The Sacred Speaks
Join depth psychotherapist and Jungian scholar Dr. John W. Price in an ongoing exploration of the mysteries that stir beneath the surface of ordinary life. Through wide-ranging conversations with experts, artists, scholars, saints, and skeptics, this podcast uncovers the symbolic, spiritual, and psychological layers hidden in plain sight.
Rooted in the understanding that life itself initiates us, The Sacred Speaks explores how our experiences—grief, wonder, rupture, longing—are invitations to grow, transform, and show up more fully in the world. At its core, the project asks: What if consciousness is always speaking to us—through dreams, synchronicities, crises, or beauty—beckoning us into a deeper, more expansive relationship with ourselves and the mystery we live within?
The Sacred Speaks
126 - Adele Getty - A Sense of the Sacred: Finding Our Spiritual Lives Through Ceremony
In this episode of The Sacred Speaks, John sits down with Adele Getty—spiritual teacher, author, and cultural bridge—to explore the urgent, timeless wisdom of her book A Sense of the Sacred. Though written nearly 30 years ago, Adele’s work feels more relevant than ever in a world hungry for meaning, ritual, and reconnection with the more-than-human world.
Together, John and Adele reflect on the lost world of animism, the power of symbolic action, and the aching grief of cultural severance from the sacred. Adele shares her path as a modern-day rite-maker, offering personal stories, cross-cultural insights, and poetic invitations to remember what it means to live in a living world. The conversation moves fluidly between anthropology, personal spirituality, indigenous wisdom, and the transformative potential of ceremony—especially in a time of ecological crisis and soul loss.
This episode is both an intellectual dialogue and a soul invocation. If you've ever felt the quiet mourning of a life unlived—or sensed the sacred just beneath the surface of ordinary things—this conversation is for you.
Key Themes:
Animism as a lived cosmology—not a belief system, but a relationship
The grief of modernity and the longing for reconnection
Ceremony as both personal healing and collective repair
The sacred role of women, humor, and voice in ritual
How to begin building meaningful ceremonies in contemporary life
Why symbolic acts matter in a disenchanted world
Reflections on the psychedelic resurgence and ritual ethics
Episode Timeline:
(00:00) Introduction and Guest Announcement
(00:37) Podcast Updates and Announcements
(02:25) Introducing Adele Getty
(04:02) The Book as a Lament and a Love Song
(09:05) Adele’s Personal Background and Influences
(11:56) Animism and the Cosmology of Connection
(16:44) Ceremony as Daily Practice and Communal Healing
(24:54) Spirit, Voice, and Song in Ritual Work
(35:32) Historical Context and Cultural Amnesia
(47:34) The Psychedelic Explosion and Western Disconnection
(50:26) Modern Psychedelics, Integration, and Ethical Ceremony
(51:24) Nature as Teacher and Ceremony Ground
(52:35) Creating Sacred Spaces in Ordinary Life
(01:14:21) The Role of Humor, Play, and the Trickster
(01:18:51) Symbolic Acts and Soul Reenchantment
(01:19:57) Final Reflections on Ceremony and Belonging
(01:26:44) Closing Thoughts and Upcoming Offerings
Connect with Adele Getty & The Limina Foundation:
Website: https://www.liminafoundation.org/
Facebook: @liminafoundation
Instagram: @liminafoundation