Psychology and Psychotherapy in the Perspective of Christian Anthropology [1 ed.] 9781527523005

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Psychology and Psychotherapy in the Perspective of Christian Anthropology

Psychology and Psychotherapy in the Perspective of Christian Anthropology Edited by

Nicolene L. Joubert

Psychology and Psychotherapy in the Perspective of Christian Anthropology Edited by Nicolene L. Joubert This book first published 2018 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2018 by Nicolene L. Joubert and contributors All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-1657-1 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-1657-1

CONTENTS

Foreword: Toward a Unified Christian Psychology ................................. viii Eric L. Johnson Preface ....................................................................................................... xii Acknowledgements .................................................................................. xiii Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 Nicolene L. Joubert The European Movement for Christian Anthropology, Psychology and Psychotherapy ................................................................... 7 Anna Ostaszewska  Section I: Anthropology  The Concept of Person as Anthropological Basis for Christian Psychology and Psychotherapy ............................................ 14 Romuald Jaworski – Poland  Applying Whole Person Principles in Healthcare – Assessment and Diagnosis of the Whole Person ....................................... 29 Mike Sheldon – United Kingdom Relationship with God and With Others: The Role of Personality ............ 48 Olena Yaremko – Ukraine Ecotherapy within a Creationist Approach ................................................ 65 Francesco Cutino – Italy Section II: Spirit/Theology  The Gap between Spirit and Psyche: The Psychospiritual Faculties ......... 82 Mar Alvarez and Montserrat Lafuente – Spain

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Contents

The Terms Spirituality and Spiritual in Russian Orthodox Doctrine – Their Meaning for Psychotherapy ............................................................. 99 Andrey Lorgus – Russia  God – The Forgotten Defender ................................................................ 113 Krzysztof Wojcieszek – Poland  Section III: Psychology  Christian Psychology: Integrating Christian Spiritual Beliefs into Therapeutic Processes ...................................................................... 128 Nicolene Joubert – South Africa  The Synergy Paradigm in Christian Psychology ..................................... 147 Zenon Uchnast – Poland Characteristics of a Christian Psychology, Demonstrated by the Example of Forgiveness ............................................................... 166 Wolfram Soldan – Germany  Section IV: Psychotherapy  Integrative Psychotherapy: A Christian Approach .................................. 186 Anna Ostaszewska – Poland  Face and Image in Christian Psychotherapy ............................................ 206 Elena Strigo – Russia  Emotional Chaos Theory and the Emergence of Personal Identity: A Positive Psychology that Complements Christian Anthropology ........ 219 Trevor Griffiths – United Kingdom  Therapy of Religious Clients with Guilt and Sin Feelings in Christian Orthodox Psychology........................................................... 245 Olga Krasnikova – Russia Longing for the Father – Father Wound in Christian Therapy ................ 261 Saara Kinnunen – Finland

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Setting Boundaries in a Dialogical Way .................................................. 278 Werner May – Germany List of Contributors and Biographies ...................................................... 297

FOREWORD TOWARD A UNIFIED CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY ERIC L. JOHNSON

Every well-developed intellectual community is unified by a shared set of core beliefs about reality, called a worldview; and every such worldview community has a more or less well-developed set of beliefs about human beings, called an anthropology or psychology, and practices for how to promote their healing, called a psychotherapy. Such matters are extremely important for the Christian community in the 21st century, because it is in the midst of an intellectual crisis (MacIntyre 1977). For the past few centuries, the worldview of naturalism (or secularism) has steadily grown in influence, until it has become the dominant worldview in the West. A part of this ascendency was the emergence of a new psychology – commonly called modern – based upon the worldview of naturalism and the methods of the natural sciences, and it has become the only legitimate version of psychology in the West. Christians can appreciate that modern psychology has discovered many important aspects of human nature. But Christians have been slow to grasp the implications of having become a minority worldview community. In order to get advanced degrees in psychology, Christians have to study in departments that have accepted the assumptions of naturalism, where they unwittingly get socialised into those assumptions, not realising that Christianity has its own psychology, with its own rules of discourse, which has been developing for over three millennia (going back to the earliest portions of the Bible). Complicating our predicament considerably is the fact that naturalism is a minimalist worldview; it has relatively few, distinctive assumptions that other worldview communities do not also agree with, such as belief in a natural order and its lawful functioning. As a result, much of its theory, research and practice can be appropriated by members of other worldview

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communities without seeming to contradict the receiving community’s worldview. This is actually not true, since even simple perceptions are shaped by one’s perspective (remember the ambiguous figure of the young woman–old woman optical illusion?), or as a philosopher of science might put it, scientific observations are necessarily theory-laden and shaped by one’s paradigm. So even the simple conclusions of naturalists based on empirical data are distorted by their perspective, since Christians believe God is closely involved in all of human life and God is left out of all modern psychology. Even more problematic is what is left out of modern psychology’s theory, research and practice from a Christian perspective: human origin via creation by God (leaving aside the means God used); the imago Dei teaching that one’s relationship with God is central to human life; sin and its devastating consequences to human functioning, including alienation from God and neighbour; the healing restoration – called redemption – that comes to human beings through union with Christ and advanced by faith in him; the indwelling Holy Spirit; and an eternal future that begins with judgment. All of these themes of Christian thought have enormous psychological and therapeutic implications. Christian psychology and psychotherapy (CPP), then, is that version of psychology and psychotherapy based on a Christian worldview. The perfect psychology, along with all the sciences, is found in God’s understanding and judgment, so the ultimate goal of a Christian psychology is to correspond to God’s understanding and evaluation of the nature of human beings in all their complexity. We would not expect nonChristians to endorse this approach, but since the beginning, humans have been called to image God, and this conformity includes intellectual matters as well as ethical and spiritual ones. Perhaps the greatest distinctive feature of CPP is its starting point. CPP prioritises biblical revelation and the classic works of the Christian tradition in order to build its distinctive framework and identity before (speaking ideally) it investigates the created order or the psychologies of other worldview communities to learn what it can from them. And one of CPP’s greatest challenges is to competently translate the discourse of modern psychology into its own unique idiom, for this requires expertise in both modern psychology and the Christian faith (Johnson 2007, Ch. 7). The present collection of essays well demonstrates the strengths and potential of this orientation. First, the reader will notice the diversity of

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Christian perspectives represented: Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant. Each chapter, in its own way, examines a particular anthropological, psychological or psychotherapeutic theme from one of those traditions, and in the process demonstrates the psychological richness of these great Christian traditions. Moreover, Christianity has always found a home within the ethnicity and culture of its members, and this too is evident in the present book through the diverse perspectives that result from the different European cultures of the authors. As CPP spreads throughout the world, more cultures will participate. Most importantly, a wide range of important psychological and theological topics are explored, including personhood and personality, relationality, the Trinity, the emotions, love, dialogue, holistic treatment, prevention, risk-taking behaviours, the role of the face and language in relationship, the healing potential present in nature, and guilt and sin feelings; as well as significant engagement with specific subdisciplines like psychology of religion, health psychology, community psychology, and psychotherapy. According to MacIntyre (1990), a living intellectual tradition is one that is engaged with other viable intellectual traditions. That is abundantly evident in the present collection and should encourage supportive readers. Nevertheless, enormous tasks remain for CPP. We are far from having a comprehensive, unified model of psychology, including a common vocabulary, a conceptual apparatus (or grammar), a significant body of research findings shaped by Christian assumptions, and a corresponding set of empirical and therapeutic practices, probably the most important of which is a body of distinctly Christian psychological research. (It is encouraging to see a few studies in the book presenting data.) These deficits are reflected in the fact that CPP is not a recognised perspective that gains the attention and engagement of others in the field (and this in turn inhibits Christians in the field from participating). MacIntyre would probably conclude that, though CPP is a living tradition, until it produces its own distinctive body of psychological literature (theory building, research, and practices), it will be struggling for its life. All this calls for our prayer that God would pour out great resources for the task, including the raising up of more contributors in the coming generations. We see in the Bible and in the history of the church that God loves to take such challenging, even desperate, conditions and do something marvellous with them that powerfully manifests his glory. This book is a token and firstfruits of such renewal.



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Sources Johnson, Eric L. 2007. Foundations for Soul Care: A Christian Psychology Proposal. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity. MacIntyre, Alasdair. 1977. “Epistemological Crises, Dramatic Narratives, and the Philosophy of Science.” Monist 60, 453–72. —. 1990. Three Rival Versions of Moral Inquiry. Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame.

PREFACE

This book reflects the perspectives, thoughts and ideas of a group of Christian professionals practising in the fields of health and mental health in Europe and beyond. The European Movement for Christian Anthropology, Psychology and Psychotherapy (EMCAPP) emerged from the shared interest of a group of psychologists, psychotherapists and theologians in the role and impact of spiritual beliefs on psychotherapeutic and counselling processes and healing, such as the belief that there is a living God who created human beings in his image and who is actively maintaining this world. This led to the formulation of seven statements on the purpose of EMCAPP and a declaration on five main positions within psychotherapy, which are listed in the article about EMCAPP following the introduction. Members have held regular symposia since 1996, the themes of which are also listed in the abovementioned article, such as basic anthropological concepts in psychotherapy, grace and the process of psychotherapy, and the concepts of truth and agape love. The decision to publish perspectives relating to the different Christian theological positions and to the integration of Christian spirituality and psychology and psychotherapy stemmed from the desire to share valuable knowledge on these topics gained through years of experience, research and academic exchange with other mental health professionals. The theological positions expressed by the authors represent different Christian faith traditions. A variety of psychological theories and models are also included in the articles. The book is intended not only to share ideas, thoughts and perspectives with others but also to highlight the importance of spirituality in people’s healing process. Nicolene L. Joubert Institute of Christian Psychology June 2018

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Publishing a book of this extent, variety and depth is quite a daunting task. The authors represent eight different countries of Europe, namely Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, the Ukraine, Spain and Finland, and one country outside of Europe, namely South Africa. The cultural and language differences are huge, and although the authors are all well-established professionals with good publication records in their mother tongue, only the authors from the United Kingdom and South Africa have previously published works written originally in English. The first challenge faced by the non-English-speaking authors, therefore, was to get their articles translated into English. We acknowledge and applaud all of them for their dedicated effort to share their thoughts, perspectives and experience with an English-speaking audience of mental health professionals, theologians and others. We also thank the translators who worked behind the scenes with the authors to make this publication possible. No project of this extent is possible without a competent and dedicated project leader. We thank Anna Ostaszewska for not only managing this project in a professional manner but also formatting the numerous articles. Our sincere appreciation and gratitude also go to Nicolene Joubert for dedicating her time and skills to this project as the main editor, and to Dorothy du Plessis for her language editing and proofreading. Experts in the integration of theology, psychology and psychotherapy outside of Europe have inspired, enriched and encouraged the work of EMCAPP over the years. One of these experts, Eric Johnson, who has published several books on this topic,1 is an old friend and supporter of EMCAPP. We thank him sincerely for his continuous support and his perceptive and insightful foreword.

 1

Eric L. Johnson, Foundations for Soul Care: A Christian Psychology Proposal (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2007). 2 Eric L. Johnson and Stanton L. Jones, Psychology and Christianity: Four Views (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000).

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Acknowledgements

We express our sincere gratitude to Keith Richmond for his thorough, professional language editing during the final phase of the project to ensure a consistent level of English language throughout the book. Lastly, we thank Cambridge Scholars Publishing for taking on the project and for their editorial support.



INTRODUCTION NICOLENE L. JOUBERT1

The impact of spirituality on the health and mental health of people has increasingly been highlighted in the fields of psychology, psychotherapy and psychiatry. The World Health Organization (WHO) emphasises that health is not the mere absence of an illness or disease but is a state of complete physical, psychological and social well-being. WHO promotes a holistic view of people, acknowledges the spiritual dimension of health, and emphasises the importance of making provision for spirituality in health services. The articles in this book reflect the authors’ perspectives on how the spiritual dimension of health and mental health can be integrated into psychotherapeutic processes. The authors approach the integration process from a Christian faith position. However, their contributions could be useful to adherents of other faith traditions as well. Christian professionals from a number of European countries and beyond have contributed their perspectives, research findings and therapy models on the integration of Christian spirituality and mental health. The Christian spiritual approaches represent various Christian faith traditions, such as the Catholic, Russian Orthodox, Evangelical, Lutheran and Anglican traditions. The book has four main sections covering anthropology (the nature of human beings), spirituality/theology (the spiritual dimension of functioning), psychology (psychological theories and models from a Christian faith perspective) and psychotherapy (psychotherapeutic approaches from a Christian spiritual perspective).



1 Professor Dr Nicolene Joubert has been a counselling psychologist in private practice for 35 years, specialising in the integration of Christian spirituality and psychotherapy and trauma therapy. She is the founder of the Institute of Christian Psychology in South Africa, a training institution that offers courses in Christian psychology and counselling.

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Section I, dealing with anthropology, presents perspectives on how people’s thinking and functioning is influenced by their view of human nature. This has an impact not only on how people deal with life’s challenges and personal issues but also on how they develop and mature psychologically and spiritually. The four contributions in this section all emphasise anthropology in respect of psychotherapeutic processes and the recovery of the whole person. The first article is by Romuald Jaworski, a Polish psychotherapist, who discusses the concept of the person as an anthropological basis for Christian psychology and psychotherapy. The author asserts that the human person is both a cognitive subject and a subject of cognition and indicates how this double aspect of human life should be considered in psychotherapy. He further asserts that anthropological premises drawn from philosophy, theology and psychology form a scientific basis for a Christian psychology and psychotherapy, which could also make use of the achievement of modern psychology. A diagnostic model to assess the whole person, including spirituality, is presented in the second article. The author is Mike Sheldon, a medical doctor from the United Kingdom, who developed the model to enable doctors, counsellors and others to assess the health of a person by combining the physical, social and spiritual aspects of functioning. This whole-person assessment model involves a multi-disciplinary team that explores the life story of the person to identify areas of concern, and the results provide deepened insight into the functional limitations caused by their illness. In the third article, Olena Yaremko, a Ukrainian psychotherapist, offers a very interesting study on how personality factors influence correlations between interpersonal relationships and a relationship with God. With reference to her research among university students in Ukraine and to selected personality factors, the author explores types of religiosity, types of relationships with God, and types of interactions with other people. She analyses her findings from the perspective of Christian psychology and psychotherapy and draws practical implications for pastoral care and counselling. The fourth article, written by Francesco Cutino, an Italian clinical psychologist, offers a philosophical, historical and scientific perspective on ecotherapy and a brief discussion of the importance of social farms as strategic resources for ecotherapy. The discussion includes thought-

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provoking reflection on how Christian faith impacts the ecotherapy framework. The author indicates how the word “creation” refers to more than just nature, having a broader and deeper meaning. In the JudeoChristian tradition it refers to God’s loving plan in which every creature has its own value and significance. Section II focuses on spiritual and theological beliefs in relation to the psyche of a person. The authors of the first article in this section, Mar Alvarez and Monserrat Lafuente, are Spanish psychiatrists. They assert that in psychiatric and psychological texts a shift has taken place from a purely natural-scientific orientation to greater openness to the mysterious depths of a person. This article discusses the gap between spirit and psyche and explains the psychospiritual faculties of a person, which may have a critical role in psychotherapy, transforming the psyche through openness to the transcendent. The authors present a Christian anthropological model that could bridge the gap between the spirit and the psyche. The second article in this section is by Andrey Lorgus, a Russian Orthodox priest, psychologist and psychotherapist. He analyses the meaning of spirituality and spiritual for psychotherapy from a Russian Orthodox perspective and indicates how spirituality is a characteristic of existential processes and the search for meaning. The author explores the anxiety elicited in clients by the search for meaning and asserts that the answers to existential questions may be resolved in the sphere of religious and mystical experiences but not in the field of psychotherapy. Thus, the integration of religious and mystical experiences in a psychotherapy process is essential for the recovery of the whole person. (This is supported by research findings presented in the first article of section III.) The last article in section II is by Krzysztof Wojcieszek, a Polish professor of social sciences, who questions the lack of reference to religious beliefs and communities in the prevention of risk-taking behaviours. The author reviews the research done on risk-taking behaviour and how to prevent it. Furthermore, he proposes a philosophical analysis of the nature of risktaking behaviour and demonstrates how religiosity could serve to prevent such behaviour.

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Introduction

Section III focuses on Christian psychological paradigms. The first article, written by Nicolene Joubert, a professor of psychology, psychologist and trauma counsellor, focuses on how Christian psychology could be applied to individual psychotherapy and community psychological interventions. The author discusses Christian beliefs as a meaning-making framework in trauma counselling and briefly explains a number of relevant biblical beliefs that underscore the importance of anthropology, and the concepts of biblical epistemology, ontology and ecclesiology. The important role of these beliefs in the processing of traumatic events is discussed. This article supports the discourse presented in the second article of section II, by Lorgus, in holding that the question of why a person is suffering can be resolved through meaning found in the sphere of the religious and mystical (meaning being a critical factor in psychotherapeutic processes). In the second part of her article, the author demonstrates the value of integrating a Christian belief system with the assumptions and values of community psychology so as to constitute a Christian community psychology framework that can be applied in practice. The article thus affirms that religious beliefs and communities could provide a framework for preventative interventions and enhance mental health. This notion is also presented in the last article of section II, by Wojcieszek. Zenon Uchnast, a Polish emeritus professor of psychology, is the author of the second article in this section. He provides an analysis of the concept of synergy based on the original meanings attributed to the concept by its creators, namely early Christian theologians such as Saint Basil (329–379), Saint Gregory of Nazianzus (330–389) and Saint Gregory of Nyssa (335– 395). The author states that a deepened analysis of the concept of synergy provides a methodological basis for research in Christian psychology. It could also inspire further research into the psychosocial climate required to develop synergetic relations between nature and culture. The third article is by Wolfram Soldan, a German medical doctor and psychotherapist. He illustrates the commonalities and differences between mainstream psychology and Christian psychology by using the example of forgiveness. This example is chosen because the topic has been researched by both mainstream and Christian psychology. The author indicates how Christian psychology can give answers to difficult questions that secular psychotherapy cannot address.

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Section IV contains articles on a Christian approach to psychotherapy. These articles present various theological positions and psychotherapeutic models. Anna Ostaszewska, a Polish psychotherapist, has written the first article in this section on an integrative psychotherapeutic praxis developed in Poland. The author presents a Christian philosophical approach to integrative psychotherapy, which identifies with the psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioural approaches widely used in psychotherapy. The integration is based on Christian anthropology and its philosophy of personalism. Christian spirituality is understood as the relationship between a human being and the person of God. The approach further emphasises the skills and internal integration of the psychotherapist. The article provides a framework for a Christian approach to psychotherapy and includes research findings supporting the approach. The second article is by Elena Strigo, a Russian psychotherapist, who discusses the traditional Eastern patristic concept of “face” as applied in psychotherapy and the role of words in constituting the person. Face is viewed as the speaking image created by the word, through which the image of God may express itself in a person. The author explores how the reality of the person displays itself in an empirical personality (face), which is composed by a semantic frame. The author distinguishes between face and guise, which refers to the result of the influence of evil on the semantic frame (face). These concepts are illustrated in a discussion of a case study. The third article in this section is by Trevor Griffiths, a medical doctor and counsellor. He presents an extended hypothesis about human personal identity and the triune image of the One Living Creator, and he frames his hypothesis in relation to chaos theory and adaptive systems. The interrelatedness of all living systems and the ability to adapt to changes (even if they are creating chaos) is highlighted. The author further demonstrates how emotional chaos could lead to growth, stemming from interaction with a triune God and one’s community. Olga Krasnikova, a Russian counselling psychologist, is the author of the fourth article. She presents an approach to the concepts of sin and guilt, as understood in the Russian Orthodox Church. The author distinguishes between feelings of guilt and feelings of sin or the recognition of sin. She indicates how the practice of repentance and confession and hope for forgiveness can lead to positive psychological changes, such as the

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experience of relief and joy as well as gratitude, generosity and mercy. This results in a positive change in attitudes towards others. The theme of this article resonates with that by Wojcieszek in section II, which highlights the importance of forgiveness in psychotherapeutic processes and healing. The fifth article in section IV is by Saarah Kinnunen, a Finnish psychotherapist. She focuses on the healing of psychological issues that stem from a dysfunctional relationship with one’s father. Her article highlights how hurt that stems from an insecure attachment with one’s father can leave footprints in one’s life, identified as feelings of fear, anxiety, distrust, isolation and the belief that one should be able to survive on one’s own. The author demonstrates how connecting to God the Father can bring comfort and help clients suffering from a father wound to forgive and reconcile with their loss, leading to a new freedom to explore and enjoy life. This article resonates with the previous article, by Krasnikova, and the third article in section II, by Wojcieszek, as the healing properties of receiving and granting forgiveness are accentuated. The last article in this section is by Werner May, a German psychologist, who draws attention to the issue of setting healthy boundaries in relationships. He deals with this issue in the form of five Yes’s and one No as answers to requests from other people. This dialogical approach to setting boundaries forms an important building block in trust-based relationships, and it helps people to overcome inner shame and mistrust. In conclusion, the four sections have different emphases but all deal with the integration of Christian faith and a variety of psychological and psychotherapeutic approaches to address biological, psychological, social and spiritual issues and to enhance the health of the whole person. We invite you, the reader, to consider the ideas, findings and examples put forward in this book. We encourage you to contemplate your own spiritual position and approach to recovery and healing, and to implement and test one or more of our integrative frameworks.

THE EUROPEAN MOVEMENT FOR CHRISTIAN ANTHROPOLOGY, PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY ANNA OSTASZEWSKA

Introduction: An Overview of EMCAPP The European Movement for Christian Anthropology, Psychology and Psychotherapy (EMCAPP, www.emcapp.eu), consists of psychologists, psychotherapists and theologians mainly from different countries of Europe (Denmark, Finland, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine), where they hold key positions. Interest and support also comes from beyond the borders of Europe, as in the case of Nicolene Joubert, founder and head of the Institute for Christian Psychology in South Africa, and Eric Johnson, past president of the Society for Christian Psychology (SCP) in the US. The name of the movement was initially the European Movement for Christian Psychology and Anthropology (EMCPA), which in 2010 was changed to the current name. The movement is ecumenical and all Christian traditions are represented: Evangelical, Catholic, Orthodox, Pentecostal and Lutheran. Representatives of different countries meet every year at the EMCAPP symposia. The EMCAPP e-journal, Christian Psychology Around the World, has been published since 2012. The new EMCAPP project of webinar lectures started in 2017. The seven statements of EMCAPP are as follows: 1. EMCAPP is based on the belief that there is a God who is actively maintaining this world, and therefore, there cannot be any discussions about Man without talking about God. 2. EMCAPP acknowledges the limitations of all human knowledge and therefore appreciates the attempts of the various Christian denominations to describe God and their faith.

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3. EMCAPP brings together international leaders and pioneers in the field of Christian psychology and psychotherapy and its underlying anthropology. 4. EMCAPP respects and appreciates the cultural and linguistic diversity of backgrounds of its members. 5. EMCAPP encourages its members to learn how to recognize each other as friends and brothers and sisters in Christ. 6. EMCAPP encourages its members in their national challenges and responsibilities. 7. EMCAPP has a global future and it is open to discourse and joined research opportunities round the world. The current EMCAPP board members are: Werner May (Germany) – president; Anna Ostaszewska (Poland) – vice-president; Elena Strigo (Russia); Nicolene Joubert (South Africa); Andrey Lorgus (Russia); Francesco Cutino (Italy).

The EMCAPP Declaration – 2006 There are five main positions within psychotherapy depending on the belief system and method of practice of the therapist. 1. The non-Christian therapist using a secular model of therapy. This person puts their trust in science and experience and thus gives honour to science and self-knowledge as developed through personal life experiences of self and others. Clients are blessed by common sense therapy and God’s universal grace. 2. The non-Christian therapist using a combination of secular models and also a post-modern “spiritual” approach working with metaphysical concepts not directly related to Christianity. Here outcomes are less predictable, and exploring the spiritual area without firm guidelines may lead to unforeseen consequences. 3. The therapist who is a Christian but uses a secular model of therapy as in the first case above. Again the client is helped by common sense and God’s grace. Christian areas can be explored if the client wishes it, but the therapist is usually not prepared or trained to integrate the spiritual dimension into the help they provide. 4. The Christian therapist who uses a Christian approach to psychotherapy and so develops specific aims, methods and desired outcomes according to Christian beliefs. The model of practice is developed and verified using the same scientific methods as in

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secular models in recognition of the fact that God gives us both reason and revelation. This therapist gives honour to God and also recognises the value of scientific evaluation. He/she trusts God first and then human reason. 5. The Christian therapist who uses a “charismatic” or a “Biblical” approach to therapy which relies on God’s direct intervention through prayer, God’s word and ministry. No recognised model of therapy is developed (although the individual’s practice may be consistent), and no scientific evaluation is sought as the spiritual world is not considered suitable for scientific evaluation. All the honour is given to God, who works in a mystical and hidden way.

History of the EMCAPP Symposia 4-6 December 1996 – EMCPA Symposium I: “Basic anthropological concepts in psychology”. Kitzingen, Germany. Participants from: Germany, Poland, United Kingdom. 1-4 July 1999 – Symposium II: “Grace in the process of psychotherapy”. Plock, Poland. Participants from: Canada, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom. 28-30 October 2002 – Symposium III: “What is agape?” Kitzingen, Germany. Participants from: Denmark, Germany, Italy, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, United Kingdom. 22-24 September 2003 – Symposium IV: “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free”. Warsaw, Poland. Participants from: Germany, Italy, Poland, Ukraine, United Kingdom. The symposium participants had a meeting with the Polish primate, Cardinal Jozef Glemp, who blessed the Movement. 23-24 October 2004 –Symposium V: “Christian psychology and psychotherapy”. Roma, Italy. Participants from: Germany, Italy, Poland, United Kingdom. 28-30 November 2005 – Symposium VI: “A Christian approach to the health of persons”. London. Participants from: Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, United Kingdom.

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27-29 May 2006 – EMCPA board meeting in Warsaw. Participants: Werner May (Germany), Mike Sheldon (UK), Anna Ostaszewska (Poland). At this meeting the EMCAPP Declaration was formulated and established. 14-16 February 2007 – Symposium VII: “Aims of Christian psychology” and “Spiritual maturity”. Warsaw, Poland. Participants from: Finland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, United Kingdom. 21-23 May 2008 – Symposium VIII: “Professional qualifications of Christian psychotherapists or counsellors. Cooperation between God and a man (psychotherapist, counsellor)”. Cracow, Poland. Participants from: Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Taiwan, United Kingdom, USA. Special guests: Dr Eric Johnson, president of the Society for Christian Psychology, USA; Hui Shan Hsu and Shirley Ou Yang from the Lutheran Seminary in Taiwan; and David Depledge, president of ACC Europe. 26-28 June 2009 – Symposium IX: “Does God live in any human being?” Warsaw, Poland. Participants from: Germany, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom. Special guest: Dr Nicolene Joubert, director of the Institute of Christian Psychology in Johannesburg, South Africa. January 2010 – EMCPA board meeting in Helsinki, Finland. Participants: Werner May (Germany), president; Anna Ostaszewska (Poland), vice-president; Toni Tehro (Finland), member; Elena Strigo (Russia), member; Andrey Lorgus (Russia), member. The name of the movement was changed to the European Movement of Christian Anthropology, Psychology and Psychotherapy – EMCAPP. 2-5 May 2011 –EMCAPP Symposium X: “Future of Christian anthropology, psychology and psychotherapy”. Moscow, Russia. Participants from: Austria, Germany, Italy, Mongolia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, South Africa, Switzerland. 3-6 September 2012 – Symposium XI: “Specific subjects of Christian anthropology, psychology and psychotherapy”. Warsaw, Poland. Participants from: Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA.

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9-12 September 2013 –Symposium XII: “Specific healing factors in Christian psychotherapy”. Lviv, Ukraine. Participants from: Finland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Russia, Ukraine. 2-6 October 2014 – Symposium XIII: “Christian psychological models/explanations of psychological disorders”. Rome, Italy. Participants from: Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Russia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA. 10-13 September 2015 – Symposium XIV: “Christian approaches to person and the meaning for therapy and counselling”. Hailoo, Netherlands. Participants from: Denmark, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Spain, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA.

The EMCAPP e-Journal Christian Psychology Around the World Each of the first eight issues of the journal had an individual country as its overall focus, and the articles were published in English and in the language of the focus country. It was decided in 2016 that the concentration on a focus country would be dropped and that future issues of the journal would concentrate on one important topic in Christian psychology. Each previous issue, as listed below, is available on the internet, hosted by the website of the IGNIS Academy of Christian Psychology (http://emcapp.ignis.de): No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Year 2012 2012 2013 2013 2014 2015 2015 2016 2016 2017

Focus Poland Germany Russia Switzerland United States Finland Canada South Africa Therapy goals Conscience

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The EMCAPP Webinar Lectures 2017: “Ways Out of the Shame-Fear Cycle” by Friedemann Alsdorf, Germany. 2018: “Integrative Psychotherapy: A Christian Approach” by Anna Ostaszewska, Poland.

SECTION I: ANTHROPOLOGY

THE CONCEPT OF PERSON AS ANTHROPOLOGICAL BASIS FOR CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY ROMUALD JAWORSKI1

Abstract Inspired by Christian anthropology, psychology and psychotherapy adopt important premises concerning human nature. The human person is both a cognitive subject (an agent of cognitive reflection) and a subject of cognition (reflected upon by oneself and others). Psychology should consider the double aspect (objective and subjective) of human life and cognition. Psychotherapy is oriented towards helping people in developing and overcoming obstacles on their way towards achieving optimal development. Christian psychology and psychotherapy should not be equated with ideology. Drawing from philosophy, theology and psychology, anthropological premises make a solid scientific foundation for thorough empirical research and the consequent interpretation of results. Humans, as rational and free beings, are capable of dialogue and development. Besides, in the context of Christian theology, humans are perceived as called for sainthood but injured by sin and inclined to do evil. Initially human nature was created good, but due to original sin we tend to do evil and thus fall into sin. Sin is understood as alienation from a good and healthy relation with God, other people and nature. Furthermore, a person’s maturity is measured by their synergetic ability to integrate opposing attitudes and tendencies in life, such as immanence and transcendence, the sacred and the profane, anxiety and fascination, subjectivity and objectivity, independence and obedience.

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Romuald Jaworski is psychotherapist, supervisor and professor of psychology of religion at the Cardinal Wyszynski University in Warsaw.

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Christian psychologists and psychotherapists make extensive use of the achievements of contemporary psychology but employ a Christian view of humankind and the world to verify the theses and assumptions about life and health proposed by other psychological schools. A Christian orientation accepts the existence of God and His influence on the lives of individuals and societies as the ultimate truth. These concepts of humankind and God allow the manifestations of religious life to be interpreted and applied to intrapsychic functioning and interpersonal relationships. This premise forms the ground for dialogue with other trends and tendencies in psychology. Keywords: Concept of a person; Christian psychology; Christian psychotherapy; existence of God; maturity; synergetic experiences

Introduction The development of psychology is driven by a desire to understand human beings, their feelings and actions, and to provide effective assistance in their development and overcoming of various difficulties. Achieving these goals requires a convergence of two research strategies: induction and deduction. Concepts from philosophy and psychology concerning human beings and their functioning are constantly supplemented with new information from empirical research. These concepts, verified by numerous experimental research endeavors, obtain their import in the context of an effort to understand human beings holistically, with due regard for anthropological theses that may give in-depth meaning to the results of empirical psychological research. Revealing the complex reality of human life is a difficult process that demands diverse methodologies and interdisciplinary communication. The difficulty of reconciling this theory and empiricism lies in the use of language, as different words and concepts are used to describe common phenomena and processes. However, striving for such reconciliation is a worthy cause, offering the prospect of a more complete study of the reality of human life. Even a cursory analysis of the main theses of anthropology, philosophy, theology, sociology and psychology shows that the basic and most widely used term is “person”. Indeed, in both philosophical anthropology and psychology the concept of a person plays a key role, although it is often used in different contexts that are not very precisely distinguished.

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The Concept of Person as Anthropological Basis for Christian Psychology and Psychotherapy

The aim of these considerations is to show the importance of the person, in terms of Christian anthropology, for a more in-depth understanding of human beings and for developing a more effective psychotherapeutic practice. For this purpose, important aspects of personal human existence will first be extracted. Next, the value of a personal approach to the study of psychological and psychotherapeutic activities will be shown. Lastly, the value of theological inspiration for interpreting psychological facts and for psychotherapeutic practice will be presented. A personalistic interpretation of human experience and behaviour has a significant history in philosophical, theological and psychological thought. Many psychologists use the word “person” to denote humankind. Others, speaking about a person, pay attention to their attributes and way of existence.

Differentiated Approach and Definition of a Person The word “person” (Latin persona, Greek prosopon) originally referred to an acting mask through which the voice of the actor echoed (per-sonare). The actor thus expressed certain experiences and established contact with the environment through signaling (or hiding) their own feelings. This intentional dimension of communication of specific feelings assumed the coexistence of subjectivity and objectification. Being the author of the message, the actor used a persona to communicate important information to the environment (Mroczkowski 2012). Here, we touch upon an important dimension of human identity. The concept of a person is always associated with the search for identity. Over centuries, philosophical and theological thought has contributed to the discovery of significant new content hiding behind the notion of a person. In the stream of perennial philosophy – whose tradition includes the views of Aristotle and Plato, Saint Augustine and Saint Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus, Immanuel Kant and Paul Newman, Karol Wojtyla and Gabriel Marcel – the discovery of the truth about being oneself and being a person has taken place. The ancient philosophers pointed out that different contexts for understanding a person could be identified, and this initiated two trends in the study of a person. Plato, the founder of a relational approach, stressed the significance to a person of entities located beyond them, external to them, whereas Aristotle, the precursor of a substantial approach, was interested in their interior ontic content and

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emphasised the independence, freedom and rationality of the human being (Gogacz 1974). A relational approach to the human being was represented by adherents of Platonic thought focusing on the following kinds of relationship that a person can have: with God (Rahner, Eliade, Kierkegaard); with other people (Buber); with nature and culture (environmentalists, humanists); with the universe (Teilhard de Chardin, Levi-Straus); and with oneself (Jaspers, Heidegger, Sartre, Rogers and Mroczkowski 2012). The substantial approach was developed in two directions, namely the essentialist (Boethius), emphasising ontological content of the human being, and the existential (Thomas Aquinas), accentuating a special kind of being or existence as a basis for understanding what a person is. Although modern psychology tends to diverge from its philosophical roots, in the psychological vocabulary of different schools the definition of a person is still included. However, the meaning of this term is not clear in the light of philosophical or theological understanding. Depending on the thematic context, the understanding of a person in psychology may be closer to either the substantial or the relational approach. In the first instance the term finds its echo in personality psychology and the psychology of individual differences. In the latter instance it is found to continue in social and family psychology and in that of interpersonal communication (Gasiul 2006). There are many definitions of a person and they differ according to which attributes they accentuate. In the classic definition, Boethius (Boecjusz 2001) stresses that a person is a substance of a rational nature. Wojtyla (1994) focuses on the fact that a person is the subject of thought and action. Kant (1913) declared that a person should be respected as a goal in itself and should not be treated instrumentally. Mroczkowski (2012) emphasises the bodily and mental dimensions of a person, while Gasiul (2006) emphasises the subjective-spiritual self, able to transcend time and space. Krapiec (1974) draws attention to the fact that the person is a concrete, individual substance and a dynamic whole, which is conscious of itself and subject to continuous development and improvement. Tracing the entire history of personalistic thought from its origins in the theology of the Trinity and the concepts of Boethius and Saint Thomas Aquinas to the modern Neothomists and phenomenologists exceeds the thematic framework of this article. The author’s intention is rather to show

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the generally accepted characteristics of a person. In this context one can talk about intentionality, substantiality, awareness, freedom, dignity, ability to love, and reference to values (Mroczkowski 2012, 289). Including these attributes of a person contributes to a deeper understanding of personality and the criteria for its maturity. The Christian concept of a person takes into account its reference to God. God, as an incomparable fullness of personal being, is understood as a personal model here, an image aspired to by human beings, who are derivative and finite. God and every human being remain in a unique relationship of design (Urbild) and image (Abbild), according to Crosby (2007, 320–22). In Christian philosophy, we emphasise the fact that every human is a person and that they express themselves in their self-consciousness and self-determination. As Gasiul (2006, 383) writes: Having a personal nature means having the potential or possibility to behave in a manner determined by the accrued attributes. The person disposes of himself or herself, owns resources and, depending on the manner of their use, can variously shape development. The development of a person is based on enhancing personal attributes – i.e. growth in rationality, freedom, and responsibility. (Author’s translation)

Psychological Understanding of a Person Psychology, seeking to get to know humankind through the collection and interpretation of empirical facts, often makes a cognitive reduction, focusing on physiological aspects (reflexes, somatic reactions) or psychological aspects (emotions, motivations) and ignoring other important aspects of human existence such as social or religious relations or our spirituality. However, the detailed information resulting from empirical research should ideally throw light on all dimensions of the human being. Methodological reductionism must be supplemented with reflection on the meaning (sense) or particular information leading to a holistic understanding of the human being. Denying or ignoring our personal nature leads to depersonalisation in science and practice. Personalisation is the extraction of what is most human, specific for Homo sapiens. Depersonalisation is associated with the instrumental and reductionist treatment of a human being and is synonymous with its reification.

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The creator of the personalistic approach in psychology was Wilhelm Stern (1912). His interest in the person was to integrate the atomistic approach to the human in psychology with an analysis of human behaviour in terms of teleological categories (Gasiul 2006, 24). According to Stern, a person is a unity of many parts and is unique, individual, and open to the world. Unfortunately, due to weak empirical verification, the personalistic approach of Stern did not receive general approval or popularity. Another psychologist who treated the person as a central theme of his research and counselling was Carl Rogers. His psychotherapy focused on the person and refers to the characteristic elements of human existence, our dignity, consciousness and freedom (Rogers 1961). Rogers does not define a person but describes the experience, predispositions, injuries and development potential of a person. Rogers is a typical representative of humanistic psychology, in which the focus of interest is the human personality and the concept of self-realisation, whereby the characteristics of a person are developed with the aim of becoming self-actualised. These characteristics are: openness to experience, confidence in one’s body, an internal locus of evaluation, and readiness to be in the process of becoming. The concept of self-realisation is reductive, however, as it does not take into account the significance of motivations from the spiritual sphere and interactions with it (Gasiul 2006, 377; Vitz 2005). Henry Gasiul (2006) suggests a more expansive humanistic approach to human nature when he says that every human being is a person who disposes of a subjectively spiritual “I”, freedom, awareness and capacity for transcendence. This potential develops in the direction of becoming a personality. The development of people is based on the fulfilment of personal attributes, leading to growth in awareness, freedom, responsibility and dignity. Based on this understanding of personal development, the author highlights three principles that guide development: the principle of attachment–distancing–individuation; the principle of the relationship between subjective and objective perspectives; and the principle of support from outside to inside (Gasiul 2006, 389– 407). Omitting the personal existence of the human being and treating the person as an object of cognition (cognitive reification) or an object of interaction (practical reification) has profound consequences for psychological research and psychotherapy.

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Consequences of a Personalistic Approach in Psychological Research Personalistic and depersonalistic approaches in psychology reflect distinctive interpretations of concepts such as cognition, development, morality, education, religiousness and social relations. Table 1 shows these differences. Table 1: Personalisation and depersonalisation in psychology Concept Knowledge Development Therapy (psychotherapy) Education Morality Religiousness

Social relations

Personalisation Integrity, holism Mature personality Focus on the person

Depersonalisation Reductionism Personality disorder Focus on technique

Opening to the world of values Responsibility and salvation Religion as an interpersonal relationship between God and oneself Orientation to being (to be oneself, to be with someone)

Behavioural strategies Emphasis on social standards of behaviour Religion as a product of mental or social processes Orientation to having (to have appropriate characteristics, to have someone)

Personalisation and depersonalisation in psychology involve considering, ignoring or questioning the personal nature of man. By taking into account specific personal attributes, a personalistic approach to human existence avoids human reductionism and degradation in both cognitive and therapeutic practice. Accordingly, Gasiul (2006, 384) notes that in psychology the ontological perspective emphasises the attributes of the person and our dynamic capacity to act on the basis of personal motivation. In the case of psychological research, appeals to personal human nature and interpretations of psychic phenomena in terms of the person’s life allow the specificity of human experience and action to be understood, quite different from the life processes of plants and animals or the

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functioning of computers. Failing to consider the personal context causes researchers to perceive humans reductively and mechanistically. This depersonalising approach results in the misinterpretation of complex moral and religious experiences. Table 2 presents the contrasting interpretations of human attributes resulting from personalising and depersonalising approaches, respectively. The latter gives a distorted, incomplete and reductionist view of human beings and the world around them. Table 2: Human attributes and their interpretation according to personalistic and depersonalistic approaches Attributes

Personalistic approach

Rationality

Human beings are aware of themselves and the world around them and are guided by discernment.

Freedom

Human beings are free to determine their attitude towards themselves and the environment. Human beings are able to assess their own decisions and actions and bear the consequences.

Responsibility

Identity, uniqueness

Human beings are unique, whole, self-possessed individuals.

Dignity

Human beings have value in themselves. Their value and dignity result from the fact of being human.



Depersonalistic approach Human beings are unaware of their own conditions, motives, and internal and external circumstances. Human beings are enslaved by instincts and external stimuli. Human beings are incapable of an objective assessment of their decisions and actions and therefore cannot bear the consequences of their own activity. Human beings are part of a larger whole, with the characteristics of a particular group or type. The value of a human being is measured by their usefulness and suitability.

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Relational nature Capacity for love and transcendence

Approach to value

Intentionality

Religiousness

Human beings are open to a relationship with another person and free in their relation to others. Human beings are capable of loving and being loved. Their loving attitude permeates the somatic, mental and spiritual spheres. Love is the source, target and norm of human life. Human beings are focused on the discovery and implementation of objective values (truth, goodness, beauty). To understand the person, not only the consequences of their actions but also their goals are considered. The purposefulness of human action is key. Human beings are created by a personal God and remain in a personal relationship with Him.

Human beings are conditioned by environmental stimuli and social pressures. Human beings are directed by instincts (life and death), impulses, senses, and the need for affiliation. Love is treated as a constraint and the enslavement of a person. Human beings determine what is valuable to them. Appraisal is subjective. Human aspirations are determined by internal factors (drives, needs) or external ones (environmental stimuli). Human beings transfer all their expectations and fears on to God. Religion is often the source of mental disturbance in humans.

Personalising and depersonalising approaches in psychotherapy involve different perceptions of both the cause of a disorder and the corrective, therapeutic or developmental activity that is deemed appropriate. Where the therapeutic goal is pursued only in the psycho-physiological and social sphere, ignoring the sphere of spirituality, then biological or psychological determinism dominates.

