Mark Koltko-Rivera
Encyclopedia
Mark Edward Koltko-Rivera (born December 7, 1956) is an American scholar, scientist, social critic, and writer who has published books, articles, and blog posts on a variety of topics, including psychology, religion, spirituality, and popular culture. In the academic discipline of psychology, he has received awards for his scholarship regarding the psychology of worldviews and other topics. In the popular press, he has been noted for his writings on the psychological, religious, and historical background to Dan Brown
’s novel, The Lost Symbol.
Koltko-Rivera holds a doctoral degree
(Ph.D.) in counseling psychology
from New York University
. He is an elected Fellow of the American Psychological Association
(APA), and has received awards from three Divisions of APA for his scholarship within psychology. He has reported publicly that he is a Freemason
, and he has published scholarship regarding Freemasonry. He also has reported publicly that he is a Latter-day Saint (LDS, or Mormon), and he has published scholarship regarding LDS beliefs and history. Koltko-Rivera has stated that he now lives in New York City
with his wife Kathleen Schmid Koltko-Rivera, to whom he has been married since 2000.
Mark Koltko-Rivera was born on December 7, 1956, in New York City, the first of two children of Sophie Koltko and Odilio Rivera, who divorced early in Koltko-Rivera's life. Koltko-Rivera has described himself as bi-ethnic, with ancestry from Poland
and Puerto Rico
, and has speculated that his mother’s ancestors included Jews in addition to Polish Catholics.
Koltko-Rivera graduated from Regis High School
, a Jesuit scholarship school in Manhattan for Catholic boys. During his high school years, he was selected to attend Camp Rising Sun
, the Louis August Jonas Foundation's international summer scholarship program. He received a B.A.
degree, majoring in psychology, from Haverford College
.
After graduating college, Koltko-Rivera worked for several corporate entities while attending graduate school. These include Time Equities, Inc.; the New York metropolitan area office of CSK, a Japanese firm; and Ogilvy & Mather
, the advertising firm in New York City. Koltko-Rivera graduated from Fordham University’s
Graduate School of Education (Lincoln Center) with a masters degree in counseling in 1984, after which he opened a private practice as a psychotherapist, which he conducted until 2000.
As part of his doctoral studies, Koltko-Rivera served as a full-time predoctoral psychology intern for one year each at the Manhattan Psychiatric Center (1994–1995) and at the Sunset Terrace outpatient mental health unit of Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn (1996–1997). The internship experience at Sunset Terrace focused on multicultural psychotherapy, which has been an ongoing area of interest for Koltko-Rivera as evidenced by his subsequent scholarship. While at Sunset Terrace, Koltko-Rivera fulfilled specialty rotations in multicultural research, and in the treatment of adolescent and younger sex offenders.
While still a doctoral student, Koltko-Rivera taught as an adjunct faculty member at New York University
, Manhattanville College
, and Raritan Valley Community College
. After receiving his doctorate, he taught as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Central Florida
and Hartford Seminary
.
Koltko-Rivera graduated from what was then known as the School of Education (now the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development) at New York University
(NYU) with a doctoral degree in counseling psychology in 2000. From May 2000 on, he has worked as Director of Research at Professional Services Group, Inc., first in Winter Park, Florida
(2000–2008), and then in New York City (2008 on).
, “an honor bestowed upon APA Members who have shown evidence of unusual and outstanding contributions or performance in the field of psychology. … Fellow status requires that a person’s work has had a national impact on the field of psychology beyond the local, state, or regional level.” The areas in which Koltko-Rivera has made substantial contributions include the psychology of worldviews, the psychology of religion, humanistic and transpersonal psychology, human factors psychology, and psychological futurism. His contributions in each area are described below.
, in an article that won the 2004 George A. Miller Award for an Outstanding Article in General Psychology from the Society for General Psychology (APA Division 1). In the conference presentation that he delivered upon receiving the Miller Award, Koltko-Rivera described ways to include the worldview construct in comprehensive approaches to research and theory building in psychology. He later published theoretical articles relating worldview to the psychology of religion, peace psychology, and human factors psychology; he has conducted empirical research into the relationship of worldview to attitudes about personal health decisions and human cloning. Koltko-Rivera has stated that his book, The Psychology of Worldviews, is forthcoming from APA Books, in 2010 or 2011.
