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The author appears to be a [[Roman Catholic]], although the ideas expressed are often not commonly associated with Catholic [[dogma]].  Many of the ideas are strongly influenced by [[Jungian]] thought. The body of the work is divided into 22 Chapters, called "Letters", with a Foreword by the author and an Afterword by [[Hans Urs von Balthasar]], a Swiss theologian nominated to be a [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]].  Each chapter is centered around a card from the [[Major Arcana]] of the [[Tarot of Marseilles]].

The author appears to be a [[Roman Catholic]], although the ideas expressed are often not commonly associated with Catholic [[dogma]].  Many of the ideas are strongly influenced by [[Jungian]] thought. The body of the work is divided into 22 Chapters, called "Letters", with a Foreword by the author and an Afterword by [[Hans Urs von Balthasar]], a Swiss theologian nominated to be a [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]].  Each chapter is centered around a card from the [[Major Arcana]] of the [[Tarot of Marseilles]].

Each card is taken as an "arcanum," which the author defines in part in '''Letter I: The Magician''' as "... that which it is necessary to 'know' in order to be fruitful in a given domain of spiritual life. ... a 'ferment' or an 'enzyme' whose presence stimulates the spiritual and the psychic life of man."  He writes that they "are neither allegories nor secrets ... [but] authentic symbols ... [which] conceal and reveal their sense at one and the same time according to the depth of meditation."  The symbolism of the cards is taken as a springboard for discussing and describing various aspects of [[Christian]] spiritual life and growth.

Each card is taken as an "arcanum," which the author defines in part in '''Letter I: The Magician''' as "... that which it is necessary to 'know' in order to be fruitful in a given domain of spiritual life. ... a 'ferment' or an 'enzyme' whose presence stimulates the spiritual and the psychic life of man."  He writes that they "are neither allegories nor secrets ... [but] authentic symbols ... [which] conceal and reveal their sense at one and the same time according to the depth of meditation."  The symbolism of the cards is taken as a springboard for discussing and describing various aspects of [[Christiantiy|Christian]] [[spiritual]] life and growth.

Sources cited in the work are many; the most commone one is the [[Bible]], followed by an array of saints, theologists, mystics, philosophers, occultists, and other writers, notably including [[Henri Bergson]], [[Buddha]], [[Goethe]], [[Jung]], [[Kant]], [[Eliphas Lévi]], [[Nietzsche]], [[Fabre d'Olivet]], [[Origen]], [[Papus]], [[Joséphin Péladan]], [[Philip of Lyons]], [[Plato]], [[St. Albertus Magnus]], [[St. Anthony the Great]], [[St. Augustine]], [[St. Bonaventura]], [[St. Dionysius the Areopagite]], [[St. Francis of Assisi]], [[St. John of the Cross]], [[St. Theresa of Ávila]], [[St. Thomas Aquinas]], [[Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin]], [[Saint-Yves d'Alveydre]], [[Dr. Rudolf Steiner]], [[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin]], [[Hermes Trismegistus]], and [[Oswald Wirth]] (major entries taken in alphabetical order from the index).

Sources cited in the work are many; the most commone one is the [[Bible]], followed by an array of saints, theologists, mystics, philosophers, occultists, and other writers, notably including [[Henri Bergson]], [[Buddha]], [[Goethe]], [[Jung]], [[Kant]], [[Eliphas Lévi]], [[Nietzsche]], [[Fabre d'Olivet]], [[Origen]], [[Papus]], [[Joséphin Péladan]], [[Philip of Lyons]], [[Plato]], [[St. Albertus Magnus]], [[St. Anthony the Great]], [[St. Augustine]], [[St. Bonaventura]], [[St. Dionysius the Areopagite]], [[St. Francis of Assisi]], [[St. John of the Cross]], [[St. Theresa of Ávila]], [[St. Thomas Aquinas]], [[Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin]], [[Saint-Yves d'Alveydre]], [[Dr. Rudolf Steiner]], [[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin]], [[Hermes Trismegistus]], and [[Oswald Wirth]] (major entries taken in alphabetical order from the index).