Consequences of a Personalistic Attitude in Psychotherapy Personalisation and depersonalisation are commonly known facts in psychology and psychotherapy. All psychological streams display a

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dependence of psychological concepts and psychotherapeutic practice on anthropological assumptions. Whether treatment of the human being is personal or objectifying (reifying) depends on the interpretation of empirical facts resulting from psychological observation, research or experiments. Psychotherapy can avoid misinterpreting or wrongly manipulating individual clients by putting them, with their personal attributes, at the heart of the psychotherapeutic encounter. This encounter should be characterised by respect for the freedom and individuality of each person and should recognise all spheres of human existence – the somatic, psychological, social and spiritual. It should not exclude topics concerning important areas of the client’s life. These areas include the dimension of values (axiology), the purpose and meaning of life, moral commitments and religious affiliations (Frankl, 2010). Psychotherapy robs clients of dignity and specificity if they are approached in a reductionist way for methodological, technical or ideological reasons. If psychological and psychotherapeutic help is limited to the biological and psycho-social spheres, ignoring the noetic realm, the person is prevented from benefiting holistically from the intervention (Frankl 2007; Popielski 1987). Psychotherapists have long disputed whether they may appeal to axiology, or a hierarchy of values, in the process of psychotherapy or in their relationship with the client. Similarly, there is ongoing debate on whether the spirituality of the person may be taken into account in providing psychotherapeutic support. Utsch (1998) draws attention to the relationship that exists between the ontological model and empirical theory. In every school of psychology, a relationship can be discerned between its ideological assumptions and scientific consequences. Zimbardo (in Gasiul 2006) draws attention to the assumptions underlying every psychological theory. This “hidden image” of the human embedded in any psychological approach is important, but as a rule it is not articulated. Herzog also has indicated that “hidden human models” can be identified as the basis of scientific psychological theories (Gasiul 2006).

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Importance of the Christian Worldview for Contemporary Psychology and Psychotherapy Christian personalism combined ancient tradition with the content of Revelations and truths contained in the Bible. This direction of thought, initiated by Boethius and clarified by Thomas Aquinas, was continued by Bonaventure and Duns Scotus and in subsequent periods by Gilson, Granata and Krąpiec (Gogacz 1974, 4–16). This trend emphasised the durability of the subjective “I”, the freedom of the human being, our spirituality and carnality, immortality, reference to values and morality, and above all our dignity. The Christian concept of the person refers to the theological interpretation of the Incarnation of the Son of God and the mystery of the Trinity. Both theological facts are considered the mysteries of faith or mysteria fidei. An incarnation is understood as the integration in the person of Jesus Christ of human and divine nature. The mystery of the Trinity concerns the union of three divine Persons, namely the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in one divine nature. A more detailed interpretation of these mysteries of faith is possible on the basis of theology. For psychology, it constitutes only an impulse to notice the importance of the concept of the person in explaining the mystery of human beings. The specificity of the Christian approach to psychology and psychotherapy consists in those aspects of the anthropology which emphasise the creation of each individual as a personal being in God’s image, calling us to holiness expressed in a vivid relationship with God. Since we are created in the image of a personal God, human nature is characterised by divine attributes such as wisdom, love and holiness. A human being is perceived as a rational being. The gift of awareness is an obligation. Wisdom is inflicted. Love for each other and the surrounding world is also inflicted. With the dignity of the human being, a person is called to holiness as a vocation. These facts indicate the direction of human development but are also a signpost for psychotherapy, understood as a correction of false or wrong choices and their consequences. In a sense, the directions of trends and therapies meet in an image of personal maturity. This maturity applies both to oneself and to the environment (particularly social). A Christian approach to psychology is focused on reinterpreting various aspects of mental life as described by academic psychology. The idea is to correct the often falsified picture of life, the human being, God, world, standards, health and illness, therapist and science. The Christian concept

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and interpretation of human life takes into account our origin, properties and purpose, and the fact of suffering and sin. That is why the subjects of interest in Christian psychology are specific human experiences such as sin, grace, suffering, compassion, purpose and the meaning of life (Porczyk 2000). The Christian concept of the person is specifically present in psychology and psychotherapy within three contexts. Firstly, for a Christian psychotherapist, the Christian religion offers a particular climate of thought and means of categorising phenomena. A Christian psychotherapist has no qualms about asking clients about their spiritual and religious experiences and the meaning of these spiritual experiences for their present and past life. This makes it possible to access religious resources that are intensely stimulating in the process of therapy. Secondly, there is a characteristic perception of the client as a neighbour who is sent to the therapist by God. Therapy then becomes an opportunity for the psychotherapist not only to focus, with concern, on the client and the specifics of his or her experiences but also to do personal, internal reflection. Thirdly, the psychotherapist acquires a sense of responsibility not only towards the client, society and themselves but also, most of all, before God. The psychotherapist accordingly feels that negligence or mistakes made in therapy also have an impact on the supernatural dimension of existence. A Christian psychotherapist, in interpreting life experiences, refers more often than other therapists to archetypal texts from the Bible, to parables, psalms or hymns reflecting the truth of events and experiences reported by clients. The Christian dimension of psychotherapy is characterised by the inclusion of the spiritual sphere in the process of psychotherapy. At the level of both diagnosis and therapy, the spiritual and religious spheres are not placed beyond the area of interest. In fact, they constitute an important aspect of the personal life of the client. Collecting information regarding not only the mental and somatic spheres but also the spiritual sphere makes more accurate diagnosis possible and enables the resources needed to restore health and healthy functioning to be determined. Taking into account the sphere of religious life fosters the internal integration of the client and motivates them to engage in rational, positive relationships with the environment. Religion, understood as an interpersonal relationship between God and man, becomes a strong motivator for the client to make a personal effort in the therapy process, and it creates an openness in them

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to use the help of others and God. This openness accelerates the process of becoming less egocentric. Clients differentiate areas for which they have to take more responsibility and situations in which they can (and sometimes should) rely on other people.

Conclusion In psychology and psychotherapy inspired by Christian anthropology, an important assumption is adopted regarding the personal nature of human beings. Human beings are both the subject who is getting to know themselves and the world, and the subject of this cognition. Psychology must take into account this double aspect of human life and cognition (subjective and objective). Psychotherapy is oriented towards helping a person in overcoming barriers on the path to growth. Anthropological assumptions rooted in philosophy, theology and psychology constitute a strong scientific base for the development of detailed empirical studies and interpretation of results. Human beings as persons are rational and free, capable of dialogue and development. Moreover, in the context of Christian theology, they are perceived as called to holiness but wounded by sin and a tendency to do evil (original sin having perverted their nature, originally created as good). Sin is understood as alienation from a healthy, good relationship with God, with others and with the natural world. A Christian psychologist and psychotherapist generously uses the achievements of modern psychology but also seeks to verify whether the theses and assumptions about life and health associated with other schools of thought in psychology are compatible with a Christian view of ourselves and the world. In the Christian orientation, the existence of God and His influence on the lives of individuals and societies is assumed as the fundamental truth. The adopted concepts of the human being and God allow the manifestations of religious life to be interpreted and applied not only to intrapsychic functioning but also to interpersonal relationships. This fact offers a plane for dialogue with other currents and schools of psychological thought.

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Sources Allport, Gordon. 1988. OsobowoĞü i religia [Personhood and religion]. Warszawa: PAX. Boecjusz [Boethius]. 2001. Traktaty teologiczne [Theological treatises]. Translated by Rafaá Bielak and Agnieszka Kijewska. KĊty: Antyk. Crosby, John F. 2007. Zarys filozofii osoby: Bycie sobą [Outline of the philosophy of the person: being yourself]. Kraków: WAM. Frankl, Viktor E. 2010. Wola sensu [The will to meaning]. Warszawa: Czarna Owca. Gasiul, Henryk. 2006. Psychologia osobowoĞci: Nurty, teorie, koncepcje [The psychology of personality: trends, theories, concepts]. Warszawa: Difin. Gogacz, Mieczysáaw. 1974. Wokóá problemu osoby [On the problem of the person]. Warszawa: PAX. Granat, Wincenty. 1985. Personalizm chrzeĞcijaĔski: Teologia osoby ludzkiej [Christian personalism: The theology of the human person]. PoznaĔ: KsiĊgarnia Ğw. Wojciecha. Jaworski, Romuald. 2012. “Personal and impersonal religiousness: A psychological model and its empirical verification.” Christian Psychology Around the World 1:46–56. Johnson, Erik L., and Stanton L. Jones. 2000. Psychology & Christianity: Four Views. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press. Kant, Immanuel. 1913. Kant’s Werke. Band V. Kritik der praktischen Vernunft. Kritik der Urtheilskraft. [Kant’s works. Volume 5. Critique of practical reason. Critique of judgement]. Berlin: G. Reimer. Kobierzycki, Tadeusz. 1989. Osoba: Dylematy rozwoju [The person: dilemmas of development]. Studium Metakliniczne. Bydgoszcz: Pomorze. Krapiec, Mieczyslaw A. 1974. I-Man: An Outline of Philosophical Anthropology. Lublin: KUL. Mearns, Dave, and Brian Thorne. 2010. Terapia skoncentrowana na osobie [Person-centred therapy]. Kraków: UJ. Mroczkowski, Ireneusz. 2012. Natura osoby ludzkiej: Podstawy toĪsamoĞci czáowieka [The nature of the human person: fundamentals of human identity]. Páock: PIW. Popielski, Kazimierz. 1987. Czáowiek pytanie otwarte [The open question of man]. Lublin: KUL. Porczyk, Stanisáaw. 2000. Wiara chrzeĞcijaĔska a psychologia: MoĪliwoĞü i potrzeba spotkania [Christian faith and psychology: the possibility and necessity of contact]. Biuletyn SPCh 27: 1–6.

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Rogers, Carl. 1961. On Becoming a Person: A Therapist’s View of Psychotherapy. London: Constable. Stern, William. 1912. Die psychologischen Methoden der Intelligenzprüfung: und deren Anwendung an Schulkindern. [Psychological methods of testing intelligence: their application to schoolchildren]. Leipzig: Barth. Uchnast, Zenon. 2006. “ZaáoĪenia antropologiczne psychologii chrzeĞcijaĔskiej” [Psychological foundations of Christian anthropology]. In Psychologia i psychoterapia chrzeĞcijaĔska w teorii i praktyce [Christian psychology and psychotherapy in theory and practice], edited by Ewa Jackowska and Romuald Jaworski, 27–40. Páock: PIW. Utsch, Michael. 1998. “Religionspsychologie zwischen Wissenschaft und Weltanschauung” [Psychology of religion between science and ideology]. In Religion und Religiosität zwischen Theologie und Psychologie [Religion and religiosity between theology and psychology], edited by C. Henning and E. Nestler, 117–29. Frankfurt: Peter Lang Verlag, 1998. Vitz, Paul. 2005. Psychologia jako religia [Psychology as religion]. Warszawa: Oficyna Wydawnicza Logos. Wojtyáa, Karol. 1994. Osoba i czyn oraz inne studia antropologiczne [The acting person, and other anthropological studies]. Lublin: TN KUL.

APPLYING WHOLE PERSON PRINCIPLES IN HEALTHCARE – ASSESSMENT AND DIAGNOSIS OF THE WHOLE PERSON MIKE G. SHELDON1

Abstract The concept of whole person assessment, leading to a complete diagnosis in a wide range of healthcare settings, is presented in this article. At the heart of all therapeutic interventions in healthcare stand the art and the science of making an accurate and complete diagnosis. No treatment can be effectively applied before a satisfactory diagnosis is made. Sometimes this has to be incomplete or provisional and then reviewed as time passes and interventions are made. A doctor will often use therapy as a trial of a diagnosis, although this is less preferable than making an accurate diagnosis in the first place. In order to make a satisfactory diagnosis a full assessment must be made of the person’s health. This involves combining the physical, psychological, social and spiritual assessments, which are necessary in order to make a whole person diagnosis leading to effective therapeutic interventions. This article discusses the undertaking of this full assessment in all main medical settings, from a quick ten-minute assessment to one taking three hours and involving several healthcare professionals. Special emphasis is placed on the psycho-spiritual aspects of the assessment, which is often lacking in busy healthcare settings. Practical examples and personal anecdotes are used to demonstrate how this may be achieved, especially in the area of medical history taking.

1

Dr Mike G. Sheldon is a retired academic general practitioner. After many years in a wide variety of different practices, he set up a whole person clinic and charity based in the East End of London and has sought to develop the concept of a whole person approach to healthcare.

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These examples are from a primary care setting in the United Kingdom (UK). Keywords: Whole person health; diagnosis; history taking; psycho-social assessment; spirituality in healthcare; definitions of spirit; multidisciplinary team approach

Introduction In order to reach a complete diagnosis of a patient that could aid in the planning of therapeutic interventions, the concept of whole person assessment is explored. The whole person assessment is based on a combination of physical, psychological, social and spiritual assessments. Undertaking this full assessment may involve more than one healthcare worker and require more than one consultation to complete. In many medical practices in the UK there is now access to counsellors who are more able than a medical doctor to elicit a psychological history. Our experience in practice has shown that the doctor usually seeks “early problem closure” and is less open to a counselling approach that is more open ended and takes more time. An increasing number of spiritual care advisors (or chaplains for well-being) are also being employed within practices to specifically elucidate and help with the spiritual aspects of healthcare. The issue of using different healthcare professionals to gather all of the assessments is important but may present problems if the professionals are not able to meet and share their findings in order to put together a whole picture.

The Physical Assessment Most doctors would probably assume that undertaking the physical part of a whole person assessment is the easiest of the three. Doctors may be a bit hesitant about the psychological and spiritual assessments, but the physical is what they are trained to do. However, it is the belief of the author that even experienced doctors may not do it very well. Based on many years of experience in the training of medical students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, the author is aware that the training of doctors is mainly in the reductionist scientific method of medical practice, and that most doctors consequently find it hard to take the physical history in a whole person way. Doctors may have done a communications skills course in the undergraduate programme, but most medical students prefer to look

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at the investigation and imaging of the patient’s body rather than to listen to their story. It would take more time to conduct a full assessment, and time is one thing which seems to have been stolen away from doctors (based on my personal experience in the British National Health Service). Traditionally, the purpose of the physical assessment has been to enable the doctor to elicit from the patient all of the symptoms and signs, sort them out so that they fit into one of the common disease patterns and so make a provisional diagnosis from which suitable treatment or further investigations can be chosen (Balint and Norell 1973). In this diagnostic process there are several myths that have stood the test of time and still affect the process today.

Medical Myths around Diagnosis The doctor starts each consultation with many assumptions and beliefs, most of which are subconscious (Sheldon, Brooke and Rector 1985). These assumptions drive and determine much of what goes on in the next ten to twenty minutes, during which important conclusions will be reached. Some of these beliefs are as follows: ƒ One pathology. Most doctors have been taught to always seek the single best diagnosis. Doctors are told to look for one diagnosis that is compatible with all of the symptoms, rather than have two or three diagnoses. This results in the temptation to ignore those findings that do not fit into a single pattern. ƒ Cause and effect. There is a linear progression from underlying pathology to effects experienced by the patient and demonstrable on physical examination. For every physical symptom or sign there will be an underlying cause. ƒ Physical causes. A sort of dualism exists by which physical pathology alone is assumed to be of importance, and the metaphysical area of feelings, emotions and attitudes is separated and excluded from the diagnostic process. The Holy Grail for the doctor is to discover not the patient’s experience but the physical causes that underpin the whole illness process. ƒ Pattern recognition. When faced with an overwhelming amount of information, the doctor slips into pattern recognition mode, seeking to fit “facts” into known patterns of pathology. This means that the

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doctor can be tempted to see what he or she expects to see rather than what is actually there. ƒ Illness categorisation. The illness experience of the patient is often categorised into one of the following groups, in order of importance: Ɠ Major, acute, life-threatening conditions. These need urgent attention. Ɠ Major chronic conditions needing long-term care. These include conditions such as asthma and diabetes, which need ongoing medical interventions. Ɠ Minor, self-limiting conditions. These include most of the minor infections, which usually resolve if left alone. Ɠ Minor chronic conditions, often only needing adaptations by the patient. These include the wear and tear people experience as they go through life, and the minor long-term illnesses such as hay fever and allergies, which can be a nuisance but are not life threatening. Ɠ Trivial, everyday symptoms often produced without serious underlying pathology. These include the sorts of symptoms most people get every day with indigestion, aches, pains and tiredness (Sheldon et al. 1985). In any healthcare system there are also constraints which put pressure on the doctor as this diagnostic process is undertaken: ƒ Time. This is nearly always limited in clinical practice. Taking a fuller history and including other elements such as the patient’s beliefs and fears adds to the time needed for any assessment. As the science of medicine has progressed, so the importance of the history has diminished and the time spent talking to the patient has been eroded. This trend will need to be reversed in a whole person approach, as the issues surrounding the individual patient make up a greater proportion of the concerns which the doctor has to deal with. ƒ Specialisation. Greater medical knowledge has produced a myriad of specialised doctors who concentrate on smaller and smaller parts of the whole. A patient might reason that in order to manage a heart condition three specialists should be visited – one to control anticoagulants, another to deal with arrhythmias, and a third to deal with the underlying ischaemia. The danger of this approach is that the patient as a person falls through the middle, and not one professional puts the whole person together. Traditionally, of

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course, this would have been the general practitioner (GP), but further erosion within our healthcare system means that having a full-time regular doctor practising continuity of care is an increasing rarity. ƒ “A picture is worth a thousand words”. Advances in imaging have enabled the doctor to place more reliance on pictures and investigations rather than on the patient’s story. A person with a headache is less likely to have a full history taken and more likely to undergo a scan to arrive at a diagnosis. There are two dangers in this approach. Firstly, imaging and investigations have their cost, both economically and to the health of the patient; and secondly, the value of the story is diminished and the physical nature of illness is enhanced (Martin, cited in Sheldon et al. 1985). ƒ Expertise of the patient. Doctors have encouraged expertise in their patients, especially in managing chronic conditions. However, most health education seems to concentrate on encouraging patients to undergo screening tests to detect illness early, rather than to promote a sensible understanding of how to deal with self-limiting conditions and when to seek further help from the medical professionals (Gale and Marsden, cited in Sheldon 1985). Today there is also the benefit and danger of “googling” by which people access medical information for themselves on the internet.

Taking the History from the Patient Carefully hearing patients’ stories about their health and illnesses is at the heart of a complete assessment of them. The art of history taking may have suffered as the importance of investigations has increased, but the author still believes in the vital importance of hearing patients’ stories as they have experienced them. The traditional way of taking a history requires doctors to divide the history into the categories indicated below, which enable the doctor to obtain information in the way best suited to the medical model (Gale and Marsden, cited in Sheldon 1985). Most doctors are taught that the basic model of history taking should follow this pattern, which may be adapted in special circumstances (such as when the person is unconscious and the history has to be taken from someone else).

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CO (Complains of):

The symptoms the patient now complains about

HPC (History of present complaint): The history of these symptoms, when they started, their severity and nature, and associated symptoms PH (Past history):

A complete past history of relevant diseases, operations and medical events

DQ (Direct questioning):

A series of direct questions by the doctor, checking to see if other symptoms are present and not already mentioned

SH (Social history):

Details of work, family and social background

Most of this model is doctor centred rather than patient centred and is based on the patient answering the doctor’s questions. This model is therefore to a large extent doctor centred and doctor led, with the patient supplying information in response to the doctor’s agenda and thought patterns. Most patients get used to this model and answer appropriately, but it is not ideal and can often cover up important information that might be necessary for diagnosis and management (Gale and Marsden, cited in Sheldon 1985). The elderly physician who once taught the author clinical methods used to memorably state: “Let the patient talk for long enough and they will always tell you what is wrong.” Of course, his students laughed at him (behind his back naturally) because they knew that the real diagnosis could be made only after performing the correct investigations, and they did not want to waste their time talking to the patient. However, there was much wisdom and truth in that physician’s statement, and letting the patient talk is at the heart of a whole person approach.

The whole person history The following method of obtaining a whole person history provides a skeleton on which doctors can base their own methods of “hearing the

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patient’s health story”. It is important to remember that this history is patient centred and patient led, but doctors take an active part and interact with patients to draw out important details. In new patients this is likely to take slightly longer than the traditional method of obtaining a history, but it is much richer in information that will be of use when diagnosing and especially when managing those patients. As a doctor, I find that one hour is more than enough for a complicated history for a person who has consulted many doctors previously, and it may be spread over more than one encounter, if required. On many occasions the author has undertaken a complete history and relevant examination, in a whole person way, in fifteen to twenty minutes. In the author’s opinion this cannot be done satisfactorily in less time unless the problem is very simple. The proposed history taking is done as follows: ƒ Introduction. This is a brief scene-setting interaction to ascertain what the main problems are, how many of them the patient wants to deal with, and why they have presented now – what the deciding factor was to “medicalise” their problems at this time. The doctor may need to negotiate at this stage concerning what will be tackled and in what order. ƒ Problem description. This is a patient-directed, open-ended period during which doctors encourage patients to adequately describe the issues, problems and complaints they have. The doctor can prompt the patients to explore the meaning of these problems in their own lives and help them understand how their beliefs about illness may affect their health. The doctor can try to find out what other people have said about the problem, as this may have influenced the beliefs and behaviour of patients. ƒ Feedback to complete understanding. Having been attentive to the patient’s comments, the doctor now explores the problem by sympathetic questioning. The doctor can be quite direct in the questions asked, and the following dialogue may be considered typical: Ɠ Dr: So Mr G, you have had odd stomach pains for about six months and unexplained bouts of diarrhoea for four months. Why did you wait until now to come and see me? Ɠ Mr G: I was afraid it might be cancer; you see, my father had the same symptoms.

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ƒ Elaboration of complaints and health issues. This takes the place of direct questioning and consists of inviting the patient to describe any other complaints or events out of the ordinary. ƒ Clarification. This leads to a process of clarification in which the doctor explores any aspects of the complaints which are not clear. ƒ Summary. Finally, the doctor summarises the history in medical shorthand with any additional patient-centred aspects that have been discovered. The doctor feeds this back to the patient to check that they have all the details.

Summary of the whole person method of history taking Introduction:

The doctor opens the relationship and invites the patient (with open-ended questions) to recount what has made them come at this time.

Problems:

The patient is invited to tell the story of each of their health problems in their own words. They are then invited to prioritise them.

Feedback:

The doctor gives feedback to the patient on what they have heard so that the patient can check and add anything else they have forgotten.

Elaboration:

The doctor invites the patient, in an interactive way, to complete the story of each of their problems.

Clarification:

This is the final opportunity for the doctor to ask any clarification questions and add any further questions that may be relevant (in line with traditional direct questioning).

Summary

The doctor offers a final summing up, at which point patients can add any corrections.

Whilst listening to a patient’s story, the doctor tries to: ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ

facilitate the patient to tell the whole story; demonstrate empathy to build up a trusting relationship; avoid over-medicalising the patient’s issues; pick up both verbal and non-verbal clues; avoid narrowing the focus too soon but keeping an open mind; and list problems at this stage rather than trying to make diagnoses.

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Past knowledge of patients It is of great importance to include past knowledge of patients when their problems are a combination of physical (especially chronic) conditions with psychological, social and spiritual issues. However, doctors should be aware that “familiarity breeds contempt”, which means that doctors can be fooled into thinking that they know patients and so stop listening. Often patients will develop new conditions which are masked by the old familiar ones. Too much familiarity may mean that vital information is ignored and in this way developing situations may be missed. One of the most embarrassing moments of the author’s professional life came after leaving a single-handed country practice to move on to “better things”. A regular patient had been very ill and was almost bed-bound. Many hours had been spent with her trying to make her better, with limited success. On saying farewell, she sighed: “How can I manage without you doctor, you have looked after me so well.” Yet a few months later the author was astonished to see her in town, walking along in quite a sprightly manner, and commented on how well she looked. She replied: “Oh, yes doctor, I am completely well now. As soon as the new doctor arrived he sorted me out, put me on some treatment, and now I am completely cured.”

The physical examination This is an important time for gathering more information from the patient. By asking permission to examine and explain findings to patients as they go along, the doctor can enhance their level of trust. The method of conducting the examination would be the same as in the traditional medical model.

The psycho-social assessment Taking a psychological and social history may best be conducted by a counsellor, social worker or health worker who has basic counselling qualifications and skills and the experience to take this history. Medical professionals can undertake this task but they will need to set aside enough time to allow the patient to talk and will therefore have to perform the basic skills of listening and reflective questioning. In the clinic where the author is based it is the initial GP who sets up the whole process. The main purpose of this assessment is to look at life events and interpersonal

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relationships to understand their bearing on the causation and continuation of health problems. It is often useful to prepare patients before this session by giving them some homework to complete and bring with them, and by telling them in advance that the sessions will concentrate on two activities, namely creating their life-line and mapping their relationships with significant people and support networks. This whole process is ongoing and involves self-discovery and empowerment of the patient in an atmosphere of valuing, care and encouragement. In this model the patient has consultations with at least two therapists or possibly three (the doctor, counsellor and chaplain). Sometimes the counsellor will undertake two or three sessions to complete the history. As the patient tells their story to different listeners over a period of time, they find it easier to fully understand what their problems are. This is one of the key facts confirmed by the author’s study – it takes time for a person to understand their own problem. A meeting takes place between the therapists who interviewed the patient and a final session with the patient present to make final conclusions about the various aspects of the patient’s health problems. It is important to guard against narrowing the focus too soon. Conclusions should be made only after the sessions, and a feedback consultation is arranged after a few days, which also gives patients time to reflect on the process as they then usually come up with further insights. Two basic counselling tools may be used to facilitate patients’ stories: ƒ Life-lines ƒ Significant people/support networks Other additional questionnaires and counselling tools may also be used if appropriate. The two abovementioned tools will now be discussed.

Life-line The life-line is a timeline drawn by patients starting from birth and including key episodes in their lives, which are represented by peaks and troughs, symbols, words and numbers (Staik 2013). Patients are encouraged to tell their story as they go along. A generous amount of time, usually an hour, is designated for them to complete this. The approach is flexible, organic and non-directive. It certainly seems to

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help patients open up and talk about themselves more than when they are responding to a list of predetermined questions. In the opinion of the author this process helps to build up patients’ confidence and trust in the doctor or counsellor, who enables them to express and explore the emotions attached to individual items on the lifeline. An example of a life-line:

Significant people/support networks Patients are asked to draw a circle representing themselves. They are then asked to draw other circles at varying distances from their own circle to represent significant people and their relationships to the patient, whether positive or negative, including friends, family, colleagues and other carers.

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An example of a map of relationships:

Patients are asked to talk about these various relationships as they draw the network of significant people in their lives. As with the life-line, particular attention is paid to body language and how the patient talks about the various people who have had a significant influence on their lives. It will come as no surprise that there is considerable overlap between the information obtained by the doctor, chaplain and counsellor. Each comes with information obtained from their particular perspective. It is important to pay particular attention to the sequence of events. Very often there are repeating patterns, and sometimes particular triggers can be identified for episodes of ill health. Based on the author’s experience, it is here that one may pick up strong links between the emotional and physical health of an individual. Associated negative or positive beliefs, thinking patterns, emotions and behaviours also play a role. Together with ongoing dialogue with patients, there is ongoing communication with the other healthcare team members. The team begins

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to make connections together, to develop a shared understanding and to identify further areas for exploration. Gradually the team builds up a picture of the patient’s experience of life and disease. In the author’s experience, this entire process works best with three therapists seeing the patient and looking through three different windows into the person’s life and experiences – physical, psychological and spiritual. In this situation, meeting and sharing are vital.

Assessment of spirituality In our whole person clinic, the author and his team have conducted spiritual assessment as the third window from which to view the person’s health status (after the physical and psychological areas have been explored). The content of this assessment is based loosely on a sevenlayered model of the human spirit developed by the author, each layer of which needs to be explored. Only the seventh layer is directly concerned with the patient’s religious experiences. In undertaking a spiritual assessment, one needs to understand the setting in which this assessment is taking place in order to determine the appropriate interview structure: ƒ For acutely ill persons only a few simple questions may be appropriate with regard to spiritual aspects. ƒ During a routine GP or out-patient consultation it may be helpful to undertake a basic three-minute assessment, which can highlight problem areas that may need to be explored further, either by the doctor or by another healthcare professional such as a counsellor. ƒ For patients with diffuse symptoms or a chronic or multi-factorial disease presentation, it may be appropriate to undertake a full spiritual assessment, which could take up to an hour or more. These three approaches are elaborated on below and an indication is provided of how such an assessment may be undertaken. In addition one could also use a self-administered questionnaire consisting of mainly open-ended questions for patients to consider before the first “spiritual window” interview. In the full assessment each of the seven layers is explored, preferably in the order presented below so as to leave religious issues to the end. It is important for the interview to be flexible and adapted to the patient’s needs and responses. There is of course a large overlap with the

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psychological and social areas of the patient’s life, so the first three spiritual levels may be well covered in other parts of the history; however, all levels are discussed here for the sake of completeness. The long list of topics mentioned in the full assessment acts as a checklist for a semistructured interview, which seeks to explore the most important of the areas below. The actual interview is driven by the health needs of the patients and their attitudes and responses. In real life only a fraction of the topics may be covered, some in greater depth than others. The seven layers of the human spirit as they impact on health: ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ x

Relationship with oneself Relationships with others Relating to society and the world around Ethics and morality Purpose and meaning in life Belief systems and faith Religious experience and practice

1. Relationship with Oneself Each person is a unique individual, so the development and expression of that identity and personhood may be explored in several ways by different therapists, with regard to: ƒ an understanding of self, relating to one’s strengths and weaknesses, gifts and abilities and self-awareness; ƒ self-image, relating to one’s ability to accept and use constructive criticism; ƒ self-maturity, relating to learning through experience, success and failures; ƒ coping strategies and ability to adapt to circumstances; and ƒ locus of control, relating to how much patients can influence their situation and circumstances. 2. Relationships with Others The second layer of the human spirit is involved in relationships. People are made to relate widely, and the quality and usefulness of our relationships may be considered a spirit-led activity. Relationships will

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include family, friends, those in authority, and people we interact with socially. In each of these areas the counsellor needs to explore the following: ƒ Number of people in a good relationship with the person ƒ Quality of relationships ƒ Ability to deal with conflicts and disagreements In the psychological assessment, counsellors usually get patients to draw a basic map of the important relationships in their lives. This can be built upon in this section, particularly looking at the ability to give and receive love, the help and support given to the patient by these relationships, and any relationships that drain and weaken the patient’s spirit and therefore health status. A full story is produced at the end of the process, and one of the therapists (usually the counsellor) has a final session with the patient to produce the final analysis. 3. Relating to Society and the World Around Human beings may be considered to have a duty and responsibility to react responsibly in the society and culture in which they live, and also to exercise restraint within the wider world – to control themselves and their actions in a constructive way. In short, the question is how people relate to the society in which they live and the world around them. Cultural issues such as upbringing, living in a foreign culture, and the ability to make changes and adaptations should be considered. Other aspects that could be discussed with patients include: ƒ their places of early and continuing education, lifelong learning, and whether they are fixed in their ways; ƒ their places of work and leisure and the balance between life and work; ƒ stresses in their lives – what stresses they have, what their causes are, and how they deal with them; and ƒ their attitude to people in need and those less fortunate than themselves.

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4. Ethics and Morality Our conscience enables us to have a personal morality and a set of ethics to guide our actions and behaviour. Therapists could explore the patient’s worldview and ethical stance on moral issues. Are there any issues as far as thoughts, behaviour or beliefs are concerned? 5. Purpose and Meaning in Life One needs to have a sense of purpose for one’s life and also the willpower to get through difficulties and challenges. Topics that could be explored with patients in this regard include: their hopes and plans place for the future; the dreams, aspirations and desires of their hearts; their priorities; how they view their personal needs in competition with others in the family and society; ƒ their failures and successes and how they have dealt with them; ƒ their understanding of the purpose of life; and ƒ their personal theology.

ƒ ƒ ƒ ƒ

6. Belief Systems and Faith Most people have a well-developed set of beliefs, many derived subconsciously from their upbringing and culture. Faith may be considered as putting belief into action. Everyone requires faith to put their trust in the people and things they interact with on a daily basis. Areas to explore with patients include: ƒ belief systems that they inherited from their upbringing and how these have changed over time; ƒ their belief system regarding health and illness specifically; ƒ when ill, what they put their faith in – self-help, doctors or medication; and ƒ whether they believe in God or a divine being who supports them. 7. Religious Experience and Practice Finally we come to patients’ personal understanding of the divine and their relationship with God. Many patients consider themselves religious in some way, and in most multicultural societies we need to be comfortable talking about several quite different religious traditions. It is important to

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allow patients to express their religious concepts and feelings in a way that they are comfortable with, even if those lie beyond the experience or belief of the doctor. Clearly this can present difficulties, and therefore the use of trained spiritual care advisors who are able to make a spiritual assessment that is suitable for all patients, including those with no religious affiliations, is increasingly recommended. Important questions that could be asked include the following: ƒ What has the patient’s religious journey been? ƒ Did they have good experiences as a child? ƒ What battles and struggles with belief did they experience as they were growing up? ƒ What have been the painful and harmful elements in their dealings with religion? ƒ What have been the positive and helpful elements in their religion? It is helpful to cover the patient’s private and public expressions of religion. Churches (or their equivalents) often provide strong support networks. Likewise many people obtain an inner strength through their beliefs and private devotions. All of these can be sensitively explored, with the underlying aim of hearing how patients view the relationships between their health and their beliefs. For some patients, religion has had a negative effect upon them, and it is helpful to allow them to express their anger or disappointment, as this enables them to understand the difficulties associated with harbouring unforgiving and negative attitudes, which themselves can contribute to poor health.

Making a Whole Person Diagnosis Diagnosis is at the heart of any medical model. In our whole person clinic in London we use three people – a GP, a counsellor and a chaplain – to assess the full history of the patient. We then meet and put the whole story together and agree on the way forward. The most relevant person is appointed to provide the patient with feedback and conclusions. In the patient-centred model of care, diagnosis is supplemented with additional statements about the patient’s experience of the illness, which may add pertinent elements to the physically based diagnosis. The latter may describe the functional limitations produced by the illness, their impact on patients’ lives, and their personal strengths for coping with

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illness. Social and economic factors can also be introduced that may help in determining the appropriate treatment for patients’ problems.

Notes on Sources that have Influenced this Whole Person Approach This article is based mainly on the author’s personal experience and practice in developing a whole person clinic in a general practice setting in the East End of London. However, many writers have influenced this development, and the following sources summarise the theories and practices concerned in our work. 1. The Meaning of Persons, by Paul Tournier (1966). This book summarises the work and writings of Paul Tournier, one of the pioneers of the “person-centred” approach to healthcare. (This edition is an English translation of the original French edition first published in 1957 by Edwin Hudson.) 2. Medicine of the Person, by John Cox, Alastair V. Campbell and Bill (K.W.M.) Fulford (1966). This book summarises modern thinking about Tournier’s work and is an international, multi-faith exploration of the need to integrate the scientific basis of healthcare with spiritual, religious and ethical values. 3. Spirituality in Health Care Contexts, edited by Helen Orchard (2001). This is a collection of articles by several authors about the place of spirituality and religion in healthcare. 4. The Human Effect in Medicine, by Michael Dixon and Kieran Sweeney (2000). This book by two UK general practitioners explores the role of the physician as healer. 5. Spirituality and Mental Health Care, by John Swinton (2001). With a background of psychiatric nursing and theology, John Swinton explores the interdisciplinary approach to spirituality in mental health practice. 6. Spirituality in Patient Care, by Harold G. Koenig (2013). This book provides extensive coverage of the field of spirituality in healthcare, including the “why, how, when and what” of patient-centred integration of spirituality into clinical practice.

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Sources Balint, Enid, and J.S. Norell. 1973. Six Minutes for the Patient. Bristol: Tavistock. Cox, John, Alistair Campbell, and Bill (K.W.M.) Fulford. 2007. Medicine of the Person. London: Jessica Kingsley. Dixon, Michael, and Kieran Sweeney. 2000. The Human Effect in Medicine. Abingdon: Radcliffe Medical Press. Koenig, Harold G. 2013. Spirituality in Patient Care. 3rd ed. Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Press.s Orchard, Helen, ed. 2001. Spirituality in Health Care Contexts. London: Jessica Kingsley. Sheldon, Michael, John Brooke, and Alan Rector, eds. 1985. DecisionMaking in General Practice. London: Stockton Press. Staik, Athena. 2013. “How to Create a Timeline: The Power of Reworking Your Life’s Story, 1 of 2.” Neuroscience and Relationships (blog). Psych Central. https://blogs.psychcentral.com/relationships/2012/04/the-power-ofcreating-a-timeline-of-your-lifes-story/. Swinton, John. 2001. Spirituality and Mental Health Care. London: Jessica Kingsley. Tournier, Paul. 1966. The Meaning of Persons. London: SCM Press.

RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND WITH OTHERS: THE ROLE OF PERSONALITY OLENA YAREMKO1

Abstract In this article the influence of personality traits on interpersonal relationships and a person’s relationship with God is examined. A research study was done on a sample of 283 students of different faculties and different faith denominations at Lviv universities in Ukraine.2 It was found that for all personality types the interaction between positive interpersonal relationships and a relationship with God was stronger than in the case of negative interpersonal relationships. The results confirm that personality traits and types modify the interaction between interpersonal relationships and the relationship with God. For most personality types (extrovert, neurotic, integrated, unstable, distrustful) the simultaneous appearance of different psychological mechanisms (correspondence and compensation) between interpersonal relations and relationships with God can be observed. The role of personality in interpersonal and religious relationships is analysed from the perspectives of Christian psychology and psychotherapy. Keywords: Interpersonal relations; religious relations; personality traits; Christian psychology; Christian psychotherapy

1

Olena Yaremko (Ukraine/Germany) holds a PhD in psychology and is a psychologist at the Ukrainian Catholic University and a psychotherapist specialising in integrative Christian psychotherapy. E-mail: [email protected]. 2 Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, Ukrainian Catholic University, and Lviv Polytechnic National University.

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Introduction Contemporary psychology shows an increased interest in the phenomenon of interpersonal relationships and the relationship with God. Both these areas are relatively well described, but interactions between them, especially in the context of personality factors, still remain unclear. No studies have been conducted on the role of personality in the relationship between the religious and social lives of the individual, despite research on the personality correlates of religiosity (Chaim 1991; Gáaz 2003; Jaworski 1989, 1998; Kaldor, Francis and Hughes 2002; Kosek 1999, 2000; PrĊĪyna 1973, 1981, 1988; Saroglou 2002, 2010; Saucier 2000; Saucier and Goldberg 1998; Streyffeler and McNally 1998; Taylor and McDonald 1999) and on correlations between religiosity and social functioning (Furrow, King and White 2004; Jarosz 2003, 2006; Regnerus 2003a, 2003b; ĝliwak 2006). In respect of one’s relationship with God, religiosity is understood as a relationship with, and specific mental acts towards, a transcendental deity (Bronk 1996, 209). A personal God is the subject of a religious relationship, and the person, as a human being, is its object. The relationship between the person and God is analysed as the personal relationship between “I” and transcendental “You”. Research shows that religiosity is closely connected with personality. In many cases the effect is mutual – the religious content that occupies one’s mind affects one’s personality, and conversely, personality traits determine the emergence of a specific structure of religiosity (ChlewiĔski 1987, 1991; Krok 2005, 2010; Saroglou 2002). Mature religiosity gives one’s life a meaning and a sense of purpose (ChlewiĔski 2000; Hood, Hill and Spilka 2009; Kozielecki 1991; Pargament 2002). Saroglou (2010) argues that the relationship between personality traits and contextual factors is the predictor of religiosity. The importance of personality traits becomes even more pronounced when these are evaluated in the social context (Rhodewalt 2008). Various factors affect the development of an individual’s personality and religiosity, the main ones being constitutional and environmental factors and individual activities. Various authors discuss the connection between the personality traits described in the Big Five Personality Theory and types of interpersonal relationships (McCrae 1994; McCrae and Costa 1997; Trapnell 1994; Van Hiel, Kossowska and Mervielde 2000). A statistically significant correlation is observed in the relationships between religiosity and agreeableness and conscientiousness. Studies in this area show divergent

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results: a positive correlation between religious involvement and internal religious orientation (Kosek 1999, 2000; MacDonald 2000; Taylor and MacDonald 1999); no correlation (Saucier 2000; Saucier and Goldberg 1998; Streyffeler and McNally 1998) and a weak correlation (Saroglou 2002). Other Big Five factors do not show any clear correlation with religiosity (Saroglou 2002). Those findings are consistent with the results of studies conducted on the basis of the three-factor model of Eysenck. In the light of Eysenck’s theory, the combination of opposing poles of agreeableness and conscientiousness leads to psychoticism (cf. Costa and McCrae 1995; Eysenck 1992; OleĞ 2003). Studies conducted among the representatives of different cultures and religions, based on Eysenck’s three-factor model, show that religious persons have lower levels of psychoticism (Francis 1992a, 1992b, 1993; Francis and Pearson 1993; Lewis and Joseph 1994; Lewis and Maltby 1995, 1996; Maltby 1999). No such correlation was found for the other dimensions (extraversion and neuroticism). Interestingly, certain studies show that extraversion and neuroticism do not correlate with religiosity (Eysenck 1998; Francis 1992b). A study by Francis and Bourke (2003) conducted on a group of 1070 secondary school children aged 11 to 17, using the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity and the Cattell Test, showed that religiosity correlates significantly with five out of fourteen traits, and with two out of four second-order traits. A positive attitude towards Christianity is associated with high levels of the G factor traits (Rule-Consciousness), I (Sensitivity) and Q3 (Perfectionism); and with low levels of E factor traits (Dominance) and F factor traits (Liveliness). In addition, a positive attitude toward Christianity correlates with second-order factors such as extraversion/introversion and anxiety. In Poland the personality correlates of religiosity have been studied, for example by PrĊĪyna (1973), Szymoáon (2002), Jarosz (2003), Zarzycka (2005), ĝliwak (2006), and àobaczewski (2006). The results of a study by ĝliwak (2006) on the correlation between experienced overt and covert anxiety (assessed using Cattell’s IPAT Anxiety Scale) and the experienced relationship with God (assessed using Hutsebaut’s Scale of Religious Relations – Lived Relations to God), show that rebelliousness and guilt or fear in relationships with God correlate positively with anxiety, while identification with Christ and co-humanity correlate negatively. The results of previous empirical studies on the correlations between religious beliefs or behaviour and personality traits are often contradictory.

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In many cases this is due to the fact that personality and religiosity measurements in such studies are general in nature and fail to account for the structure of personality and religiosity, their types and their characteristics. Despite the relatively strong interest in this area and numerous publications in psychological literature, answers to a number of important questions are yet to be found. There are no studies that cover personality traits while also accounting for the type of relationship with God and the types of interpersonal relationships. In this regard PrĊĪyna (1973) states that the correlation between the interpersonal aspects of personality and the strength of one’s religious attitude goes deep into the structure of personality; and OleĞ (2005, 128) notes that behaviour is rarely determined by a single trait, but rather by a specific make-up of such traits. These observations inspire research into the modifying effects of personality factors on the correlation between one’s relationship with God and relationships with people. The correlation between interpersonal relationships and the relationship with God has been described from various theoretical viewpoints. The approach to the development of religiosity, in which religiosity develops alongside relationships with other people, can be found in object relations theory (McDargh 1983; Rizzuto 1979) and in attachment theory. Attachment theory suggests that, for many people, God can serve the role of an attachment figure (Kirkpatrick 1992, 1999). The issue of the correlation between relationships with people, the image of God and the relationship with God has been extensively addressed by Chaim (1991), Jarosz (2003, 2006), Kirkpatrick and Shaver (1990, 1992), Król (1982), PrĊĪyna (1999), Rizzuto (1979) and Vergote (1986). According to the compensation mechanism, negative interpersonal relationships are compensated for by a positive relationship with God. The correspondence mechanism, in turn, associates negative interpersonal relationships with a negative relationship with God, and positive relationships with a positive relationship with God. These two main hypotheses, compensation and correspondence, are supported empirically by various studies. Studies by Granqvist (1998) and Granqvist and Hagekull (2000) support the compensation hypothesis; studies by Kirkpatrick and Shaver (1992), Kirkpatrick (1998) and Sandage et al. (2015) support the correspondence hypothesis; and studies by Granqvist and Hagekull (1999) and Kirkpatrick (1998) support both hypotheses. In general there are four major types of interaction between relationships with other people and a relationship with God (Yaremko, 2010): positive interpersonal and religious relationships (positive correspondence);

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negative interpersonal and religious relationships (negative correspondence); a positive relationship with God and negative interpersonal relationships (compensation); positive interpersonal relationships and a negative relationship with God (no religious socialisation). Since they are associated with both religiosity and interpersonal relationships, personality factors can serve as intermediaries in those relationships. This article attempts to describe and explain the abovementioned relationships. The addressed research problem takes on the form of a general question: What, if any, is the role of personality factors in the correlations between interpersonal relationships and a relationship with God? The study presented in this article explores types of religiosity, types of relationships with God, types of interactions with other people, and selected personality factors viewed from the perspective of Eysenck’s and Cattell’s concepts. By assuming that personality factors covered by this research programme are, by nature, deeply psychophysiological (temperamental), we can treat them as independent variables in correlations between interpersonal and religious relationships.