. As a doctoral student, Koltko-Rivera published an article regarding how a client’s religious beliefs might affect the work of counseling and psychotherapy. He has conducted research to develop measures of several psychological constructs relevant to the field, such as religiosity
and basis of belief. His work on these and other projects earned him the Margaret Gorman Early Career Award from the APA Division of Psychology of Religion (Division 36) in 2006. The conference presentation that Koltko-Rivera made upon receiving the Gorman Award described how religions influence personal worldviews, which in turn influence personal behavior.
and transpersonal psychology
. In one of his articles in this area, he described how the motivational theory of Abraham Maslow
has long been described inaccurately. In this article, Koltko-Rivera made the case that, towards the end of his life, Maslow modified his famous theory so that, at the top of the human motivational hierarchy, there stood not self-actualization
, but self-transcendence, the motivation to seek to connect with or contribute to a cause or purpose beyond the fulfillment of the personal ego. This article won for him the 2006 George A. Miller Award, making Koltko-Rivera the first person to win the George A. Miller Award more than once.
Koltko-Rivera has long taken the position that it is important to conduct quantitative empirical research in transpersonal psychology, and he has conducted such research himself. For his work on these and other theoretical and empirical projects, he received the Carmi Harari Award for Inquiry from the Society for Humanistic Psychology (APA Division 32) in 2008. In his Harari Award talk, Koltko-Rivera laid out a plan to propagate a more humanistic orientation throughout psychological science and practice.
, Koltko-Rivera published several contributions to human factors psychology
(a field concerned with the human-machine interaction). He co-authored a paper, delivered at a NATO conference, on ways in which the academic discipline of psychology could contribute to the defence against terrorism. In a variety of conference papers, he has made further contributions to human factors psychology: critiquing the field of augmented cognition
; describing how personal worldview and acculturation
affect human performance; and relating personality psychology
to human factors research.
. Koltko-Rivera has contributed to and chaired a symposium on psychological futurism, and has published conference papers on the potential societal impact of virtual reality
technology and augmented cognition
. Koltko-Rivera will edit a special issue of the Review of General Psychology
on “The Psychology of Twenty-First Century Issues,” tentatively scheduled to appear in 2011.
, and a Knight Templar in the York Rite
of Freemasonry. Within the Scottish Rite, Koltko-Rivera was the spokesman of his class at the "reunion" (initiation ritual) in the Valley of Orlando, Florida; he later participated in the 14th degree ring ceremony and was initiated into the Knights of St. Andrew service society in that location.
Koltko-Rivera has published articles about a variety of Masonic topics, including how to take a more thoughtful approach to Freemasonry, and why Masons should respond productively to anti-Masonry. In publications directed to Scottish Rite Freemasons, he has considered the attitude of the Scottish Rite toward religion, described personal study programs regarding Scottish Rite symbolism and religion in general, and shared his thoughts upon the occasion of his receiving the 32nd degree of the Scottish Rite.
In his most sophisticated work of Masonic scholarship to date, Koltko-Rivera has described at length a theory regarding the transmission of esoteric knowledge, and the possible relationship of this model of transmission to the origin of modern Freemasonry. His book, Freemasonry: An Introduction (LVX), is available on Amazon. Koltko-Rivera authors two blogs regarding Freemasonry: “Freemasonry: Reality, Myth, and Legend”, which is directed to Freemasons, and “Freemasonry 101”, which is directed to those who have questions regarding Freemasonry.
and later served in the bishoprics (local leadership) of two LDS congregations. The Mormon Literature & Creative Arts on-line database lists a variety of LDS-related publications by Koltko-Rivera, including essays on the challenges facing LDS writers in contemporary culture, and poetry. Koltko-Rivera has published articles on Mormonism in relation to psychotherapy
, mysticism
, psychohistory
, and addiction
. Koltko-Rivera authors two blogs regarding the LDS faith: “Mormon From Manhattan: Viewpoints of a Latter-Day Saint New Yorker”, which is directed to Latter-day Saints, and “LDS 101”, which is directed to those who have questions regarding the LDS faith.
