Understanding the universal and persistent importance of religious and spiritual ideas and experience is central to my endeavour. It is a theme of both "Pyschosis and Spirituality" and "Madness, Mystery and the Survival of God", and I have presented at a number of conferences organised by faith organisations. In some cases, the overlap with psychosis is stressed, in others understanding spirituality is central. The presentations given, and a paper that came out of one of these are listed below.

Psychosis and Spirituality: Inner Journeys in a time of Transition

10th November, 2011. A conference around “Psychosis and Spirituality: consolidating the new paradigm” jointly presented by Spiritual Crisis Network and ISPS (International Society for Psychotherapy for the Schizophrenias and other Psychoses) and Liverpool John Moores University, featuring myself, Les Lancaster and Janice Hartley. — at Liverpool John Moores University
See my presentation as online Flash presentation with audio or MS Powerpoint.

Spirituality and Mental Health Sharing Good Practice Conference

6th July—8th July 2011 at St John’s College, Durham
See Programme for more information.

Continuing the Journey 2010 Psst!... Look who’s talking...

The Hayes Conference Centre, Swanwick, Derbyshire : 3rd – 7th May 2010
See: CTJ Publicity leaflet 2010

Quaker Dialogues 3: Spirituality, Creativity and Mental Illness

Saturday 27th September 2008
Susan Mitchell and Isabel Clarke, chair: David Saunders
See: Quaker Dialogues 3

Bridge Pastoral Foundation. Annual Conference 2008

28th July – 1st August. Hayes Conference Centre, Derbyshire.

Where Two Worlds Meet. A Psychologist's perspective on Spirituality

I gave 3 keynote talks:

Encounter with the Threshold. A Psychological Understanding of Spirituality.
Crossing the Threshold. Implications for the personal journey and personal growth.
Managing the Threshold. Working with those who have lost their way.
See Bridge Pastoral Foundation

Confer Conference

London, Friday 30th and Saturday 31st May 2008.

Spiritual Narratives in Psychotherapy: working with Spiritual Issues in Clinical Practice

Talk: Revisiting the concepts: framing anomolous experience; psychosis; spiritual crisis etc. in non stigmatising ways for effective therapeutic approaches.
See: pdf file
Workshop: Reaching out beyond the Threshold. What do you say?

Tauton Association for Psychodynamics. OTHER DIMENSIONS OF THE PSYCHE? An Enquiry into Spirituality, Counselling and Psychotherapy

Talk: Across the Threshold: the Role of Spirituality in the Journey of Life
Saturday 15th March 2008

Confer Conference 'Spiritual Narratives in psychological therapies'

St. John's College Cambridge. 4th and 5th April 2007
See: Spiritual Narratives (pdf file)
Talk: 'Beyond the frontiers of reason:how the therapist can nurture healthy spirituality and avoid the psychotic danger zone.' Followed by a parallel workshop.

Seminar given as part of a series on 'postive psychology and the cognitive science of religion'

University of Oxford
See: “A cognitive perspective on spirituality - with a little help from psychosis” (NB 2.7 Mbyte file!)

ISPSS-UK Conference: Spirituality and Psychosis: Continuity and Discontinuity

London
See:
Report of conference for The Friend magazine
Talk, Friday 28th April 2006: Continuity and Discontinuity: Cognitive Science and Psychotherapeutic perspectives" (power point)

Quaker Universalists Gathering at Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre near Birmingham.

Talk: "Spirituality at the Heart of Being Human". Saturday April 1st. 2006
See: Text (Word document)

Symposium: Theory of Mind: Cross-Cultural and Transpersonal Perspectives

Presentation given at the BPS Conference 2005.
See: Text (Word document)

There is Crack in Everything

Presentation given at the "Ways of Knowing " Conference, Winchester, 2nd - 4th September 2005.
See: Powerpoint Presentation