Methodology The sample consisted of 283 students (52% women, 48% men) in various major subject areas (humanities, technical and natural sciences) who were studying at three universities in Lviv, Ukraine. The study group was homogeneous in terms of variables such as age, education and social status. The mean age was M = 19.89 years. The majority of the students (56.9%) represented the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, while 35.7% were Orthodox, 2.1% were Roman Catholic, 2.8% Protestant and 2.5% were of other religious denominations.

Research Tools and Procedures The study used five psychological methods, namely the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire – Revised (EPQ-R) (Eysenck and Eysenck 1975), Cattell’s IPAT Anxiety Scale (Cattell and Scheier 1967), Interpersonal Relations Questionnaire by Vertommen and Rochette (1970), Relationship with God Scale by Jarosz (2003), and Scale of Religious Relations – Lived Relations to God by Hutsebaut (1980, 35). These methods were translated (using back-translation) and adjusted to

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conducting research in Ukraine. All internal consistency indicators proved acceptable. In order to systematise the explored variables on the basis of the literature on the subject, the study categorised the types of interpersonal and religious relationships. They were divided into positive relationships with God (dependence, identification, co-humanity, ethical norm, acceptance of convictions, dialogic, mutual, actualised, direct), negative relationships with God (rebelliousness, religious autonomy, guilt, unilateral, indirect, not actualised), positive interpersonal relationships (altruism, sociability, dependence), and negative interpersonal relationships (dominance, feeling of inferiority, suspicious restraint, overt offence, self-trust). The study was conducted in groups (15 to 30 persons) and was anonymous and voluntary. Due to the nature of the questionnaires used, which were originally designed mainly to measure religiosity among adherents of Christianity, the study focused on Christians. Of the 300 completed tests collected, 283 were accepted for further analysis.

Results In order to find empirical evidence to support the theoretical juxtaposition of these sets of variables (interpersonal relationships and religious relationships), the study used canonical-correlation analysis. Canonical correlation was first used in the whole sample and then separately in the groups identified on the basis of cluster analysis, using k-means clustering for the Self-Analysis Form and the EPQ-R. The following clusters of personality types were identified: psychotic (24% of the studied population, with high levels of psychoticism), neurotic (30.6% of the students, with high scores in the area of neuroticism), extroversive (45.4% of the students, the largest group, with high scores on the extraversion scale), tense (18.9% of all students, with a high level of general anxiety), integrated (36.4% of all students, with a low level of anxiety), distrustful (14.4% of students, with a high level of distrust), and labile (30.3% of all students, with high scores on the lack of personality integration (Q3), emotional instability (C), and mental tension (Q4) scales). Links between interpersonal and religious relationships in the groups of different personality types were found to be as follows. In the extraversive group, the following correlations were observed: high sociability, altruism, a sense of inferiority, and suspiciousness were

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associated with a negative relationship with God (high guilt and rebelliousness) and with a low level of positive relationship with God (low co-humanity, low dependence, a monological and non-actualised religious relationship, low identification with Christ). This suggests the existence of the correspondence mechanism. In this correlation, interpersonal relationships modified 11% of religious relationships, which was more than the converse effect of religiosity on interpersonal relationships. In the neurotic group, canonical correlation for the first set of canonical variables was 0.643. The description of the correlations found in this pair showed that low dependence and high resentment in human relationships were associated with high rebelliousness in a relationship with God. In this group, religious relationships modified 7% of the variance in the results related to interpersonal relationship factors. In the psychotic group, canonical correlation for the first pair of canonical variables was 0.700. This group showed the following correlations between interpersonal relationships and relationships with God: low suspiciousness and a low sense of inferiority in relationships with other people were associated with low dependence, low autonomy, and a monological and non-actualised relationship with God. This suggests the existence of the correspondence mechanism. In this case, interpersonal relationships modified 5% of religious relationships, and religious relationships modified 6% of interpersonal relationships. The difference was not significant, which suggests the interaction of relationships with others and God in the psychotic group. In the labile group, canonical correlation was 0.645. With low altruism and sociability and high resentment in interpersonal relations, the labile personality would have a stronger identification with Christ as ideal person and example and would be less dependent in religious relations. Interpersonal relations modified 13% of religious relationships in this case. In the group of those with a “distrustful” personality, high altruism correlated with low identification with Christ (R=0, 893).

Summary The statistical analyses that were conducted show the existence of certain trends in the correlations between interpersonal and religious relationships:

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(1) Positive interpersonal relationships correlated positively with a positive relationship with God across all of the studied personality types, except for the tense group. All three positive interpersonal relationships – altruism, sociability, and dependence – correlated with a positive relationship with God. More correlations were found between positive relationships with other people and positive religious relations than between negative ones. These findings are consistent with the results of a study by Szymoáon (1999), which suggested that an open and sensitive attitude to the world and other people contributes to a closer relationship with God. These findings are also consistent with the results of an exploratory study in a sample of graduate students in the USA (Sandage et al. 2015). The study confirmed an interaction effect between insecure adult attachment and insecure God attachment dimensions. This supported the correspondence hypothesis of positive correlations between adult attachment dimensions and attachment to God dimensions (Sandage et al. 2015, 1). (2) The study showed that an increase in positive interpersonal relationships correlated with lower levels of a negative relationship with God for the following personality types: labile, integrated, tense, extraverted and neurotic. As Hall et al. (2009, 233) note, “insecure individuals tend to use their relationship with God and religiousness for interactive affect regulation”. (3) Negative dominant interpersonal relationships showed a positive correlation with a negative relationship with God only in the distrustful, neurotic and integrated groups. High levels of negative dominant relationships correlated with lower levels of positive religious relationships among integrated and distrustful students. In the extraverted and labile groups, these correlations were positive. No statistically significant correlations were found between negative dominant interpersonal relationships and religious relationships among personality types such as the psychotic and tense groups. In the integrated and tense groups, higher negative submissive relationships correlated with lower levels of positive relationship with God. Negative submissive relationships with other people correlated with negative religious relationships for the integrated, extraversive and psychotic personality types. Negative submissive interpersonal

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relationships were found to show no correlation with a relationship with God in the labile, distrustful and neurotic groups. Analysis of the above information revealed the mechanism of correspondence in correlations between variables in the tense group. The mechanism of compensation was recorded only in the psychotic group. It is important to note that the number of correlations between social and religious variables in these two personality types was small, and the strength of the correlation was significant, with elements of determinism and transference. The majority of the studied personality types (extraverted, neurotic, integrated, labile and distrustful) also showed the existence of various correlation mechanisms between interpersonal and religious relationships. This sample group was found to have more complex correlations between the studied variables than in the case of the correspondence or compensation mechanisms. The psychotic and tense groups showed direct correlations between interpersonal and religious relationships, while other personality types showed an interplay of variables and their autonomy. When an increase in negative interpersonal relationships correlates with a decrease in the level of positive relationship with God, or when an increase in positive interpersonal relationships correlates with a decrease in negative religious relationships, the correlations must not be equated with simple mechanisms such as positive or negative correspondence. One might wonder how these correlations between interpersonal and religious relationships can be explained. This mechanism can be explained from various perspectives as presented below: ƒ The findings suggest that explanations concerning the correlations between interpersonal relationships and relationships with God are limited by correspondence and compensation mechanisms only. It can be suggested that as personality develops and religiosity matures, direct imitation and the reduction of internal tension stop being the driving forces behind social and religious relationships. The religiosity of the subjects characterised by a greater number of interpersonal and religious relationships can be assumed to be by choice rather than by force.

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ƒ The findings further suggest that the role played by religiosity should be considered. The observed correlations between variables can be explained by the role of religion, or one’s relationship with God, as the driving force in one’s life. An increase in positive religious relationships or a decrease in negative relationships causes internal tension to decrease and helps one to find meaning and a sense of security, which in turn reduces one’s negative attitude to interpersonal relationships. ƒ As noted by Sandage et al. (2015, 11): ... it may be that the motivation to find comfort in relationship with God (i.e., motivational correspondence) represents a circular process whereby greater emotional and spiritual insecurity (i.e., dysregulation) are met with spiritual responses to connect with God (i.e., God as safe haven, serving an affect regulating function); however, the repertoire of responses is constrained by an implicit internal working model of mistrust, fear, disappointment, and alienation, thereby preventing the individual from finding the reassurance she or he needs and is seeking; which only serves to then foster increased emotional and spiritual insecurity and dysregulation.

ƒ Cognitive dissonance (when interpersonal relationships are not consistent with religious relationships) and homoeostasis (seeking balance) could be considered in interpreting the results. Reducing the inconsistency between I, you and God, tension reduction is a natural process that gives the individual a sense of internal integration, harmony and coherence. ƒ Lastly, the specific nature of religiosity within the study group could be considered. Positive correlations between interpersonal relationships and positive and negative religious relationships can be explained by religious crisis or quest religiosity.

Implications for Psychotherapy The researcher’s observations, based on experience of Christian psychotherapy with people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), depression and psychoticism, also confirm these findings. Christians undergoing therapy often need to “work” with a neurotic God image, shame and guilt and neurotic religious beliefs. A strong connection exists between the individual’s recovery of a relationship with God (for example,

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actualisation of the belief that God loves and accepts them, deepening their trust in God, separating the levels of influence in their life history, taking responsibility and freedom) and their self-image and interpersonal relations. Development in one sphere can be a source of strength and hope and give an opportunity for the healing and integration of the whole personality. The discussion holds important implications for counselling and therapy. The role of the therapeutic relationship is to provide a secure and positive relationship for clients and to help them develop more coherent and healthy models of self and others. Positive social functioning effects can reduce the level of rebelliousness and guilt in religious relations and increase the level of a positive relationship with God. Counsellors’ or therapists’ awareness of their own relationships with others and with God could be a great asset in the therapeutic relationship. In the initial assessment phase of the therapeutic process, the psychotherapist should take into consideration the quality and characteristics of the client’s personality type, interpersonal relationships and relationship with God. There is a need to use diverse person-oriented methods of pastoral care, psychological counselling and psychotherapy.

Conclusion This article has described and explained four types of interaction between relationships with other people and the relationship with God: positive correspondence, negative correspondence, compensation, and no religious socialisation. The results of the study, based on the premise that personality traits govern the correlations between interpersonal and religious relationships, supported its initial hypotheses. The conducted statistical analyses revealed a number of correlations that contribute to a more thorough understanding of the correlations between relationships with other people and relationships with God. They suggest a clear, yet variable, correlation between the abovementioned factors. Therefore, the findings confirmed that personality factors do modify correlations between interpersonal relationships and relationships with God. The research model presented in this article can inspire empirical research to integrate psychosocial, religious and spiritual spheres of human life. The next step could be to conduct research using the Big Five personality model and to clarify moderation/mediation effects between variables. As the abovementioned sample represented just young adults from Lviv

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universities, research involving more diverse samples could be worthwhile. The five psychological measures adapted for research in Ukraine can be used in psychological practice and be applied in new crosscultural research.

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ECOTHERAPY WITHIN A CREATIONIST APPROACH FRANCESCO CUTINO1

Abstract In the last few decades there has been a significant rise in interest around healing processes that involve natural elements, ranging from viewing nature just as a framework (another kind of legitimate setting) to viewing it as a very engaging, reciprocal and interactive partner. In these experiences, nature has often been regarded as something undifferentiated from the human agent or at least equal on an ethical and ontological level. Some of these experiences have been inspired by a pantheistic vision in terms of which it is proposed that a better model of ecotherapy should be developed which considers the person of God as a loving father and the human being as His own image in the midst of creation. Keywords: Ecotherapy; ecology; therapy; Christian faith; creation; evolution; evolutionism; healing; health preservation; rehabilitation

Introduction The first part of this article offers a philosophical, historical and scientific understanding of ecotherapy from the perspective of therapeutic ecology, considered a variant of ecotherapy. A second, brief section of the article considers the social farm as a strategic resource for implementing ecotherapy projects. The final part introduces a brief theological reflection opening up a deeper understanding of human beings and their cosmos according to Judaeo-Christian discourse.

1

Francesco Cutino is a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist and has been a member of the Italian Association of Catholic Psychiatrists and Psychologists (www.aippc.net).

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The Philosophy of Ecotherapy and other Historical Elements Throughout all human cultures and experiences, historic and prehistoric, the existential relationship between people and nature has manifested itself in creative and original forms, always following a common thread, which is the necessity for survival by using resources derived from nature (nature towards humans) and our responsibility for and guardianship of nature (humans towards nature). The organisation and timing of the most diverse human activities (economic, social, recreational, religious and healing) have been closely attuned to natural cycles and natural elements; shamanic healing and traditional medicine are only two examples of this longstanding collaboration, which is a primordial partnership of life preservation, health and well-being. In European history alone, countless experiences throughout the centuries have been documented of spontaneous and structured vibrant ecotherapy practices in many monasteries, churches and hospitals. Ancient practitioners made good use – often for charity and community work – of their actual knowledge of human health and medicine, paired with the natural resources available to them in their context. Along with the transmission of faith and culture, healing practices were an important part of this communal economy and heritage. From the highlands of Scotland to the desert areas of North Africa and the Middle East, it is still possible to randomly encounter healing plants and herbs that were once religiously cultivated by monks of a nearby monastery. Even if abandoned centuries ago, these still bear witness today to a living heritage for Christians and communities of the 21st century. These healing practices and natural elements fed and informed numerous surgeries and hospitals open to everybody, without any distinction of class, race, culture or religion. Since then good practices have developed in health institutions that validate this time-honoured collaboration with natural elements. This has happened, as before, in cloisters, as well as cloistered gardens allowing people to walk around shielded from the wind and breathe in fresh air, protected from the rain and cold and simultaneously enjoying beautiful, stunning views that fill the convalescent with joy, peace and harmony. The convalescent could also do simple tasks around a small vegetable garden or orchard or sometimes

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even look after small farm animals.2 Ecotherapy is an overall term for a variety of interventions aimed at health education and promotion, healing and rehabilitation through a planned meaningful relationship with natural settings and elements. As a young discipline its aim, methodology and philosophy are debated by many role players, practitioners and academics in different areas. A distinction is made between two approaches and paradigms that differ in terms of their respective professional standards and objectives. The first approach involves ecotherapy in a strict sense and entails an integrated and autonomous model for clinical and research purposes, characterised by high standards of specialist competencies, relevant academic literature and standardised methodology. Some examples are horticultural therapy, pet therapy, multi-setting therapy, and imaginative techniques in natural settings. The second perspective, which might be called therapeutic ecology, proposes a broad, varied and inclusive definition of the ways in which growth, healing and health preservation processes can take place in natural contexts. Ecotherapy and therapeutic ecology share contexts and interventions such as social farms, social farming, agriclubs, tree climbing, animal-assisted activities and more. Potential users come from all social and cultural categories but, in particular, include users of public services and institutions faced with high workloads and scarce resources, such as those concerned with adult mental health, childhood and adolescence, employment, elderly care and other dependencies and social services. An example of a partnership between health services and the community is a project in Umbria that was undertaken jointly by the Regional Agriculture and Forests Department and the Health and Social Services Department. The beauties and wonders of the local regional parks were displayed in hospitals and local health institutions: special posters, designed by a well-known local photographer, were displayed on the walls of hospitals and outpatient clinics showing spectacular landscapes and 2

Cf. Green Care: A Conceptual Framework: A Report of the Working Group on the Health Benefits of Green Care, COST 866 Green Care in Agriculture, ed. Joe Sempik, Rachel Hine and Deborah Wilcox (Loughborough: Loughborough University, 2010).

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views that reminded staff and patients of the enchantment of nature. This was a simple and practical application of the famous study by Ulrich (1984), in which he had observed the difference in recovery time that hospitalised patients showed when the visible landscape outside their room, as the only experimental variable, was manipulated. Patients with a pleasant and harmonious landscape of cultivated countryside required less recovery time than those who could see only a concrete wall from their hospital window. The philosophy underpinning ecotherapy and therapeutic ecology is reflected in their aim to restore our physiological connection with nature and its settings by providing practical, congruent and effective paths for all role players with diverse and specific needs and resources. This allows for varied, tailored experiences characterised by flexibility, creativity and adaptation. The perspectives and subject of study of both therapeutic ecology and ecotherapy are similar, except in terms of relative focus: therapeutic ecology focuses on spontaneous psychosocial growth processes, both individual and communal, and ecotherapy focuses on the processes of measurable therapeutic change, whether for the individual or for a group. These perspectives may use the same therapeutic tools, but generally both have a specific defined goal and strategy. For example, on a social farm, the human–animal interaction in one scenario could involve either spontaneous socialisation or structured activity in a scheduled agenda; in another scenario it could involve a controlled therapeutic setting for pet therapy, where the interaction between an animal and the client becomes a sophisticated tool to facilitate awareness and change, aimed at engaging the patient or supporting the therapist’s endeavours. Often the assumptions, activities and processes involved in therapeutic ecology and ecotherapy are already noticeable in other contexts: for example, occupational therapy or protected work, bioarchitecture and permaculture, body-focused and relaxation techniques, and introspective meditation. These approaches become specifically either therapeutic ecology or ecotherapy as they occur, respectively, in either a generally free and spontaneous form or one that entails a structured and finalised methodology in interaction with natural elements like plants, animals or

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inanimate elements (rocks, water and landscapes).3 These natural elements and actors, especially with ecotherapy, play the double role of both real and imaginative interplayers for the participants’ unconscious, unexpressed, still confused or conflicting mental contents. This allows the manifestation of pathological introjections and an awareness of projections, which are the origin of most suffering and discomfort. The resolution process can then take place, facilitating the emergence of new, healthy relational models. The beneficial effect of this reparative experience can lead to a stable redefinition of the inner patterns concerning the Self, the Other and Life, and therefore take on a global and creative restructuring of personality and interpersonal relationships. The following four ways in which interventions can be implemented are distinguished: 1. Contemplating nature: The sensory experience (watching, smelling, touching, listening) is privileged. 2. Being active in nature: Some form of physical activity is expected, with a variable degree of interaction between actor and natural context (walking, hiking and diving). 3. Shaping nature: This involves a deliberate, direct and significant action of the human actor on some natural element (reclaiming a green area, planting, pruning, restoring stonework or the banks of a stream). 4. Interaction with animals: This could involve pet therapies or other animal-assisted activities and interventions. Each of the above mentioned types of intervention can take place: ƒ spontaneously in their contexts, with little programming and few expectations; or ƒ in order to achieve some kind of reasonable, foreseeable health benefit; or ƒ as an authentic ecotherapy experience, implemented in compliance with standards of specificity, effectiveness and performance, for the achievement of predetermined goals. Emphasis should be placed on the definition of objectives, which should be explicit and agreed, meaningful and constructive, realistic and 3

Cf. J. Sempik et al., eds., Green Care: A Conceptual Framework, 32.

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achievable, valid and ethical, measurable, replicable and verifiable, in the short term as well as in the medium to long term. When comparing psychotherapy models and theories in clinical literature concerning ecotherapy, good integration can be observed with the cognitive-behavioural model or with problem-solving approaches (Burns 2007; Burls 2007). However, this seems to be mainly due to the lack of varied scientific contributions within other schools and approaches, such as those reflecting humanistic and psychodynamic perspectives. To cite some contributions, the theoretical construct of biophilia proposed by Wilson (1984) has drawn the attention of scholars to the preserving and healing potential of nature. Wilson states that biophilia is the desire to connect with the natural world; as this desire is an innate disposition, it is a primary motivation that operates like other instincts already known to the sciences of human behaviour. Biophilia, therefore, is a universal primordial instinct that predisposes us to interact with life processes and mechanisms that regulate this interaction, thus protecting, guiding and forging our evolution as a species in different historical epochs, across varied geographical and climatic contexts. Kaplan and Kaplan (1989) recorded the physiological response to different types of natural landscape, observing how this facilitates physiological recovery from mental fatigue. This fatigue can result from concentrating for too long on a dominant task that inhibits distracting stimuli and influences. Viewing natural landscapes spontaneously and being freely active in nature immediately induce by default the release of a kind of regenerating involuntary attention. Burns (1998) proposes a form of hypnosis that provides extensive use of exercises based on the relationship with elements of nature. Berger and McLeod (2006) go further and make explicit reference to the relationship with nature as the focal point and framework for therapy, termed natureinspired therapy. Hegarty (2007) includes in his own clinical practice both imaginative and other interventions in natural contexts, finding tools and inspiration in nature. Concerning self-esteem and social skills, some authors have observed that therapeutic riding can enhance self-confidence, social skills and quality of life (Fitzpatrick and Tebay 1997; Burgon 2003; Bizub, Joy and Davidson 2003). In conclusion, for the therapy–patient–nature triad to become a model and an effective therapeutic setting in the professional and academic

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landscape, it is necessary to expand the basis of experiences, replicable data and scientific debate relating to the various phenomena. This should help us to understand in which contexts and in what ways it is possible to set up an appropriate setting; why interventions are effective; what kinds of people benefit from them; and what conditions and interacting variables are required.

A Strategic Setting for Ecotherapy Social farms provide an ideal place to implement ecotherapeutic interventions, integrating the dimensions of the individual person and engaging nature and the community. The notion of social farms is further explored in this section. Social farms, typically with some ongoing agricultural activity, host cultural, social or rehabilitation projects. They are usually open to the general public and particularly welcome children, adolescents at social risk, disabled, traumatised or abused persons as well as the elderly. Collaborating with local institutions such as schools, parishes, councils, service organisations and others, they contribute creatively and extensively to the integrated network of local services and resources. Avoiding both stigma and self-indulgence, they aim to achieve ethical, health-related environmental and agricultural targets in situations run by professional or amateur staff, either full time or part time. The flexible nature of social farms is well adapted to their calling of reproducing in agriculture the model of the service economy, matching both enterprise and profit with precious added value for the individual and the community in terms of health preservation, rehabilitation and inclusiveness. Often located in proximity to routine urban congestion but still protected from it, they are places immunised against the alienating anonymity of cities. At these places, it is possible to experience a close encounter with nature, enjoy it with both body and mind, propose or participate in cultural or charity events, have fun or socialise freely or in structured scenarios, and of course participate in authentic therapeutic activities. The social farm facilitates self-awareness, discovery of interests, development of skills, recovery of lost or unrealised sensitivities and desires, and the creation of identity narratives linking to personal and

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family history, all within an anthropological perspective that is open to different cultures, generations and lifestyles. The duration of a person’s stay at the farm can vary and may be for leisure or recovery, even postsurgical recovery, benefiting from ideal healing conditions. From a rehabilitation perspective it is possible to set up day centres, hopins, refuges, therapeutic communities or tailored interventions, catering for the developing (or redeveloping) of basic autonomy skills, or for the overall capacity of living in the wider community, or for going back to work. For example, tree climbing for adolescents at social risk is intrinsically gratifying due to its creative and challenging tasks. The skills development function of social farms is also highly valued in the labour market, for either rural or urban services. As a rehabilitation resource, social farms maintain strategic characteristics: the rural ethos of welcome and social inclusion; the preservation of cultural identities; solidarity and mutual help; and the joyful and triumphant manifestation of life which bears fruit in every season, beyond obstacles, challenges and adversities in one’s own life or environments. All these experiences are possible, in a non-medical, highly flexible setting that is respectful of the whole person.

Ecotherapy, Revelation and Evolution A view of ecotherapy open to biblical revelation requires comprehension of the relation between Man and Creation. In this section the author will explore only the topic of ecology and therefore the relation between people and nature, as developed in the Christian tradition, mainly by the current pope, Pope Francis. Some observations on Darwinian evolutionism by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin will also be considered.4 In the encyclical letter Laudato Si’ Pope Francis (2015) calls for a whole human ecology, developing and broadening earlier contributions by Saint John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. However, it appears that this sensitivity stretches back through all the history of the Faith and the Catholic Church: “... the perennial sources, created for the pleasure and the health, offer men their life giving breasts. Even the smallest animals cooperate between them in concord and peace” (Clemente di Roma 2010; translation by the author). 4

French Jesuit priest, philosopher and palaeontologist (1881–1955) who sought to integrate spiritual faith with an understanding of physical evolution.

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In Laudato Si’ Pope Francis, choosing to focus solely on the visible part of the creation, explains: 76. In the Judaeo-Christian tradition, the word creation has a broader meaning than nature, for it has to do with God’s loving plan in which every creature has its own value and significance. ... creation can only be understood as a gift from the outstretched hand of the Father of all, and as a reality illuminated by the love which calls us together into universal communion. 77. “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made” (Psalms 33:6).5 This tells us that the world came about as the result of a decision, not from chaos or chance, and this exalts it all the more.

On the aspect of creation wounded by human exploitation seeking to maximise short-term profits, section 53 states: “Yet we are called to be instruments of God our Father, so that our planet might be what he desired when he created it and correspond with his plan for peace, beauty and fullness.” Commenting on Genesis, Pope Francis underlines how relations with God, with one’s neighbour and with the earth are all broken by Man’s refusal to accept his own origin and destiny in a being which is greater than him. This is the original sin. Yet even before the progenitor’s fall, the mandate of cultivating the soil confirmed for us that our place in creation is not contemplation free from responsibilities, a kind of backward projection of an atavistic Freudian pleasure principle. Section 124 of the encyclical states: “Developing the created world in a prudent way is the best way of caring for it, as this means that we ourselves become the instrument used by God to bring out the potential which he himself inscribed in things ... .” The dignity of work therefore has a mystical quality, which is that of participating in the creative effort of God. Bringing the Earth to bear its fruit, even abundantly, it ought to be accompanied by the awareness and willingness to share it, according to a clear divine mandate, as the Earth belongs to its creator. Poverty, extreme sacrifices, and the fruitlessness of a self-centred human life are scandals which cry out to God, whose life instead is generous and 5

Psalm 33:6 (New Jerusalem Bible).

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overabundant, to the point that He makes his sun rise over the bad and the good. In section 9 the encyclical alludes to His Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, who: asks us to replace consumption with sacrifice, greed with generosity, wastefulness with a spirit of sharing, an asceticism which “entails learning to give, and not simply to give up. ...”

The patriarch thus acknowledges a kind of Freudian reality principle and also prompts us not to indulge in a helplessness mindset! The function of work, which sanctifies people and creation, has its proper balance in the Shabbat (or Sabbath), the day of rest, time for contemplation and praise. Shabbat is about awareness, and therefore respect, for the natural cycles which govern the harmonious regulation of all creatures, within them and between them. Therefore the whole of creation participates in this rest, the contemplation and the feast! King David and, much later, the Canticle of the Creatures invite us enthusiastically to this praise, as Pope Francis pinpoints in section 72 of the encyclical: “We do not only exist by God’s mighty power; we also live with him and beside him. This is why we adore him.” God is longing for our love. To him our deep sight is dear, fixed on him. Humans are precious in the universal economy of God, either for the common work awaiting both creator and creature, or for the mutual sharing of this love he wants us to be part of: this is the communion of saints. Being indifferent to God or engaging in idolatry, turning one’s own heart towards other things, cannot but bring one to adore other creatures or, more easily, oneself. This brings about the futuristic and self-indulging representations – Freudian phallic – of a contemporary recursive Prometheus’s dream by which humans enjoy and please themselves with their own technical actions and advances over matter, at a pace ever closer to the speed of light, but losing vision. In section 155 of the encyclical, Pope Francis refers to Pope Benedict XVI’s ecology of man and to his warning that “man too has a nature that he must respect and that he cannot manipulate at will”, which includes the risk of an unhealthy attitude that seeks “to cancel out sexual difference because it no longer knows how to confront it”. Francis, reflecting on this (still in section 155), observes as follows: The acceptance of our bodies as God’s gift is vital for welcoming and accepting the entire world as a gift from the Father and our common home,

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whereas thinking that we enjoy absolute power over our own bodies turns, often subtly, into thinking that we enjoy absolute power over creation. Learning to accept our body, to care for it and to respect its fullest meaning, is an essential element of any genuine human ecology.

To pinpoint this fundamental anthropological experience for Israel, namely human beings becoming self-aware of their own limits, the Shabbat develops into middle and long-term cycles, with requirements that become more and more binding. In this regard Pope Francis comments in section 71 of the encyclical: Similarly, every seven years, a sabbatical year was set aside for Israel, a complete rest for the land (cf. Lev 25:1-4), when sowing was forbidden and one reaped only what was necessary to live on and to feed one’s household (cf. Lev 25:4-6). Finally, after seven weeks of years, which is to say fortynine years, the Jubilee was celebrated as a year of general forgiveness and “liberty throughout the land for all its inhabitants” (cf. Lev 25:10).

In the Jubilee year, grace and mercy triumph as the Lord of Heaven and Earth stands as the ultimate and irrevocable guarantor of liberty and, to some extent, redistribution. Finally, reflecting upon the eschatological destiny, of all things, Pope Francis states as follows (in sections 83, 99 and 100 of the encyclical): 83. The ultimate destiny of the universe is in the fullness of God, which has already been attained by the risen Christ, the measure of the maturity of all things. Here we can add yet another argument for rejecting every tyrannical and irresponsible domination of human beings over other creatures. The ultimate purpose of other creatures is not to be found in us. Rather, all creatures are moving forward with us and through us towards a common point of arrival, which is God, in that transcendent fullness where the risen Christ embraces and illumines all things. 99. The prologue of the Gospel of John (1:1-18) reveals Christ’s creative work as the Divine Word (Logos). But then, unexpectedly, the prologue goes on to say that this same Word “became flesh” (Jn 1:14). One Person of the Trinity entered into the created cosmos, throwing in his lot with it, even to the cross. From the beginning of the world, but particularly through the incarnation, the mystery of Christ is at work in a hidden manner in the natural world as a whole, without thereby impinging on its autonomy. 100. Thus, the creatures of this world no longer appear to us under merely natural guise because the risen One is mysteriously holding them to himself and directing them towards fullness as their end. The very flowers

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Pierre Teilhard de Chardin6 manages to achieve a fruitful synthesis between the rational conviction about the existence of a creator, and thus about a creative act of which we are the chief excellence, and the Darwinian theory of evolutionism: “Man progresses slowly by elaborating and refining, from era to era, the essence and forces of a universe that is deposited in him.”7 Every being, in fact, would be the result of a development that preceded it: “Partially, in an infinitesimal way, without losing any of the individual’s value, every element is coextensive with history, with the reality of Everything.”8 However, Teilhard critically adds: “Evolution is not creative ... but it is, for our experience in Time and Space, the expression of Creation.”9 Here the author presents creation as a long gesture that animates and sustains the becoming that, through the law of complexity and consciousness, pushes matter through successive stages to enliven freedom and spirit. And further: “The Spirit and the Matter, considered two rival universes incomprehensibly associated, become as two poles joined by a flow along which the elements, as much as we consider them ontologically different from each other, are susceptible to appearing necessarily in an area, that is, in a determined order.”10 It is amazing to perceive with Teilhard how the evolutionary vision of the world, far from orienting toward materialism, is a possible “school of a better spirituality and high morality”.11 Conviction about the legitimacy of the evolutionary perspective suggests and induces a person to: see almost infinitely exalted in front of himself, the greatness of his responsibilities. One who could have believed himself until then, in Nature, a temporary being, by chance, free to disperse, at his personal expense, the spark of life that has happened to him, suddenly discern, deeply within himself, the dreadful task of preserving, increasing, 6

In this article quotations in English from Teilhard de Chardin’s works are my own translations from the acknowledged publications. 7 P. Teilhard de Chardin, Il Fenomeno Umano [The human phenomenon] (Brescia: Queriniana, 1995), 168. 8 P. Teilhard de Chardin, La Visione del Passato [The vision of the past] (Milan: Jaca Books, 2016), 119. 9 De Chardin, 211. 10 De Chardin, 223. 11 De Chardin, 123.

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transmitting the opportunity of a World. In a true sense, his life has ceased to be exclusive to himself.12

The specific vocation and mission of anthropology will then be, in Teilhard’s perspective, to understand how the history of mankind is related and relating to the wider life in the cosmos.13 Teilhard’s balanced, rational yet evocative thoughts open the heart to hope for a future without end and without spatial boundaries: Either Nature is closed to our hope of a Future: and then, Thought, the fruit of millions of years of efforts, suffocates newly born, in an absurd Universe that aborts its own self. Or an opening exists, a superior soul above our souls: and then this way out, as long as we allow ourselves to commit to it, must open with no restriction, over psychic spaces that nothing can limit, in a Universe to which it is possible to trust indefinitely.14

Conclusion For the reader it now remains to actively engage with and contribute to this dualistic yet unified narrative towards the understanding and implementation of ecotherapy, in all its forms and variants, according to the biblical revelation and the Judaeo-Christian traditions of faith. Following the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI on faith and reason and Pope Francis on the gift of creation, the author’s conviction is that only a rational mind, open to the transcendent, can grasp and truly illuminate the fascinating mysteries surrounding our human nature, life and creation.

Sources Benedict XVI (Pope). 2011. “The Listening Heart: Reflections on the Foundations of Law.” Address to the German Bundestag, Berlin, September 22. Rome: Vatican Publishing House. Berger, Ronen, and John McLeod. 2006. “Incorporating Nature in Therapy: A Framework for Practice.” Journal of Systemic Therapies 25, no. 2: 80–94. Bizub, Anne L., Ann Joy, and Larry Davidson. 2003. “It’s Like Being in Another World: Demonstrating the Benefits of Therapeutic Horseback 12

De Chardin, 127. De Chardin, 172. 14 De Chardin, Il Fenomeno Umano, 216–17. 13

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Riding for Individuals with Psychiatric Disability.” Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal 26, no. 4: 377–84. Burgon, Hayley. 2003. “Case Studies of Adults Receiving Horse-Riding Therapy.” Anthrozoos 16, no. 3: 263–76. Burls, Ambra. 2007. “People and Green Spaces: Promoting Public Health and Mental Well-Being through Ecotherapy.” Journal of Public Mental Health 6, no. 3: 24–39. Burns, George W. 1998. Nature-Guided Therapy: Brief Integrative Strategies for Health and Well-Being. Philadelphia: Brunner/Mazel. —. ed. 2007. Healing With Stories: Your Casebook Collection for Using Therapeutic Metaphors. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Ciaperoni, Anna. 2008. Agricoltura Biologica e Sociale: Strumento del Welfare Partecipato [Organic and social farming: tool of inclusive social welfare]. Rome: Quaderni AIAB. Clemente di Roma. 2010. Lettera ai Corinzi [Letter to the Corinthians]. Bologna: ESD Sources Chrétiennes. Cloninger, Claude R. 2006. “The Science of Well-Being: An Integrated Approach to Mental Health and its Disorders.” World Psychiatry 5, no. 2: 71–6. Fitzpatrick, J.C., and Jean M. Tebay. 1997. “Hippotherapy and Therapeutic Riding.” In Companion Animals in Human Health, edited by Cindy C. Wilson and Dennis C. Turner, 41–58. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Francis (Pope). 2015a. “Catechesis (15 April 2015).” L’Osservatore Romano, April 16. —. 2015b. Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home. Encyclical Letter. Vatican, May 24. http://w2.vatican.va/content/dam/francesco/pdf/encyclicals/documents/ papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si_en.pdf. Hegarty, John R. 2007. “Nature-Connectedness and Ecopsychology: Going Green in the Consulting Room: Reflections and Exercises on How Nature-Awareness could be brought into the Consulting Room as a Medium for Psychological Healing.” Paper presented at the Keele Counselling Conference, May 12–13, 2007. Hine, Rachel, Jo Peacock, and Jules Pretty. 2008. “Evaluating the Impact of Environmental Volunteering on Behaviours and Attitudes to the Environment”. Report for BTCV, Cymru. Colchester: University of Essex. Kaplan, Stephen, and Rachel Kaplan. 1989. The Experience of Nature: A Psychological Perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Lucatelli, Sabrina, Sara Savastano, and Marco Coccia. 2006. “Servizi

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Socio-Sanitari nell’Umbria Rurale” [Health and social services in rural Umbria]. Materiali UVAL 12. Rome: Ministero dello Sviluppo economico [Ministry of economic development]. MacKeith, Joy, and Sara Burns. 2008. Mental Health Recovery Star. London: Triangle Consulting and Mental Health Providers Forum. Marchica, Barbara. 2018. Consapevolezza [Awareness]. Padova: Edizioni Messaggero. Pascale, Alfonso. 2006. “Un progetto unitario per l’agricoltura sociale” [A unified project for social farming]. Paper presented at the ALPA conference, Ripatransone, Italy, November 17. Sempik, Joe, Rachel Hine, and Deborah Wilcox, eds. 2010. Green Care: A Conceptual Framework: A Report of the Working Group on the Health Benefits of Green Care. COST 866, Green Care in Agriculture. Loughborough: Loughborough University. Totton, Nick, ed. 2005. New Dimensions in Body Psychotherapy. Maidenhead: Open University Press; McGraw-Hill Education. Ulrich, Roger. S. 1984. “View through a Window may Influence Recovery from Surgery.” Science 224: 420–21. Wilson, Edward O. 1984. Biophilia: The Human Bond with Other Species. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Woodbridge, Kim, and Bill Fulford. 2005. Whose Values? A Workbook for Values-Based Practice in Mental Health Care. London: Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health.

SECTION II: SPIRIT/THEOLOGY

THE GAP BETWEEN SPIRIT AND PSYCHE: THE PSYCHOSPIRITUAL FACULTIES MAR ALVAREZ-SEGURA1 AND MONTSERRAT LAFUENTE2

Abstract The spiritual dimension has returned to the fore in psychiatry and psychology texts. It was banished from the experimental field with the hegemony of experimental psychological and biologically-based psychiatric data from the nineteenth century. The adaptation of a new, purely scientific-natural orientation introduced a materialistic conception of the individual into psychology and psychiatry. However, the excess of non-quantifiable information from the total human experience became much greater and richer in the twentieth century with Carl G. Jung, William James, Gregory Zilboorg and Viktor Frankl, among others, expressing the growing interest in the spiritual dimension of persons and and their role. Far from taking refuge in the ingenuous anthropocentrism proposed on the basis of quantifiable experience, numerous authors chose to examine the mysterious depths of the person open to the infinite, offering a broader vision of psychology and pointing to the spiritual dimension. With the benefit of its inclusion in the field made clear, it remains to be explained just what the dynamic is between this dimension and psychology – that is, psychospiritual interaction. Or to put it another way, what are the dynamics of the transformation of the psyche (the psychological domain) by virtue of openness towards transcendence? The Catholic Christian philosopher Fernando Rielo makes a distinction between psychospiritual and psychosomatic functions, which helps us to

 1

Dr Mar Alvarez-Segura is a child and adolescent psychiatrist. She works as a professor of psychology of personality at Abat Oliba CEU University in Barcelona. Parts of this presentation originally appeared in a paper written for the 4th Congress of Anthropology, Psychology and Spirituality (Alvarez-Segura 2013). 2 Dr Montserrat Lafuente is an adult psychiatrist. She works as a professor of ethics in psychology at Abat Oliba CEU University in Barcelona.

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clarify this process. These psychospiritual faculties offer an explanation of the transformation of the psyche by virtue of the openness towards transcendence that may have a crucial role in psychotherapy. Keywords: Spirituality; mental health; psychospirituality; transcendence; psychotherapy

Introduction Biological psychiatry and psychology have robbed people of the spiritual dimension, as they are viewed as subject to experimental verification. Nevertheless, dealing with human psychology touches upon aspects of the person that fall fully within the domains of anthropology and spirituality. These disciplines have been grouped with the empirical-positivist sciences in disregard of the dimension by virtue of which the person is a person – that is, the spiritual dimension, with its moral and religious connotations. This exclusion began in the nineteenth century with the experimental psychology laboratories of Wundt in Germany and Titchener in the United States (Echavarria 2010, 657). In the field of medicine the discoveries of cellular pathology by Virchow raised hopes for a mechanistic Cartesian approximation in which each illness would be found to have a single cause (Freymann 1981). This narrowing allowed the field of investigation to be shielded from the interference of intangible factors. The fascination with and seduction of quantitative results marked out experimental psychology as the only endeavour capable of contributing to true understanding of the whole person. In the field of psychiatry, the most important influence was the opus of Sigmund Freud, who, in his final works, made it clear that religion was nothing more than shared delirium, helpful for some and harmful for others, but at any rate an indicator of psychological immaturity. Freud claimed that religion was a common but false belief and that God was a projection of internal desires (Freud 1967, 759). This outlook established the general tone of rejection in Western psychiatry toward spirituality for the greater part of the twentieth century (Peteet 2007, 620). The effect was totally opposite to that of the previous century. While the previous notion of mental illness permitted explanations that included supernatural influence, and there was an interest in the inexplicable aspects of mental disease, now any attempt at explanation that moved beyond the quantifiable was simply excluded from the discourse. Attention was focused on biology and inheritance, while neuroscience,

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cognitive psychology and genetics were erected as the only sciences able to offer explanations of the nature of people. From this moment the transcendent and the spiritual were in clear subordination to neuroscience, even in terms of study method. In spite of this hegemony, the spiritual dimension remained an object of study in the clinical and neuroscientific domains as a player with a positive prognostic role in any number of pathologies (Koenig 2009, 289). There are still insurmountable questions, from a purely scientific point of view, that turn the heads of those searching for a wider vision of human nature. How and why does openness to the spiritual change the prognosis in disease? How exactly does spirituality operate in the cognitive and volitional domains? These questions and many others are overlooked by quantitative analysis. They nevertheless present a challenge in the form of acceptance of the spiritual dimension and its interaction with psychology. The acceptance of psychosomatic medicine has carried with it numerous controversies regarding its definition, as it appeals directly to metaphysical reflection that was thought to be beyond the pale. Thus, in 1939, in the introduction to the first journal of psychosomatic medicine, a description of the field was offered in terms related to its method (Lipowski 1984, 156): Its object is to study in their interrelation the psychological and physiological aspects of all normal and abnormal bodily functions and thus to integrate somatic therapy and psychotherapy.

No explanation of the nature of the relation is put forward, however. The excessive fear of introducing anthropological discourse led to committing acts that were intellectually dishonest, by omitting elements that are fundamental to the unity of the person. We find a similar situation in the attempt to explain psychospirituality; if it is not strictly reined in and rigorously defined it is exposed to a kind of polarisation between a simple, faith-based version and one that omits the underlying anthropological principles. At present there is acceptance of two dimensions: the somatic and the psychological, with a complex interaction between them that has led to the creation of a discipline concerned with “psychosomatic” phenomena. In this article it is proposed that the interaction of the spiritual and the psychological dimension be recognised as “psychospirituality”. This is designed to respond to deep questions about all aspects of human functioning, and opens the possibility of a deeper understanding of the

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person’s psychological and psychosomatic manifestations. This chapter examines open questions in the study of spirituality in mental health and explores a proposal for a model of psychospiritual functions based on the works of the Catholic Christian philosopher Fernando Rielo.