, “On the Mark: Social Commentary From a Reflective Perspective”. On this blog, he has addressed a variety of topics involving politics and popular culture: the television shows Big Love
and Star Trek
; U.S. President Obama
’s restructuring of General Motors
; the life choices made by poker champion Chris Ferguson
versus those made by former Olympic athlete Michelle Kwan
; nuclear disarmament
; the extradition of Roman Polanski
; lessons to be learned from the life of the late U.S. Senator, Ted Kennedy
. He also comments at The Huffington Post
.
’s publisher, began to issue on-line clues about the content of Brown’s then-forthcoming novel, The Lost Symbol, Koltko-Rivera began to author a blog interpreting the clues. He has continued this blog, under the title “Discovering The Lost Symbol: The Blog”, as a forum for him to comment on the contents of the now-published novel. He has stated that the conclusion of Dan Brown’s novel, in which Brown discusses the notion of apotheosis
(humans becoming gods), is related to the LDS doctrine of exaltation.
Following the appearance of his Lost Symbol-related blog, Koltko-Rivera was interviewed for articles on the Dan Brown phenomenon by the Religion News Service and the New York Post
.
Koltko-Rivera was extensively interviewed in connection with a documentary to be broadcast on the Discovery Channel on Sunday, October 25, 2009, 8-10 p.m. Eastern time: "Hunting The Lost Symbol."
With the Australian puzzlemaster Denise Sutherland, Koltko-Rivera has co-authored a puzzle book featuring three Dan Brown-esque conspiracy narratives revolving around Freemasonry, titled Cracking Codes and Cryptograms for Dummies (Wiley), to be published in November 2009.
Koltko-Rivera has stated that he has been hired to write two chapters for a book edited by Dan Burstein
and Arne de Keijzer, Secrets of The Lost Symbol (William Morrow/HarperCollins), to be published in December 2009.
Koltko-Rivera has stated that he is seeking representation for his own book on Dan Brown: Discovering The Lost Symbol: Magic, Masons, Noetic Science, and the Idea That We Can Become Gods.
Dan Brown
Dan Brown is an American author of thriller fiction, best known for the 2003 bestselling novel, The Da Vinci Code. Brown's novels, which are treasure hunts set in a 24-hour time period, feature the recurring themes of cryptography, keys, symbols, codes, and conspiracy theories...
’s novel, The Lost Symbol.
Koltko-Rivera holds a doctoral degree
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
(Ph.D.) in counseling psychology
Counseling psychology
Counseling psychology is a psychological specialty that encompasses research and applied work in several broad domains: counseling process and outcome; supervision and training; career development and counseling; and prevention and health...
from New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. He is an elected Fellow of the American Psychological Association
American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States. It is the world's largest association of psychologists with around 154,000 members including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. The APA...
(APA), and has received awards from three Divisions of APA for his scholarship within psychology. He has reported publicly that he is a Freemason
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
, and he has published scholarship regarding Freemasonry. He also has reported publicly that he is a Latter-day Saint (LDS, or Mormon), and he has published scholarship regarding LDS beliefs and history. Koltko-Rivera has stated that he now lives in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with his wife Kathleen Schmid Koltko-Rivera, to whom he has been married since 2000.
Family Background and Early Life
Koltko-Rivera has made reference to his early life in a memorial to his late mother that was published on one of his blogs, and in a profile on another Freemason’s blog. Information abstracted from these sources is given below.Mark Koltko-Rivera was born on December 7, 1956, in New York City, the first of two children of Sophie Koltko and Odilio Rivera, who divorced early in Koltko-Rivera's life. Koltko-Rivera has described himself as bi-ethnic, with ancestry from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, and has speculated that his mother’s ancestors included Jews in addition to Polish Catholics.
Koltko-Rivera graduated from Regis High School
Regis High School (New York City)
Regis High School is a private Jesuit university-preparatory school for academically gifted Roman Catholic young men located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Annual class enrollment is limited to approximately 135 male students from the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut tri-state area...
, a Jesuit scholarship school in Manhattan for Catholic boys. During his high school years, he was selected to attend Camp Rising Sun
Camp Rising Sun
Camp Rising Sun is an invitation-only, international, full-scholarship, leadership summer program for students aged 14–16. Operated by the Louis August Jonas Foundation , a non-profit organization, the program lasts for seven weeks...
