affiliation with Eastern traditions and religions.
Overall, as a lover of evidence-based research and practice, the Enneagram is not a significantly proven source of self-knowledge or measurement.
But what if it wasn’t supposed to be a test, a diagnosis, or a religion? What if it is a collection of traits and some common threads of human experience that are meant to be shared, questioned, and expressed?
This is my hope of publishing these 9 letters. I know each of these letters are vastly different in interpretation and expression. I specifically asked them to write from the heart of their story, and not just what the Enneagram tells them. The Enneagram is the frame, the circle that brings these stories together in a small way.
People of the Enneagram 