The Challenges of Psychospirituality in Mental Health The growing interest in the study of non-quantifiable experience finds its strongest expression in the field of psychology as developed by William James, who went from being one of the founders of experimental psychology to being a promoter of the study of religious experiences. James (2009, 15) criticised medical materialism as a discipline for its approach to experiences of this kind: To plead the organic causation of a religious state of mind, then, in refutation of its claim to possess superior spiritual value, is quite illogical and arbitrary, unless one has already worked out in advance some psychophysical theory connecting spiritual values in general with determinate sorts of physiological change.

For James there is a mystical dimension of existence that is beyond rational consciousness and based solely on understanding and feeling. This dimension imbues experience with a subconscious character that is perceptible only to the higher parts of our minds. Abraham Maslow, in searching for a psychology that transcends the nature of persons, their identity and self-realisation, speaks of a transcendental dimension, something greater than humankind, which we should respect and trust (Maslow 2003, 8). Some psychoanalysts, such as Carl Jung and Gregory Zilboorg, were uncomfortable with the hostility of Freud toward the topic of religiosity. Jung was one of the first psychiatrists to express a growing interest in the spiritual dimension. Basing his thinking on the concept of the subliminal consciousness of Myers and Flourney, Jung declared there to be a parallelism between the spirit and the collective unconscious in which may be found the forms and images of our collective nature, of unconscious origin, which are expressed universally as myth (Jung 1981, 85). Each of these authors recognises that spiritual reality exceeds the rational capacity to contain it, and it is interesting to observe how they all posit their own explanations for this dimension. James gives it a subconscious character that may be perceived only by the higher orders of our mind; Maslow defines it as a transcendental entity that is greater than we are; and Jung

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invokes the collective unconscious. These intellectual currents prevented the spiritual dimension of the person from being ignored, but they were excessively descriptive and abstract, in contrast to the nature of human experience, which is something more than the mere verifying of facts. This defect results from an excess of speculation with scant anthropological basis and the absence of an applicable model. In Europe, one of the authors to most deeply examine the spiritual dimension of the person in the field of psychiatry is Viktor Frankl. He conceives of the person as having three dimensions: the somatic, the psychological or mental, and the spiritual or noetic (Frankl 1990, 68–78). This spiritual dimension may be distinguished from the other dimensions in a number of ways, being the only dimension in which freedom and responsibility exist, thereby allowing us to take a position in life with its changing and diverse circumstances. Furthermore, it is the dimension that is attuned to finding meaning in life, and it is therefore the dimension that is truly human. It is a dimension that is not subject to illness – people can become ill only in the somatic and psychological dimensions. And finally, Frankl states that the noetic, or spiritual, interacts with the somatic and psychological dimensions, though he does not explain how. The Spanish philosopher Fernando Rielo expands on this idea and proposes the existence of psychospiritual functions with a concrete dynamism. In the United States of America some psychiatrists and psychologists in the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, working in the tradition of European authors, decided to examine in greater detail the practical role of religion in mental health. This resulted in a report on the positive and negative effects of religion on mental health (Committee on Psychiatry and Religion 1968). Later the American Journal of Psychiatry published a review article (Larson and Mansell 1986) that documented the lack of appropriate literature on the effects of religion on mental health. During the 1990s and at the beginning of the twenty-first century, interest in religion and spirituality grew considerably. Thus, in 1999 the Spirituality and Psychiatry Special Interest Group of the Royal College of Psychiatrists was established to provide a forum for psychiatrists to explore the spiritual challenges presented by psychiatric illness and how to respond to patients’ spiritual concerns. Similarly, the World Psychiatric Association recently set up a section on religion, spirituality and psychiatry (Verhagen 2012). The number of articles in peer-reviewed journals on these topics has increased dramatically (Ribaudo and

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Takahashi 2008, 28), while educational programmes addressing spirituality have become common in medical schools and residency training programmes (Peteet 2007). Numerous studies also attest to the benefit of spirituality as a favourable prognostic factor in a goodly number of pathologies (Koening 2009, 289). Recognition of the spiritual dimension is therefore a reality, and this is even more clearly evident in the new bio-psycho-socio-spiritual paradigm (Sulmasy 2002, 27; Katerndahl and Oyiriaru 2007, 393) as a framework for research and the care of patients from an integrative point of view. This model is in line with the perspective of the World Health Organization (1995, 1409), which recognises the importance of spirituality along with the physical, psychological and social dimensions in evaluating the quality of life. The biopsychosocial model of Engel (1977, 132) holds that biological, psychological and social processes are integrated and interactively involved in psychic health and illness. As a reference framework, this model has nurtured considerable success by permitting the convergence of different levels and systems. The spiral of specialisation, reductionism and fragmentation – the division, that is, of experience – is now countered by an integrative force that is true to the vision of a single whole. As a framework, it allows for a multi-levelled, convergent approach to the complexity of people. However, important challenges remain in specifying the processes that connect the biological, psychological and social systems, and this is even more the case with the spiritual dimension. What can happen in the inner realm of the psyche (psychological domain) when it is open to spirituality that provides strength and meaning? How does spirituality contribute to reducing depressive symptomatology? How does it prevent anxiety? In psychology there is already agreement about the resilience derived from spiritual resources, but important gaps still remain in learning how these relations are established so that the fragility of the psychosomatic complex could assume the strength of the spirit. To answer these questions, an anthropological model is now presented that is based on the works of the philosopher Fernando Rielo. This model proposes an explanation for the way the human spirit opens towards the Absolute and how human psychological abilities attain their maximum expression when boosted by divine presence.

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Psychospiritual Functions of Fernando Rielo In his book The Psychology of Character, Rudolf Allers (1943, 326) states, with extraordinary intuition, that the only people who can be completely free of neuroses are the saints. He affirms that saints are far beyond neurosis because they are far beyond rebellion.3 This statement is an authentic provocation to any mental health professional, as it offers a preventive psychological key of enormous significance based on spiritual experiences. Before entering into the topic in detail, it is necessary to offer a basic anthropological background to understand the contributions of the psychospiritual functions. Classically, scholastic anthropology with Aristotelian-Thomistic elements, transformed by an Augustinian orientation, has described human geography at different levels: the corporal feelings (sensations), the abilities of the soul or psyche (with their corresponding involvements, passions and proper acts) and, at the deepest level, the core or the substance of the soul where the encounter with God takes place. These three levels are addressed by the scriptural text, “And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you through all things; so that your whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved without blame unto the return of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians, 5:23). What is of interest for the purpose of this presentation is to underline this “bottom of the soul”4, or spirit, as it is presented as the default of the Absolute. Juan Martín Velasco (2009, 265, 280), in his book about mystical experience, declares as follows: The spirit provides an extraordinary dynamism ... it allows a realisation at the height of its true being ... Here lives the presence of God to which it is constitutively open. The presence of the Absolute appears as a dynamic principle of the person and bears in itself a reorientation of the heart towards Absolute Love... This allows a radical change of orientation that stamps the conversio cordis in the subject (author’s translation).

 3

 He thus affirms: “it follows that the only person who can be entirely free from neurosis is the man whose life is spent in genuine devotion to the natural and supernatural obligations of life, and who has steadfastly accepted and affirmed his position as a creature and his place in the order of creation; in other words, beyond the neurotic there stands only the saint.” 4 “The bottom of the soul may be in repose, even while we are in many outward troubles; just as the bottom of the sea is calm, while the surface is strongly agitated”(Wesley 1831, 525).

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The presence inside persons of a dimension beyond their own person, its state of being inhabited by an excesus that floods them and overflows them, justifies some people’s ability, throughout their lives, to face pain without despair and to conquer, with extraordinary patience, the highest summits of hope. Thus, the presence in persons of a dimension beyond themselves is able to push human abilities to the limit and to stretch them, as the spirit remains open for the presence of God. For Saint John of the Cross (San Juan de la Cruz 2015, 2097–98) the centre of the soul, or spirit, has an intentional objective, and this is the point at which all the energies of the soul are aimed: And thus, when we speak about the union of the soul with God, we are not talking about this substance, which is always made, but about the union and transformation of the soul with God, which is not always made, only when there exists a similarity of love5 (authors’ translation).

The spiritual openness towards the presence of God causes a radical transformation of the psyche, but it still requires a loving acknowledgement of the Transcendent. In order for this acknowledgment to be effective, the person needs to abandon the pretension of being subject and centre, which dominates all relations with worldly objects, and to accept the radical decentralisation and emptying of the self to experience the inner ecstasy of the Absolute. Velasco explains that this decentralisation does not suppose an annihilation of the person. It means entering the only way to the realisation that human beings have a permanent transcendent existence. As stated above, the presence of the Absolute holds a reorientation of the heart towards absolute love, allowing a radical change of orientation that imprints the conversio cordis in the person (Velasco 2009, 265, 280). This reorientation of the heart (the dimension of a person’s affective experience) towards absolute love is the key to the transformation of the abilities of the psyche and their reinforcement. To elucidate this, the presence of God that exists in the spirit and the transformation that takes place in the psyche will be described. This discussion is based on Rielo’s definition of a person as a psychosomatised spirit, inhabited by the divine

 5

The original text in Spanish says: “Y así, cuando hablamos de unión del alma con Dios, no hablamos de esta sustancia, que siempre está hecha sino de la unión y transformación del alma con Dios, que no está siempre hecha, sino solo cuando viene a haber semejanza de amor”

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constitutive presence of the Absolute, in terms of which the person has two natures: a human or formal nature made up of the psychosomatised spirit, and a mystic or transcendental nature that is the spirit inhabited by the Absolute; thus the person is neither a finite nor infinite being, but a finite-being-open-to-the infinite (Rielo 2012, 75–80). There is nothing that occurs in the spirit that does not affect the psyche and the soma, and vice versa. To the classical faculties of the psyche (intellectual and volitional), Rielo adds a third one, the most important, the uniting faculty, which result in a synthesis of the intellectual and the volitional (2012, 36). The uniting faculty, besides formally uniting the intelligence and will-power of the psyche, with its psychospiritual and psychosomatic functions – if it were not like this, these two faculties would remain dispersed – causes the person to unite itself, transcendentally, with the Absolute. Thus, the three faculties (intellectual, volitional, and uniting) remain open to each other and open towards the Absolute and to the ultimate reality. In other words, the person remains constitutively open towards the infinite, and at the same time the soma remains open to the psyche; and the soma and the psyche remain open to the spirit, which is the one that assumes the psychological and organic functions. This becomes clearer in Graphic 1.

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Based on this definition of openness of the spirit to the infinite, a discussion of the dynamics of the transformation of the psyche by virtue of this opening towards transcendence is presented. Rielo (2012, 33–51) makes a distinction between psychospiritual and psychosomatic functions. The human faculties (intellectual, volitional and uniting) settle in the spirit by means of the corresponding psychospiritual functions, which are intuition (instantaneous intimate perception of a truth which appears evident to the person perceiving it), fruition (vivid joy in the good that one possesses) and freedom. These project themselves in the psychosomatic functions, which are reason, memory and feeling (in the intellectual faculty), desire, imagination and emotion (in the volitional faculty) and intention, connection and passion (in the uniting faculty). The act of the spirit will first be projected in our psychospiritual faculties, in the form of perceptive spiritual structures, namely belief, expectation and love, which allow us to perceive the spiritual reality. This means that if our external and internal senses (sensorial impressions) allow us to perceive material reality, then spiritual reality is communicated and is perceived through the constitutive structures of belief, expectation and love. As a consequence all human beings, without any distinction of religion or credo, are enabled to receive the spiritual heritage of the Absolute, as these structures have a universal character. One can lose faith but never belief; one can lose hope but never expectation. Not everybody receives the gift of charity, but everybody is able to love. Faith, hope and charity are respectively belief, expectation and love elevated to the sanctifying order by redemption of Christ in the baptism. Belief, expectation and love can hold many objects of conscience, among which is God, whereas faith, hope and charity have God and His supernatural revelation as the only object of consciousness. The way the perceptive structures act in the psychospiritual functions is as follows: ƒ Belief activates intuition and opens reason, memory and sentiment to the infinitude of divine understanding. ƒ Expectation activates fruition and opens desire, imagination and emotion towards the infinitude of divine will. ƒ Love activates freedom and opens intention, connection and passion towards the infinitude of divine union. This psychospiritual dynamism becomes clearer in Graphic 2.

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This openness, however, can be acquired on different levels. In the case of the saint, there is a maximum openness, with the entry into the immense world of redeeming grace by means of the theological virtues faith, hope and charity. The life of union with the Absolute makes the spirit assume the psychosoma and strengthen the abilities. Thus, a transformation of the psyche is achieved in accordance with the image of God. The model acquires greater richness when we consider the theological virtues, but for this presentation it can be simplified as follows: ƒ Faith provides the intellectual faculty with prudence, shrewdness and fidelity, and allows reality to be penetrated and distinguished as God understands it. ƒ Hope provides the volitional faculty with the strength, patience and perseverance that allow reality to be appreciated and permitted in the way God wants. ƒ Charity provides the uniting faculty with the moderation, humility and generosity that allow reality to be accepted, acted on and understood the way God does. As explained by the tradition of the Church, divine union holds a progressive elevation towards Him. This flourishing is not a purely human progressive self-elevation towards God. Rather, it entails a two-fold action: a gift from God and a response of the believer. First, God’s gift involves calling us into union with Himself. This union is primarily His movement toward and presence in us, rather than our moving ourselves. His grace is the common root for two distinct but simultaneous effects: “the enlightenment of the mind and the enkindling of the affections” (Titus 2006, 270). To this double action we add a progressive intention of union with the Divine, which converts this union into an always increasing and strengthening possibility. In contrast, there may also be an attitude of closing up against divine action. This closing is subsidiary in different degrees, and leads to a progressive state of immersion in oneself or egotisation. The person remains conditioned by and subject to their own experience of limitation, blocking the positive response to divine action. Consciousness itself then becomes ever more trapped in states of partial consciousness and unconsciousness, with the consequent mechanisms of defence. Disbelief, cruelty (as a perversion of love) and lack of expectation degrade the psychospiritual functions, which are projected in this case as mistrust, passivity, indifference and rejection:

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ƒ Degraded intuition is projected onto psychosomatic functions of reason, memory and feeling in the form of mistrust and insecurity. ƒ Degraded fruition is projected onto psychosomatic functions of desire, imagination and emotion in the form of disappointment, weakness and passivity. ƒ Degraded freedom is projected onto psychosomatic functions of intention, connection and passion in the form of indifference, rejection, aversion, deprecation and antipathy. Throughout this process, instead of assuming the spirit, the psychosomatic complex yields an inversion, and it is the psychosomatic functions that progessively assume the spirit. Thus rational, volitional, intentional and spiritual responses are reduced, and more instinctive responses are increased. Automatic functioning is increasingly awakened. This examination reveals that the spirit has the power to unite positively with the Absolute and to realise itself transcendentally. This potentiality exposes us to the reason of divine understanding, the desire of divine willpower, and the intention of divine union, enabling us to become aware of the psychological injuries and limitations implicated in psychosomatic states, whether these are displayed through recurrent memories, avoidance behaviours, sadness, anxiety or irritability. Saints, through their availability in this openness towards grace, are the ones who respond positively, in a continuous liberation, without remaining fixed or trapped in any paralysing experience. The orthodox psychoanalyst M. Choisy (1952, 173–74) considers some of the interior dynamics of the saints and argues that saints are not bound to their childhood state but are constantly open to new emotion, thanks to their eternally youthful sensitivity. Saints have liberated themselves from their infancy because they are travellers without any baggage.

Conclusion This article has presented a solid Christian anthropological model that reveals the psychospiritual functions that may bridge the gap between the spirit and the psyche. It offers a human geography that maps the interrelation of psyche, soma and spirit and could be the basis for articulating more pragmatic models in the field. These anthropological bases are crucial to avoiding superstitious and superficial discourse and applications in the study of psychology and spirituality.

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The specific consequences of any psychospiritual function for a psychological disorder will always involve a de-centering movement that is diametrically opposed to egocentricity and addressed to Love. The progressive acceptance of divine heritage will not prevent suffering associated with all kinds of fears, anxieties, negative thoughts and memories. But it is possible to avoid being trapped or hijacked by them to the extent that the psychosomatic complex assumes the spirit and is prepared to collaborate with the transforming grace. When intuition opens our reason, memory and sentiment to the infinitude of divine understanding, we can acquire a proper perspective on ourselves, no longer with our own eyes but in the light of God (Von Hildebrand 1947, 233). When fruition opens desire, imagination and emotion to the infinitude of divine will, we can recognise and assume our true internal state, though this implies experiencing psychic pain without trying to defend ourselves, because we are feeling ourselves in accordance with God’s hope for us. Finally, when freedom opens intention to the divine union we can start to perceive signs and ways of possible resolution based on accepting God’s love in our concrete experience. Some aspects of the psychospiritual dynamics presented earlier are implicitly recapitulated in the book De Profundis by Oscar Wilde (2011). It deals with his experience as a man condemned to forced labour at the Reading Prison for two years. In the extract below, Wilde’s spiritual openness to the divine becomes obvious during his days of penal servitude, something which he unfortunately could not maintain once his imprisonment was over. Wilde does not describe himself as a person of faith but rather as one who, through the perceptive spiritual structures of belief, expectation and love, is able to penetrate the divine understanding with an extremely fine intuition, and to appreciate the sacred will with masterly fruition; and last but not least, with the most worthy freedom, he resolves to accept his past and his present with a praiseworthy humility and mercy: Reason does not help me. It tells me that the laws under which I am convicted are wrong and unjust laws, and the system under which I have suffered a wrong and unjust system. But, somehow, I have got to make both of these things just and right to me. ... I have got to make everything that has happened to me good for me. The plank bed, the loathsome food, the hard ropes shredded into oakum till one’s finger-tips grow dull with

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The Gap between Spirit and Psyche: The Psychospiritual Faculties pain, the menial offices with which each day begins and finishes, the harsh orders that routine seems to necessitate, the dreadful dress that makes sorrow grotesque to look at, the silence, the solitude, the shame – each and all of these things I have to transform into a spiritual experience. There is not a single degradation of the body which I must not try and make into a spiritualising of the soul. … The important thing, the thing that lies before me, the thing that I have to do, if the brief remainder of my days is not to be maimed, marred, and incomplete, is to absorb into my nature all that has been done to me, to make it part of me, to accept it without complaint, fear, or reluctance. The supreme vice is shallowness. Whatever is realised is right. ... To regret one’s own experiences is to arrest one’s own development. To deny one’s own experiences is to put a lie into the lips of one’s own life. It is no less than a denial of the soul. ... One can realise a thing in a single moment, but one loses it in the long hours that follow with leaden feet. It is so difficult to keep “heights that the soul is competent to gain.” We think in eternity, but we move slowly through time ... . And, though at present my friends may find it a hard thing to believe, it is true none the less, that for them living in freedom and idleness and comfort it is more easy to learn the lessons of humility than it is for me, who begin the day by going down on my knees and washing the floor of my cell. For prison life with its endless privations and restrictions makes one rebellious. The most terrible thing about it is not that it breaks one’s heart – hearts are made to be broken – but that it turns one’s heart to stone. ... And he who is in a state of rebellion cannot receive grace, to use the phrase of which the Church is so fond – so rightly fond, I dare say – for in life as in art the mood of rebellion closes up the channels of the soul, and shuts out the airs of heaven. (Wilde 2011, 154–63)

Sources Allers, Rudolf. 1943. The Psychology of Character. New York: Shee and Ward. Alvarez-Segura, Mar. 2013. “Do Saints Suffer Posttraumatic Stress Disorder? Mystic Life as Prevention.” Paper for the 4th Congress of Anthropology, Psychology and Spirituality, University of Mysticism, Avíla, 4–6 October. https://www.academia.edu/5552871/Do_saints_suffer_posttraumatic_s tress_disorder_Mystic_life_as_prevention.

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Catholic Bible. 2011. Complete Old and New Testament. Definitive English Authorized Version. Meadville: Christian Faith Publishers. Kindle. Choisy, Maryse. 1952. Psicoanálisis y Catolicismo [Psychoanalysis and Catholicism]. Buenos Aires: Editorial Sed. Committee on Psychiatry and Religion. 1968. “The Psychic Function of Religion in Mental Illness and Health.” Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry 6: 67. Echavarría, Martin F. 2010. Corrientes de Psicología Contemporánea [Currents in contemporary psychology]. Barcelona: Scire. Engel, George L. 1977. “The Need for a New Medical Model: A Challenge for Biomedicine.” Science 196: 129–36. Frankl, Viktor E. 1990. Logoterapia y Análisis Existencial [Logotherapy and existential analysis]. Barcelona: Herder. Freud, Sigmund. 1967. Psicopatología de la Vida Cotidiana. Tomo I [Psychopathology of everyday life. Volume 1]. Madrid: Editorial Biblioteca Nueva. Freymann, John G. 1981. “The Origins of Disease Orientation in American Medical Education.” Preventive Medicine 10: 663–73. James, William. 2009. Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature. South Australia: eBooks@Adelaide. Jung, Carl. 1981. Psicología y Religión [Psychology and religion]. Barcelona: Paidós. Katerndahl, David, and Daniel Oyiriaru. 2007. “Assessing the Biopsychosociospiritual Model in Primary Care: Development of the Biopsychosociospiritual Inventory (BioPSSI).” International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine 37: 393–414. Koenig, Harold G. 2009. “Research on Religion, Spirituality, and Mental Health: A Review”. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 54: 283–91. Larson, David B., and E. Mansell Pattison. 1986. “Systematic Analysis of Research on Religious Variables in Four Major Psychiatric Journals, 1978–1982.” American Journal of Psychiatry 143: 329–34. Lipowski, Zbigniew J. 1984. “What does the Word ‘Psychosomatic’ Really Mean? A Historical and Semantic Inquiry.” Psychosomatic Medicine 46: 153–71. Maslow, Abraham H. 2003. El Hombre Autorrealizado: Hacia una Psicología del Ser [Self-realised man: toward a psychology of being]. Barcelona: Kairós. Peteet, John. 2007. “Spirituality and mental health.” Southern Medical Journal 100, no. 6: 620.

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Ribaudo, Anthony, and Masami Takahashi. 2008. “Temporal trends in Spirituality Research: A Meta-Analysis of Journal Abstracts between 1944 and 2003.” Journal of Religion, Spirituality and Aging 20, no. 1– 2: 16–28. Rielo, Fernando. 2012. Concepción Mística de la Antropología [The mystical conception of anthropology]. Madrid: Fundación Fernando Rielo. San Juan de la Cruz. 2015. Subida del Monte Carmelo [Ascent of Mount Carmel]. Madrid: San Pablo. Kindle. Sulmasy, Daniel P. 2002. “A Biopsychosocial-Spiritual Model for the Care of Patients at the End of Life.” The Gerontologist 42: 24–33. Titus, Craig S. 2006. Resilience and the Virtue of Fortitude: Aquinas in Dialogue with the Psychological Sciences. Washington: The Catholic University of America Press. Velasco, Juan M. 2009. El Fenómeno Místico: Estudio Comparado [The mystical phenomenon: comparative studies]. Madrid: Trotta. Verhagen, Peter J. 2012. “Psiquiatría y Religión: La Asociación Mundial de Psiquiatría más allá de los Límites” [Psychiatry and religion: The World Psychiatric Association beyond the limits]. Actas Españolas de Psiquiatría 40: 60–5. Von Hildebrand, Dietrich. 1947. Humility: Wellspring of Virtue. Manchester: Sophia Institute Press. E-reader, Wesley, John. 1831 (1777). “A Plain Account of Christian Perfection.” In The Works of the Reverend John Wesley, A.M., edited by John Emory, 483–531. New York: J. Emory and B. Waugh. Wilde, Oscar. 2011. De Profundis. New York: Dover. Kindle. World Heath Organization. 1995. “The World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment (WHOQOL): Position Paper from the World Health Organization.” Social Science & Medicine 41: 1403–9.

THE TERMS SPIRITUALITY AND SPIRITUAL IN RUSSIAN ORTHODOX DOCTRINE – THEIR MEANING FOR PSYCHOTHERAPY ANDREY LORGUS1

Abstract The article analyses spirituality in psychotherapy practice. In the author’s opinion, a spiritually oriented approach is subject to two extremes: a broad understanding of spirituality as mystical and intellectual, on the one hand, or as merely religious, on the other. The article proposes to determine the sphere of the meanings of spirituality in the psychological activityprocessing framework. This approach allows one to interpret the term “spirituality” in a specific way, thus limiting the list of meanings referring to mental, emotional and volitional actions and states, which can be analysed and reproduced in psychotherapy. Christian personality theory is not possible without spirituality considered as a basic need, and the same is true regarding self-worth. Personal meaning is discovered in the sphere of spirit, and spirituality is a characteristic of existential process, striving for meaning. Keywords: Personality; personality theory; spirituality; meaning; selfworth; basic needs

Introduction Modern Russian consciousness is filled to the brim with words united by the root spirit, such as “spirituality”, “spiritual”, “spirit” and “clergy” (the latter in Russian has spirit as the root). Almost thirty years after Perestroika (a movement for political reform within the Communist party 1

Andrey Lorgus is a Russian Orthodox priest, psychologist, psychotherapist and anthropologist. He is also rector of the Institute of Christian Psychology in Moscow and a lecturer in psychology.

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of the Soviet Union during the 1980s), speaking and writing on this topic became popular, resulting in a large number of publications.2 One may assume that there was confusion concerning the meaning of the religious words above, leading to devaluation of their meaning. In the Russian public consciousness, that is the shared and publicly communicated use of these terms, their meanings and value proved to be blurred and distorted. In the psychology of the Soviet3 people these terms did not exist and were not recognised by the scientific world. After Perestroika, some scientists tried to adapt religious meanings to scientific methodology. Christian psychology was established and began to use the term spirituality quite widely but in a rather uncertain way.4 The spiritually oriented approach was introduced into psychological practice, which incorporated the elements of various religious traditions and beliefs. For example, Zen-oriented psychology and the practice of shamanism were attributed to a spiritually oriented approach to psychology. Shamanism was included in the psychological context under the works of Arnold Mindell (2008)5 and Stanislav Grof (1985), which had real impact. In the introduction to his book Beyond the Brain, Stanislav Grof (1985) writes about the practice of shamanism, mediumism, taoism and more.6 However, this spirit-oriented approach had nothing to do with the Russian spiritual tradition, where practising altered states of consciousness was traditionally considered dangerous, demonic and not leading to God. In the next section the terms spirit and spirituality are explored.

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The Russian president and the deputies of the Duma spoke about spirituality, and also the patriarch, priests and even government officials. Russian newspapers wrote about it and TV speakers discussed the topic. 3 All science in the USSR was forcibly built on the basis of Marxist philosophy, which excluded not only the religious aspect but also the humanitarian. Thus, Soviet science (including psychology) was deprived of many humanistic and spiritual approaches. 4 On the history and development of Christian psychology, see for example Tatiana Kim’s “The Way of Christian Psychology in Russia”, in Christian Psychology Around the World 3 (2013): 12–17. http://emcapp.ignis.de/3/#/12. 5 Arnold Mindell, Earth-Based Psychology in Shamanism, Physics and Taoism: Path Awareness in the Teachings of Don Juan, Richard Feynman and Lao Tse (Portland, OR: Lao Tse Press, 2008). 6 Stanislav Grof, Beyond the Brain: Birth, Death and Transcendence in Psychotherapy (New York: State University of New York Press, 1985).

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Terminology of Spirit and Spirituality In the Russian Orthodox tradition the terms spirit and spirituality are understood in a specific way. Spirit is understood to be an incorporeal force of divine origin. Spirituality is viewed as openness and an appeal of human beings to God and divine power. These terms are clearly defined in traditional theological contexts and are tightly linked with orthodox theology.7 The mystical religious philosophy that originated in the early nineteenth century extended the range of meanings of spirituality. To be more exact, a new, broad understanding of spirituality emerged along with the traditional Christian view. Pietism and Masonic teachings have also become spiritual phenomena. Russian sects and beliefs, widespread in the nineteenth century, were identified as people’s spiritual quests. Finally, at the turn of the twentieth century, any mystical-philosophical search and mood was considered spiritual. It became possible to speak of Buddhist or Hindu spirituality. In such a broad sense it is very difficult to define the meaning of spirituality for modern Christian psychology. In the modern religious approach the meanings of the terms spirit and spirituality have been linked to religious faith in the broadest sense. Including them in the sphere of psychological terms demanded serious anthropological study. It has turned out that the range of meanings related to this terminology is too wide for the psychological aspect to be identified and defined clearly. The author has distinguished at least three approaches: ascetic, religious and humanistic.

Ascetic spirituality First, the term spirituality has a strictly ascetic meaning, denoting a twodimensional (person–God) direction of communication and the development of human beings with God (ascetic). Ascetic spirituality can be understood as communion with God, as the presence or absence (god forsakenness, temptation, passion) of God's grace in one’s spiritual and

7

Georgy Maksimov, “Spirit, Spirituality”, in Theological Anthropology: Russian Orthodox/Roman-Catholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions), edited by Andrey Lorgus and Bertram Shtubenrauch (Moscow: Palomnik-Nikea, 2013), 234–39.

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mental life.8 Yet life in this tradition is not considered in its ordinary dimension but specifically in ascetic activities aimed at ascending to the Kingdom of Heaven through the feat of prayer, fasting and struggling with passions. Ascetic psychotherapy originated in the depths of the Christian ascetic spiritual tradition and was profoundly developed and understood as the overcoming of passions and sinfulness. More than 350 printed volumes of ascetic works now exist. This huge corpus, including both Eastern and Western traditions, embodies the spiritual tradition of mental healing and the perfection of humankind. However this strictly ascetic tradition cannot offer much help in psychological practice because of its precise focus on a person’s struggle with passions. Being addressed to a narrow circle of ascetics and monks, it is not acceptable in clinical practice.9 For example, the strict rules of fasting are not recommended in therapy for people suffering from schizophrenia, as this could lead to exacerbation of the disease.10

Religious spirituality Secondly, spirituality refers to a person’s orientation to religious practice, prayer and sacraments of the Church – that is, to the faith and the commandments as practised by the Church. This tradition of understanding spirituality is much broader as it includes religiosity as such, the search for God and the denial of God, a vast variety of beliefs and aspects of Christian Church life.11 This approach causes a lot of controversy, of course, as it does not provide an unambiguous understanding of spirituality. Particularly in the field of psychology, this approach to spirituality has been accepted to a greater 8

Sergey M. Zarin, Asceticism According to Orthodox Christian Doctrine [in Russian] (St Petersburg: n.p., 1907), 14. 9 Andrey Lorgus, “Disability,” in Theological Anthropology: Russian Orthodox/Roman-Catholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions), edited by Andrey Lorgus and Bertram Shtubenrauch (Moscow: Palomnik-Nikea, 2013), 246–51. 10 Andrey Lorgus, “Pastoral and Psychotherapeutic Aspects of Counselling Patients with Schizophrenia” [in Russian] (paper presented at the 13th EMCAPP Symposium, Rome, October 2–5, 2014). 11 Andrey Lorgus, “The Soul as Psychological Category”, Vestnik PSTGU, Series IV: "Pedagogics. Psychology", Vol. 2 (2006): 93–101 [in Russian].

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extent than the more clearly defined Christian ascetic approach. Spirituality, in common religious understanding, applied to modern psychotherapy, allows the introduction of religious issues, meanings and personality structures that are often discussed in therapy. But such an approach means narrowing psychological practice for the needs of religious people and serving pastoral psychology.

Humanistic spirituality Thirdly, spirituality can mean both a humanistic attitude in personal social life (social) and a mystical orientation in art and worldview (mystical). Spirituality understood in this way, as an anthropological attitude to the spiritual (intellectual and mystical) side of human life, allows one to view any human search for values and meanings not only in the material life but also in the higher spiritual life.12 In this sense, spiritual life focuses on a search for the meaning and value that are part of one’s internally contemplated moral and personal decision making and pertain to significant axiological and personal events. Spirituality defined in this manner allows psychotherapists to explore and find the specific, personally suitable direction for the client while working together with them. This approach is the closest to general psychological practice and psychotherapy, but it is difficult to apply without further comprehension of the main existential categories – meaning, values, faith, hesitation, life and death. The psychological meaning of humanistic spirituality still needs clarification. Its range may not be great, as it appeared only recently in the anthropological sphere and is associated with psychological practice of the last thirty years. Humanistic spirituality raises the following questions: (1) Is it possible to determine the concept of spirituality reflected in a personal activity or state? (2) What spiritual aspects can be described in psychological language? (3) How could one draw the line between the psychological and mystical realities to maintain scientific adequacy? (4) Is it possible to find and use the practical aspects of spirituality as psychological tools? In the next section answers to these questions and other challenges are proposed.

12 Andrey Lorgus, “Christian Psychology in the Area of Humanitarian Paradigm”, Moscow Psychotherapeutic Journal (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3 (2006): 5–15 [in Russian].

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Anthropological perspective From the anthropological point of view, the term spirituality as applied in the humanistic psychological approach could be used to refer to the value and meaning layer of the human personality. It is a broader concept than religion and worldview, as these can be considered part of the spiritual sphere and as earlier stages in personal development.13 Russian Orthodox perspective The Russian term spiritual indicates a different level of human selfconsciousness than the soul or psyche. Spirituality points to something deeper, not lying in the area of mental functions that require personal efforts and special conditions, such as choosing an ascetic lifestyle or prayer that is expected in religious practice. Spirituality requires a different kind of work that involves posing the most difficult existential questions. The questions have no obvious answers, which is why this work entails a spiritual and psychological risk. The possibility of not finding any satisfactory answers brings the risk of disappointment and of losing selfconfidence and an existential basis. Spiritual work requires courage, consistency and responsibility.

Spirituality and Personal Development Indeed, the self-knowledge of each person (and their personal development) could begin with the most common questions of selfexistence, namely “Who am I?”, “What is the meaning of my life?” and “What is my place in this life?” In developed form, the questions of spiritual development are “What is the meaning of life?”, “Does God exist?”, “Who am I before God?” and “How should I live?” It is obvious that more general questions precede more specific religious ones, as the search for faith and truth precedes the choice of faith and its development. Before saying “I believe”, one has to identify oneself as an acting entity, a person who is free and possesses free will. This identification of oneself as I is a deed, an action, and an act of one’s will. This is viewed as spiritual work, and there is always a risk on the spiritual path. People often become scared by such risks and abandon the spiritual work.

13

Nikolay A. Berdyaev, The Philosophy of the Free Spirit [in Russian] (Moscow: Republic, 1994), 90.

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This risk of failure could lead to the abandoning of spirituality in psychotherapy practice. A client once told me: “You know, I do not get involved in this philosophy to avoid getting more trouble.” This could be called the first existential resistance, denial or constraint. Such resistance (or self-constraint) entails, at the same time, a strategy to establish inner security and stability, because the spiritual search is risky. Thus, approaches to the existential issues of life could encounter two personality disorders, namely anxiety neurosis of failure and neurosis of loneliness. Both are serious obstacles to personal development. Here the therapy could be aimed at existential orientation in the spiritual space (“Who am I?” and “Where am I?”). At this point there would still be no deep issues, but supportive work using common and familiar concepts is required. Conversely, deep personal therapy could begin with small steps on the path of existential answers.

First existential choice On the contrary, people who have found themselves and attested to themselves in existence have committed a fundamental spiritual act. Such people have affirmed their existence. The “I am” is the thesis of a discovery of considerable extent and it reflects a choice at the same time. It is the same as saying “This is my existence” and is an act, a decision, a choice. It is an act of freedom, free will and spiritual choice. This is the first existential choice and affirmation. It is the fruit of personal work and psychological development, in other words the fruit of spiritual work. The question arises whether this fruit could be the result of psychotherapy. This is a special strategy for spiritual development: finding the meaning of life, searching for a personal identity and place in the world, finding God and relationships with Another.

Meaning of life A new stage in personal development is the search for the meaning of life, both in a pragmatic sense (professional, social, family) and in a mystical sense. Furthermore, as it is a spiritual experience of knowledge and moving beyond the ordinary world, it may be related to spirituality. The following case illustrates this point: A few years ago, at the Institute of Christian Psychology in Moscow, the author was counselling a young man suffering from schizotypal personality disorder. He knew and accepted his diagnosis and was following the doctor’s orders, faithfully adhering to

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medical direction. One of the issues presented in counselling was the meaning of his disease.14. He suffered seriously from the doubt that his life (which he believed would never be normal and whole) could make any sense. Many sessions with him were focused on the question of the meaning of his disease. Of course, it was impossible to provide a rational answer to this. However, it was realised that the question was based on his need for meaning and was thus an existential issue. Such seeking can be qualified as spiritual in nature.

Personal development Religious experience, at any stage of development (conversion, catechisation, asceticism, mysticism) actually belongs to spirituality and is of particular interest to us. Its significance is determined by its impact on the solution of psychological problems. Existentially important decisions also depend on the religious orientation. It is no secret that the concepts of a person and personal development are purely Christian. The depth of personal immersion in one's unique experience also determines the complexity of the task.15 Conversely, in posing vital questions of life and calling, death and suffering, a person faces a religious choice. Religiosity is not conceivable without spiritual issues; the spiritual depths of one’s personality lead to religious questions. Matters of life and death, suffering, life after death, sin and virtue are issues arising in later stages of life that without doubt indicate a search for spirituality. The main watershed, which can open up the spiritual horizons of life, begins with the question: “What is the meaning…?” If a person decides to turn their questions into markers in the direction of spiritual work, they pass into the sphere of the spirit, understood as the existential 14

This is a common request in counselling clients with clinical problems such as borderline personality disorders and more complex mental disorders. It is important to note that the questions “Why am I sick?”, “Why do I deserve this disease?”, “Why has God sent it to me?” and “What is the meaning of my illness?” can be attributed to one class of existential questions, namely spiritual questions about the meaning of illness and the meaning of life. The search for the meaning of the disease is nothing less than the search for the meaning of suffering and the meaning of life. Here we should note that the class of queries for clarifying the meaning of illness is vast and numerous. It is worthy of a separate study. 15 Andrey Lorgus, “Category of Experience in Christianity and Psychology” in The Lantern of Diogenes. A Synergetic Anthropology Project in the Modern Context of the Humanities, compiled and edited by Sergey S. Horujy (Moscow: ProgressTradition, 2010), 643–78 [in Russian].

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sphere, or the sphere of meaning. The sphere of life and personal development, as described, is not automatically obtained. It is one possible way in which a person could choose to live, and it stands in contrast to a professional career and the choice of social or family life. Thus, in the sphere of personal problems and the dynamics of personal development, human spiritual issues play an important role. This imposes the demand on the psychotherapist to be attentive to the problems presented by the client. Among the many problems may be a spiritual one, which would require a special approach and involve the psychologist's own spiritual experience. The question remains whether spiritual problems can be solved in the field of psychotherapy.

Spirituality and Psychotherapy The author is of the opinion that the content of spiritual problems may be resolved in the sphere of religious and mystical experience but not in the field of therapy. Psychotherapy has a different meaning for spiritual problems. This meaning is revealed when the conditions and internal mental factors of spiritual work are explored. The factors of success in such work could pertain to either short-term or deep therapy. The work entails addressing decision-making processes, the concepts of freedom and responsibility, the search for the meaning of life and meaning of disease, risk tolerance, intuition, self-confidence, making mistakes and facing shame. These are all real issues in psychotherapeutic practice. It sometimes happens that a concern with family responsibility develops into one about existential responsibility; or a concern with responding to a seemingly psychopathic employer turns into one of personal freedom. It is not possible to predict how deeply clients will decide to work with their vital problems. Thus, psychotherapy can deal with the dynamics and conditions of the spiritual search, but the content of the search, its orientation and the religious choice itself fall outside the therapeutic field. The psychotherapeutic process could create the conditions for finding and identifying problems related to spirituality in personal development. It could also assist in clarifying and defining these problems, finding resources and upholding free choice to solve them. Psychotherapy can assist with spiritual issues in terms of procedures – including assessing dynamic personal characteristics, implementing reflective mechanisms and participating in value groups – but the essence of spiritual quests remains

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outside the therapeutic sphere.16 In almost every therapy case there is a request for the spiritual comprehension of an existing problem. Some examples are given below. The question about the meaning of life indicates a basic personal need. There are seven basic personal needs, namely the need to exist, the need for unconditional self-worth, the need to belong to some larger community (the need for belonging), the need for self-actualisation, the need for freedom (autonomy), the need for security, and the need for meaning (spiritual need). The spiritual need or the need for meaning resonates with the need for the presence of the highest, of the holy in life, the need for God. Religion and faith are the realisation of a spiritual need. The other side of a spiritual need is the search for meaning. According to Berdyaev,17 “man is a creature, wounded by meaning” (author’s translation). Human beings are hurt and wounded, having lost and earnestly seeking for meaning. The human need for meaning sometimes reaches catastrophic proportions. Failing to find meaning, a person is ready even to commit suicide to avoid further suffering. Dostoevsky was the first Russian novelist to include the theme of the meaning of life in his novels. His heroes were ready to make an attempt on a person’s life, either own or someone else’s, to find or assert the meaning of life. So Kirilov, the hero of the novel The Devils (The Possessed) agrees to commit suicide, being pushed to it in the interests of an underground organisation. Kirilov says: “Life is pain, life is fear, and man is unhappy. Everything is now pain and fear. Man loves life now because he loves fear and pain. That’s how it’s been. Life is given in return for pain and fear now, and that’s the whole deception.” Further he says: “Everyone who wants absolute freedom will have to dare to kill himself. Who dares to kill himself will have discovered the secret of deception. There’s no freedom beyond that; that’s everything – there’s nothing more. He who dares to kill himself is God. Everyone is now capable of making sure there is no God and nothing else. But no one’s ever done it.”18

16

Andrey Lorgus, “Category of Personality in the Christian Psychology”, Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3: 122–33 [in Russian]. 17 Nikolay A. Berdyaev, The Philosophy of the Free Spirit [in Russian] (Moscow: Republic, 1994), 90. 18 Fyodor M. Dostoevsky, Devils, translated by Michael R. Katz (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992), 121–22.

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The decision to abandon the search for meaning is worth mentioning. This is a dramatic personality transformation, characterised not only by rejection but also by panic and a fear of meaning. The presence of an intuitive fear that the meaning of life may devalue the customary way of life elicits guilt and shame feelings. Thus, it becomes safer to abandon the search for meaning. The panic and fear caused by existential questions (“What is the meaning of my life?”, “What am I living for?”, “What is my place in life?”) leads to the constant need for anaesthesia through alcohol, drugs and depression.19 Another spiritual issue is caused by the crisis of middle age, the so-called mid-life crisis. It can arise from the loss of one’s profession or vocation, creating a sense that life lacks meaning, despite one’s achievement of a high living standard and professional success. Clients with this crisis often come to the psychologist with complaints of depressive syndrome or chronic fatigue. However, these may just conceal the existential crisis of meaning at this stage of the client’s life. Many psychologists deal with this issue in psychotherapy and they follow different approaches. The author is of the opinion that the core of this psychological crisis lies in the attitude towards the self, which can be identified from responses to the questions “Who am I?” and “What am I living for?” The main subject of the problem is the person concerned, the way they are revealed to themselves and their self-attitude. This is not the relationship I – Another but I – I. The relationships I – God and I – Another depend directly on how the I – I relationship is settled. This explains the key position of I – I. All other relationships depend on it. The solution to the crisis of middle age depends on how clients approach their problems. If clients could risk engaging in spiritual reflection, which is the deepest but most difficult and painful approach, they would enter the sphere of the spirit. Psychotherapy can be a guide for the client but cannot provide all the answers. The therapist, like an experienced watchmaker, gives an understanding of the complexity of the mechanism and potential solutions to the “faulty watch”. The therapist does not lead clients to heaven but

19

Andrey Lorgus and Olga Krasnikova, “Guilt and Sin”, Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3 (2010): 165–75 [in Russian].