, the Louis August Jonas Foundation's international summer scholarship program. He received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree, majoring in psychology, from Haverford College
Haverford College
Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States, a suburb of Philadelphia...
.
Adulthood
Significant aspects of Koltko-Rivera’s adult life are mentioned in his biographical sketch on the website of Professional Services Group, Inc., which is summarized below.After graduating college, Koltko-Rivera worked for several corporate entities while attending graduate school. These include Time Equities, Inc.; the New York metropolitan area office of CSK, a Japanese firm; and Ogilvy & Mather
Ogilvy & Mather
Ogilvy & Mather is an international advertising, marketing and public relations agency based in Manhattan and owned by the WPP Group. The company operates 497 offices in 125 countries with approximately 16,000 employees.-History:...
, the advertising firm in New York City. Koltko-Rivera graduated from Fordham University’s
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
Graduate School of Education (Lincoln Center) with a masters degree in counseling in 1984, after which he opened a private practice as a psychotherapist, which he conducted until 2000.
As part of his doctoral studies, Koltko-Rivera served as a full-time predoctoral psychology intern for one year each at the Manhattan Psychiatric Center (1994–1995) and at the Sunset Terrace outpatient mental health unit of Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn (1996–1997). The internship experience at Sunset Terrace focused on multicultural psychotherapy, which has been an ongoing area of interest for Koltko-Rivera as evidenced by his subsequent scholarship. While at Sunset Terrace, Koltko-Rivera fulfilled specialty rotations in multicultural research, and in the treatment of adolescent and younger sex offenders.
While still a doctoral student, Koltko-Rivera taught as an adjunct faculty member at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, Manhattanville College
Manhattanville College
Manhattanville College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college offering undergraduate and graduate degrees, located in Purchase, New York. Founded in 1841 it was known initially as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart...
, and Raritan Valley Community College
Raritan Valley Community College
Raritan Valley Community College is an accredited, coeducational, two-year, public, community college located in North Branch , New Jersey...
. After receiving his doctorate, he taught as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Central Florida
University of Central Florida
The University of Central Florida, commonly referred to as UCF, is a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States...
and Hartford Seminary
Hartford Seminary
Hartford Seminary is a theological college in Hartford, Connecticut, USA.-History:Seminaries in the city of Hartford date back to 1833. In 1913, the current Hartford Seminary came into existence through the combination of three Hartford-based schools affiliated with the city's Congregationalist...
.
Koltko-Rivera graduated from what was then known as the School of Education (now the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development) at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
(NYU) with a doctoral degree in counseling psychology in 2000. From May 2000 on, he has worked as Director of Research at Professional Services Group, Inc., first in Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,090 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 estimates, the city had a population of 28,083. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area...
(2000–2008), and then in New York City (2008 on).
Psychological Scholarship
Koltko-Rivera has made contributions to several areas of psychological theory and application. On the basis of these contributions, he was elected a Fellow of the American Psychological AssociationAmerican Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States. It is the world's largest association of psychologists with around 154,000 members including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. The APA...
, “an honor bestowed upon APA Members who have shown evidence of unusual and outstanding contributions or performance in the field of psychology. … Fellow status requires that a person’s work has had a national impact on the field of psychology beyond the local, state, or regional level.” The areas in which Koltko-Rivera has made substantial contributions include the psychology of worldviews, the psychology of religion, humanistic and transpersonal psychology, human factors psychology, and psychological futurism. His contributions in each area are described below.
Psychology of Worldviews
Koltko-Rivera’s NYU doctoral dissertation described his development of the Worldview Assessment Instrument, an instrument to assess certain dimensions of personal worldviews, that is, sets of personal and cultural assumptions about life and the world. He published a theory of the psychology of worldviewsWorld view
A comprehensive world view is the fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the entirety of the individual or society's knowledge and point-of-view, including natural philosophy; fundamental, existential, and normative postulates; or themes, values, emotions, and...
