The Road Back to You

The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Morgan Cron & Suzanne Stabile

Review by Joanna Hoffman

There is varying language and many tools people use to help understand themselves and each other. These include the Myers Briggs traits, Four Temperaments, and an old one that has been receiving new discussion is the Enneagram. “The Road Back to You” explores the roots and gives the purpose of the ancient Enneagram from a Christian perspective.

What tools have you found helpful to learn more about yourself?

The Enneagram can be a unique tool because rather than focusing on your strengths and the things you do well naturally, this tool seeks to highlight the hidden passion that might be the root cause of your true weakness. This is called your “deadly sin” in the enneagram or I might say, where you are most prone to wander from God and doubt his goodness. Cron & Stabile give this insight as to why we can benefit from this examination. “The true purpose fo the Enneagram is to reveal to you your shadow side and offer spiritual counsel on how to open it to the transformative light of grace.”

These personality tools can help to reveal who we are as individuals, each uniquely revealing an aspect of God in whose image we are made. In contrast, these tools should not be used to excuse sin or pigeon hole people because of their “type”.  This is why I have so appreciated Cron & Stabile’s Christian perspective encouraging us to know who we are and receive from God both His compassion and His purpose for His beautiful design found in each one of us. 

For other such edifying tools offered with the hope of the Spirit’s transforming work, I suggest “Spirit-Controlled Temperament” by T. LaHaye and “Your Personality and the Spiritual Life” by R. Johnson.