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helps them to find motivation and choose the direction of their development. Another common crisis for clients, especially for men, is the crisis of calling or profession. Its essence lies in deep dissatisfaction with their line of work, in which they feel they are wasting their time and talents. A variant of this crisis is their strong preference for another direction of development, another career or another ministry. They may feel they are lying to or betraying themselves in their current positions, while time is aimlessly passing. The core of this crisis is the unfulfilled need for selfrealisation. Case study: Olga The following case study illustrates the above points. The therapy of Olga, forty years old, was long term and involved deep personality restructuring. Her initial presenting problem concerned her marital relationship, but from the third session onwards the main issue was the continuation of her work in the bank. Olga, an educated economist, had first spent a long time at home raising her daughter. When her daughter was independent enough, Olga found a job in a bank and built a good career for herself over the next twelve years. Her salary fully met her living needs. Her status and competence at the bank satisfied her but did not provide inner peace. More and more Olga felt the senselessness and futility of her work, and she finally realised that she hated her job and suffered at the thought of its continuation. The main challenge for her was whether she could quit the work and do whatever she desired. Her upbringing, complexes and parental and social stereotypes limited the options she would consider for satisfying her needs and using her talents. Only after four years of psychotherapy did she dare to start living in accordance with her wishes and aspirations. Currently she is doing art and crafts, and she gives lessons in painting and knitting. But the main lesson that she gives to people is the art of being oneself. Discussion of the case study Olga managed to find something in her soul that was the most important to her and worthy of being developed, something worth living for. She had to overcome the resistance of parental and social stereotypes and create her own criteria for development. The most difficult aspect was to abandon the social programmes determining her family life and that of the people around her and to take her own, unique path, not prescribed by others, for

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her further development. This decision implied being alone, without directive support and without an obvious, clear and commonly accepted goal. In this sense, psychotherapeutic work can open up major spiritual issues of life and personality. So understood, these issues are in the field of psychotherapeutic assistance. This is, perhaps, the field of spiritually oriented psychotherapy. This therapy has a spiritual meaning and is performed in the psychotherapeutic field. Its aim is not to solve neurotic problems but to address deep personal issues unresolved in the course of normal development. The personal development referred to is both spontaneous and purposeful. It is based on profound challenges of natural personal development but is guided and initiated by volitional decisions. It cannot be unconscious and involuntary. Moreover, it requires considerable courage and energy and therefore implies the availability of resources.

Conclusion The following quote from the book by Abraham Maslow (1968), Toward a Psychology of Being, provides a suitable conclusion for the discourse presented in this article: What may turn out to be the most important difference of all is the greater closeness of deficit-satisfied people to the realm of Being. Psychologists have never yet been able to claim this vague jurisdiction of the philosophers, this area dimly seen but nevertheless having undoubted basis in reality. But it may now become feasible through the study of selffulfilling individuals to have our eyes opened to all sorts of basic insights, old to the philosophers but new to us.20

The realm of Being here can be understood as including spiritual horizons of personal development. But where these horizons are closed to the self, psychotherapy is becoming more and more helpful.

Sources Berdyaev, Nikolay A. 1994. Philosophy of the Free Spirit [in Russian]. Moscow: Republic.

20

Abraham H. Maslow, Toward a Psychology of Being (New York: Litton Educational Publishing, 1968), 163.

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Dostoevsky, Fyodor M. (1872) 1992. Devils. Translated by Michael R. Katz. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Grof, Stanislav. 1985. Beyond the Brain: Birth, Death and Transcendence in Psychotherapy. New York: State University of New York Press. Kim, Tatiana. 2013. “The Way of Christian Psychology in Russia.” Christian Psychology Around the World 3: 12–17. http://emcapp.ignis.de/3/#/12. Lorgus, Andrey. 2006a. “Christian Psychology in the Area of the Humanitarian Paradigm”. Moscow Psychotherapeutic Journal (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3: 5–15 [in Russian]. —. 2006b. “The Soul as Psychological Category. Vestnik PSTGU. Series IV: Pedagogics. Psychology. Vol. 2, 93–101 [in Russian]. Moscow: St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Humanitarian University. —. 2010a. “Category of Experience in Christianity and Psychology”. In The Lantern of Diogenes: A Synergetic Anthropology Project in the Modern Context of the Humanities, edited by Sergey S. Horujy, 643–78 [in Russian]. Moscow: Progress-Tradition, 2010. —. 2010b. “Category of Personality in the Christian Psychology”. Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3: 122–33 [in Russian]. —. 2013. “Disability.” In Theological Anthropology: Russian Orthodox/ Roman-Catholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions), edited by Andrey Lorgus and Bertram Shtubenrauch, 246–51. Moscow: Palomnik-Nikea, —. 2014. “Pastoral and Psychotherapeutic Aspects of Counselling Patients with Schizophrenia” [in Russian]. Presentation at the 13th EMCAPP Symposium, Rome, October 2–5, 2014. Lorgus, Andrey, and Olga Krasnikova. 2010. “Guilt and Sin”. Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3: 165–75 [in Russian]. Maksimov, Georgy. 2013. “Spirit, Spirituality.” In Theological Anthropology: Russian Orthodox/Roman-Catholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions), edited by Andrey Lorgus and Bertram Shtubenrauch, 234–39. Moscow: Palomnik-Nikea. Maslow, Abraham H. 1968. Toward a Psychology of Being. New York: Litton Educational Publishing. Mindell, Arnold. 2008. Earth-Based Psychology in Shamanism, Physics and Taoism: Path Awareness in the Teachings of Don Juan, Richard Feynman and Lao Tse. Portland, OR: Lao Tse Press. Zarin, Sergey M. 1907. Asceticism According to Orthodox Christian Doctrine [in Russian]. St. Petersburg: n.p.

GOD – THE FORGOTTEN DEFENDER KRZYSZTOF A. WOJCIESZEK1

Abstract Risk-taking behaviours leading to addiction (alcohol use, smoking, drugs, violence, unsafe sex, gambling) pose a significant challenge for modern societies. The prevention of these behaviours is well researched, and protective factors have been identified. Religious activity has been found to be a noteworthy protective factor. Children, adolescents and adults who are actively involved in religious life have significantly lower rates of risktaking behaviours. This can be confirmed by many empirical studies (Rew and Wong 2006). Despite this knowledge, many theorists and practitioners do not integrate religious activity into their practices, so it is often ignored or neglected in the lists of protective factors. It is sometimes equated with general social activity. Yet there are reasons to believe that the spiritual life is a prominent source of protection. The relationship with God is vital in spiritual life; therefore, it should not be overlooked due to neglect or reluctance to be involved in religion. Many societies pay a high price for such anti-religious political correctness. The author reviews the research done on the subject and proposes a philosophical analysis of the nature of this factor. Keywords: Risk-taking behaviours; prevention factors; religion; modern society

Introduction: Sad State of Affairs Modern developed societies are healthier and live longer than previous generations. In Poland, people today can expect to live six years longer, on average, than in the last years of the communist regime (this has been



1 Krzysztof A. Wojcieszek is professor of social sciences at the Pedagogium WyĪsza Szkoáa Nauk Spoáecznych in Warsaw, Poland.

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achieved in just twenty-five years).2 Indeed, political and cultural factors have a great impact on our everyday lives, health and well-being. Taking that into consideration, it is painful to witness the extent to which people living in highly developed societies often hurt themselves through risky behaviours such as smoking tobacco, drinking alcohol, using drugs, overeating, careless sexual behaviour or violent acts (World Health Organization 2002). According to Sheridan and Radmacher (1998, 242), in the USA diseases related to lifestyle are responsible for 80% of deaths. Moreover, this process is becoming a global problem. Globally more deaths are caused by suicide than by armed conflict, and in 2015 it was the second leading cause of death by injury after road accidents (World Health Organization 2014, 2017). In the past, death was generally caused by infection, common accidental events or murder. Ordinary infections were the dominant cause of death, whereas today these infections end with a visit to the family doctor. The flu pandemic of 1918 alone claimed more victims than the First World War. Today it is different, and this is called a “shift of risk”. Quite often the shift refers to the death of very young people. When they pass away, the loss seems to be more painful – a young, promising life is gone. It is also worth noting that considerable material losses follow since such a person does not give back to society what was invested in their lives in terms of financial, educational and other input. Epidemiologists working for the World Health Organization state that the use of psychoactive substances like nicotine and alcohol poses the biggest problem (World Health Organization 2002). It seems that modern developed societies consist of a world of intoxicated people. Countless research papers have examined components of the losses caused by this phenomenon. Some of the results are very surprising. Nearly half (41%) of cancers are associated with smoking or drinking. The most common cause of prenatal damage is not genetic disease but the dramatic effect of foetal alcohol syndrome (Riley, Infante and Warren 2011; Solzak et al. 2013; Liszcz, 2011). There are proven links between low alcohol consumption and breast cancer in women and between smoking and infertility or miscarriage. It is clear that suffering is ubiquitous.

 2

The average life expectancy in the world was 65.386 years in 1990 and 71.455 years in 2014, according to World Bank data (http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN).

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The Search for Remedies Parallel to the discovery of the threat posed by risk-taking behaviours, remedies are being identified. Consequently, the prevention of risk-taking behaviour has developed into a field of its own. The author had the honour of being the first formal president of the European Society for Prevention Research (EUSPR). The development of this field of knowledge and its practice dates back to the 1970s. A number of prevention programmes to improve the situation were designed during this period. These efforts proved, however, that education did not yield the desired results. The effectiveness of the programmes was questioned by, inter alia, Anderson and Baumberg (2006), Foxcroft, Lister-Sharp and Lowe (1997) and Foxcroft et al. (2003). The positive impact of prevention efforts was either insignificant or not permanent. Therefore, the focus shifted from developing prevention interventions to determining which factors enhance or inhibit the level of risky behaviour. The rationale for this was to give people, especially younger persons, a chance to manage the threat of risktaking behaviours by reducing risk and enhancing protection on a wide social scale. In the 1990s the sophisticated concepts of “risk factors”, “protective factors” and “resilience” were postulated by researchers and practitioners. According to Wagenaar, Salois and Komro (2009), the most effective form of prevention is the curbing of risk factors by means of legal and financial decisions, for example by increasing the price of alcohol and taxes on it. Although increased understanding of these risk factors is essential to developing preventative psychosocial interventions, this article draws attention to factors that protect and strengthen persons on a psychosocial level. It seems that these protective factors are powerful and ensure that societies still exist. Only when the strength of these factors as a protective umbrella fails does a significant rise in risk-taking behaviours occur.

Classic and Contemporary Lists of Protective Factors The issue of protection is the focus of many researchers. The work of Hawkins, Catalano and Miller (1992) is considered a classic text in this regard. These authors present a synthetic image of both the risk involved in substance abuse and protection against it. Later, this evolved into a complete model called the “Social Development Model” (Catalano, Kosterman and Hawkins 1996). The authors noted that a significant part of the risk taking arises from a dysfunction in the relationship between a child or young person and the social environment. At the same time they

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pointed to protective relational factors, such as the relationship with parents, with school, and with religious practice. Many years have passed since the publication of this article, but its basic theses have defended themselves and are still being taken into account. The authors pointed to the now well-known fact that life in a real community of persons has protective power, whereas a loss of relationships multiplies the risks and problems. In the year following that publication, empirical studies aiming to construct a full list of protective factors increased. Possibilities for the social reinforcement of these factors were also proposed. These efforts resulted in the compilation of extensive lists of protective factors aimed at a particular group and risk behaviour. These lists are useful and allow the development of preventative psychosocial interventions that are more effective. There is, however, an intriguing issue connected with this successful research effort that the author wishes to highlight here, namely that one protective factor is systematically ignored. In the paper by Hawkins et al. (1992), clear reference was made to the protective role of religious activity, and the authors quoted a number of empirical studies that had justified this proposal. Yet the author has noticed a definite disparity between the number of empirical studies on the protective role of religious activity and the absence of this factor in many of the current proposals and principles for preventative interventions (National Institute on Drug Abuse 2014). While studying publications on the strengthening of protective factors, the author has rarely seen proposals that focus on religion as a source of protection. Is this a specific and intentional omission? Generally this factor is either marginalised or brought down to the role of an ordinary social activity comparable with the other activities of young persons in a community. Often a religious activity is recognised as “positive leisure activity” or “use of time” (Rawana and Ames 2012, 231; Beebe, Vesely and Oman 2008). It appears that religious activity is viewed as just one of the many activities presented in stadiums, concert halls, theatres or (for some reason) churches, but it is not accorded special value. And that is where it ends. The author has observed a tendency either to ignore this troublesome factor or to see it as a sociological aspect. The author has participated in most of the annual conferences of the EUSPR in different countries3 and noticed that the importance of religious activities as a protective factor is rarely mentioned. This is not surprising given that in societies that are

 3

Amsterdam, Lisbon, Kraków, Paris, Ljubljana, Berlin.

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practically separated from religion (through secularisation) it is extremely uncomfortable to mention the important protective role of religious activity, let alone the key issue: the role of a relationship with God. Therefore, while the social aspect of religious activities might be acknowledged, the transcendent aspect no longer is. The question thus arises of how to study the relationship with God. Can the relationship with God be subjected to empirical testing, or is it possibly a mistake made by earlier researchers that requires correction?

Empirical Knowledge based on the Protective Role of Religious Activity The knowledge we have concerning the influence of religious activity on risk-taking behaviours is very significant but in some cases it is viewed as trivial. When an epidemiologist investigates the relation between religious activity and the level of risk-taking behaviours, a strong negative correlation is usually found. Unfortunately researchers seldom investigate further. They are satisfied with the following hypothesis: good persons go to church and do not sin by smoking, drinking or taking drugs. They view the negative correlation between religious activity and risk-taking behaviour as trivial. For the sceptics, it would be worth investigating the works that identify religious activity as a protective factor. The article of Hawkins et al. (1992) referenced many such works. The thesis is clear: religious activity is identified as one of the strongest protective factors. It appears that the number of such studies is still prominent. In order to provide a clear presentation, the data, including quotes, are summarised in table format (Table 1). Full details can be found in the list of sources. Table 1: Religion as a protective factor Source Miller (1998, 979) Wallace et al. (2003, 843)

Selected quotes Current findings indicate that spiritual/religious involvement may be an important protective factor against alcohol. Relative to white students, black students are more likely to abstain from alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana and are more highly religious. ... Unexpectedly, however, highly religious white youth are more likely than highly religious black youth to abstain from alcohol and marijuana use.

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Steinman and Zimmerman (2004, 151)

Cotton et al. (2006, 472)

Raskin-White et al. (2006, 810)

Rew and Wong (2006, 433) Chawla et al. (2007, 410)

Dennis et al. (2009, 95)

Wong, Rew and Slaikeu (2009, 161)

Higher levels of religious activity in 9th grade predicted smaller increases in marijuana use among males and cigarette use among females. In addition, larger decreases in religious activity during high school were associated with greater increases in alcohol use among males and sexual intercourse among females. During high school, religious activity limits the development of certain types of risk behavior among African American youth, even after controlling for reciprocal effects. Constructs such as spiritual coping and religious decision-making were the ones most often studied and were generally positively associated with health outcomes. Leaving home and going to college were significantly related to increases in the frequency of alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking from high school to emerging adulthood but not to changes in marijuana use. Higher religiosity protected against increases in alcohol-and marijuana-use frequency. Forty-three studies between 1998 and 2003 were systematically reviewed. Most studies (84%) showed that measures of religiosity/spirituality had positive effects on health attitudes and behaviors. These findings suggest that the importance of religion may have an indirect effect on alcohol use via personal attitudes and the perceived approval or disapproval of important others, and this relationship varies as a function of reference group. Students from the Buckle University had higher degrees of religiosity and spirituality and reported fewer unhealthy drinking behaviors than those from the border university. By creating a learning environment where students are encouraged to increase the spiritual dimension of health, health educators may alleviate potentially deadly consequences of alcohol. Twenty articles between 1998 and 2004 were reviewed. Most studies (90%) showed that higher levels of R/S4 were associated with better mental health in adolescents.

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Ghandour, Karam and Maalouf (2009, 940)

Gomes et al. (2013, 29)

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Believing in God and practising one’s faith were related inversely to alcohol abuse and dependence in all religious groups, even among ever drinkers (belief in God only). The associations were sometimes stronger for Muslims, suggesting that religiosity may play a larger role in a more proscriptive religion, as postulated by ‘reference group theory’. Religiosity was found to be a strongly protective factor against drug use among Brazilian university students.

Conrad (2015, n.p.)

My research showed that there was a negative relationship between alcohol and all measures of religiosity.

Foster et al. (2016, 1)

Results show that individuals at highest risk for problematic drinking are those who more strongly endorse drinking motives, are low in S/R, and high in ambivalence. Religious involvement is associated with lower AUD5 risk. ... Religious service attendance, subjective religiosity, and spirituality account for a meaningful share of the Black–White differences in AUD. Future research is needed to conduct more fine-grained analyses of the aspects of religious involvement that are potentially protective against AUD, ideally differentiating between social norms associated with religious involvement, social support offered by religious participation, and deeply personal aspects of spirituality. Only public religiosity was related to AUD. Frequency of religious service attendance was inversely associated with AUD (NH Whites ȕ: í0.103, p < 0.001; NH Blacks ȕ: í0.115, p < 0.001; Hispanics ȕ: í0.096, p < 0.001).

Ransome and Gilman (2016, 792)

Meyers et al. (2017, 103)

The contents of Table 1 indicate that the number of studies showing a negative correlation between risk-taking behaviours and religion is

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Alcohol use disorder

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growing. The authors also attempt to deepen their interpretation of the research, which is mainly directed towards finding alternative sociological components explaining the negative correlation (for example, reference group theory). Thus sociological explanations point to the normative education in religious groups or the importance of the customs of the group. What is more, the general support that the believers receive in their community seems to be consistent with the social bond theory. However, what is very interesting is that despite a multitude of such observations, the role of religion and spirituality is still not identified as a potential preventive factor in practice! The author has observed a tendency to overlook or even to marginalise this factor on the lists of protective factors designed for practitioners and researchers, or to present it as part of a positive community environment. This is a classic example of a gap in research and in practice. One can observe this gap particularly in the International Standards on Drug Use Prevention (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime 2015). This is a very important and useful text, full of good advice, but religion is present only in chapter III.4 as a fragment of the activity of NGO organisations and community leaders. The following postulate of Miller (1998, 972) still remains only a postulate: “Comprehensive addictions research should include not only biomedical, psychological and socio-cultural factors but spiritual aspects of the individual as well.” It is hardly surprising that when religion does not have good publicity it is often perceived as an expression of superstition and a source of trouble, bigotry and fundamentalism. Societies in the phase of secularisation would feel cognitive dissonance while analysing the impact of such a factor. What would it in fact mean? What are the benefits derived from religion? Is it an appeal to “let believers be”? Insistent neglect of this factor can be seen as a kind of ideological oppression.

Religious Activity: A Factor without which you can Work in Prevention? The author is under the impression that, especially in preventative practice, a tacit assumption has been made that one can do without religious activity as a protective factor. Professional people make a great effort to respond to problems arising from risk-taking behaviour by using tools other than religious activities – tools such as psychoeducation, training of parents in parenting skills, training of teachers, and mobilising of local communities.

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For many people this seems to be the right course of action, because they wonder how the religious factor could be used in a utilitarian fashion. Is it by using buildings, churches, mosques or synagogues, by funding religious communities, or by means of workshops on spirituality that could easily transform into sects? Surely religious activity is not a factor easily subjected to preventive manipulation; it has its own rules and it is difficult to harness to the chariot of social engineering. However, the author believes that by omitting reflection on religious activity as a protective factor and not implementing it in action, we are liable to overlook something absolutely crucial. The question remains: why?

Key Role of the Bond In Polish tradition there is a proverb that says: “Without God, do not even go to the threshold.” The same message is given in Psalm 127:1 (New King James Version): “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.” Mieczysáaw Gogacz6 (1985) claims that one’s true home is the community to which one belongs. Furthermore, the concept of home implies relationships, and this means protection. The author has indicated numerous times that the breakdown of relationships can be seen as a primary risk factor in the development of pathological behaviour (Wojcieszek 2005, 2010). For example, despair often stems from a lack of intimate relationships and presents as a decisive factor in developing an addiction that first started with risky behaviours. A person threatened by a growing sense of loneliness tends to develop despair that culminates in loss of the motive to defend and protect oneself. The desire to live disappears and existence itself does not seem to make sense, let alone matters of health or welfare. If so, the underlying issue is the extent to which religious practices constitute a school of love that establishes a sense of home and a foundation for personal relationships – and whether anything is capable of replacing this school in human development. In this respect it is worth referring to the classical Christian thinker, Saint Thomas Aquinas. In his texts he proposed a kind of law of nature called the order of love (ordo caritatis, ordo amoris).7 He believed that in this

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Polish philosopher, professor emeritus of the Academy of Catholic Theology in Warsaw (now the Cardinal WyszyĔski University), author of many articles and books, a Thomist, and the author’s mentor. 7 Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, II–II, Q. 26.

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order God is located in the first place, man on the second level, and remaining persons on the third level. What happens when we exclude God from this order? Then man himself becomes the sole object of love. It is a model of selfishness. If this model is accepted, then without God as an anchor one cannot count on the durability of human love or human communities, which in turn are destroyed by selfishness. Consequently there is despair as a reaction to the lack of community. This in turn facilitates a tendency towards risk-taking behaviours. The latter could very well be the main focal point of today’s social problems. With regard to prevention, a lot of attention is paid to the strong relationship between the child and the parents as a protective factor. There are many works on the subject, and prevention programmes based on cooperation with parents (for example, the Strategic Prevention Framework8) seem to be empirically the most promising ones (Foxcroft et al. 2003). This raises the question whether the absence of a God from culture undermines the model of involved parenting and whether we can expect parents to be appropriately involved with their children if we live in a world without “our Father”.

Conclusion The author is convinced that a culture that pushes people away from religion will always generate systematic problems in the form of a shift of risk. The constant element will be manifestations of risk-taking behaviours. Contemporaries say that as we lose the war on drugs, we postulate legislative capitulations or resort to legal enforcement and punishment. Meanwhile, no one takes God’s love seriously. Have we forgotten about our best Defender?

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A programme of the Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies, a section of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (https://www.samhsa.gov/capt/applying-strategic-prevention-framework).

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Sources Anderson, Peter, and Ben Baumberg. 2006. Alcohol in Europe. London: Institute of Alcohol Studies. Aquinas, Thomas. 1948. Summa Theologica. Translated by Fathers of the English Dominican Province. Five volumes. Westminster, MD: Christian Classics. Beebe, Laura A., Sara K. Vesely, Roy F. Oman, Eleni Tolma, Cheryl B. Aspy, and Sharon Rodin. 2008. “Protective Assets for Non-Use of Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs among Urban American Indian Youth in Oklahoma.” Maternal and Child Health Journal 12, no. 1: 82–90. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-008-0325-5. Catalano, Richard F., Rick Kosterman, and J. David Hawkins. 1996. “Modeling the Etiology of Adolescent Substance Use: A Test of the Social Development Model.” Journal of Drug Issues 26, no. 2: 429– 55. Chawla, Neharika, Clayton Neighbors, Melissa A. Lewis, Christine M. Lee, and Mary E. Larimer. 2007. “Attitudes and Perceived Approval of Drinking as Mediators of the Relationship between the Importance of Religion and Alcohol Use.” Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 68: 410–18. Clarke, Leslie, Leonard Beeghley, and John K. Cochran. 1990. “Religiosity, Social Class, and Alcohol Use: An Application of Reference Group Theory.” Sociological Perspectives 33, no. 2: 201– 18. Conrad, Ashley. 2015. “Religiosity and its Effects on Risky Behavior.” Undergraduate Research Journal for the Human Sciences 14. http://www.kon.org/urc/v4/conrad.html. Cotton, Sian., Kathy Zebracki, Susan L. Rosenthal, Joel Tsevat, and Dennis Drotar. 2006. “Religion/Spirituality and Adolescent Health Outcomes: A Review.” Journal of Adolescent Health 38, no. 4: 472– 80. Dennis, Dixie L., William Cox, Anne Black, and Susan Muller. 2009. “The Influence of Religiosity and Spirituality on Drinking Behaviors: Differences between Students attending Two Southern Universities.” Journal of Drug Education 39, no. 1: 95–112. Ellison, Christopher G., Matt Bradshaw, Sunshine Rote, Jennifer Storch, and Marcie Trevino. 2008. “Religion and Alcohol Use Among College Students: Exploring the Role of Domain-Specific Religious Salience.” Journal of Drug Issues 38, no. 4: 821–46.

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Foster, Dawn W., Chelsie M. Young, Jennifer L. Bryan, and Michelle C. Quist. 2016. “Compounding Risk: An Examination of Associations between Spirituality/Religiosity, Drinking Motives, and AlcoholRelated Ambivalence among Heavy Drinking Young Adults.” Addictive Behaviour 63: 1–11. Foxcroft, David R., Deborah Lister-Sharp, and Geoff Lowe. 1997. “Alcohol Misuse Prevention for Young People: A Systematic Review reveals Methodological Concerns and Lack of Reliable Evidence of Effectiveness.” Addiction 92: 531–38. Foxcroft, David R., Diana Ireland, Deborah Lister-Sharp, Geoff Lowe, and Rosie Breen. 2003. “Longer-Term Primary Prevention for Alcohol Misuse in Young People: A Systematic Review.” Addiction 98: 397– 411. Ghandour, Lilian A., Elie G. Karam, and Walid E. Maalouf. 2009. “Lifetime Alcohol Use, Abuse and Dependence among University Students in Lebanon: Exploring the Role of Religiosity in Different Religious Faiths.” Addiction 104, no. 6: 940–48. Gogacz, Mieczysáaw. 1985. Czáowiek i jego relacje [Man and his relationships]. Warszawa: ATK University Press. Gomes, Fernanda C., Arthur G. de Andrade, Raphael Izbicki, Alexander Moreira-Almeida, and Lúcio G. de Oliveira. 2013. “Religion as a Protective Factor against Drug Use among Brazilian University Students: A National Survey.” Revista Brasileira de Psychiatria 35: 29–37. Hawkins, David J., Richard F. Catalano, and Janet Y. Miller. 1992. “Risk and Protective Factors for Alcohol and Other Drug Problems in Adolescence and Early Adulthood: Implications for Substance Use Prevention.” Psychological Bulletin 112, no. 1: 64–105. Koenig, Harold G., and David B. Larson. 2001. “Religion and Mental Health: Evidence for an Association.” International Review of Psychiatry 13, no. 2: 67–78. Koopman, Judith R., Wendy S. Slutske, G. Caroline van Baal, and Dorret I. Boomsma. 1999. “The Influence of Religion on Alcohol Use Initiation: Evidence for Genotype X Environment Interaction.” Behavior Genetics 29: 445–53. Liszcz, Krzysztof. 2011. Dziecko z FAS w szkole i w domu [The child with FAS at school and home]. Warszawa: Rubikon. Marsiglia, Flavio F., Stephen Kulis, Tanya Nieri, and Monica Parsai. 2005. “God forbid! Substance Use among Religious and Nonreligious Youth.” American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 75, no. 4: 585–98.

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Meyers, Jacquelyn L., Quiana Brown, Bridget F. Grant, and Deborah Hasin. 2017. “Religiosity, Race/Ethnicity, and Alcohol Use Behaviors in the United States.” Psychological Medicine 47, no. 1: 103–14. Miller, William R. 1998. “Researching the Spiritual Dimensions of Alcohol and Other Drug Problems.” Addiction 93, no. 7: 979–90. National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health. 2003. Preventing Drug Use among Children and Adolescents (In Brief). https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/preventing-drug-use-amongchildren-adolescents-in-brief. Accessed September 25, 2017. —. 2014. “Lessons from Prevention Research.” https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/lessons-preventionresearch. Accessed September 25, 2017. Ransome, Yusuf, and Stephen E. Gilman. 2016. “The Role of Religious Involvement in Black-White Differences in Alcohol Use Disorders.” Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 77, no. 5: 792–801. Raskin-White, Helene, Barbara J. McMorris, Richard J. Catalano, Charles B. Fleming, Kevin H. Haggerty, and Robert D. Abbot. 2006. “Increases in Alcohol and Marijuana Use during the Transition out of High School into Emerging Adulthood: The Effects of Leaving Home, Going to College, and High School Protective Factors.” Journal of Studies on Alcohol 67, no. 6: 810–22. Rawana, Jennine S., and Megan E. Ames. 2012. “Protective Predictors of Alcohol Use Trajectories among Canadian Aboriginal Youth.” Journal of Youth Adolescence 41: 229–43. Rew, Lynn, and Y. Joel Wong. 2006. “A Systematic Review of Associations among Religiosity/Spirituality and Adolescent Health Attitudes and Behaviors.” Journal of Adolescent Health 38, no. 4: 433–42. Riley, Edward P., Alejandra Infante, and Kenneth R. Warren. 2011. “Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: An Overview.” Neuropsychology Review 21:73–80. Sheridan, Charles L., and Sally A. Radmacher. 1998. Psychologia zdrowia. Wyzwania dla biomedycznego modelu zdrowia [Health psychology: challenging the biomedical model]. Translated by Danuta Golec, Helena Grzegoáowska-Klarkowska, Anna Dodziuk, Barbara Mroziak and Maria Zakrzewska. Warszawa: IPZ (Instytut Psychologii Zdrowia). Solzak, Jeffrey P., Yun Liang, Feng C. Zhou, and Randall J. Roper. 2013. “Commonality in Down and Fetal Alcohol Syndromes.” Birth Defects Research. Part A, Clinical Molecular Theratology 97, no. 4: 187–97.

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Steinman, Kenneth J., and Marc A. Zimmerman. 2004. “Religious Activity and Risk Behavior among African American Adolescents: Concurrent and Developmental Effects.” American Journal of Community Psychology 33:151–61. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2015. International Standards on Drug Use Prevention. Vienna: UNODC. https://www.unodc.org/documents/prevention/UNODC_2013_2015_in ternational_standards_on_drug_use_prevention_E.pdf. Wagenaar, Alexander C., Matthew J. Salois, and Kelli A. Komro. 2009. “Effects of Beverage Alcohol Price and Tax Levels on Drinking: A Meta-Analysis of 1003 Estimates from 112 Studies.” Addiction 104, no. 4: 179–90. Wallace, John M., Tony N. Brown, Jerald G. Bachman, and Thomas A. LaVeist. 2003. “The Influence of Race and Religion on Abstinence from Alcohol, Cigarettes and Marijuana among Adolescents.” Journal of Studies on Alcohol 64:843–48. Wojcieszek, Krzysztof. 2005. Na początku byáa rozpacz [In the beginning there was despair]. Kraków: Rubikon. —. 2010. Czáowiek spotyka alkohol [Man meets alcohol]. Kraków: Rubikon. Wong, Y. Joel, Lynn Rew, and Kristina D. Slaikeu. 2009. “A Systematic Review of Recent Research on Adolescent Religiosity/Spirituality and Mental Health.” Issues in Mental Health Nursing 27: 161–83. World Health Organization. 2002. World Health Report 2002: Reducing Risk, Promoting Healthy Life. Geneva: WHO. —. 2014. Injuries and Violence: The Facts 2014. Geneva: WHO. http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/149798/1/9789241508018_eng .pdf. —. 2017. World Health Statistics 2017: Monitoring Health for the SDGs, Sustainable Development Goals. Geneva: WHO. http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/255336/1/9789241565486eng. pdf?ua=1.

SECTION III: PSYCHOLOGY

CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY: INTEGRATING CHRISTIAN SPIRITUAL BELIEFS INTO THERAPEUTIC PROCESSES NICOLENE L. JOUBERT1

Abstract “Christian psychology” is a term generally used to indicate a biblically based perspective on psychology. It further entails the integration of Christian spiritual beliefs or doctrine into psychological theories and applications. The integration approach enables Christian practitioners to acknowledge and explicitly include Christian beliefs in their practice of psychology and thus completes the picture of the dimensions of human existence. The role of spirituality in healthcare is emphasised by the World Health Organization as it is viewed as an integral part of human functioning. The importance of a Christian spiritual perspective on healthcare, including mental health, cannot be stressed enough as numerous research findings indicate the positive effect of Christian faith on psychological functioning. In this article the nature of Christian psychology and its impact on psychological practices are explored with reference to two foci, trauma counselling and community psychology. The first speaks to the healing process in individual therapy and the second to building and strengthening communities. Keywords: Christian psychology; worldview; values; holistic healing; trauma therapy; community psychology; systems theory; social reform

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Professor Dr Nicolene Joubert has been a counselling psychologist in private practice for 35 years, specialising in the integration of Christian spirituality and psychotherapy and trauma therapy. She is the founder of the Institute of Christian Psychology in South Africa, a training institution that offers courses in Christian psychology and counselling.

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Introduction Christian psychology is an approach to psychology that is based on a Christian worldview and biblical doctrine. It is a framework that indicates how these beliefs relate to the theories and practices of psychology. Biblical beliefs provide a unique framework for understanding and interpreting the nature of being (ontology), the nature of human beings (anthropology), how people gain knowledge (epistemology) and the importance of community in well-being. The biblical doctrine on ecclesiology (the calling of the church) is pertinent to social concerns and building strong and healthy communities. The calling aligns with one of the main themes in the Old Testament, namely social justice – for example as emphasised by the prophet Amos in his message that social justice is inextricably linked to the presence of God (Hill and Walton 2009). A Christian psychology framework thus presents a holistic picture of human functioning in comparison to modern psychology, as the religious/spiritual functioning of persons is explicitly acknowledged and integrated into an approach to therapy. It is viewed as an aspect of human existence and behaviour that is imperative for holistic healing. The framework can be applied to various counselling fields in psychology, such as individual therapy, marriage counselling and community psychology. The discussion in this article aims to demonstrate how this approach is applied to individual therapy with specific reference to trauma counselling and the role of Christian faith as a meaning-making framework in the processing of traumatic experiences. The discussion further aims to indicate how this approach can be applied to community psychology to create a Christian community psychology framework that aligns with the assumptions and values of community psychology as well as the biblical doctrine of ecclesiology. The discussion is supported by research findings demonstrating the applicability and value of Christian psychology for both individuals and communities. In this discussion the author draws from literature, her experiences and previous research.

Christian Psychology and Biblical Beliefs Biblical doctrines provide the foundation for Christian psychology. The doctrines encompass beliefs about the existence of a living God, the world, humankind and all beings as created by God. The beliefs and moral

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principles that stem from these doctrines shape our understanding of personality, mind, emotions, behaviour, relationships, how to conduct life and how to find meaning in life. Biblical doctrine further provides a framework for addressing social concerns; for example, the message of Amos to Israel focused mostly on issues of social injustice. The convictions that are applicable to a biblical framework include the following: persons are God’s creatures created in His image (Amos 2 1:9; 2:1); God is the creator and sustainer of the universe, and he hates evil and loves justice (Amos 2:10; 4:13; 5:8); Jesus Christ, the Messiah, is the true redeemer of humanity; persons are sinful and should look beyond their own abilities to God for solutions to the problems of evil in the world that could bring true justice (Hill and Walton, 2009); and the church is a covenant community and should be an agent of reconciliation and restoration in the world. For the purpose of this article, the doctrines most relevant to the topics under discussion will be briefly discussed, namely those pertaining to ontology, anthropology, epistemology and ecclesiology.

Ontology Personhood in Christian thought is embedded in the belief in a personal God, the creator of all things, who is revealed in a tangible and visible human form in Jesus Christ. In his life on earth Jesus Christ revealed the fullness of giving yourself to others, which serves as an example of how we should live. Thus, we are able to have compassion, to love, to be faithful, to be truthful, and to distinguish between right and wrong. We have the ability to recognise the likeness of God in others. Personhood develops and is expressed in our relationship with God and others (Foster 2010). Christian ontology postulates that the essence of our being is embedded in a personal God that exists. God has created the universe and sustains everything. Christian anthropology and ontology underscore the aspect of relatedness, and they harmonise in this regard with the ecosystemic framework (Joubert 2018). Thus, the ontological and anthropological bases for understanding personality and human behaviour in Christian psychology differ vastly from those in modern psychology. A Christian psychologist sees the

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References to the Bible in this article are to the New King James Version, Prophecy edition.

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person or client in the light of the belief that God, as the creator, created humankind in his image. It includes a transcendental view of human existence that stretches beyond the here and now. This translates into psycho-spiritual interventions stemming from and reverting back to a vertical relationship with God.

Anthropology Christian anthropology claims that humans are created out of the dust of the earth and are made in the image and likeness of God, good, righteous, and holy (Kelly 2017). Calvin interpreted this to mean that God has made humans in whom he can represent himself by means of engraved marks of likeness. This engraving refers to our “mirroring” of the character of God rather than possessing the image. The fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, when they disobeyed God’s command not to eat from the tree of good and evil, resulted in a devastation of the image of God. The consequences of their disobedience gave them an understanding of sin and wrongdoing and an awareness of evil. However, in Christ – the perfect image of God – humankind is restored through piety, righteousness and purity. Being made in God’s image brings the obligation to be kind to all people (Kelly 2017). It implies that we have the ability to show compassion, to be faithful, to be truthful, and to distinguish between right and wrong (Joubert 2018).

Epistemology Epistemology is concerned with questions such as the following: “How do we gain knowledge?” “What is the truth?” “What are reliable sources of knowledge?” “What is the highest state of human consciousness?” “Does consciousness transcend ego cognition?” The answers to these questions are based on cognitive reasoning processes (Koltko-Rivera 2004) and on the intuitive and emotional knowledge or logic of the heart (Meyer, Moore, and Viljoen 2003). Biblical epistemology is based on what the Scriptures teach on topics of an epistemological nature, such as the subjects, objects, nature and scope of human knowledge. It is also based on the belief that God upholds all things by his power (Hebrews 1:3), transcends time (2 Pet. 3:8) and reveals knowledge to human beings. In the search for truth or meaning, biblical epistemology is discussed in the context of trauma and suffering. Research findings indicate the positive relationship between faith and post-traumatic growth (Joubert 2010). The

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meaning of trauma and suffering is one of the most difficult aspects to resolve in trauma therapy. A satisfactory answer to this question is imperative in the therapeutic process as the ability to find meaning in suffering facilitates post-traumatic growth and enhances mental health (Joubert 2010). The application of Christian psychology to trauma and suffering includes providing a meaning-making framework and exploring retribution principles from a biblical perspective.

Ecclesiology Ecclesiology is the belief that the church is a covenant community in that its members have a covenant relationship with God and each other. As such, the church is distinct from the world but has the responsibility to be an agent of reconciliation and restoration (Hill and Walton 2009). The church should be distinct from the world as “salt and light”. Based on this view, DeKraai et al. (2011) state that Christian faith organisations are in a unique position to support community healthcare services. The church, as a community of believers in Christ, is called to actively represent God’s love in the world. The functions of the church are to worship God, serve one another, participate in the world, and reach out to the sick, the lonely, and those in need. For DeKraai et al. (2011), faith-based communities have inherent resources that can enhance the services of healthcare organisations. This perspective relates to the Christian view of God’s plan for the salvation and wholeness of individuals, communities and the cosmos. The application of this framework to community psychology constitutes a Christian community psychology that aims at strengthening communities rendered vulnerable through poverty, high rates of divorce, crime, teenage pregnancy, depression, suicide, drug abuse and violence and that lack the necessary resources to deal with these issues (Joubert 2018). The aim of Christian community psychology is to design interventions in collaboration with faith communities to strengthen and support communities at risk, keeping in mind the questions of fairness and justice and the retribution principle stating that “conforming to God’s expectations is rewarded, and violating God’s commands brings punishment” (Hill and Walton 2009, 176) – all key issues in the field of individual or corporate suffering.

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Christian Psychology and Mental Health Mental health is defined by the World Health Organization (2014) as “a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community”. Mental health is associated with self-efficacy, autonomy, resilience, the ability to fulfil one’s potential, subjective well-being and psychological well-being (Joubert 2010). Resilience is viewed as the ability to regain a satisfactory quality of life despite the experience of difficult circumstances or traumatic events. There are several predictors of resilience, including spirituality and the ability to curb the impulse towards immediate gratification in the interest of greater fulfilment later (Roos, Wissing, and Janse van Rensburg 2005). The way people perceive and process life experiences contributes to resilience. When a person uses interpretive patterns of coping that cast a positive light on their experience, they deal better with psychological trauma. According to Peres et al. (2007) spirituality provides such a framework. Certain inherent dimensions of religion and spirituality relate positively to mental health, such as attachment to God, God-image, the sense of religious support from one’s religious community, selftranscendent service, and spirituality as a guiding force (Joubert 2010). Research findings indicate that the following factors embedded in Christian spirituality relate positively to mental health: ƒ Spiritual beliefs and relationship with God, which include the image of God as good and loving, an attachment to God and deep love for him, and the belief that God loves us even though were are not perfect. ƒ The processing of traumatic experiences by reframing them in a positive way, leading to accepting the loss and formulating future goals. ƒ The interplay between spiritual beliefs and the psychological processing of trauma, which strengthens survivors of trauma emotionally and helps them grow closer to God and to develop interpretative patterns of coping that modify their experience constructively (Joubert 2010). The definition of mental health as stated above acknowledges that mentally healthy people are able to work productively and contribute to

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their communities, thus creating healthy communities. As mentioned before, issues that threaten mental health are highly prevalent in some communities, such as teenage pregnancies, poverty, crime, abuse, violence, single parenthood and the like. Such communities also lack resources to address these issues, and people are therefore at risk of developing mental health problems. In these cases, interventions aimed at the community rather than the individual could achieve better results, building the community as a whole and preventing the development of mental health pathology. The application of Christian psychology to trauma counselling is discussed in more detail in the next section. This is followed by a discussion of the integration between Christian faith and community psychology, which creates a framework for utilising an important resource in communities, namely faith-based organisations, and for furthering the goals of community psychology.

Trauma and Suffering Trauma is a universal phenomenon, and most people can relate to experiences of deep psychological pain due to traumatic events. Loss and suffering are inevitable in events such as the death of a loved one, divorce, rape, losing one’s job, terminal illness, having a serious accident, being subjected to a natural disaster or act of God (for example a tsunami), and being a victim of a violent human act, such as an armed robbery, random shooting, terrorism or war. The psychological, social, financial and spiritual consequences of these events are numerous, and survivors are left to face the impact on their lives. The impact on trauma survivors affects all levels of their existence, namely the physical level (the loss of possessions, the experience of physical ineptness, and sometimes the occurrence of long-term physical disabilities), the psychological level (trust in people, one’s sense of safety and security, self-worth, self-image, confidence, increased anxiety, emotional stability, sense of meaning in life, loss of relationships, loss of future goals), and the spiritual level (loss of trust in God, questioning God’s love, questioning the retribution principle that the wicked will be punished and the righteous will prosper, and losing faith). Research findings indicate that the interplay between the experience of a traumatic event and one’s relationship with God often has a positive effect on the processing of trauma (Joubert 2010).