, in an article that won the 2004 George A. Miller Award for an Outstanding Article in General Psychology from the Society for General Psychology (APA Division 1). In the conference presentation that he delivered upon receiving the Miller Award, Koltko-Rivera described ways to include the worldview construct in comprehensive approaches to research and theory building in psychology. He later published theoretical articles relating worldview to the psychology of religion, peace psychology, and human factors psychology; he has conducted empirical research into the relationship of worldview to attitudes about personal health decisions and human cloning. Koltko-Rivera has stated that his book, The Psychology of Worldviews, is forthcoming from APA Books, in 2010 or 2011.
Psychology of Religion
Koltko-Rivera has made several contributions to the psychology of religionPsychology of religion
Psychology of religion consists of the application of psychological methods and interpretive frameworks to religious traditions, as well as to both religious and irreligious individuals. The science attempts to accurately describe the details, origins, and uses of religious beliefs and behaviours...
. As a doctoral student, Koltko-Rivera published an article regarding how a client’s religious beliefs might affect the work of counseling and psychotherapy. He has conducted research to develop measures of several psychological constructs relevant to the field, such as religiosity
Religiosity
Religiosity, in its broadest sense, is a comprehensive sociological term used to refer to the numerous aspects of religious activity, dedication, and belief . Another term that would work equally well, though is less often used, is religiousness...
and basis of belief. His work on these and other projects earned him the Margaret Gorman Early Career Award from the APA Division of Psychology of Religion (Division 36) in 2006. The conference presentation that Koltko-Rivera made upon receiving the Gorman Award described how religions influence personal worldviews, which in turn influence personal behavior.
Humanistic and Transpersonal Psychology
Koltko-Rivera has published several articles regarding humanisticHumanistic psychology
Humanistic psychology is a psychological perspective which rose to prominence in the mid-20th century, drawing on the work of early pioneers like Carl Rogers and the philosophies of existentialism and phenomenology...
and transpersonal psychology
Transpersonal psychology
Transpersonal psychology is a form of psychology that studies the transpersonal, self-transcendent or spiritual aspects of the human experience....
. In one of his articles in this area, he described how the motivational theory of Abraham Maslow
Abraham Maslow
Abraham Harold Maslow was an American professor of psychology at Brandeis University, Brooklyn College, New School for Social Research and Columbia University who created Maslow's hierarchy of needs...
has long been described inaccurately. In this article, Koltko-Rivera made the case that, towards the end of his life, Maslow modified his famous theory so that, at the top of the human motivational hierarchy, there stood not self-actualization
Self actualization
Self-actualization is a term that has been used in various psychology theories, often in slightly different ways. The term was originally introduced by the organismic theorist Kurt Goldstein for the motive to realize one's full potential...
, but self-transcendence, the motivation to seek to connect with or contribute to a cause or purpose beyond the fulfillment of the personal ego. This article won for him the 2006 George A. Miller Award, making Koltko-Rivera the first person to win the George A. Miller Award more than once.
Koltko-Rivera has long taken the position that it is important to conduct quantitative empirical research in transpersonal psychology, and he has conducted such research himself. For his work on these and other theoretical and empirical projects, he received the Carmi Harari Award for Inquiry from the Society for Humanistic Psychology (APA Division 32) in 2008. In his Harari Award talk, Koltko-Rivera laid out a plan to propagate a more humanistic orientation throughout psychological science and practice.
Human Factors Psychology
During the years in which he taught or contributed consulting to projects at the University of Central FloridaUniversity of Central Florida
The University of Central Florida, commonly referred to as UCF, is a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States...
, Koltko-Rivera published several contributions to human factors psychology
Human factors
Human factors science or human factors technologies is a multidisciplinary field incorporating contributions from psychology, engineering, industrial design, statistics, operations research and anthropometry...
(a field concerned with the human-machine interaction). He co-authored a paper, delivered at a NATO conference, on ways in which the academic discipline of psychology could contribute to the defence against terrorism. In a variety of conference papers, he has made further contributions to human factors psychology: critiquing the field of augmented cognition
Augmented cognition
Augmented cognition is a research field at the frontier between human-computer interaction, psychology, ergonomics and neuroscience, that aims at creating revolutionary human-computer interactions. For instance, various research projects aim at evaluating in real-time the cognitive state of a user...
; describing how personal worldview and acculturation
Acculturation
Acculturation explains the process of cultural and psychological change that results following meeting between cultures. The effects of acculturation can be seen at multiple levels in both interacting cultures. At the group level, acculturation often results in changes to culture, customs, and...
affect human performance; and relating personality psychology
Personality psychology
Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and individual differences. Its areas of focus include:* Constructing a coherent picture of the individual and his or her major psychological processes...
to human factors research.
Psychological Futurism
Koltko-Rivera has paid scholarly attention to the potential social and psychological impact of demographic and technological trends. This area has been called psychological futurism, and is an aspect of futurologyFuturology
Futures studies is the study of postulating possible, probable, and preferable futures and the worldviews and myths that underlie them. There is a debate as to whether this discipline is an art or science. In general, it can be considered as a branch under the more general scope of the field of...
. Koltko-Rivera has contributed to and chaired a symposium on psychological futurism, and has published conference papers on the potential societal impact of virtual reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
technology and augmented cognition
Augmented cognition
Augmented cognition is a research field at the frontier between human-computer interaction, psychology, ergonomics and neuroscience, that aims at creating revolutionary human-computer interactions. For instance, various research projects aim at evaluating in real-time the cognitive state of a user...
. Koltko-Rivera will edit a special issue of the Review of General Psychology
Review of General Psychology
, is the quarterly scientific journal of the American Psychological Association Division 1: The Society for General Psychology. Review of General Psychology publishes cross-disciplinary psychological articles that are conceptual, theoretical, and methodological in nature...
on “The Psychology of Twenty-First Century Issues,” tentatively scheduled to appear in 2011.
Freemasonry and Masonic Scholarship
Koltko-Rivera has reported publicly that he is a Master Mason, a 32nd degree Scottish Rite FreemasonScottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry , commonly known as simply the Scottish Rite, is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry...
, and a Knight Templar in the York Rite
York Rite
The York Rite or American Rite is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry. A Rite is a series of progressive degrees that are conferred by various Masonic organizations or bodies, each of which operates under the control of its own central authority...
of Freemasonry. Within the Scottish Rite, Koltko-Rivera was the spokesman of his class at the "reunion" (initiation ritual) in the Valley of Orlando, Florida; he later participated in the 14th degree ring ceremony and was initiated into the Knights of St. Andrew service society in that location.
Koltko-Rivera has published articles about a variety of Masonic topics, including how to take a more thoughtful approach to Freemasonry, and why Masons should respond productively to anti-Masonry. In publications directed to Scottish Rite Freemasons, he has considered the attitude of the Scottish Rite toward religion, described personal study programs regarding Scottish Rite symbolism and religion in general, and shared his thoughts upon the occasion of his receiving the 32nd degree of the Scottish Rite.
In his most sophisticated work of Masonic scholarship to date, Koltko-Rivera has described at length a theory regarding the transmission of esoteric knowledge, and the possible relationship of this model of transmission to the origin of modern Freemasonry. His book, Freemasonry: An Introduction (LVX), is available on Amazon. Koltko-Rivera authors two blogs regarding Freemasonry: “Freemasonry: Reality, Myth, and Legend”, which is directed to Freemasons, and “Freemasonry 101”, which is directed to those who have questions regarding Freemasonry.
Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship
Koltko-Rivera has reported publicly that he is a Latter-day Saint convert, who has served as an LDS missionary in JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and later served in the bishoprics (local leadership) of two LDS congregations. The Mormon Literature & Creative Arts on-line database lists a variety of LDS-related publications by Koltko-Rivera, including essays on the challenges facing LDS writers in contemporary culture, and poetry. Koltko-Rivera has published articles on Mormonism in relation to psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
, mysticism
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
, psychohistory
Psychohistory
Psychohistory is the study of the psychological motivations of historical events. It attempts to combine the insights of psychotherapy with the research methodology of the social sciences to understand the emotional origin of the social and political behavior of groups and nations, past and present...
, and addiction
Substance dependence
The section about substance dependence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not use the word addiction at all. It explains:...
. Koltko-Rivera authors two blogs regarding the LDS faith: “Mormon From Manhattan: Viewpoints of a Latter-Day Saint New Yorker”, which is directed to Latter-day Saints, and “LDS 101”, which is directed to those who have questions regarding the LDS faith.