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The question of God’s love, fairness and justice, especially in the light of the retribution principle, is one of the key issues that survivors of trauma struggle with. As mentioned before, the retribution principle refers to the belief that obedience to God will result in being rewarded, whereas disobedience will result in being punished. Survivors of trauma often seek the reasons or causes for their suffering within themselves and assume they have sinned, or they question God’s love and involvement in their predicament. The participants in a research project (all being survivors of multiple traumas) expressed the interplay between their experience and relationship with God as follows (Joubert 2010, 255): ƒ “I felt that I don’t even want to pray and that there is no Heavenly Father anymore.” ƒ “I feel rejected, you ask the Lord why does He bring this hurt on your path?” ƒ “I asked, ‘Why me Lord? What did we do?’” ƒ “You think nothing can touch you because you do what the Word of God wants.” ƒ “… try to live according to the Word of God.” These quotes affirm the internal struggle of trauma survivors with the issue of God’s love, fairness and justice and indicate the internalisation of emotional pain on an intrapsychic level. Many of the research participants further reported that despite grappling with God and his plans, experiencing pain without any explanations, and feeling rebellious against God, they felt God’s presence. This gave them hope and led to gratitude. The following quotes illustrate this (Joubert 2010, 254): ƒ “Keep hoping.” ƒ “That promise that says I am his ... You are mine, I am with you, and I carry you through the hurt and the difficult times.” ƒ “Then I said thank you Lord, even when I am sad and rebellious.” ƒ “This hurt changes into gratitude.” The interaction between the spiritual and intrapsychic levels of functioning was continuous, which highlights the importance of actively acknowledging the process to facilitate the hope, gratitude and comfort that it could bring. A closer look at the retribution principle from a biblical perspective could aid the active facilitation of the interplay between intrapsychic and spiritual functioning.

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The biblical perspective provides a meaning-making framework for answering questions about God’s justice based on the suffering of Job (Hill and Walton 2009). The message of the book of Job conveys what God is like. He delights in blessing the righteous and guarantees that the wicked will be punished. Furthermore, the sovereignty and wisdom of the Lord exceeds human wisdom, and Christians can find comfort in trusting the wisdom of God rather than searching for explanations: “The Lord said to Job: Will the one that contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses the Lord answer him!” (Job 40:1–2). The retribution principle indicates that the righteous will prosper and the wicked will suffer in due time (Hill and Walton 2009). However, this does not mean that those who prosper are righteous and those who suffer are wicked. This perspective could bring comfort to those who blame themselves for their misfortune or suffering. Furthermore, the principle states that Christians, as “God-fearers”, can expect to be rewarded for living a life that is established in a covenant relationship with God, as long as they also apply the covenant stipulations on a practical level and towards others (Hill and Walton 2009). The retribution principle, clearly stated in the Bible, cannot be applied in a simple cause-and-effect fashion; it cannot be used to predict how one will fare in life, or to demand action of the Lord, or to explain individual situations. However, humans can be sure of the fact that God is intent on the prospering of the righteous, as happened to Job: “After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before” (42:10). The Lord makes it clear that the wicked will face his judgment. This might happen only in the afterlife, but it will happen as is made clear in Ecclesiastes 3:16–22: “And I saw something else under the sun: In the place of judgment – wickedness was there, in the place of justice – wickedness was there. I said to myself, “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.”” Ecclesiastes 12:13–14 affirms this: “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed in to judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.” Based on the discussion above it transpires that applying a Christian psychology framework as the interpretative pattern of coping could modify a traumatic experience positively and lead to post-traumatic growth.

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Christian Psychology and Social Reform In our discussion thus far, the focus has been on the application of a Christian psychology to individual psychotherapy with specific reference to trauma therapy. In this section the discussion shifts to the application of this framework to community psychology and social reform. The application of biblical beliefs to community psychology provides a framework for social action and reform that aligns with the biblical doctrine of personhood and ecclesiology.

Community psychology and ecclesiology Community psychology is a more recent development in the field of psychology and is concerned with the well-being of communities rather than of individuals. Duncan et al. (2007, 12) have formulated a working definition for community psychology with emphasis on the importance of engaging with communities to promote mental health. These authors define community psychology as follows: ... understanding people in the context of their communities, using a variety of interventions (including prevention, health promotion and social action), to facilitate change and improved mental health and social conditions for individuals, groups, organisations and communities.

The assumptions, values, aims and methodology are clearly articulated and are consistent with a systemic and holistic worldview (Joubert 2018). Contextual issues are thus approached using a composite framework stemming from the concept of personhood that emerged in postmodern participatory worldviews, which state that the world does not consist of separate elements but that all things are related (Joubert 2018. Accordingly, the framework used integrates biological, psychological and social components of human life. The emphasis on interrelatedness forms a meeting point with the biblical doctrine of personhood, which highlights the ontological-relational aspect of human beings. It further aligns with the doctrine on ecclesiology, which defines the church as an agent of social change in the world. The church’s responsibility is to actively inspire and participate in social processes that could bring reconciliation, hope and restoration to communities (Joubert 2018). The prophet Amos, known as God’s spokesman for social justice

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(Hill and Walton 2009), delivered a message that affirms the importance of the social function of the church. He observed many practices that were unacceptable in the eyes of the Lord (Amos 3:10). These included religious apostasy, moral decline, political corruption and social injustice. He addressed these practices in his oracles and called the people of Israel to repentance of personal sin and to corporate actions addressing the sins of social injustice. Pugh (2010) emphasises the difficulty of finding true justice in the world and points out that Amos saw a whole nation fall apart because they made a mockery of justice. The biblical message of Amos emphasised the commandment of the Lord to treat the socially disadvantaged fairly and justly (Amos 2:6–7; 4:1; 5:11–2; 8:4; 6) and to turn away from oppressing those in need. The implication of the message was that obedience to this commandment would lead to the restoration of a community. The early church serves as an example of how a faith community could impact the restoration and healing in a community by means of a positive and practical response to the message of Amos and the calling of the church. The early church adhered closely to the principles of compassion and sharing and is associated with spiritual life and healing. Venter (2009) asserts that although sickness comes through different dimensions, it affects the whole person. The Pauline letters to the early churches represent the church as a community characterised by the awareness and practice of healing (Venter 2009). These healings range from the experience of grace or salvation (inner, emotional healing) to physical healings, spiritual experiences influencing thought patterns, reconciliation and healing in relationships, and finding inner peace and meaning in life through resting in God (Venter 2009). A Christian perspective on health emphasises the expressing of God’s glory (Canning 2011). A community can elicit healing through collective participation in social processes leading to social transformation. The spiritual context of health issues relates to the spiritual context of the community: how we (the body of Christ) share and deal with the consequences of spiritual inheritance. Spiritual interventions and collective prayer are based on 1 John 5:14: “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” Furthermore the calling of the church has connecting points with the assumptions, values, aims and methodology of community psychology that revolve around the strengthening and building of communities. The

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connecting points could align with biblical doctrine to form a framework for a Christian community psychology as is discussed below.

A Christian community psychology framework People are relationally defined in community psychology. This implies certain moral values, such as dignity, respect for others, and appreciation of fellow community members. These values connect with the biblical notion of community and the importance of caring for one another. Values upheld by community psychology, such as participation, collaboration, justice as a goal for action, community empowerment, respect for others, prevention rather than cure, and the promotion of health and well-being converge in the biblical injunction to “love your neighbour as yourself” (Canning 2011; Mt 22:39). These values support a Christian view on personhood. A notable difference between Christian thought and community psychology is the belief that humankind is created in the image and likeness of God and stands in a relationship with God. Furthermore, this belief should guide our view and treatment of others. The application of a Christian psychology framework to community psychology means that the relationship with God should form the foundation for interventions leading to social action aimed at strengthening and building communities. Community interventions and social actions are focused on well-being, the prevention of physical and mental illnesses, promotion of healthcare, participation, collaboration, empowerment, and social justice. Research in community psychology is action oriented, and diversity is reflected in theories and methods. The process is not linear, however, but circular. Action-oriented research generates data that may inform and benefit communities (Worthington, Miller, and Talley 2011) and shape and affirm assumptions. Participants are debriefed once the assessments and interventions have been completed. Interventions are discussed and modified to meet the needs of the community (Worthington et al. 2011). This approach lends itself to a Christian community psychology framework and Christian social activism as a way to reach out to communities in a respectful and participatory manner, following the example of Christ. The circular nature of action research ensures that the community has the opportunity to participate in the process, define their

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own needs and determine their visions and end goals. Figure 1 illustrates the circularity of the assumptions, values and methodology. • Participation • Diversity • Collaboration

• Prevention • Promotion • Empowerment Ecosystemic

Wellness

Adaptation

Action

• Social change • Social justice

• Research • Empowerment • Social activism

Figure 1: Assumptions, values and interventions

An example of an intervention reflecting such an approach is detailed below. A Christian community psychology framework was applied in an action research project carried out in collaboration with a non-profit organisation (NPO) based in Katutura, a community in Windhoek, Namibia (Joubert 2018). This NPO works in partnership with a Christian ministry to offer an eight-week programme for unmarried pregnant girls and women between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five years. The community was identified as being at risk owing to increased pregnancies among young, unmarried girls and women. Such girls and women tend to become isolated, leading to further risks in terms of not completing their education and therefore not being able to find good employment later. A further danger is a sense of rejection, leading to low self-worth, loneliness and depression. The objectives of the intervention were to provide prenatal education, establish a non-judgemental support group, share prenatal experiences, improve the participants’ general lifestyle, and strengthen their functioning in their cultural context with

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regard to better integration of the biological, psychological, social and spiritual aspects of their lives (Joubert 2018). As cultural contexts often determine how a community interprets and deals with this type of risk and health concern, it was imperative to gain some understanding of this context as part of the research project. The name Katutura means “We have no permanent home” and stems from the political history of the Damara people who occupy this township. Although Katutura is a vibrant community that accounts for sixty per cent of the population of Windhoek, poverty, unemployment, alcoholism, HIV and teenage pregnancy are rife. Knowledge of the Damara culture is essential to the design of a community project for this context. The language spoken by the community is Khoekhoe, and the group consists of various clans, each under the leadership of a chief. The Damara people have traditionally been hunter-gatherers and herders of cattle, goats and sheep. Girls tend to uphold traditional customs, such as wearing certain clothing while giving birth, staying at home for the first three months after a baby is born, eating only porridge and meat, without seasoning, and offering the baby diluted porridge or tea if it is not breastfed. This project demonstrates how a Christian community psychology framework, concerned with understanding people in the context of their communities, can be applied. Interventions included a lecture based on Psalm 139:13–16 to inspire an appreciation of the value of a child as created by God; a video showing the growth of a baby, drawing from the field of developmental psychology; encouragement of the girls to share their stories to counter isolation and facilitate caring for one another; and education regarding the signs of labour, labour positions, breastfeeding and bottle feeding. The interventions were designed to educate the teenagers about the responsibilities of motherhood and to work towards preventing further unplanned pregnancies. At the end of the eight weeks, a baby shower (an example of social action) was held for the girls. The project started with an appreciative inquiry (AI) to ascertain what works best in the community; this was followed by a co-designed project to engage and empower community members to deal with current issues and weave a vision for the future of the community. The vision or dream about a future community instils hope; and co-designing interventions ensures participation, which can lead to social transformation.

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Social transformation thus flows from social action bearing social justice in mind. Social action as an important component of Christian community psychology is discussed in the next section.

Christian community psychology and Christian social activism The social action model of community psychology provides the option for social activism directed towards social change (Arumugam 2001; Van der Walt and Bowman 2007). This model allows for the creation of a partnership between community psychologists and faith communities as a means of contributing to social change and transformation. The aim of a partnership of this kind is to exert a positive influence on all facets of a community – physical, social, and spiritual (Joubert 2018). Christian social activism, grounded in the character of God (Canning 2011), is aimed at social justice as described in Isaiah 58:6–7: “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every enslaving yoke?” Victor (2003, 17–18) states that a response is demanded to those who are suffering in a community. Activism is thus commonly defined as a practice of vigorous action or involvement as a means of achieving political or other goals. In Christian social activism, intentional action should be based on Matthew 22:37–39: And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind [intellect]. This is the great [most important] and first commandment. And the second is like it, You shall love your neighbour like [you do] yourself.

Social action is also described in Isaiah 58:7 as follows: “Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house? When you see the naked that you cover him, and that you hide not yourself from the needs of your own flesh and blood?” The context of the early church illustrates the practical expression of social action in the actions of Tabitha (Dorcas) and all she had done for the community: in Acts 9:36–39 we read: “She was abounding in good deeds and acts of charity … All the widows stood around him [Peter] crying, and displaying under-shirts and other garments such as Dorcas was accustomed to make while she was with them.”

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Victor (2003) asserts that Christian social activism required from the Christian community is an expression of faith, as indicated in James 2:17: “So also faith, if it does not have works [deeds and actions of obedience to back it up], by itself is destitute of power [inoperative, dead].” In obedience to this call for social action based on faith in Christ, Christian community psychologists in partnership with faith communities should demonstrate hope, compassion and forgiveness. Hope, compassion, forgiveness and a sense of community are essential elements of healing (Pugh 2010). The social justice stream focuses on justice and peace in all human relationships and social structures. It emphasises the gospel imperative for equity and compassion among all peoples, and it regards this as equally important as other religious matters. Jesus states this clearly in Matthew 23:23: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.”

Criticism Criticism of the social action model of community psychology focuses on limitations and insufficiency. Arumugam (2001) asserts that this model pays insufficient attention to social inequalities and that interventions are limited. Furthermore, communities may be taken advantage of for research purposes, with researchers demonstrating a lack of appreciation and respect. Ethical considerations should be a priority in any collaboration and community engagement. The focus on the influence of the system on behavioural and health problems might lead to the abnegation of responsibility. Personal choices and individual responsibility should be respected and upheld to prevent individuals from avoiding personal responsibility and to prevent the system from being blamed for every situation. Pugh (2010) asserts that justice is one of the attributes of God that is mirrored by human beings, created in God’s image. The reflection is imperfect as we are sinful beings. She points out that justice does not come easily, whether it is in the legal system or on a socially reparative level. True justice is found in God himself.

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Conclusion Christian psychology is an approach to psychology that integrates biblical doctrine with psychological theories and therapies. Biblical doctrine serves as the foundation for this approach, leading to integrative counselling and therapy methods that are applied on both individual and community levels. In this article the application of a Christian psychology framework has been discussed with reference to its value in two respects. The first application indicated how Christian faith could serve as a meaning-making framework in the processing of trauma. The value of finding meaning in suffering and trust in a sovereign God as elements of healing was demonstrated by means of research findings. In the second application the value of Christian community psychology was demonstrated in the context of a community at risk. The findings of action research implemented in collaboration with a Christian NPO show that the assumptions, values and methods of community psychology can be aligned with Christian faith and can strengthen the community. This form of collaboration offers Christian churches a way to fulfil their calling to reach out to vulnerable communities and care for them, and it offers community psychologists a way to draw on the strengths of the church as a community resource in building communities. Based on the literature and research findings, the conclusion is reached that Christian faith expressed in biblical doctrine may be integrated with psychological theories and practices on both individual and community levels. Such integrative approaches add essential elements of healing to psychological interventions, strengthening the recovery and healing process and spurring mental health.

Sources Arumugam, Stanley. 2001. “Evaluation of Models of Community Psychology from a South African Perspective.” https://www/.academia.edu/6454465/Evaluation_of_Models_of_Com munity_Psychology_from_a_South_African_Perspective. Canning, Sally S. 2011. “Core Assumptions and Values in Community Psychology: A Christian Reflection.” Journal of Psychology and Theology 39, no. 3: 186–99. DeKraai, Mark B., Denise J. Bulling, Nancy C. Shank, and Alan J. Tomkins. 2011. “Faith-Based Organizations in a System of Behavioral Health Care.” Journal of Psychology and Theology 39, no. 3: 255–67.

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Duncan, Norman, Brett Bowman, Anthony Naidoo, Jace Pillay, and Vera Roos, eds. 2007. Community Psychology: Analysis, Context and Action. Cape Town: UCT Press. Foster, Dion. 2010. “African Relational Ontology, Individual Identity and Christian Theology. An African Theological Contribution towards an Integrated Relational Ontological Identity.” Theology 113, no. 874. https://sun.academia.edu/DionForster. Hill, Andrew E., and John H. Walton. 2009. A Survey of the Old Testament. 3rd ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Holy Bible. 1985. New King James Version. Prophecy Edition. New York: Thomas Nelson. Joubert, Nicolene L. 2010. “How Christian Spirituality Spurs Mental Health.” In The Healing Power of Spirituality, Vol. 2: Religion, edited by Harold J. Ellens, 238–66. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger. —. 2018. “The Value of Applied Christian Community Psychology in Healthcare.” In Proceedings of the 2nd Biennial South African Conference on Spirituality and Healthcare, edited by André de la Porte, Nicolene Joubert and Annemarie Oberholzer, 51–69. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars. Kelly, Douglas F. 2017. “Creation, Mankind, and the Image of God.” In Reformation Theology: A Systematic Summary, edited by Matthew Barrett, 283–312. Kindle edition. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. Koltko-Rivera, Mark E. 2004. “The Psychology of Worldviews.” Review of General Psychology 8, no. 1, 3–58. Meyer, Werner, Cora Moore, and Henning Viljoen. 2003. Personology: From Individual to Ecosystem. 3rd ed. Sandown, South Africa: Heinemann. Peres, Julio F.P., Alexander Moreira-Almeida, Antonia G. Nasello, and Harold G. Koenig. 2007. “Spirituality and Resilience in Trauma Victims.” Journal of Religious Health 46, no. 3: 343–50. Pugh, Myrna M. 2010. “The Psychodynamics of Religions that Heal.” In The Healing Power of Spirituality, Vol. 3: Psychodynamics, edited by Harold J. Ellens, 83–100. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger. Roos, Vera, Maretha Visser, Annalie Pistorius, and Matshepo Nefale. 2007. “Ethics and Community Psychology.” In Community Psychology: Analysis, Context and Action, edited by Norman Duncan, Brett Bowman, Anthony V. Naidoo, Jace Pillay, and Vera Roos, 392– 407. Cape Town: UCT Press. Roos, Vera, Marié P. Wissing, and Fika Janse van Rensburg. 2005. Towards Well-being from a Biblical Perspective. Pretoria: Verbum.

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Van der Walt, Clinton, and Brett Bowman. 2007. “Intergenerational Rites of Passage.” In Community Psychology: Analysis, Context and Action, edited by Norman Duncan, Brett Bowman, Anthony V. Naidoo, Jace Pillay, and Vera Roos, 137–49. Cape Town: UCT Press. Venter, Alexander F. 2009. Doing Healing: How to Minister God’s Kingdom in the Power of the Spirit. Cape Town: Vineyard International. Victor, Henry. 2003. “New Christian Social Activism: Gleanings!” Religious Studies and Theology 22, no. 2: 17–31. World Health Organization. 2014. “Mental Health: A State of Wellbeing.” http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/mental_health/en/. Worthington, Everett L., Andrea J. Miller, and Jane C. Talley. 2011. “Action-oriented Research: A Primer and Examples.” Journal of Psychology and Theology 39, no. 3: 211–21.

THE SYNERGY PARADIGM IN CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY1 ZENON UCHNAST2

Abstract Abraham Maslow (1964) was the first who introduced the phenomenon of synergy to psychology. One ought to note that Maslow formulated the hypothesis of synergy long before Peter Corning (1983) postulated his synergism hypothesis. Unfortunately, Maslow did not undertake to analyse the meanings of the concept synergy, and Ruth Benedict (1970) limited herself to the description of groups coming from cultures of high and low social synergy. Thus, analysis of the concept synergy should be based on the original meanings attributed to it by its creators, namely early Christian theologians, Cappadocian Fathers of the Church, such as Saint Basil (329–379), Saint Gregory of Naziansus (330–389) and Saint Gregory of Nyssa (335–395). These theologians valued the achievements of Greek culture and consequently created, among other things, the basics of systematic Christian theological reflection on the essential conditions of human development towards the fullness of humanity. .

David Bradshaw (2006), professor of philosophy at the University of Kentucky, specialising among other things in patristic theology, believed that the distinction of essence and energy enabled Cappadocians to understand human–divine communion as taking place within the sphere of joint personal activity. In coming to be deified, humans share progressively in God’s activity but without losing their distinct identity. 1

The author previously wrote about the synergetic approach in psychology in a paper titled “Christian Spiritual Maturity – Synergy Paradigm”, presented at the 7th European Symposium of Christian Psychology and Anthropology, Warsaw, 2007. 2 Zenon Uchnast is emeritus professor of psychology at the University of Lublin and associate professor at the Jesuit University Ignatianum in Krakow, Poland; email: [email protected].

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Much like Saint Paul, the Cappadocians believed that humans fully achieve their own identity only when they align their own activity with that of God. Such synergy was, in their view, a way of knowing God that is neither inferential, nor noetic in the Aristotelian sense, nor a matter simply of feeling or intuition. It is the knowledge that comes through sharing actively in the work of another, and thereby coming to know the other as the author of that work. The author believes that a deepened analysis of these aspects of synergy may inspire research on the psychosocial conditions for the development of synergetic relations between nature and culture, and also establish methodological bases for research projects in Christian psychology. In this article the synergy paradigm and its application to Christian psychology are explored. Keywords: Christian psychology; Cappadocian Fathers; Peter Corning; Ruth Benedict; social synergy; synergic self-actualisation; active participation; asymmetrical participation

Introduction Abraham Maslow (1964, 1970) introduced the concept of synergy to psychology and pointed to the concept of social synergy in the work of Ruth Benedict (1887–1984): Our conception of culture and of people’s relation to it must change in the direction of “synergy,” as Ruth Benedict (1970) called it. Culture can be basic need gratifying rather than need inhibiting. Furthermore, it is created not only for human needs but also by them. The culture–individual dichotomy needs reexamination. There should be less exclusive stress on their antagonism and more on their possible collaboration and synergy. (Maslow 1970, 61)

This statement, which appears in the second edition of Motivation and Personality (Maslow 1970), promoted the category of synergy and better defined the assumptions of the concept of self-actualisation. Maslow (1970) stated that people whose basic needs are met are motivated by eternal truths and also by spiritual, intellectual, aesthetic and religious values. Nevertheless, the results of research using the Security–Insecurity Inventory (Maslow, 1952) showed that a relatively small number of people reach the fullness of self-actualisation. Colin Wilson (1972, 185) expressed his surprise by stating: “For me, the greatest mystery is why

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some people develop in the direction of self-actualization while others remain at the level of biological needs.” Maslow’s references to Ruth Benedict were a result of his many years of friendship and cooperation in doing research with her, the creator of the methodological foundations of comparative sociology and intercultural differences published in Patterns and Culture (1934). In 1935 Edward Thorndike encouraged his assistant, Dr Maslow, as part of his postdoctoral studies, to participate in lectures by Ruth Benedict, then adjunct professor in anthropology at Columbia University. He actively participated in both the lectures and in field research work. Maslow (1964) stated that Benedict frequently initiated joint discussions on the development of the qualitatively different social cultures of Indian tribes. Initially Benedict (1934) acknowledged the psychological category of sense of security as the basis for differentiating a social culture in particular research groups. Benedict had great confidence in Maslow, her student and collaborator, since she gave him her unpublished manuscripts from the lectures delivered in 1941 at Bryn Mawr College, Pennsylvania. During the course of these lectures, Benedict changed the name of the previously distinguished research groups and described them in terms of high and low social synergy. Maslow (1964) confessed that only after Benedict’s death did he realise that he was the sole owner of her unpublished source material. In preparing this for printing, Maslow (1964) further confessed that after many years of joint discussions with Benedict and actively participating in the implementation of the research project, it was difficult to clearly assign authorship of any part of the text to either himself or his professor. However, in the section entitled Synergy in the Society, Maslow presented Benedict’s concept of synergy and the social characteristics of the selected research groups, while the section Synergy in the Individual presented his own concept of self-actualisation in terms of synergistic unity in intrapsychic and interpersonal diversity. In this context Maslow (1970) postulated that “the culture–individual dichotomy needs reexamination”, as quoted above.

Ruth Benedict’s Concept of Social Synergy Benedict (1934), in the initial stage of her undertaking to classify the cultural differences among eight Indian tribes, established two major experimental groups (each having four sub-groups), which differed visibly in having various patterns of culture. Some groups cultivated a peaceful

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and friendly attitude towards others, ensuring that all their members felt a sense of belonging and willingness to cooperate and had a high moral culture, while others were more willing to compete, defending their private property, being rather spiteful, surly and aggressive, and showing a low moral culture. Seeking an objective basis for her classification criteria, Benedict (1934) revised her preliminary hypothesis on the significance of such social variables as race, geographical location, climate, growth, material resources, the complexity of social structures, suicides committed, polygamy, the dominant role of matriarchy or patriarchy, and small or large residential buildings. Benedict stated that none of these generally accepted sociological variables was a reasonable basis for positively verifying the accepted hypothesis. Benedict abandoned this approach in her empirical studies, instead becoming interested in Bronislaw Malinowski’s innovative approach to primary research on cultures in terms of “functional studies of culture”. Benedict (1934, 50) states: The necessity for functional studies of culture has been stressed over and over again by Malinowski. He criticizes the usual diffusion studies as postmortem dissections of organisms we might rather study in their living and functioning vitality. … Malinowski in his ethnological generalizations is content to emphasize that traits have a living context in the culture of which they are a part, that they function.

Moreover, Benedict saw a similar approach in William Stern’s (1911) psychology of individual differences. What seems significant is that Benedict covered the following assumptions in the idiographic approach of Stern’s personalistic psychology: Wilhelm Stern has made it basic in his work in philosophy and psychology. He insists that the undivided totality of the person must be the point of departure. He criticizes the atomistic studies that have been almost universal both in introspective and experimental psychology, and he substitutes investigation into the configuration of personality. (Benedict, 1934, 50–1)

In Stern’s quoted monograph there are many references to Gestalt psychology, in which Max Wertheimer (1912) pointed out the original character of the natural Gestalt in relation to its component parts (cf. Uchnast 2009). Therefore, in another statement he shows his personal interest in the basic principles of Gestalt psychology:

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The Gestalt (configuration) psychology has done some of the most striking work in justifying the importance of this point of departure from the whole rather than from its parts. … The ‘wholeness-properties’ and the ‘wholeness-tendencies’ must be studied in addition to the simple association mechanisms with which psychology has been satisfied since the time of Locke. The whole determines its parts, not only their relation but their very nature. (Benedict 1934, 51–2)

Realising that Stern’s assumptions in his studies on cultural differences were inspired by Gestalt psychology, Benedict carried out a systematic analysis of the structural and functional properties (“wholeness-properties” and “wholeness-tendencies”) of each of the individual cultures. One of Benedict’s main postulates was, “We must understand the individual as living in his culture; and the culture as lived by individuals” (Boas 1934, xii). The research perspective adopted by Benedict enabled her to attribute high and low social synergy to groups of tribes having patterns of culture that she hypothesised to be qualitatively different. These groups of tribes with qualitatively different social cultures are also presented in Maslow’s (1964) thesis. According to Benedict (1970), communities with high synergy held a general belief (common sense) that good cooperation was effective for the self-actualisation of both the individual and the group. Therefore, the social institutions of such communities were aimed at providing the group’s members with mutual benefits from their efforts to achieve common goals. Everyone was guided by the principle that every action should bring benefits both to the individual and to the social group. In interpreting the related empirical data, Maslow found that the lack of aggressive behaviour in communities with high synergy reflected not only individual members’ lack of competing selfish desires and sense of being compelled to meet social obligations, but also the fact that the social order and social climate caused these personal and communal interests to be treated as identical. In other words, according to Maslow, social institutions were a means of eliminating any discrepancy between what was personal and what was public, so that personal interests were also altruistic ones. Societies with high synergy above all valued righteousness (virtue pays), meaning acting in a way that reconciled personal interests with those of others and the whole social group.

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However, communities with low synergy institutionally reinforced a concern with personal interests and with developing the capacity to undertake actions based on rivalry, confrontation, and the ability to resist or oppose the pressure of other people. In such communities, securing advantages over others is regarded as a personal victory and the basis for using other group members for one’s own purposes, forcing them to adapt and perform changes in their activities. Moreover, Benedict (1970) described three basic indicators of organisation culture and the functioning of social institutions in the researched groups with high and low social synergy in terms of diametrically different styles and techniques of social functioning: ƒ Techniques for the distribution of goods, specifically Siphoning vs. Funneling. In communities with high synergy, goods are distributed from high to lower resource levels, from the richer to the poorer. But communities with low synergy use a mechanism called the exhaust ventilator, which causes wealth to attract more wealth and poverty to intensify. ƒ Techniques for using obtained goods, specifically Use vs. Ownership. In communities with high synergy, goods are obtained in order to be used and, if possible, made available to needy members of the group. Acquiring something of value does not arouse envy in others because they also benefit from knowing that someone else has been enriched. In contrast, communities with low synergy grant high status to material possessions and foster anxiety about losing them or having fewer of them, which makes it harder for owners to use or share the goods obtained. ƒ The functions of religious institutions, specifically Comforting vs. Frightening Religion. In communities with high synergy, religious institutions (deities, ghosts and mysterious forces) fulfil supporting functions; they are friendly and close to human needs. On the other hand, in communities with low synergy, deities arouse anxiety or even dread due to their ruthless demands. Prayers in these communities often concern personal issues and have rather selfish goals, while in synergistic communities prayers often relate to the good of the whole group, such as requests for rain and a good harvest. Furthermore, with reference to his personal observation of Canadian Indians, Maslow stated that the groups with high and low social synergy differed in the way they exercised leadership, the quality of family

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relationships, the quality of relationships between men and women, the way they expressed sexuality, and the way they lived and expressed kinship or friendship. Moreover, groups with high synergy had at their disposal techniques for dealing with bitter experiences, painful limitations and humiliation. These techniques were so effective that they led to some sort of closing of painful things or paying off of a humiliating debt. In contrast, members of groups with low synergy who suffered injury and humiliation remained constantly in pain, without the possibility of being liberated or relieved, because they simply considered that this had to be so. Benedict (1970) was certainly very satisfied with the results of her diagnosis of the multidimensional cultural differences, which were so clear and consistent that she could describe them in terms of social synergy. However, drawing inspiration from Malinowski’s functional studies of culture, she also became familiar with Wertheimer’s natural Gestalt psychology and Stern’s personalistic psychology of individual differences, used as a methodological basis. Therefore, the term social synergy formulated by Benedict can also mean psychosocial synergy, similar to the concept of psychosocial development introduced by Erikson (1963). Moreover it is noteworthy that Benedict, abandoning the approach used in nomothetic sociology, successfully completed her own research project in accordance with the methodological assumptions of the idiographic approach adopted by Stern. James Lamiell (2003) states that Stern (1911) treated Windelband’s assumptions in the idiographic approach as complementary rather than contradictory to the nomothetic approach. Windelband (1998, 13) said explicitly: We may say that the empirical sciences seek in the knowledge of reality either the general in the form of the natural law or the particular in the historically determined form [Gestalt]. They consider in one part the ever enduring form, in the other part the unique content, determined within itself, of an actual happening. The one comprise sciences of law, the other sciences of events; the former teach us what always is [was immer ist], the latter what once was [was einmal war]. If one may resort to neologisms, it can be said that scientific thought is in the one case nomothetic, in the other idiographic.

Therefore, Stern pointed to the possibility of implementing empirical research, using the idiographic approach, in the field of comparative differences between groups of people from different social cultures, or

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even studies of personality structures in groups of people with different types of personalities. The success of Benedict’s research on the systematic analysis of structural and functional aspects of the phenomenon of synergies depended largely on matching the adopted research subject to the requirements of the idiographic approach. A clear indicator of this type of approach was Stern’s postulate, accepted by Benedict, that the basic unit of analysis of cultural differences is the individual person as a whole; on the other hand, the main goal of her research programme was to “understand the individual as living in his culture; and the culture as lived by individuals” (Boas 1934, xii). Becoming acquainted with the idiographic research approach in this way, Benedict understood the structural and functional aspects of the phenomenon of social synergy in terms of wholeness-properties and the wholeness-tendencies in four groups with high social synergy and four groups with low social synergy. In relation to this, in the initial stage of research Benedict described the synergy phenomenon as bipolar in terms of high and low feelings of security, and in the final stage in terms of high and low social synergy. She justified the name change, claiming that the term feeling of security was more appropriate to its subjective valuation than the term synergy. In describing the bipolar aspect of synergy, Benedict did not recognise it as an expression of personality traits, meaning as a psychological construct, but rather as an orientation in the life of an individual human person. At the same time, this kind of life orientation is well established in the patterns of his or her lived culture, inter alia its religious dimension. Therefore, taking into consideration the function of the religious dimension in precisely describing aspects of synergy seems reasonable, especially given that the concept was created by the Cappadocian Fathers on the basis of Christian culture.

Synergy in the Patristic Theology of the Cappadocian Fathers The creators of the concept of synergy (syn-ergos, ıȣȞİȡȖȩȢ) were Christian theologians, the Cappadocian Fathers, such as Saint Basil (329– 379), Saint Gregory Nazianzen (330–389) and Saint Gregory of Nyssa (335–395). Basil, called the Great, was the brother of Gregory of Nyssa,

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while Gregory Nazianzen was a friend of Basil from the time of their studies of rhetoric in Athens together. Appreciating the achievements of Greek culture, they established the basis of systematic Christian theology (cf. Bradshaw 2006). Bradshaw (2006) points out that the Cappadocian Fathers introduced the concept of synergy in their description of the asymmetric interaction between God and human beings. God interacts with people to awaken, sustain and support human activities, but He by no means replaces or enslaves us. Bradshaw admits that a particular source of inspiration in this regard for the Cappadocians was the text of the letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians on the active gifts (energeia) of the Holy Spirit: I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. (1 Corinthians 12:3, NIV)

Saint Paul’s statement, Bradshaw notes, starts with assuring us that even a mere act of will, for example confessing that “Jesus is Lord”, also requires the cooperation of the Holy Spirit. Similarly, daily religious acts, for example affirming the wisdom of the word, and not just the extraordinary gifts of miraculous healing or prophecy, require the participation of the Holy Spirit’s power (energeia). Every person, seeing the power of God in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, is called to grow in the fullness of their humanity, and this can be achieved through synergic, active participation in the causal power of God. Therefore, according to the teachings of Saint Paul, each believer is called to constant cooperation with the power of God present in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, Bradshaw (2006) mentions that Basil, in commenting on the text of the letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 12:3, NIV), stated that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are available only to people “with a pure soul”, meaning those who reflect the original beauty of humans created in the image and likeness of God. Bradshaw mentions that at the same time, Basil, writing about the works of the Holy Spirit, also used the word energeia: As is the power of seeing in the healthy eye, so is the energy (energeia) of the Spirit in the purified soul. ... And as the skill [is] in him who has

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The Synergy Paradigm in Christian Psychology acquired it, so is the grace of the Spirit ever present in the recipient, though not continuously active (energousa). For as the skill is potentially in the artisan, but only in operation when he is working in accordance with it, so also the Spirit is present with those who are worthy, but works (energei) as need requires, in prophecies, or in healings, or in some other carrying into effect (energƝmasin) of His powers.

Bradshaw (2006) comments on the above by stating: Saint Paul’s use of energeia and related terms, such as sunergein (to cooperate) and sunergos (co-worker), shifts the emphasis from one of external control to one of cooperation. However, the term ‘cooperation’ can be misleading if it suggests that there are here two equal agents who simply choose to work together.

However, Bradshaw assumes that Saint Paul wrote about such cooperation between God and humans that is neither symmetrical nor blocking of one’s activity. A person who is actively participating in the works of God can perfect his or her humanity. Similarly, Basil and Gregory of Nyssa pointed to the asymmetrical relationship between God and humans actively participating in it, and these are people who keep their own identity. Moreover, one’s active cooperation with the power of God not only deepens one’s sense of personal identity but also deepens one’s personal relationship with God, along with increasingly active participation in God’s activities. This kind of knowledge, according to Bradshaw (2006), differs from knowledge acquired either by inference, the Aristotelian understanding of being the subject of cognition, or by intuition. Besides, Bradshaw (2006) finds that Basil also taught that a “pure heart”, meaning one free from sin, enables a person to actively participate in the works of His power. This is according to the promise made by Jesus Christ: “Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8, NIV). Taking into account the asymmetric nature of the relationships between the working Creator, God, and people who are active participants, we can now understand them as co-creating an internally coherent whole. Bradshaw (2006) mentions that Aristotle defined this type of whole as “unitas multiplex,” which is something more than the sum of their parts. In this context, the Cappadocians created a new concept of synergy (VLQHUJRV) to indicate the creative functional unity achieved by a diversity of sources and methods of action, in place of the concept of

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cooperation (VXQHUJHLQ), which indicates the partnerlike, similar or differing activities of co-workers (VXQHUJRV). Drawing inspiration from the Cappadocian concept of synergic activities in asymmetric relationships, one can better describe their structure and functional aspects in terms of Gestalt psychology. Max Wertheimer (1945, 172) described his personal case study of the live situation in which he witnessed the process of the formation of good Gestalt. Wertheimer told about two boys playing badminton. They liked to play and enjoy their free time together, but since the younger one was quite a poor player, the game grew worse and worse. Then Wertheimer came up with the idea of changing the goal of the game. He invited them to keep the shuttlecock going between them as long as possible. The situation changed entirely. The game slowly became authentic and satisfying for both of them. The transformation of this real life situation was Wertheimer’s main interest. He describes it in terms of a recentering of the structure of the situation that led to the forming of a new situation, a good game, a good Gestalt. Wertheimer pointed to the following aspects of this process: ƒ a transition from a one-sided view (“me against you”) to a centring required by the objective structure of the situation; ƒ a change of the meaning of the parts, and of the vectors, in accordance with their structural place, role and function; ƒ a new view of the situation in terms of a “good structure” so that everything fits the structural and functional requirements; ƒ a new trend to get straight to the fundamentals, to face the issue honestly, and to draw consequences from it. The above process of the transition toward a well-balanced structure – that is, toward a good Gestalt – could not be possible if a subject simply wanted to reach a certain goal so intensely that he or she was entirely centred upon it, urging towards it. Wertheimer writes: Often an individual must first forget what he desires before he can become susceptible to what the situation itself requires. And so, in better instances, his attitude will be far more similar to the attitude of a physician or a wise adviser than to that of a clever and domineering conqueror or aggressor. (Wertheimer 1945, 180)

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Wertheimer’s case study can be helpful in the following ways: (1) It can inspire people to reflect on the convergence of good Gestalt properties and the characteristics of the functioning of people with high synergy, as understood by both Benedict and the Cappadocians. (2) It can help to justify recognition of the bipolarity of the phenomenon of synergy. (3) It can inspire us to test the hypothesis of the synergy effect in natural life events. (4) It can serve as an example of the idiographic approach applied to achieve the empirical verification of hypotheses formulated in terms of the synergy paradigm.

The Psychological Measurement of Synergic Self-Actualisation as a Life Orientation Both Ruth Benedict and the Cappadocian Fathers understood the concept of synergy not only as one of the elements differentiating individuals in terms of personality traits (the theoretical psychological construct) but also as an active individual person’s life orientation in the experienced world. Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow understood the psychological concept of self-actualisation as a personality trait in terms of the expressive behaviour, receptive passivity and original spontaneity of one’s personal development, postulating that it is controlled mainly by mechanisms of organismic selfregulation. In accepting such assumptions, Everett Shostrom (1962) developed the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI) for the measurement of self-actualisation. Shostrom understood personal orientation in terms of inner directedness versus other directedness. People directed by internal criteria in choosing their behaviour are described as having an internal locus of evaluation. However, people directed by external criteria such as norms, orders, prohibitions or other people’s opinions are described as having an external locus of evaluation. One of the subscales of the POI is the Synergy scale (Sy), which allows us to measure the ability to recognise, in a comprehensive and meaningful way, all aspects of life as being complementary rather than exclusive. The POI has 150 pairs of items (a and b) in a format of forced choice. The respondent’s choices indicate a preference for inner directedness or other directedness. It should be noted that Shostrom (1967, 1972), keeping in mind the clients of his so-called Actualizing Therapy, interpreted its beneficial effects in terms of the process undergone from manipulation to self-

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actualisation. However, Shostrom did not use the POI to verify these effects empirically. Perhaps he realised that the responses obtained through the POI, with its unipolar scales and forced formula, could not be an adequate basis for recognising and interpreting the dynamics of change experienced by individuals in the process of Actualizing Therapy.

The measurement tool for synergic self-actualisation Synergic self-actualisation is understood as individual achievement in the ability to express and actualise one’s potential through adequate participation and cooperation in interpersonal and social relationships. As a tool for measuring synergic self-actualisation, we can use the SelfActualizing Styles Questionnaire (SASQ), which the author has used to carry out research since 2000 (Uchnast 2000, 2010). The SASQ consists of two pairs of factorial scales (1–4), three scales on the ability to show self-motivation (5–7) and a bipolar structural scale (8). These comprise: (A) the personal self-actualisation scales (1–2), Initiative (INI) and Participation (PAR); (B) the apersonal self-actualisation scales (6–7), Assertive Manipulation (MA) and Passive Manipulation (MP); (C) the will to self-actualisation scales (3–5), Self-Confidence (SC), SelfDiscipline (SD) and Self-Mobilization (SM); and (8) the structural scale, Synergic Self-Actualization (SSA). Each of the 84 statements in the SASQ is respectively graded on a 5-point Likert scale. The structural scale Synergic Self-Actualization (SSA) is bipolar, created with the help of a multiple regression formula between Uchnast’s (1997) Personal Resiliency (PR) scale as the dependent or criterion variable and the scales of the SASQ as independent variables. Basic statistical regression rates are as follows: the intercept = 30.67; R = 0.81; R2 = 0.65; F = 43.72; and B coefficients are included in the regression equation formula: SSA = 30.67 + INI * 0.15 + PAR * 0.1 + SC * 0.46 í SD * 0.19 + SM * 0.11 + MA * 0.02 í MP * 0.16. The numerical value of the SSA scale is calculated according to the above formula with the results of the raw data of each respondent of the SASQ. The standardised and normalised results of the SSA can be regarded as an indicator of a person’s self-actualisation in terms of his or her orientation to others, not only in situations favourable for expressing themselves but

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also in difficult situations where the ability to undertake initiatives and cooperate with others conditions the person’s adequate functioning, the effective implementation of tasks and the scope for personal as well as other people’s development. Four types of indicators of the SASQ scale’s diagnostic validity are obtained with the help of the k-means cluster analysis of the bipolar synergy orientations (Insecure & self-protective; Passive & self-defensive; Manipulating & rivaling; Synergic & proactive). 70 65 60 55 50 45 40 35 30 INI

PAR

SC

SD

SM

MA

MP

SSA

InsecureͲ1(36%)

PassiveͲ2(25%)

Manip_RivͲ4(23%)

Syner_PrͲ3(16%)

Histogram 1: Means profiles of the four bipolar synergy types (N = 250 respondents)

Notable are the clear differences in the structures of separate profiles, reflecting qualitative and quantitative variations that can be interpreted taking into account the average score of a group of people on the bipolar SSA scale. Moreover, the qualitative difference in the structure of the SASQ scale and bipolar SSA scale is evident in respect of the synergy type and the manipulative/rival type – a difference which both Benedict and Shostrom identified. Moreover, it is interesting to note the indicators of theoretical and diagnostic validity of the SSA scale that correlate with the results obtained for a group of young people by Gwen Hawley (1988) using the Measures

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of Psychosocial Development (MPD). The MPD contains 56 items that accord with E.H. Erikson’s (1963) stages of psychosocial development and comprise 8 factorial scales of orientation on development, with a further 56 items that comprise 8 factorial scales of behavior regression tendency. In addition, each of these items is graded on a 5-point Likert scale. Adopting the hypothesis of the existence of a statistically significant multiple regression between the SSA bipolar scale and the MPD scales seems to be justified, because Erikson (1964) recognised proactive mutuality as the golden rule of psychosocial development from early childhood to old age. His verification of this hypothesis was based on the results of research groups of young people (K = 165, M = 138) aged 18–19 years using the SASQ and MPD. Accepting the results obtained by each of the subjects on the SSA scale (the criterion variable) and the results obtained on 16 MPD scales (the independent variables), the following basic indicators of multiple regression were obtained: the intercept = 24.72; R = 0.80; R2 = 0.65; F = 32.65; and the B coefficients included in the regression equation calculation formula for the additional bipolar MPD structural scale, Proactive mutuality – Basic hope (PM-BH): PM_BH = 24,72 + Tra * 0,16 + Aut * 0,07 + Ini * 0,03 – Ind * 0,08 + Ide * 0,14 + Int * 0,19 + Gen * 0,08 + EIn * 0,20 – Mis * 0,09 – Sha * 0,09 – Gui * 0,08 – Inf * 0,15 – I_Co * 0,01+ Iso * 0,14 – Sta * 0,01 – Des * 0,02. The subject of interest is the co-variableness between the results obtained on the PM_BH scale and the results obtained on all MPD scales. Table 1 contains the r Pearson correlation coefficients.