Social Criticism and Popular Culture
Koltko-Rivera authors a blog of social criticismSocial criticism
The term social criticism locates the reasons for malicious conditions of the society in flawed social structures. People adhering to a social critics aim at practical solutions by specific measures, often consensual reform but sometimes also by powerful revolution.- European roots :Religious...
, “On the Mark: Social Commentary From a Reflective Perspective”. On this blog, he has addressed a variety of topics involving politics and popular culture: the television shows Big Love
Big Love
Big Love is an American television drama that aired on HBO between March 2006 and March 2011. The show is about a fictional fundamentalist Mormon family in Utah that practices polygamy...
and Star Trek
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
; U.S. President Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
’s restructuring of General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
; the life choices made by poker champion Chris Ferguson
Chris Ferguson
Christopher Philip Ferguson is an American professional poker player. He has won five World Series of Poker events, including the 2000 WSOP Main Event, and the 2008 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. On September 20, 2011, the U.S...
versus those made by former Olympic athlete Michelle Kwan
Michelle Kwan
Michelle Wingshan Kwan is an American figure skater. She is a two-time Olympic medalist, a five-time World champion and a nine-time U.S...
; nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament refers to both the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons and to the end state of a nuclear-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated....
; the extradition of Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
; lessons to be learned from the life of the late U.S. Senator, Ted Kennedy
Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
. He also comments at The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post is an American news website and content-aggregating blog founded by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti, featuring liberal minded columnists and various news sources. The site offers coverage of politics, theology, media, business, entertainment, living, style,...
.
Dan Brown's Lost Symbol-Related Activities
When Doubleday, Dan BrownDan Brown
Dan Brown is an American author of thriller fiction, best known for the 2003 bestselling novel, The Da Vinci Code. Brown's novels, which are treasure hunts set in a 24-hour time period, feature the recurring themes of cryptography, keys, symbols, codes, and conspiracy theories...
’s publisher, began to issue on-line clues about the content of Brown’s then-forthcoming novel, The Lost Symbol, Koltko-Rivera began to author a blog interpreting the clues. He has continued this blog, under the title “Discovering The Lost Symbol: The Blog”, as a forum for him to comment on the contents of the now-published novel. He has stated that the conclusion of Dan Brown’s novel, in which Brown discusses the notion of apotheosis
Apotheosis
Apotheosis is the glorification of a subject to divine level. The term has meanings in theology, where it refers to a belief, and in art, where it refers to a genre.In theology, the term apotheosis refers to the idea that an individual has been raised to godlike stature...
(humans becoming gods), is related to the LDS doctrine of exaltation.
Following the appearance of his Lost Symbol-related blog, Koltko-Rivera was interviewed for articles on the Dan Brown phenomenon by the Religion News Service and the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
.
Koltko-Rivera was extensively interviewed in connection with a documentary to be broadcast on the Discovery Channel on Sunday, October 25, 2009, 8-10 p.m. Eastern time: "Hunting The Lost Symbol."
With the Australian puzzlemaster Denise Sutherland, Koltko-Rivera has co-authored a puzzle book featuring three Dan Brown-esque conspiracy narratives revolving around Freemasonry, titled Cracking Codes and Cryptograms for Dummies (Wiley), to be published in November 2009.
Koltko-Rivera has stated that he has been hired to write two chapters for a book edited by Dan Burstein
Secrets of the Code
Secrets of the Code is a 2006 documentary based on Dan Burstein's New York Times best-seller of the same name in which experts explore topics put forth by Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code...
and Arne de Keijzer, Secrets of The Lost Symbol (William Morrow/HarperCollins), to be published in December 2009.
Koltko-Rivera has stated that he is seeking representation for his own book on Dan Brown: Discovering The Lost Symbol: Magic, Masons, Noetic Science, and the Idea That We Can Become Gods.
External links
- Google Profile of Mark Koltko-Rivera. This site, composed by Mark Koltko-Rivera, has links to his blogs, press clips, award notices, and the full text of several of his publications. It also lists his current writing projects.
- Huffington Post Profile of Mark Koltko-Rivera. This site contains all of Mark Koltko-Rivera’s comments on The Huffington Post.
- Profile of Mark Koltko-Rivera on his Corporate Website. This site contains a biographical essay and a link to his extensive curriculum vitae (CV).