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Table 1: Indicators of correlation between the results obtained on the PM_BH scale and the results obtained on the MPD scales by a group of adolescents (N = 303) PM_BH Positive scales

PM_BH Negative scales

r

r

P1-TRU – Trust

0.72*

N1-MIS –Mistrust

- 0.71*

P2-AUT – Autonomy

0.41*

N2-SHA – Shame & Doubt

- 0.67*

P3-INI – Initiative

0.70*

N3-GUI – Guilt

- 0.67*

P4-IND – Industry

0.53*

N4-INF – Inferiority

- 0.69*

P5-IDE – Identity

0.62*

N5-I_CO – Identity Confusion - 0.61*

P6-INT – Intimacy

0.70*

N6-ISO – Isolation

- 0.34*

P7-GEN – Generativity

0.55*

N7-STA – Stagnation

- 0.66*

P8-EIN – Ego Integrity

0.82*

N8-DES – Despair

- 0.76*

SUM of POSITIVE

0.90*

SUM of NEGATIVE

0.82*

Note: p < .05

The highest correlation coefficients obtained in the two groups of scales – in the first and eighth scales, for trust and integrity – positively verify the accepted hypothesis that the PN_BH scale can be considered a tool for measuring what is most important for synergic self-actualisation and psychosocial integrity. This means that being firm is the ability to evince reciprocity based on partnership and basic hope in interpersonal, community and society relationships. In contrast, negative correlation coefficients were obtained on all negative scales.

Conclusion: Towards Christian Psychology Methodologically Based on the Synergetic Approach The synergistic approach has been rapidly growing in the natural sciences for over 40 years. Important people in this regard have been Buckminster Fuller, an American physicist, builder, architect and philosopher (Fuller and Applewhite 1975) and Herman Hakken (1982), professor of physics at the University of Stuttgart. In contrast, Peter Corning introduced the synergetic approach to the biological sciences with the publication of “The Synergism Hypothesis: A Theory of Progressive Evolution” (1983).

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Corning (2014), summarising 30 years of work, assumes that accepting the synergism hypothesis demands either resigning from the tendency to differentiate isolated subjects (discrete bounded entities, living systems) or the tendency to describe their discrete dynamic properties solely in terms of mechanisms in a cause–effect relationship. Corning (1998) admitted that researchers who accept the universal phenomenon of synergy would change their theoretical approach to the natural world. This change can be so essential that it requires a complete change of worldview. In the synergetic approach, any form of reductionism is excluded. In the end, according to Corning (2014), any science performed using the synergetic approach can be described as a science of configurational relationships, which essentially differs from the study of mechanisms. It is strange that psychologists are so resistant to the inspirations of the synergistic approach, even though Maslow very early on publicised Benedict’s concept of social synergy and supported her work in psychology. Perhaps psychologists have problems not only in accepting its universality in the world of living beings but also in accepting the hypothesis of synergism, which is implicit in Corning’s formulated demands and challenges. However, these requirements may become more understandable and justified if the idiographic approach is accepted as complementary to the nomothetic approach, in that the nomothetic approach belongs to the “sciences of laws” and the idiographic approach to the “sciences of events” (following Windelband 1998). One of the main subjects of research at all levels of the synergistic approach is events that display functional unity in a diversity of action, which produce effects of synergy. The proposed methods for the empirical differentiation of people with regard to the frequency and positive effect of synergy in their lives should make it easier for psychologists to clarify the conditions for its existence in individual, community and social experience. Undoubtedly, promoters of Christian psychology should be particularly interested in the concept of synergy formulated by the Cappadocian Fathers. Its presence in human interpersonal relationships, which Erikson (1964) has called proactive mutuality, constitutes the golden rule of all psychosocial development, including pre-ethical dispositions, from early childhood to old age.

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Sources Basil the Great. On the Holy Spirit XXVI.61. Trans. NPNF (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), Second Series, Vol. 8, edited by Philip Schaff and Henry Wace, 38. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. Benedict, Ruth. 1934. Patterns of Culture. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. —. 1970. “Synergy: Patterns of the Good Culture.” American Anthropologist 72, no. 2: 320–33. Bible, New International Version. 1983. Bible Study Tools. https://www.biblestudytools.com/niv/. Boas, Franz. 1934. “Introduction.” In Patterns of Culture, by Ruth Benedict, xi–xiii. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Bradshaw, David. 2006. “The Divine Glory and the Divine Energies.” Faith and Philosophy 23, no. 3: 279–98. Corning, Peter. 1983. The Synergism Hypothesis: A Theory of Progressive Evolution. New York: McGraw-Hill. —. 1998. “The Synergism Hypothesis: On the Concept of Synergy and its Role in the Evolution of Complex Systems.” Journal of Social and Evolutionary Systems 21, no. 2: 133–72. —. 2014. “Systems Theory and the Role of Synergy in the Evolution of Living Systems.” Systems Research and Behavioral Science 31, no. 2: 181–96. Erikson, Erik H. 1963. Childhood and Society. 2nd ed. New York: Norton. —. 1964. Insight and Responsibility. New York: Norton. Fuller, R. Buckminster, and Edgar J. Applewhite. 1975. Synergetics: Explorations in the Geometry of Thinking. New York: Simon & Schuster. Hakken, Herman. 1982. Synergetik [Synergetics]. Berlin: Springer. Hawley, Gwen A. 1988. MPD: Measures of Psychosocial Development: Professional Manual. Lutz, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources. Lamiell, James T. 2003. Beyond Individual and Group Differences: Human Individuality, Scientific Psychology, and William Stern’s Critical Personalism. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Malinowski, Bronislaw. 1929. The Sexual Life of Savages in North Western Melanesia. New York: Harcourt. Maslow, Abraham. 1952. Manual for the Security–Insecurity Inventory. (With the assistance of E. Birsh, I. Honigmann, F. McGrath, A. Plason, M. Stein). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. —. 1964. “Synergy in the Society and in the Individual.” Journal of Individual Psychology 20: 153–64. —. 1970. Motivation and Personality. 2nd ed. New York: Harper & Row.

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Shostrom, Everett L. 1962. Manual of the Personal Orientation Inventory: An Inventory for Measurement of Self-Actualization. San Diego, CA: Educational and Industrial Testing Service. —. 1967. Man, the Manipulator: The Inner Journey from Manipulation to Actualization. Nashville, TX: Abingdon Press. —. 1972. Freedom to Be. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Stern, William. 1911. Die Differentielle Psychologie in ihren methodischen Grundlagen [Methodological foundations of differential psychology]. Leipzig: Barth. Uchnast, Zenon. 1997. “Preznosc osobowa: Empiryczna typologia i metoda pomiaru” [Personal resilience: empirical typology and measurement methods]. Roczniki Filozoficzne 4: 27–50. —. 2000. “Style aktualizacji siebie” [Styles of self-actualisation]. In Czlowiek przelomu tysiacleci: Problemy psychologiczne [Man at the turn of the millenium: psychological problems], edited by Jozef Makselon and Borys Soinski, 139–52. Krakow: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PAT. —. 2009. “Biology–Psychology: Integration from the Perspective of Natural Gestalt Psychology and the Synergetic Approach: Comments on L.A. Pervin’s paper” [in Russian]. Roczniki Psychologiczne 12, no. 1: 42–7. —. 2010. “Samoaktualizacja czy aktualizacja siebie: Spor o paradygmat ekspresji czy synergii” [Self-actualisation or the actualising self: The debate on the paradigm of expression or synergy]. In W krĊgu aksjologii i psychologii [The circle of axiology and psychology], edited by Helena Wrona-Polanska, Maria Ledzinska, and Grazyna Rudkowska, 113–22. Krakow: Wydawnictwo Naukowe UP. Wertheimer, Max. 1945. Productive Thinking. Westport, CT: Harper & Row. —. (1912) 1974. “Numbers and numerical concepts in primitive peoples.” In A Source Book of Gestalt Psychology, edited by Willis D. Ellis, 265–73. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Originally published in Zeitschrift für Psychologie, 60 (1912): 321–78. Wilson, Colin. 1972. New Pathways in Psychology. Maslow and the PostFreudian Revolution. New York: New American Library. Windelband, Wilhelm. (1894) 1998. “History and Natural Science.” Translated by James T. Lamiell. In Theory and Psychology 8: 5–22. Originally published as “Geschichte und Naturwissenschaft: Rede zum Antritt des Rektorats der Kaiser-Wilhelm-Universität Strassburg, gehalten am 1. Mai 1894” [History and natural science: inaugural address of the rector, Kaiser Wilhelm University Strassburg, May 1, 1894]. Strassburg: Herts & Mündel, 1900.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY, DEMONSTRATED BY THE EXAMPLE OF FORGIVENESS W. SOLDAN1

Abstract A Christian psychology seeks to accord with a specific paradigm incorporating a Christian worldview, epistemology and anthropology. This article examines commonalities and differences between a Christian psychology paradigm and that of the major schools of thought in psychology. The topic of forgiveness in psychology is used to demonstrate the specific characteristics of Christian psychology, since forgiveness is also a topic researched in mainstream psychology, which understands itself as an empirical science rather than one of the humanities, or as in between them. This positivist empirical paradigm inhibited forgiveness research in psychology up to the 1980s (McCullough, Pargament, and Thoresen 2000, 3–6), but even in the current climate of openness to the concept of forgiveness as an important factor in psychological healing, Christian psychology can often ask questions and give answers that secular psychology can hardly address, such as those on false empathy/compassion or multidimensional perspectives on moral shortcomings. Keywords: Christian psychology; forgiveness; forgiveness models; forgiveness process; paradigm; worldview

1

Wolfram Soldan is a physician and psychotherapist, tutor at the Institute of Christian Psychology in South Africa (Germiston), teacher in Christian counselling courses and supervisor at the IGNIS Institute for Christian Psychology in Kitzingen, Germany. He has developed a specific Christian Forgiveness Model.

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What is Christian Psychology? Discussion of the characteristics of a Christian psychology requires that it be defined. Any psychology is founded on particular worldviews and epistemological presumptions. A Christian psychology seeks to be consistent with God’s revelation of Himself through the Bible. This implies that its methods should be deeply attentive to the relationship between God and each person. Accordingly, disorder and healing are seen to reflect an existential disturbance in this relationship, which can be restored through God’s love (Hübner 1988; Johnson 1997; Roberts 2003; Soldan n.d.).

Secular Psychological Worldviews or Paradigms The most prevalent models in mainstream psychology have epistemological presumptions that, for the sake of simplicity, one could call positivist. The goal in positivism is to gather data and interpret them objectively, without a value judgment. Understood in this way, psychology has more affinity with hard science than with the humanities. There are at least two common main alternatives in the current psychology scene: holistic (Zimbardo and Gerrig 1999, 14, 538) and constructivist (Kriz, Lück, and Heidbrink 1996, 144). The goal of the holistic perspective is to consider the psyche of the person as a whole. Positivism is criticised for being unable to consider the essence of what it is to be human and for being forced to see the person as some kind of machine operating by a series of determinate causes and effects. This ultimately reduces the person to a mere object. In contrast, a holistic perspective maintains that subjectively experienced realities, such as relationships, values, freedom and spirituality, are essential subjects of psychological research, which also means that there is openness to including questions about the transcendent in psychological research. However, this transcendent level is traditionally understood in secular psychology as vaguely spiritual (sometimes called transpersonal) and not related to a real spiritual person such as a God who truly exists, as would be the case in the Christian paradigm. The second common alternative to positivism is what the author would identify as constructivist in the postmodern sense – that is, humans cannot have a valid approach to reality or truth that is objective. Valid reasonable approaches are always our own constructions and therefore inevitably

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subjective. The concept of objectivity is displaced by that of intersubjectivity, meaning that relevant subjects have agreed on a shared or common construction of a reality (Von Schlippe and Schweitzer 1997; Kuhn 1981). While constructivism has not (yet) become a dominant view, it plays an increasingly vital role not only in systemic family therapy and the accompanying systemic psychology and philosophy (Von Schlippe and Schweitzer 1997) but also in community psychology (Behzadi and Hermann 2008; Duckett 2009; Duncan et al. 2007; Zaumseil 1997), social psychology (Bohnsack 2005; Denzin 2003; Flick 2003; Fuks 2008), social psychiatry (Simon 1999) and psychosomatic medicine (Simon 1999; Von Uexküll, Geigges, and Plassmann 2002).

Christian Psychology as a Paradigm Much like positivism, a Christian psychology would hold fast to the possibility and sense of an objective reality, but it would emphasise at the same time that the objective view of reality is reserved for God. Only God knows reality purely and perfectly. Objective reality can therefore be investigated easily, directly and methodically only within the limits the creator has set and is ultimately dependent on revelation. Human beings will be able to investigate only that which God wants to reveal to us in some form and makes investigable for us (Delitzsch 1855; Soldan 2010b). Along with the humanistic schools of thought, one would consider Christian psychology to be holistic, with a strong emphasis on the relational aspects of persons. Thus important research subjects for Christian psychology are realities such as relationships, values, freedom and spirituality, similar to those of humanistic psychology. Since all reality, and consequently also the exploration of reality, is dependent on what God wishes to reveal, there is no reason not to do research also in the area of experiences and ideas that are transcendent. In accordance with the self-revelation of God in the Bible, we assume God to be a personal counterpart, as in Buber’s (1994) philosophy, namely for any I–thou relationship. Buber indicates that behind the small thou is always the big THOU – the eternal Thou, or God. The grasp on reality in Christian psychology, and therefore ultimately its research, must be process oriented and relational – suitable to the biblical statement that Truth is a person, namely Jesus Christ Himself, and not merely a propositional truth that can be formulated.

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As in constructivism, Christians are challenged to engage in their own personal construction or reconstruction/rebuilding of reality. However, unlike in constructivism, God’s willingness to reveal Himself through His works opens a gateway to a kind of objective reality. This may happen through His written Word and also in daily life through current revelation by natural means (accessible by traditional methods of research) or by supernatural means, namely direct charismatic revelation (Slife, Stevenson, and Wendt 2010). All these gateways are accessible only through cultivating a knowledge of and relationship with God, formed over time through study and experience. It is important to note that the Bible does not teach a single conclusive philosophical worldview or unambiguous epistemology. It does, however, provide standards for such philosophical constructs. The epistemological framework outlined here therefore represents only one possibility for an epistemology conformable to the Bible.

The Specifics of Christian Psychology as Exemplified by Forgiveness The problem of forgiveness in psychology To clarify the difference that Christian psychology makes in comparison to the already established schools of psychological thought, forgiveness will be used as an example. This suits the purpose of this article because forgiveness is a concept that is valued by Christians and has also been intensively investigated for decades in secular psychology, especially in the United States of America.2 Many of the authors are Christians, but it seems almost all American authors publish under the auspices of mainstream (empirical) psychology. Forgiveness psychology is a relatively new subject in psychology, likely excluded in the past by positivist biases, since forgiveness could suggest the idea of wilful subjective decisions, value judgements and feelings of guilt. A search of

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Baskin and Enright (2004); Enright (1992, 1996); Enright and Fitzgibbons (2002); Enright and Gassin (1992); Gassin (2000, 2001); Linn and Linn (1993); McCullough, Pargament, and Thoresen (2000); Peterson and Seligman (2004); Sandage and Watson Wiens (2001); Seres (2004); Shults and Sandage (2003); Tausch (1993); Weingardt (2000).

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common German psychological dictionaries3 showed no coverage of the concept of forgiveness in psychology. The psychological literature contains numerous competing variants of the concept of forgiveness. However, the definition of McCullough, Pargament, and Thoreson (2000, 9) could serve as a basis for the arguments presented in this article. They write: All of the existing definitions seem to be built on one core feature: when people forgive, their responses toward (or in other words, what they think of, feel about, want to do to, or actually do to) people who have offended or injured them, become more positive and less negative.

They summarise forgiveness as being characterised by “intra-individual prosocial change towards a perceived transgressor that is situated within a specific interpersonal context” (McCullough et al. 2000, 9). This formulation, inasmuch as it does not address the problem of objective evil or whether there is a God before whom we need to be forgiven, does not render research on forgiveness impossible within the positivist paradigm. Emmons (2000, 171) offers a different idea of forgiveness: Forgiveness can activate integrative tendencies in the person, rescuing the psyche from inner conflict and turmoil, transforming the person from a state of fragmentation to a state of integration, from separation to reconciliation. Forgiveness is the integrated state of a person who is in a right relationship with God, with others, and within himself or herself.

This comprehensive and integrated definition contains many statements that are beyond the scope of positivism (such as right relationship) and could be researched only in accordance with a holistic or constructivist paradigm. Scholarship on forgiveness exemplifies the basic conflict in the discipline of psychology – viewed either as scholarship of the human soul (belonging to the humanities) or as behavioural science – which is reflected in relevant German psychological dictionaries (Arnold, Eysenck and Meili 1996; Dorsch 1982; Wenninger 2001; Städtler 2003), especially under the headings psychology and history of psychology. The inadequacy of positivist psychology for addressing vital aspects of soul care is exposed 3

Arnold, Eysenck, and Meili (1996); Davison, Neale, and Hautzinger (2007); Dorsch (1982); Krech et al. (1992); Städtler (2003); Wenninger (2001); Zimbardo and Gerrig (1999).

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here. Forgiveness is a complex phenomenon, both intrapsychic and relational (understood humanly and spiritually), with partly hidden emotional and motivational aspects that cry out to be addressed more thoroughly through the liberal arts, including theology and philosophy (for example, Hrašová 2009). The empirical scientific approaches are in danger of dealing only with the surface and thus missing the essence of forgiveness. In American scholarship on psychological forgiveness, the empirical science approach dominates, although several philosophical and methodological problems are discussed, for example by McCullough, Hoyt, and Rachal (2000). In existing German discussion of psychological forgiveness the author could not find any relevant awareness of such problems.

Comparing the models through analysis of specific examples The two fundamentally different approaches that have been established in describing forgiveness (Baskin and Enright 2004) have led to either decision-based models or to process-based models. Decision-based models reduce forgiveness more or less to a one-time act of the will. The author considers this reduction to be an unrealistic oversimplification and therefore excludes this approach from the subsequent discussion. Processoriented models are characterised by their attempt to portray forgiveness as a complex intrapersonal process, and also partly an interpersonal one. Two typical established process models are briefly presented below and compared with the five-phase forgiveness model that the author has developed. All three models are outlined here in simplified form. Figure 1 is a diagram that roughly shows the typical double structure of the author’s model (intertwining forgiving others with receiving forgiveness), based on Matthew 18 and several years of therapy practice. The bold line and the arrows indicate a typical possible sequence of phases. Firstly, the model will be explained briefly (for more detailed information see Soldan 2012). Forgiving another begins with (I) the decision to look at the injury holistically and then (II) to view the action as a process of settling accounts, recognising (cognitively and emotionally) the wrong suffered in all dimensions (see Figure 1). In simple cases this will take seconds or minutes, while in very severe cases (for example, child abuse) even the decision making (I) may require months or years, as it involves rebuilding a sense of one’s own willpower. The process of acknowledging and confronting the truth always starts with the subjective perspective of the victim and becomes more objective step by step, which implies that a

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person starts to view the wrong as God does, without reaching total objectivity (which is reserved for God). The essential next phase (III) is showing mercy to the offender, but this is rather unnatural, if not impossible, after holistic recognition of the wrong. So the forgiver needs a deep experience of receiving or having received forgiveness from God (left side of Figure 1) to be able to impart the mercy/compassion he or she has received from God to the offender. The term used in Matthew 18: 27 in the Greek original is a holistically embodied word for mercy (literally translated as something that is bellying one); this mercy is almost totally reserved for God Himself in the New Testament (implying that it must be imparted to us by God, and we cannot produce it ourselves). After this experience the forgiver really can (IV) release or set free the offender; that is, he or she can holistically separate the offence from the offender. This is the basis for (V) giving away (remitting) the wrong (to God) and being free for a relationship that is renewed (not restored, because it will be different). This becoming free describes the inner forgiving process, which may be followed by the analogous outer forgiving process (reconciliation of the relationship), which needs the cooperation of both parties (the forgiver and the offender). According to Frise and McMinn (2010), the distinction between forgiveness and reconciliation is disputed by scholars (psychologists tend to do so more than theologians). Because of the theologically sound unity of both concepts, the author terms them inner forgiveness and outer forgiveness (reconciliation).

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In Figure 2 the author’s model is compared with two established American process models of forgiveness (Enright and Fitzgibbons 2002; Enright 2017; Shults and Sandage 2003). The secular psychological forgiveness models focus mainly on how to forgive others, sometimes mentioning that receiving forgiveness can be important (but without being part of the model). The varying thickness of the arrows in the diagram indicates the extent to which the author could recognise connections between the three models with regard to content. The basic similarity in all three models is that they all seek to conceive of forgiveness as a complex process that runs its course in phases, and that if necessary this process can entail a good deal of time. In its conception, a model must be differentiated enough to portray the various ways in which forgiveness can come about, while still maintaining enough order as a model to remain somewhat researchable and also to serve as a map for those working practically in the field of forgiveness. All three models fulfil these requirements. Shults and Sandage (2003) offer a kind of a halfway house between secular and Christian psychological models, although they argue explicitly in secular psychological terms. So, in differentiating between secular and Christian models, theirs might be atypical (a semi-secular model).

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The first major difference between typical secular models and the author’s model, which is founded on Christian psychology, is the basic definition of what is to be forgiven for a wrong. In secular models, the wrong – what is to be forgiven or that for which a person wants to be forgiven – can only be defined either purely subjectively (a wrong as the wronged person experiences or interprets it) or by a social consensus about right and wrong. In contrast, the author’s Christian psychological model is based on a biblical understanding of what guilt is, how a wrong is defined, or (to use the biblical term) what the sin is. This leads directly to a second difference from secular models, namely that the Bible describes wrong as a multidimensional entity. The first dimension is personal acts, the second dimension is personal inner attitudes, the third dimension is relationship (interpersonal or transcendent), and the fourth dimension is subjection to sin in a person’s own existence. These are not different forms of sin but a multidimensional design for every sin. If somebody does something wrong repeatedly and not only by chance, this deed is rooted in an inner attitude which is more or less conscious. This deed always has implications of relationship and responsibility. With the wrong, a person violates healthy relationships to the self, to other(s), to creation, to rules/commandments/ conscience, and ultimately to God. At the same time, a person comes into a destructive relationship with evil and idolatrised parts of creation. In the end every wrong has a connection to forces outside of self, including all kinds of evil beings, evil things and evil traditions without erasing the person’s own responsiveness or responsibility. From this arises a four-dimensional model of guilt or wrong (see Figure 3), which is grounded in the Bible and has been proven many times over in the author’s practice, both with clients and with students. One must address all four dimensions in order to deal completely with concrete wrongs, thereby working through Phase II of the said model, which corresponds to Phase I of the American models mentioned. In achieving or consolidating forgiveness, which ultimately implies lifestyle change and further personality development, the relational dimension plays the decisive role. Realising deeply (cognitively and emotionally) that sin always hurts, God Himself, in the deepest possible way, is the only way to totally overcome sin through forgiveness. He offers and is the solution to sin (both that of a person and that of others). In this reality all of us meet in God as sinners, delivered and sanctified by grace and therefore becoming part of His

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genuine mercy and compassion, which we could never obtain by merely human means. So the ultimate forgiveness is not a moral effort (as in modern psychologies) but rather a gift to be received with humility (thus the provocative term immoral morals in Figure 3). This aspect is not very clear in the explicitly secular psychological model by Enright (Enright and Fitzgibbons 2002), whereas in the model by Shults and Sandage (2003), which attempts to integrate secular psychological ideas with theological ideas, this aspect is strongly emphasised and elaborated on in a manner similar to the Christian psychology model. The attempt to distinguish genuine from false forgiveness is common in process models. However, with the Christian psychology model, it is possible to make a considerably more precise and refined delineation of false forgiveness, enabling one to perceive its difference from true forgiveness more clearly. This is simply because one can draw from a relatively specific revelation about what sin and wrong are and what forgiveness ultimately involves, something secular psychology cannot do. In all models it is important, if one truly wants to forgive, to be clear about what is considered to be wrong or sinful. The relevant corresponding phases in the respective models are the Uncovering Phase in Enright and Reed’s model, the Engaging in Lament phase in Shults and Sandage’s model, and the Settling up/Finding the Truth phase in Soldan’s model. In all three models, the central beginning point is how the person in question subjectively experiences the wrong done to him or her, and/or (mainly in the author’s model) subjectively experiences the wrong he or she has done for which forgiveness is sought. The explicitly Christian psychological model holds that, in the course of the journey to forgiveness, one’s view of sin becomes ever closer to what God reveals as sin and accordingly converges to some extent with an objective view of sin. The author maintains that only the Christian fivephase model can depict in a precise way the course that this journey takes towards objectivity, and the difficulties and limitations that may be encountered. As noted earlier, objectivity, according to the Christian paradigm, is how God sees things (His perspective), which is (partly) accessible through a process dependent upon His revelation, especially in the Bible but also in prayer and in every activity of (self-)exploration under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, which includes also natural means, such as psychotherapy.

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Another clear difference among these models lies in empathy or mercy. In most secular psychological process models of forgiveness, including that of Shults and Sandage (2003), the construct of empathy plays an important supporting role. Although this role of empathy is considered valuable, it is still not indispensable to many secular models. In the Shults and Sandage model empathy is an integral component, one of the three phases, though the authors pay attention to not forcing empathy (rather encouraging empathy) whereas Enright resists making empathy inevitable – see especially the repeated use of “may” in the subsection “How to Forgive” (in Enright 2017). The Christian psychology model replaces the term empathy with mercy as an essential and inevitable component of forgiveness. This concept is derived from the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant in Matthew 18:21–35 (KJV). Because of the absolute necessity of

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mercy (Matthew 18:27 (KJV)) or compassion and its special quality of being given by God, it seems reasonable to suspect that this mercy can also often be found in a false form within forgiveness processes. The question of counterfeit empathy is missing from most secular models. Insincere empathic mercy can, for example, be found in an arrogant inner attitude of moral superiority to others, which in secular psychological models would nevertheless not be deemed incompatible with empathy, since in psychology empathy is usually understood as being morally neutral, unlike compassion (Enright and Fitzgibbons 2002). In the Christian psychology model, however, such an attitude would be perceived as counterfeit mercy, and consequently leading to a type of false forgiveness.

The principle of rebuilding The principle of rebuilding is the last point in illustrating how Christian psychology differs from secular psychological models regarding forgiveness. Because Christian psychology grants epistemological presuppositions a decisive role in the way that psychology is studied, practised and organised, it could definitely stand to learn something from psychological schools of thought that have different presuppositions, though often these cannot be adopted just as they are. This process by which findings from secular psychology are gathered and comprehended but then purposefully reworked is called reconstruction, rebuilding or reformulation (Graupner 2001). An example of how this is accomplished within the framework of the forgiveness model could be the defence mechanisms of projection and transference. The prevalent mechanism of transference, for instance, was conceived of in the five-phase forgiveness model as an indicator that forgiveness had not yet taken place or been completed; accordingly some paraphrasing of the classic definitions was necessary, and the construct of transference was given a new ecological environment, namely the forgiving process environment. Psychoanalyst and psychologist Martin Dornes (1997), following Daniel Stern, describes babies as astonishingly competent in relationships with their own preverbal relational language (called the schema of being with). Because the mechanism of transference relies on these preverbal abilities of the person, which are particularly suited to representing relationship constellations and internal attitudes in people, a detailed recording and analysis of transference in action facilitates specific, holistic clearance of blame, and thereby becomes a

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valuable aid in Phase II (settling up) of the Christian psychology model. Infants can record negative relationship experiences (that is, offences) in this preverbal language, which later leads to relationship experiences mirroring the original situation (Dornes 1997) and therefore containing holistic information about the suffered wrong (relational and attitude elements of Figure 3). In a specific experiential design for analysing the transference situation (as a mirror of the original not-yet-forgiven experience), one can help a client in settling accounts (Phase II of forgiving) in a holistic way. Along these same lines, the mechanism of projection was reformulated and newly fitted into forgiveness in the process model in such a way that the analysis of projections can serve not only in recognising one’s own faulty structures in the psyche but also in detecting so-called accounting to the wrong side, for example blame that falls objectively on another culprit but which the client has taken on as his or her own.

Conclusion Christian psychology uses the same epistemological methods as secular psychology but is completed by God-revealed information that can be tested again with the common methods. Especially complex and intensely human experiences such as forgiveness, which include relational, ethical and free-will questions, benefit most from such (biblically) revealed information and allow more differentiating and sophisticated views and findings on the subject, such as more subtle discrimination between true and false forgiveness.

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Weingardt, Beate M. 2000. Wie auch wir vergeben unseren Schuldigern, der Prozess des Vergebens in Theorie und Empirie [As we forgive our debtors: the process of forgiveness in theory and practice]. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer. Wenninger, Gerd, ed. 2001. Lexikon der Psychologie [Dictionary of psychology]. Heidelberg: Spektrum Akademischer Verlag. Zaumseil, Manfred. “Möglichkeiten sozialkonstruktivistischer Forschung am Beispiel eines gemeindepsychologischen Forschungsprojektes” [Possibilities of social constructivist research: the example of a community psychology research project]. In Gemeindespsychologie Bestandsaufnahmen und Perspektiven [Community psychology: Overview and perspectives], edited by B. Röhrle and G. Sommer, 83– 110. Tübingen: dgvt-Verlag Zimbardo, Philipp G., and Richard J. Gerrig. 1999. Psychologie [Psychology]. Berlin: Springer.

SECTION IV: PSYCHOTHERAPY

INTEGRATIVE PSYCHOTHERAPY: A CHRISTIAN APPROACH ANNA OSTASZEWSKA1

Abstract In this article the author will present the concept of integrative psychotherapeutic praxis developed in Poland, including the philosophical basis of a Christian approach to integrative psychotherapy; the concept of a person in the context of psychotherapy; a model of integration; the genesis of psychological disorders; psychotherapeutic techniques; the integration of spirituality into psychotherapeutic praxis; and scientific research on the effectiveness of including spirituality in psychotherapy. Keywords: Psychotherapy; integration; psychological disorders; concept of a person

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spirituality;

Introduction Integrative psychotherapy: a Christian approach has been developed by psychologists and psychotherapists in Poland but not without reference to the scientific publications and experience of foreign associations. This approach identifies itself with one of the main positions within psychotherapy, while depending on a specific belief system and method of therapeutic practice, described as follows by the European Movement for Christian Anthropology, Psychology and Psychotherapy2 (2006):

1 Anna Ostaszewska is a psychotherapist, supervisor, trainer in psychotherapy, and author of the book Psychotherapia integratywna w podejĞciu chrzeĞcijaĔskim [Integrative psychotherapy: a Christian approach] (Sopot: GWP, 2015, 2017). 2 This organisation unites psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors and theologians from European countries and most Christian traditions in promoting the knowledge, understanding and application of Christian beliefs in healthcare. More information about EMCAPP is provided on its website at www.emcapp.eu.

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A Christian therapist who uses a Christian approach in psychotherapy and develops specific aims, methods and desired outcomes according to Christian beliefs. The model of practice is developed and verified using the same scientific methods as secular models in recognition of the fact that God gives us both reason and revelation. This therapist gives honour to God and also recognises the value of scientific evaluation. He trusts God first and then human reason.

Integrative Psychotherapy In their book An Introduction to Integrative Psychotherapy, Evans and Gilbert (2005, 1) define “integrative” as follows: “Generally, the term refers to any orientation in psychotherapy that exemplifies, or is developing towards, a conceptually coherent, principled theoretical combination of two or more specific approaches, or represents a new meta-theoretical model of integration in its own right.” Integrative psychotherapy from a Christian perspective distinguishes three levels of integration pertaining respectively to the following (Association of Christian Psychologists3 2009): 1. the model of a human being (reflecting anthropological assumptions); 2. the method of psychotherapeutic practice (therapeutic work); 3. the psychotherapist’s internal integration (including spirituality). On the first level, the integration is based on Christian anthropology and the philosophy of personalism, especially the works of Saint Thomas Aquinas and of Karol Wojtyla (2000). Integrativity means the integration of emotional, cognitive, volitional, physiological, behavioural and spiritual spheres. Spirituality, in a Christian sense, is understood as a relationship between a human person and the person of God. On the second level, which focuses on therapeutic techniques, the psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioural approaches form the core of the integration. The achievements of other schools of psychotherapy are also considered. A person is a whole, so all dimensions of existence should be 3

This association, established in 1995, joins psychologists from all over Poland to infuse the spirit of the Gospel into professional life. It was also designed to acknowledge the needs of patients who wish their religious experience to be respected. ACP provides a 4-year study programme in psychotherapy and has several psychological centres (www.spch.pl).

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taken into account. The quality of therapeutic relationship is further considered to be significant for the healing process. On the third level, the important factors are the psychotherapist’s knowledge and professional skills, inner self-awareness and integration, and personal spiritual attitude. The main goal of integrative psychotherapy from a Christian perspective is the healing and development of clients.

The Concept of the Person in the Context of Psychotherapy The model of a person in relationship with God, the so-called “car model”, can be helpful in therapeutic practice. Figure 1 presents the model of an individual as a four-wheeled car. Like all models, this is a simplification. It may, however, prove useful in understanding the self and individuals undergoing therapy. The two front wheels represent the cognitive sphere (C) or mind, and the volitional sphere (V) or will, respectively. The two rear wheels represent the physical sphere or the body and behaviours (Ph), and the emotional sphere (E) or emotions. The individual constitutes one whole, which means that the wheels are all equally important and that a flow of information is necessary between them all. Lack of communication between the wheels leads to disintegration, and the whole mechanism then functions incorrectly. If “the car” is to move forward, all of its wheels should be “balanced”. In application to human beings, this implies that there should be a proper relation and balance between the person’s feelings (E), cognitive process (C), will and decisions (V), and behaviour (Ph). There are two external forces affecting “the car”: God (G) and His antagonist (A). God has access to the inner self of individuals, knows them, and helps them drive in His direction. The antagonist does not have direct access to the spheres of reason and will but can affect the physical and emotional spheres. Figure 1 additionally shows the function of time, which means that “the car” always moves at a particular moment and toward a specific destination. The time humans are given on earth is limited and ends in death.

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Figure 1: “The car” model – a person in relationship with God Source: Ostaszewska (2012, 2015, 2017).

The figure can be explained as follows: E – emotional sphere (I feel); C – cognitive sphere, mind (I think, I know, I recognise); V – volitional sphere (I want, I choose, I decide); Ph – physical sphere: body (physiology) and behaviour (I do). Person = E + C + V + Ph (a person as a unity feels, knows, wants, does). A person is in relationships with other persons. A person is also in relationship with the person of God. When one of the wheels dominates the others it causes “the car” to veer towards that specific wheel. For example, if a person puts too much attention on emotions, these might dictate where “the car” is going. The same result is achieved when any of the wheels is less important. The less attention it gets, the more attention it will demand. For example, when one ignores one’s emotions, they will become more intense and even create

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problems like an attention-seeking child. In the end, “the car” is forced to deal with the neglected wheel. Human problems can be viewed and solved through considering all six factors: E – emotions; C – cognitive sphere; V – volitional sphere (will); Ph –physical sphere (body, behaviour); G – God; A – antagonist. In the diagnostic process, the problem could be broken down to just one or a combination of any of them. Traditional psychology and psychotherapy generally deal with all four wheels, whereas particular therapeutic schools tend to focus on just one. Psychoanalysis and humanistic schools mainly tap into the emotional sphere, while behaviourism targets the physical sphere, and cognitive therapy centres on the mind’s processes. In the discussed model, the individual is an integrated person who may be affected by two invisible beings – God and His antagonist. Traditional psychology does not account for the influence that God and His antagonist have on the individual or for the direction “the car” is driving. In traditional psychology the issue of direction is often shrugged off with statements such as: “Do whatever you decide will be good for yourself.” The presented model shows that an encounter between two people opens up a field for the exchange of messages in separate spheres (“wheels”). Traditional psychology and psychotherapy deal with relationships between individuals but do not account for the influence of God in a person-to-person relationship. In this model God is present in the meeting of two people, but the psychotherapist is focused on the person of the client, not on God.

Genesis of Mental Disorders Personal identities are formed in childhood. In these formative years, children are completely “busy” with their own development, and this is an absorbing task, during which they should be protected against situations too difficult for them to handle. Difficult situations always happen but should not be the cause of psychological problems. What matters is how people who are significant to the child react when a difficult situation occurs. In this regard, John Bowlby’s attachment theory provides a basis for understanding development rules (cited in Holmes 1993). Adults who are closely related to the child facilitate the child’s physical and psychological survival. Such relationships with children while their identities are forming confirm or deny their significance as persons and the

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reason for their being. Mothers and fathers validate what children feel; they interpret events and teach their children what they should possibly do in different situations. Their impact can be observed on different levels (compare the model of a person presented earlier): 1. Emotional level: A parent gives hugs and kisses and thus makes the child feel that they belong. This creates the feeling and belief that “I am not alone, and my feelings are important for someone”. 2. Cognitive level: A parent explains, teaches and provides an interpretation of events from the position of an adult. 3. Behavioural level: A parent says what children should do in a given situation or does something appropriate (for example, goes to see a doctor). 4. Volitional level: A parent provides an experience that gives the message that what a child wants or does not want is important to others. Also, on a spiritual level, verbally or nonverbally, a parent sends messages about a possible relationship with God and about His image. Experiences on volitional and spiritual levels can be included in cognitive-emotional processes, which are crucial for psychological development (Ostaszewska 2015). Other kinds of spiritual experiences are also possible that come from God Himself and cannot be reduced to typical cognitive processes. These experiences lead to: ƒ confirmation of a child’s feelings (“the way I feel is good”) – emotional level; ƒ the ability to avoid relying solely on a cognitive assessment of the child, who is immature and limited by the objective situation of young human beings – cognitive level; ƒ the ability to form skills and habits of behaviour – behavioural level; ƒ the formation of positive beliefs such as “I am allowed to desire something” or “the other person respects my wishes”, which affects, inter alia, the awareness of decision-making processes – volitional level. If children are left alone in difficult situations, their emotional reactions can become unbearable, and their bodies will initiate defence mechanisms. Children will draw certain conclusions from these experiences and make their own interpretations from the perspective of a young, dependent

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being. Children may learn that their feelings are not important to others, or even that these feelings are wrong. The options for their behaviour are limited to those available for their developmental age and objective possibilities (for example, a child cannot move out of the home). The patterns that are repeated in these three areas – emotional, cognitive, and behavioural – are strengthened and become fixed if there are no corrective experiences. Feelings, beliefs and behaviours suitable for specific (incorrect) situations in childhood will not be suitable in many other life situations. Generalised conclusions from these experiences are neither constructive nor usable in other situations (from a Christian perspective these conclusions could be viewed as false beliefs). These behavioural patterns applied in other situations do not result in the outcomes consistent with one’s intentions. In adulthood these reaction patterns do not work out well (or at least not always). Signs of dysfunction and suffering appear which are often incomprehensible to such persons (see Figure 2). Childhood experiences such as experiencing situations that are too difficult in isolation and without the support of significant people Ļ Unbearable emotions and the development of defence mechanisms Ļ Cognitive disorders, distortion of the self-image and images of other people Generalizations Cognitive schemas Ļ Behaviour that is adequate to the cognitive schemas and inadequate to the external situation or to the intended purpose Ļ The lack of functioning of a person to their fullest potential The lack of a sense of control in situations where it is possible Ļ Anxiety, helplessness, transferred aggression, other symptoms. Figure 2: Genesis of disorders Source: Ostaszewska (2015, 2017).

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The type of attachment (relationship with people significant to a child, especially mother and father) is a deciding factor in the process of identity development. Relationships with significant others could be analysed as being either of two types of communication: a person-oriented type or an abusive type (Ostaszewska 2017, 45–9). Person-oriented communication affirms a person’s self-worth, freedom and dignity; that is, it confirms the person’s right to feel, think, desire, and make decisions (compare the “car model”). It strengthens the person. Person-oriented communication includes providing information about oneself and asking open-ended questions about the other person. One shows respect for the other person’s freedom and dignity by waiting for an answer and respecting the other person’s feelings, thoughts and desires. Abusive communication does not confirm one’s freedom and right to autonomy, and it questions the person’s will and emotions. This might lead to a disturbance in the growth of this person’s self-awareness. Nonverbal messages are more important than verbal ones but more difficult to identify. They form experiences “saved” in the subconscious emotional sphere. Verbal messages get “recorded” in the cognitive sphere, but sometimes they remain in conflict with experience on the emotional level. Abusive communication may be of psychological, physical or sexual nature or take the form of neglect. It is perceived as a lack of acknowledgment or respect and violation of boundaries. Abusive communication causes anxiety and withdrawal or anger and aggression. In the case of children’s relationships with their parents, children – in spite of those feelings – make adaptations because either they want to be loved and to love, or they assume that the adult knows better (because they are “grown up”), or they have no other choice (for example, they cannot move out of the home as they are young and could not survive). Of course, types of communication that parents use with their children depend on their own childhood experiences and their own patterns of attachment (Buchheim, Schmucker, and Kachele 2001). Experiencing a particular type of communication with a closely related adult in childhood creates some sort of attachment: either trustful or anxious – avoidant, ambivalent or disorganised (chaotic). Psychotherapists should pay attention to the fact that their interventions and interpretations could be abusive, and this should be avoided. Through person-oriented

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communication, psychotherapists strengthen the client’s identity as a worthy person. There is a close interdependence between the internal functioning of individuals and their relationships. Established patterns of behaviour relate to both the perception of oneself as a person and to the close relationships one has, based on the type of attachments that have been formed. Relationships refer to both the whole person and to all of the person’s “constitutional parts”. In the integrative treatment of mental disorders, psychotherapists are particularly involved in working with emotional and cognitive-behavioural patterns. Attachment theory and the research relating to it indicate the importance of both repressed painful emotions and cognitive patterns.

Strengthening of a Person in Psychotherapy The integrative psychotherapy model was called in the past the “therapy of strengthening a person” (Association of Christian Psychologists 2009; Ostaszewska 2012). Figure 3 shows a schema of the integrated approach to healing in psychotherapy. A therapist serves, in a sense, as a substitute for a closely-related adult who should: ƒ help to reveal experiences from childhood that were too difficult for clients, to activate their repressed emotions, to acknowledge the person’s right to have these emotions and feel them, and to provide a corrective experience on the level of emotions; ƒ help in the reinterpretation of these events in order to correct negative cognitive schemas; ƒ assist in developing new habits of behaviour, including the clients’ habits of noticing or becoming aware of themselves; ƒ assist in raising awareness of one’s own decision-making processes, which is possible during a therapy process with an adult. All these interactions take place in the therapeutic relationship and may include an analysis of the client’s relationships in terms of transference and countertransference. Such an approach takes into consideration the clients’ spiritual dimension and the fact that the psychotherapist’s reactions to their information about their spirituality may respect or negate their spiritual experiences. Psychotherapists do not acknowledge spiritual experiences when they ignore them or describe them in psychological terms, especially when these descriptions are not correct. At present it is

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clear that psychotherapists can openly talk with their clients about their religious or spiritual beliefs and experiences (Norcross 2011; Worthington et al. 2013; American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Evidence-Based Practice in Psychology 20064; Moreira-Almeida et al. 2016). Psychotherapists assume that every sick person has something healthy inside that is a basic tendency of being a person, inherent in every human being. Every human being is a person and is also becoming one (Wojtyla 2000; Rogers 1995). When a person does not exist fully, they destroy themselves in a way. Their body produces signals, expressed as symptoms, that call for a change in an aspect that is extremely important to this person as a whole. Achieving this change should eliminate symptoms (see Figure 3). In therapeutic work, therapists deal with real life experiences, repressed feelings, functioning but often unconscious beliefs, and actual behaviours. A psychotherapeutic relationship is considered a true and authentic relationship, although the roles of therapist and client and the rules of this relationship are determined by a contract, and therapy deals with transference.

4

“EBPP [evidence-based practice in psychology] involves consideration of the patient’s values, religious beliefs, worldviews, goals, and preferences for treatment with the psychologist’s experience and understanding of the available research” (American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Evidence-Based Practice in Psychology 2006, 278).

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Figure 3: Integrated approach to work on change in psychotherapy Source: Association of Christian Psychologists (2009).

The desired change is embedded in: 1. uncovering of past experiences (through insight); 2. experiencing feelings that used to be “unbearable” (thanks to a safe therapeutic relationship); 3. directing the emotions “to the right address” (to overcome transference); 4. experiencing previously repressed emotions;

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5. changing of beliefs – into true, constructive ones, connected with energy and a drive to live; 6. changing of behaviour – into constructive, effective conduct (having intended outcomes); 7. strengthening the person as a whole; 8. enhancing the awareness of decision-making processes; and 9. integrating spirituality into the healing and development processes.

Relation to other Schools of Psychotherapy Psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioural approaches are crucial for integrative psychotherapy with a Christian approach. Elements of humanistic-existential and systemic therapies are also applied (Association of Christian Psychologists 2009). Basic elements of different psychotherapy schools are recognised: ƒ A psychodynamic approach focuses on the importance of childhood experiences; the existence of unconscious processes and their impact on other experiences; the influence of emotions on thinking, decisions and activities; and the significance of defence mechanisms, transference and countertransference. ƒ Cognitive-behavioural therapy focuses on the significance of core beliefs; automatic thoughts; processes of learning; and positive and negative reinforcements. ƒ Humanistic-existential therapy focuses on the significance of all aspects of a person (including body, feelings and emotions); the potential of the person; the significance of relationship for forming and adjusting attitudes; and the meaning of suffering and death. ƒ Systemic family therapy focuses on the significance of the family and social system for the growth of a person and their relationship schemata. The influence of biological factors and physiological processes on the formation of attitudes and other reactions is recognised. The psychotherapeutic relationship and the psychotherapist’s self-awareness is always important for psychotherapeutic process (Norcross 2011; Evans and Gilbert 2005; Prochaska and Norcross 2003). Psychotherapists are obliged to have their own individual therapy and other forms of “self experience”.

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In comparison with other approaches in psychotherapy, the following differences can be observed: 1. The existence of free will is recognised and understood as an area within which a person may desire something and make decisions. The possibility of conscious decision making grows with maturity. That is why children’s responsibility for their behaviour is not discussed. However, during the therapy, psychotherapists can work on conscious decisions or choices made by adults. 2. Psychotherapists acknowledge the existence of the objective truth understood as external and internal facts, psychological mechanisms, and Biblical truths. 3. Psychotherapists can distinguish between psychological, spiritual and pseudo-spiritual experiences (Ostaszewska 2017, 55).

Psychotherapeutic Techniques Techniques applied should be adapted to the client’s problem, the stage of therapy and the client’s abilities. Typical techniques applied in psychotherapeutic work are clarification, paraphrasing, verbalisation, confrontation, and interpretation. The therapist’s attitude is flexible and open to what clients bring into a session (Ostaszewska 2017, 63; Gabbard 2005, 99). The therapist can, however, propose structures that make therapeutic work clearer for the client. When working on the sources of the client’s problems, particular attention is paid to internal connections between emotions and beliefs. Many beliefs from childhood are connected with too difficult emotions and in adult life are not conscious (they seldom appear as “thoughts”). Thus, discovering repressed feelings and beliefs connected to them is an important part of the therapeutic process. It is assumed that effective change requires involvement of the whole person. Therapy requires an appropriate use of techniques for working with emotions as well as cognitive and behavioural techniques. The socalled “personalistic” techniques are used for strengthening the awareness of decision-making processes and self-awareness of the person as a whole. Spiritual techniques, such as talking about the client’s spiritual experiences or religious aspects of the client’s problem, are applied if needed. This approach emphasises the therapist’s person-directed attitude towards the client and use of open questions. The therapist not only refers to the client’s consciousness but also uncovers unconscious layers, paying

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attention to any nonverbal information, double signals and nonverbal feedback. In the author’s opinion, the lack of a sense of control in situations experienced by the client plays a crucial role in the development of psychological problems. When the resultant anxiety is internalised, it can lead to unconscious defence mechanisms that manifest as maladaptive anxiety or actions later. The therapy process should restore clients’ sense of being in control by empowering them in general and by specifically strengthening the weakest areas of their functioning or correcting the faulty ones. It is necessary for diagnosis to include the emotional, cognitive, volitional and behavioural levels (as per “the car model”) and, if necessary, also the spiritual level. Regaining a sense of being in control means acquiring an ability to deal with anxiety. This is related to autonomy and separation. Discovering the sources of habitual reactions and beliefs is very important. A technique of integrative psychotherapy uses the scheme “Experience – Emotion – Beliefs – Behaviours” (E-E-B-B). Thus the psychotherapist looks for: (1) experiences too difficult in childhood without support from significant people; (2) emotions associated with them that are usually repressed; (3) beliefs resulting from these experiences, which are usually unconscious and underlie what seems obviously real to the client; and (4) behaviours related to these experiences (see Figure 3). Unblocking feelings is necessary by activating the emotions repressed in situations too difficult for a child and expressing them in their right context. This enables the client to be in touch with current feelings. The psychotherapist works also to reveal unconscious cognitive schemas that have been active since childhood but are inadequate for life as an adult. Activating repressed emotions is necessary to discover unconscious beliefs and so to generate insight. These stages of emotional, cognitive and behavioural work may interlace (Ostaszewska 2017, 67–72).

Spiritual Dimension Spirituality is treated as a reality and not as a defence. It is recognised, however, that while contact with God can be real, it can also be illusory. A therapist should be able to make such a distinction knowing the criteria of healthy versus disturbed spirituality. In relation to the client, therapists try to note the spiritual process in its coexistence with the psychological

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processes. In practical terms this means applying therapeutic skills, if there is such a need, in the following respects: 1. Providing help in integrating healing and psychological growth with spiritual growth. 2. Gaining understanding of the client’s spirituality, and distinguishing between healthy spirituality (based on freedom and a personal relationship with God) and disturbed spirituality or religiousness (based on rigid schemata and psychological defences). 3. Applying, besides typical therapeutic techniques, Biblical arguments enhancing the process of change, and showing that a change is also advantageous in spiritual terms (for many people spiritual motivation is deeper and more important than psychological motivation). The specific goals of the psychotherapy process (directed at psychological health) may seem different from the general objectives of spiritual growth, but they do not contradict each other and can exist simultaneously (see Table 1). A psychotherapist should be aware of this. On the psychological level, the task lies primarily in obtaining or regaining a sense of influence over aspects of life that depend on oneself. On the spiritual level, awareness and acceptance of one’s own limitations, mistakes and sins opens a person to receiving mercy and grace from God. Giving up on one’s own influence is possible when a person has a sense of control. On the psychological level the pursuit of happiness is the goal. However, at the same time, on the spiritual level it is important to be able to accept suffering that cannot be avoided and therefore to endure it rather than fight against it. The main objective of psychotherapy is healing. When this has been achieved, one faces the natural challenge of growth, which in the spiritual dimension means the development of love for oneself, for other people and for God. The process of healing should not be in conflict with fulfilling spiritual goals of life.

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Table 1: Comparative examples of psychological goals of psychotherapy and spiritual goals of life Psychological level Gaining an ability to consciously influence aspects of life that depend on oneself. Independence. Taking care of oneself. Pursuit of health and happiness. Doing everything as if everything depended only on oneself.

Spiritual level Truth – awareness and acceptance of both talents and limitations, and one’s need for mercy and grace. Freedom, together with acknowledgement of one’s dependence on God. Love – acceptance of God’s love, and loving one’s neighbour as oneself. Acceptance of the suffering which cannot be avoided or which it is better to endure than to fight with. Trust in God as if everything depended only on God.

Source: Adapted from Ostaszewska (2012).

Specific details connected with Christian anthropology can appear in a psychotherapeutic process, for example the following: the image of God, which can be influenced by transference processes; emotions (morally neutral); moral responsibility (only for decisions and acts, not for emotions); differentiating between real guilt and neurotic feelings of guilt (the fear of being accused) or between the effects of psychological mechanisms and free will. Many clients want to talk about spiritual or religious issues with their therapists (Worthington et al. 2011; Moreira-Almeida et al. 2016). Jack was a client of mine who agreed that I could use his letters in my book (Ostaszewska 2015, 2017). After reading a draft of this article, he wrote the following comment (my translation of the original Polish): Ann, I like this article, because I find myself almost in its every sentence, and I'm not talking about my testimony, but a theory that is verifiable in my life. The origin of disorders corresponds perfectly to my personal experience. The paragraph about communication that confirms or denies a person is very important for me (at home I experienced abusive communication, I know how it is). Your presentation of the topic is very clear, important, and very logical for me.

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Integrative Psychotherapy: A Christian Approach And now about spirituality in psychology. The experiences of the last difficult and extremely painful months of my life just confirmed to me that in my case any attempt to help that ignores the spirituality and God makes no sense and will not have any effect. I live only because I believe in God. I had many moments when it was hard for me, and if it hadn’t been for God and faith in final things, I would have run away a long time ago from striving for a normal life. I might have been dead now. Now, it is faith that allows me to accept suffering of varying intensity experienced every day. Interestingly thanks to the trust felt in the midst of my difficulties, I found the real presence and closeness of God. Someone who does not believe in God cannot understand me and cannot help me. I share with God the subjective suffering that I experience, and therefore it has meaning. I'm not running into unreality. Such experiencing of the suffering with God is the true reality. At this stage of my life, faith is a force that makes me continue fighting for my life, for its meaning, and when it is possible, I will return to meetings with you. Faith makes me want to fight for myself. When someone tries to exclude it, it takes the motivation away from me. Then nothing remains. Then nothing could motivate me to fight for myself.

Scientific Research In recent years a lot of research on the effectiveness of including spirituality or religiosity in psychotherapy has been conducted (Worthington et al. 2013; Ostaszewska 2014). Scientific research in this regard concerns both spiritually integrated therapy in general and Christian psychotherapy in particular. Research indicates that the Christian approach is as effective as other forms of psychotherapy (Wade, Worthington, and Vogel 2007; Worthington et al. 2011). In some cases it is more effective, especially in the treatment of religious individuals (Martinez, Smith, and Barlow 2007) and in the treatment of depression (Propst et al. 1992; Hawkins, Tan, and Turk 1999). Today spirituality is reflected in the healing of various psychiatric disorders such as depression, sexual abuse (Murray-Swank and Pargament 2005), manic depressive syndrome (Raab 2007), anxiety, stress and eating disorders. In the American literature the phrase “spirituality and religion” is used precisely in the context of psychotherapy. Recognised definitions of spirituality and religion exist. In this respect Smith, Bartz, and Scott (2007, 643) write as follows: The term spirituality refers to transcendent experiences with and understandings about God or other forces in the universe, whereas the term religious refers to an institutionalised system of beliefs, values, and activities based on spiritual creeds (Kelly 1995). Individuals can be

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spiritual and religious, primarily religious but not particularly spiritual, or primarily spiritual but not religious. Both concepts have consistently been found to be relevant to mental health (Koenig 1998), and religious-spiritual approaches to psychotherapy have the potential to address clients’ religious-spiritual concerns when relevant and to involve language and interventions that demonstrate respect for clients’ religious-spiritual contexts.

Pargament, Murray-Swank, and Tarakeshwar (2005, 155) write as follows: Drawing on several lines of research we note that: (1) spirituality can be a part of the solution to psychological problems; (2) spirituality can be a source of problems in and of itself; (3) people want spiritually sensitive help; and (4) spirituality cannot be separated from psychotherapy. It is based on a theory of spirituality, empirically-oriented, ecumenical and capable of integration into virtually any form of psychotherapy.

Conclusions Integrative psychotherapy: a Christian approach integrates especially psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioural approaches in treating mental disorders. It accepts the majority of techniques used by other psychotherapeutic schools. It contains also specific elements such as a view of the individual as a person in a personal relationship with God, the original model of the integrative work on change, and it takes into account the spiritual sphere of life. This approach is based on anthropological Christian assumptions and therapeutic methods proved by scientific research, which provide a clear framework for psychotherapeutic praxis and the evaluation of therapy results.

Sources American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on EvidenceBased Practice in Psychology. 2006. “Evidence-Based Practice in Psychology.” American Psychologist 61, no. 4: 271–85. Association of Christian Psychologists. 2009. Integrative Psychotherapy: A Christian Approach: Definition, History, Literature, Method of Psychotherapy. Warsaw: ACP Information. Buchheim, Anna, Gesine Schmucker, and Horst Kachele. 2001.“Rozwój, wiĊĨ i związki: nowe koncepcje psychoanalityczne” [Development, attachment and relationship: new psychoanalytic concepts]. Psychiatria Polska 35, no. 4: 549–71.

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European Movement for Christian Anthropology, Psychology and Psychotherapy. 2006. http://www.emcapp.eu. Accessed March 19, 2017. Evans, Ken, and Maria Gilbert. 2005. An Introduction to Integrative Psychotherapy. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Gabbard, Glen O. 2005. Psychiatria psychodynamiczna w praktyce klinicznej [Psychodynamic psychiatry in clinical practice]. Kraków: WUJ. Hawkins, Rebecca S., Tan Siang-Yang, and Anne A. Turk.1999. “Secular versus Christian Inpatient Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Programs: Impact on Depression and Spiritual Well-Being.” Journal of Psychology & Theology 27: 309–18. Holmes, John. 1993. John Bowlby and Attachment Theory. London: Routledge. Kelly, Eugene W. 1995. Spirituality and Religion in Counseling and Psychotherapy. Alexandria: American Counselling Association. Koenig, Harold G., ed. 1998. Handbook of Religion and Mental Health. San Diego: Academic Press. Martinez, Jennifer S., Timothy B. Smith, and Sally H. Barlow. 2007. “Spiritual Interventions in Psychotherapy: Evaluations by Highly Religious Clients.” Journal of Clinical Psychology 63: 943–60. Moreira-Almeida, A., Avdesh Sharma, Bernard Janse van Rensburg, Peter J. Verhaegen, and Christopher C.H. Cook. 2016. “WPA Position Statement on Spirituality and Religion in Psychiatry.” World Psychiatry 15: 87–88. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/wps.20304/full. Accessed March 19, 2017. Murray-Swank, Nichole A., and Kenneth I. Pargament. 2005. “God, Where are You? Evaluating a Spiritually-Integrated Intervention for Sexual Abuse.” Mental Health, Religion & Culture 8, no. 3: 191–203. Norcross, John C., ed. 2011. Psychotherapy Relationships that Work. New York: Oxford University Press. Ostaszewska, Anna. 2012. “Anxiety Therapy from the Perspective of the Integrative Psychotherapy: A Christian Approach.” Christian Psychology Around The World 1: 58–75. http://www.emcapp.eu. Accessed March 19, 2016. —. 2014. “Badania nad efektywnoĞcią wáączania tematyki duchowoĞci i religijnoĞci w psychoterapii” [Scientific research on the effectiveness of including spirituality or religiosity in psychotherapy]. Psychoterapia 2: 5–18.

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FACE AND IMAGE IN CHRISTIAN PSYCHOTHERAPY ELENA STRIGO1

Abstract This article discusses the traditional Eastern patristic concept of face applied in psychotherapy and the role of word in constituting the person. The word is to be regarded not as an ordinary linguistic element but as a meaningful concept of a symbolic order that structures the person. The face is considered not as physical substance but as a speaking image created by the word, through which the image of God may express itself in person (divine representation). The reality of the person displays itself in psychotherapeutic investigation in the form of an empirical personality (face) which is composed by a semantic frame. Under the influence of evil the semantic frame transforms; it generates the discourse of unlikeness (guise). Symbolisation derived from the divine image restores in a person the creative potential of the spiritual order and builds up the discourse of likeness. Keywords: Image of God; person; psychotherapy; divine representation; face and guise; likeness of God; face semantics; the discourse of likeness

Introduction In the Eastern Christian patristic tradition the triad of divine representation (ɥɢɤ), face, and guise (the mask) form the fundamental perception of a person. It indicates a concentrated spiritual experience and the essence of the patristic view of man. The concepts of face and mask from traditional Eastern theological thought are used in Christian therapy to motivate the 1

Elena Strigo is a psychotherapist and the president of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Society of Christian Psychologists and Psychotherapists.

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investigation of three modes of personal existence of a patient. They represent the core role of face in the structuring of personal selfknowledge and self-identification in the therapeutic study of the person. As a basis for comprehending the person, this article aims to present a spiritual view of the origin and structure of a person. Person as a specific human reality is a representation of the visible and invisible, material and spiritual modes of being. The main representation of person is face – a raw material of self-perception, a set of self-representations, the manifestation of the ontological essence of a human being, and the image of God as a part of it. This “thickness of the substantial crust” (Florensky 20062, 32) is presented in psychotherapy as empirical personality, which is also a matter of transformation under the influence of evil. The questions arising in psychotherapeutic investigations of the effects of this influence are suggested in the following contemplation.

Face and Guise In Orthodox consciousness the human face is perceived as a mirror of the struggle between Good and Evil. This struggle takes place inside the human soul. The face is what indicates internal transformations of soul and enables these to be externally perceptible to others. The face belongs to a person; it is a sign of victory over sin and the sign of achieved Holiness. The guise or mask is the sign of a soul subjected to the power of evil. When a person is deprived of life-giving spiritual sources, the face “stiffens as the mask of a possessed passion” (Florensky 2006, 37). Paul Florensky,3 in his ideography of a person in the iconographic context, assigns the face the place and role of the announcement of the divine, seen as real. The dynamics of “the moment of ascent into the heavenly realm, and the moment of descent into the earthly world” (Florensky 1996, 44) are reflected in the face. The formation of face, which is the “raw material of the ontology” (Florensky 2006, 33), takes place not only through the person’s subjective perception of what is reflected in the multiple mirrors of other faces, but 2

Quotations in English from the 2006 Russian publication of Florensky’s Iconostasis [ɂɤɨɧɨɫɬɚɫ] (Saint Petersburg: Society in Memory of Abbess Taisia) are the author’s own translations. 3 Paul Florensky, Iconostasis (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1996), originally written in 1922.

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also through the spirit. The essence of a person is the image of God; it is not visible, though the face is the knowable phenomenon, the matter perceived by the daylight consciousness. The question that arises is which mirror is instrumental in forming the person’s self-image and personality. Like the icon painters who “are philosophizing with their colours” (Florensky 2006, 35), the person possesses a face as a creation realised by a word. From the earliest attempts of personal self-discovery and selfrepresentation there has been confusion between the word and speech concerning the person. The word is meant to be the bearer of God’s transfigurative light and creative power. Speech, in its turn, introduces a body of perceptive material to constitute the person. For the person the word and speech are the mirrors for self-knowledge and self-identification. Florensky (2006) points out that the face, as an expression and embodiment of reality, serves as a mediator between the knowing and knowable. The face has a function of revealing and externalising a reality that comprises self-identifications and self-knowledge. The face evolves from psychic raw material. It is the substance that is the common ground of the subjective and the objective, before these are clearly articulated or distinguishable. It is the area of creative elaboration, the body of meanings to be framed by the Word of God. The positive meaning of the face directs us to the divine representation (ɥɢɤ), which is an embodied God-likeness, the evidence of the heavenly realm in the person. The divine representation (ɥɢɤ) is the likeness of God incarnated in the face (Florensky 2006, 33). The meaning of face becomes negative when it turns away from the image of God. The guise (mask) not only refuses to reveal to us the image of God but acts in the opposite direction, deceiving us, falsely pointing to the non-existent. The mask pretends to be a face but it is empty in its essence. It is the result of the transformation of the person under the influence of sin. The guise is a manifestation of the person that has been detached from the person’s essence because of the invasion of evil. The face is meant to manifest the spiritual essence of the person, bearing witness to the eternal sense, the pre-celestial beauty (Florensky 2006, 34). The face that has separated from the person becomes a guise. Iconography aspires to represent in the face the holiness of the person, externalising the beauty of the divine face but not as “artistically and tastefully developed […] artwork” (Florensky 1996, 44). Pavel Florensky approaches divine representation (ɥuɤ) in icon painting explicitly as a phenomenon of wonder. Similarly, in a person the divine image is

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unfolded wonderfully within the naturalism of personal attributes and selfperceptions. When we pass from ordinary reality into the imagined space, naturalism generates imaginary portrayals whose similarity to everyday life creates an empty image of the real. The opposite art – symbolism – born of the descent, incarnates in real images the experience of the highest realm; hence, this imagery – which is symbolic imagery – attains a super-reality. (Florensky 1996, 44)

The reality of face does not refer to a physical form of the person but to a word about a person. The main mirror by means of which a person finds his or her self-representations is the word that primarily belonged to others. The self-image, primarily formed as a reflection of the word spoken about one, eventually becomes one’s own face. This leads to the following questions: What is the place of the word representing the person’s relationship with the image of God and its role in selfrepresentations? What happens to this raw face material in its relation to the image of God and under exposure of sin? What are the effects and related phenomena as they are disclosed in therapy?

Face and Psychotherapy In psychotherapy, the reality of face is displayed in articulated selfrepresentations, forming and defining the person through the word. The semantic framework made by this articulation constitutes a discourse. The question is whether we also have a specific discourse organised by the word transformed by evil influence. The same word would have a different meaning when used in the semantic domain of sin. It leads to ugliness where divine beauty is meant to be. Pavel Florensky notes that “the face is the light mixed with the darkness; it is the body, fractionally corroded with the plagues that disfigure its beautiful shape” (Florensky 2006, 37). The effects of sin reside in the word and are discernible in the face; in its ultimate form, its transformation results in madness. In response to the transforming function of ugliness, the face might find the path either to redemptive likeness or, by creating a mask, to the semantics of unlikeness. The sin is dissolved in illusions or fantasy, which would conceal the ugliness of the face, making it possible to avoid repentance and weeping for the Lord. Under the influence of evil, the word that forms the face, the mirror in which one sees and acknowledges oneself, cannot remain unchanged. The

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word would change and, consequently, transform the semantic field of the person, which influences self-representation. The face is a phenomenon of reality, the matter that makes people real to themselves and others. Consequently, the semantic changes would produce real transformations in a human subject; the guise, despite its illusory nature, thus becomes real. From the clinical point of view, this is the reality of symptoms based on phantasm. The guise, as revealed to us in psychotherapy, is the split-off part of the essence of the person under the influence of evil. The split-off part forms a certain image represented in the word about the self, which hides the ontological truth, thus constituting the mask (the semantic frame) around the hollow space in which the absence of truth obscures the image of God. The constellation of the void and mask, disclosed in therapy, is the articulated reality of a person, which reappears in the form of symptoms. This guise does not allow the light of the divine representation to illuminate the face, and thus sin becomes invisible to the self. Sin obstructs the essence and stops the self-knowledge inherent in the divine word. The mask is the alienated person’s set of self-representations, distorted by sin and evil. The word performing the mask now comprises the fictional body of meanings of the patient. This body of meanings now represents their empirical face, with which they have to identify. This body of meanings then would perform an interplay with inner and outer reality. The guise always contains the effects of evil and sin as its constitutive elements. Evil becomes a part of the personal discourse. The assimilated evil and sin become a part of the face and the basis for self-identity. The face is a metaphor that goes far beyond the naturalism of individual attributes constituting an empirical personality. It embraces the whole structure of a person, the whole body of one’s semantics. Like every metaphor, it is to be read as a mystery. The face is a text that may be apprehended as a work of art, not as a materialised dream but as a contemplation of the image of the heavenly order. To read the face is to apprehend it symbolically as the sign of a divine image. In the first place, it is a face created by the word of God-likeness. The face is a thing of a symbolic order. Its essence is found as a result of creative spiritual work that constitutes its reality, through which the image of God declares the truth about a person. Jacques Laɫan, introducing his concept of discourse as a dynamic interrelation of signifier and signified, expands this concept to any activity of the subject unfolded according to the laws of the language, and not just

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to speech utterances (Lacan 2008, 9). The discourse of the subject is written or recorded in the form of a chain of signifiers (Lacan 2006), in which the subject personally never disappears, as an insignificant author, but is necessarily in attendance, presenting to the signifier. This means that the dialectical relations between the signifiers structure the face and the body of meanings. Taken together they compose the semantic field of personal discourse.

Regarding the effect of trauma and its influence on the face, the following questions will be addressed: What does the face look like when moulded under the influence of evil? How do evil actions influence personal discourse? What kinds of transformation can the face endure? Probably the most famous faces that integrated with their mask identity are known due to Sigmund Freud’s analytical work. Daniel Paul Schreber (Freud 2007), whose memoirs present a highly detailed picture of his psychotic state, showed a person who perceived himself as real only when completely identified with his imagery. He investigated his real face obtained from the image of a woman’s identity. Through this female image of himself he recognised his true face and, at length, the destiny to be a wife of God. In psychosis his self-cognition turned into a form of a speech about himself, the mirror, reflecting his ‘true nature’, through the creation of an imaginary character, a mask, elaborated in many details, which finally became a complete literary form, a book. As Florensky would say, “the image of ascent […] even if bursting with artistic coherence, is merely a mechanism constructed in accordance with the moment of its psychic genesis” (Florensky 1996, 45). Interpreting the case of Schreber, Lacan (2014) 4 points out that the structure of delusion clearly discloses the role of the word and speech in the relationship of the imaginary, real and symbolic orders: “what inside the subject requests recognition in their own terms – the genuine symbolic exchange [...] is replaced by the recognition of the imaginary, a

4

Jacques Lacan, The Psychoses, The Seminar of Jacques Lacan, Book III 1955– 1956, edited by Jacques-Alain Miller, translated by Russell Grigg (London: Routledge, 1993).

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phantasm”, and “what was rejected from the symbolic reappears in the real” (Lacan 20145, 67). What is discarded and rejected from one’s personal image, what does not find a word for its expression, returns in the real, but in the reality of delusion. The word not converted by the symbolic order, the word disabled from reflecting the painful truth for the person, is invalidated. It is deprived of its potential to associate an event, fact or representation with its meaning. This brings us to ask what reappears in the real order, and how it appears. The speech of persons about themselves returns in the form of the story of a patient for which there is no possibility of symbolisation, in the form of delusion; something shows itself in the language of aberration and allusion. This is the word-puzzle that is always turned towards the other. The other may be a real person or the inner empirical face of a person. Without the other, the speech does not make sense. In the case of Schreber, his story is presented as a coherent narrative, a discourse, finally having made out the new form of his own subjectivity. It is the desire to establish and consolidate himself in such speech, language and word that finally enabled him to record this new image. What then is the function of this new face? In this connection, Lacan puts the question of how seriously one relates to reality. The normal subject never takes certain parts of reality seriously – but what does it mean to take parts of reality seriously? And how does one determine which part of reality is not to be taken seriously? A serious attitude, according to Lacan, is one that refers to the word, to what a person can take responsibility for, on the other side of which there is the presence of a big Other – the presence of the image of God, one would say. For this reason Lacan postulates the need for a certain number of signifiers standing behind the set of relevant meanings, which make sense together. In contrast, in the case of Schreber, he emphasises Schreber’s identification with the whole world of meanings, everything being of equal importance, and he himself being a location for the whole world of phenomena. He is the whole world, “whatever it is, from hallucinations to interpretation, it may concern” (Lacan 2014). His new personality is articulated with abundance, with richness, which makes 5

Quotations in English from the 2014 Russian publication of Lacan’s seminar on the psychoses are the author’s own translations; cf. ɋɟɦɢɧɚɪɵ, Ʉɧɢɝɚ 3: ɉɫɢɯɨɡɵ, 1955–1956 [The Seminars, Book 3: The Psychoses, 1955–1956], translated from the French by Alexander Chernoglazov (Moscow: Gnosis).

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his message a literary discourse. Through this discourse he brings us into the structure of another being. But, says Lacan, although Schreber is a writer he is not a poet. He does not introduce us to a new dimension of experience. Poetry is where an introduction to new experience through the presence of another being makes that experience ours also. Poetry serves to reinforce our sense of the authenticity of such experience (Lacan 2014). The system of similarly associated meanings in the language of the patient tends not to consolidate around words extending to fundamental signifiers. The appearance of a particular word in speech, as shown by Lacan, brings a validating power of signification that produces “transmutation in the womb of meaning” (Lacan 2014, 53). Fear and the fear of God are different homonymous signifiers. The interrelation of signifiers generates the duality, relative to which the person is to determine how his or her real fear will be symbolised, whether as schism, ambiguity, vague anxiety, a state of panic or as the beginning of wisdom. “The fear of God is not one of those signifiers that are lying on the road” (Lacan 2014, 70). To be able to replace many fears by the fear of Being, the only one of His kind, it is necessary to be a poet, says Lacan. What is the internal structure of this meaning? What is its power and efficacy? It is very likely, resumes Lacan, that the minimum number of fundamental points of connection between the signifier and the signified that are required for a human being to be considered normal is measurable, and that when these connections are removed or broken, the result is a psychosis (Lacan 2014). Hence, following Lacan, a question can be posed for therapeutic investigation, namely what conditions or terms are required in order for the person to sustain the discourse in which the fundamental signifiers are enabled to make their symbolic work. How to reclaim a discourse from a state of disintegration, and what terms within the discourse are involved for depersonalisation to manifest? The face is a discourse that makes the person real. Its reality is symbolic and is dual – the word structuring the person dwells in two worlds, and its symbolism, apart from structuring personal subjectivity, is meant to lighten the way to the God-likeness. The face, like an icon, is aimed to lead the consciousness in the spiritual world. Florensky (2006) points out that if the artwork does not go beyond itself, it is by no means an artwork; in this case we speak of a fail or of daubery. The person created was not meant to be mere daubery (Florensky 2006, 50) and is responsible for his or her God-likeness. The face is responsible for the discourse. The fundamental points, the signifiers, which connect and attract the meanings of what is articulated, as a semantic body, are aimed to lead the person

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beyond sensual perception to another reality, so that all the meanings share the same ontology – they become what they symbolise. They represent the discourse of likeness. If the word does not contain the divine light, it evinces on the one hand the darkness of self-descriptions and creatively (metaphorically) unexecuted language material, and, on the other hand, aloof and impersonal language that is rigid, illusory and fixed in the form of a symptom. The “shapeless mass of ideas” (Lacan 2014) makes the guise attractive for the illusory freedom of self-determination. The guise, constituting the discourse of unlikeness, may be a shelter for the psyche where, behind the multiple words of illusion, one can forget about the mystery and wonder of one’s face. Disguise is an identification design built around the void of unreality; it is a distorted semantic space, the sign of depersonalisation. Sin penetrates into the whole structure of a person and hides the essence of the person, which is the image of God. The person, having been disconnected from his or her essence, becomes a hull, a mask; the divine light cannot reach the person’s consciousness to steer it into the heavenly realm. The person has become divided in his or her very structure. The mask detached from the essence fuses with symptoms and takes the shape of a mental disorder. Considering that the identification of the face with a mask remains, sin and evil have become part of a discourse, namely as the unit of a symptom and as the constitutive element of personal semantics. Evil has entered the compound of the language in which the person expresses and acknowledges himself or herself. The evil word acquires the function of a mirror, the role of which from this point is to discard the person’s accurate self-perception. Evil has become a premise to any further articulations of the face. The identifications made on the assumption that evil is an essential part of a person constitute the discourse of unlikeness. How much are we resistant to evil? For an example, one can refer to the story of Rat Man published by Sigmund Freud in 1909 in the case study “Notes upon a Case of Obsessional Neurosis” (Freud 2007). It is a story of a young attorney who was suffering from unbearable thoughts and compulsions. The pseudonym “Rat Man” was given to him by Freud to demonstrate the subject of the patient’s obsessive thoughts. During military service the patient worked with a lieutenant who was known to have a sadistic streak and was an advocate of corporal punishment. The lieutenant described to this patient a cruel form of punishment, which involved placing a container of live rats on a person, so there was no way for the rats to escape other than gnawing and digging through the victim. This idea, however repulsive to him, entered Rat Man’s mind and he

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began to obsessively fear it happening to his partner or his father. He was unable to subdue the irrational fear of this happening to a friend or relative. Not going too deeply into the details of Freud’s psychoanalytical interpretation of this case or disclosing the family constellation in the patient’s history, Lacan illustrates the whole puzzle of the syndrome by stating: “This phantasmatic scenario resembles a little play, a chronicle, which is precisely the manifestation of what I call the neurotic’s individual myth” (Lacan 1979). He adds: “Myth is what provides a discursive form for something that cannot be transmitted through the definition of truth” (Lacan 1979). Lacan gave the answer to this puzzle by stating that the neurosis was a protest against “the unfillable gap constituted by the symbolic debt” (Lacan 1979). However, the rat story and the idea of being vulnerable to the eventuality it describes (both Rat Man’s own vulnerability and that of his relatives) raise the questions: to what extent are we resistant to evil, and is neurosis the only form of protest? Creating a punishing scenario involving the persecution of relatives is a mask through which the obsessive personality finds the only way to disclose wounds blamed unconsciously on the relatives. On the other hand, the narrator of this obsessive story dwells in a myth of his never-ending vulnerability and total insecurity in the face of evil and sin. The atrocities portrayed in the rat story affected the young man’s mind as deeply as if they had been inflicted upon him; what is more, his family’s imagined vulnerability was unconsciously symbolised as his own debt, which then made a hole in his identity. This hole is an empty space where the truth must be spoken. The self-representation is structured around this emptiness to cover the unanswered question of what the person’s real debt is in such a case. The word of evil has made changes in the personality. It has formed the person’s vulnerability, which has become obsessive; this is not only a clinical aspect but also a spiritual one. The rigidity of the person’s mask chains the evil to the face in a way that presents as unresolvable. Vulnerability as a structural component of selfimage would imply evil as a part of personal spirit. From this point the vulnerability and the evil are inseparable. Any sign of vulnerability opens the door to evil. The suicidal impulses of a patient seem very logical from this point of view as a means of ending this apparent impasse. It is for the divine spirit to convert the vulnerability of a personal being into a readiness to interrogate the limits of evil. Is there any space for another symbolisation to show how powerful the evil is and where its magic ends? For the human word nothing is impossible; its power is great. But the word distorted by sin usurps this power to adverse effect, so that vulnerability, insecurity, guilt and malignity are unrestrained.

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The potential to resist evil is to be discussed in the context of a personal response to the all-permeating power of sin and the potential to sustain the redemptive inaccessibility to evil. It is a matter of achieving a steadiness of face before the multiple mirror reflections that the word of evil produces as if they belonged to oneself. Apparently, distortions of one’s face are reflections of the mask of the other, who is the bearer of evil and sin. These mirrors are words that reflect the person’s face, inserting into the reflection the meanings of evil. Sin becomes a fundamental signifier – equal to or even more powerful than the divine word – which constitutes the discourse of unlikeness. The latter forms a foundation for personal disorders, of clinical and spiritual origin. This is not only about a person having a more sensitive nature or unresolved conflict. The symptom has also been formed through the patient’s incorporation in a symbolic structure of interrelated meanings that renders the influence of evil and sin inescapable. The person has been convinced that the distortions that the other by their word imposes on him or her are irresistible and irreversible. At this point the question of the lie in the symptom is disclosed. The place and the role of lie in the symptom formation is a matter to be further examined from a spiritual point of view. This distortion of sin leads to the patient’s conviction that their response can only be in a roundabout way, as though they can respond only through the imaginary, by means of the word-puzzle, the metonymic as if or what if. The patient addresses others with a certain symbolic message but with the symbolism of an imaginary, illusory plan of phantasmagoric solution to the problems of relationships, in a form of the grotesque. The wider the schism between the divine representation and the guise, the more severe is the symptom. Inside the guise all meanings (signified) are vague and chaotic, but on the other hand the meanings are rigidly tied to each other, which obscures the symptom. A face identified with the mask has the naturalism of the simple face (Florensky 2006, 35), residing in the empirical image of one not “transformed by renewing of […] mind” (Romans 12:1–3, NKJV). God’s image does not shed its light on the entire composition of the person, the whole body of semantics, establishing signifiers of the image and likeness of God. Psyche (the subject) cannot hold the discourse of the likeness; it does not give a way outside the person’s own subjectivity to the personal structure given ontologically. The semantics of the person’s subjectivity is too blurred and vague, and he or she lacks the face with its reality of the predetermined way of God likeness. A psychic subject dwells in its singularity; hence it is vulnerable and easy to destroy. The triad of the subject/psyche, the face/person and

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the divine representation could be seen as a framework for the stability of personal discourse accomplished in symbolisation of spiritual order.

Conclusion For the patient to sustain discourse, it is essential to realise that the person is real. The reality of the person is an ontological reality of his or her essence. The singularity of a subject encloses him or her in a reality of psychic raw material and empirical personal being. The world invisible is presented only as a dream or a fantasy or in delusional form. Such material is too vulnerable to the evil invasion. Evil becomes a part of the discourse; its semantics is wrapped around the self-absorbed person, the ultimate form of which is a discourse of unlikeness. The face, which forms the person, reflects only itself. However, the person in his or her core is the image of God. The fact that person is real means it cannot be erased by fantasy and illusion because the image of God is indestructible. To turn to the likeness is to escape from the simplicity of empiricism to the symbolisation of the spiritual order, which impels the transition from the empirical personality towards the symbolic through the appearance of the face. The face becomes symbolic in the word distinguishing good and evil, creating a spiritual reality in the person. The patient is to believe that nothing in his or her face has been so distorted that it cannot undergo a symbolic transformation, not just to assimilate itself to or imitate any good attributes but rather to reveal a living, real person, behind whom is only the face of God. This true personal structure is represented in the face by a meaningful word. The face emerges from the void only when the semantic space of the personality is rectified in therapy. “The face receives the clarity of his spiritual structure, unlike a simple face […] not because of external reasons but in its very material reality” (Florensky 1996, 47). This material reality is language. There are two types of discourse: discourse of the Divine Law and discourse of evil and sin. Both create a semantic space of personal being. The basic principles of iconography governing how the divine image becomes an icon, when transferred to how the face articulates itself, illustrate how the descent of the word of God and the ascent of the human spirit, raised by the word, constitute the discourse of likeness in a person. “All the random in the face that is not the face itself is pushed back by the

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energy of the image of God that clogged the key: the face became a divine representation” (Florensky 1996, 46).

Sources Florensky, Pavel. 1996. Iconostasis. Translated by Donald Sheehan and Olga Andrejev. Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press. —. 2006. ɂɤɨɧɨɫɬɚɫ [Iconostasis]. Saint Petersburg: Society in Memory of Abbess Taisia. Freud, Sigmund. 2007. ɋɨɛɪɚɧɢɟ ɫɨɱɢɧɟɧɢɣ ɜ 26 ɬɨɦɚɯ. Ɍɨɦ 4. ɇɚɜɹɡɱɢɜɵɟ ɫɨɫɬɨɹɧɢɹ. ɑɟɥɨɜɟɤ ɤɪɵɫɚ. ɑɟɥɨɜɟɤ-ɜɨɥɤ [A case of obsessional neurosis. Rat Man. Wolf Man. Vol. 4 of Collected works in 26 volumes]. Saint Petersburg: East European Institute of Psychoanalysis. Lacan, Jacques. 1979. “The Neurotic’s Individual Myth. The Seminar on the ‘Rat Man’ – 1952 to 1953.” Translated by Martha Noel Evans. The Psychoanalytic Quarterly 48, no. 3: 425. http://download1649.mediafire.com/hjv0weltiizg/8dj0cz5mcqb126f/19 530101+Lacan+Neurotic%5C%27s+Individual+Myth.docx. —. 1993. The Seminar of Jacques Lacan, Book III: The Psychoses 1955– 1956, edited by Jacques-Alain Miller. Translated by Russell Grigg. London: Routledge. —. 2006. ɋɟɦɢɧɚɪɵ, Ʉɧɢɝɚ 7: ɗɬɢɤɚ ɩɫɢɯɨɚɧɚɥɢɡɚ, 1959–1960 [The Seminars, Book 7: The ethics of psychoanalysis, 1959–1960]. Translated by Alexander Chernoglazov. Moscow: Logos, Gnosis. —. 2008. ɋɟɦɢɧɚɪɵ, Ʉɧɢɝɚ 17: ɂɡɧɚɧɤɚ ɩɫɢɯɨɚɧɚɥɢɡɚ, 1969–1970 [The Seminars, Book 17: The other side of psychoanalysis, 1969–1970]. Translated by Alexander Chernoglazov. Moscow: Logos, Gnosis. —. 2014. ɋɟɦɢɧɚɪɵ, Ʉɧɢɝɚ 3: ɉɫɢɯɨɡɵ, 1955–1956 [The Seminars, Book 3: The psychoses, 1955–1956]. Translated by Alexander Chernoglazov. Moscow: Gnosis.

EMOTIONAL CHAOS THEORY AND THE EMERGENCE OF PERSONAL IDENTITY: A POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY THAT COMPLEMENTS CHRISTIAN ANTHROPOLOGY TREVOR GRIFFITHS1

Abstract This article is an extended hypothesis about the development of human personal identity in the triune image of the One Living Creator, God. It is framed in relation to the new science of chaos theory and adaptive systems, in which living order may be understood to emerge from chaos through consistent feedback. In orthodox triune theology, the expressed Word that creates life arises among the One God’s three personal substates (hypostases) in eternal loving communion, who provide feedback for each other. In human systems, the parallel relevant expression for a healthy, balanced personal identity to form is proposed to be pre-cognitive emotional information physically messaged and received between people, who thus make a social system. One human conversation requires mutual contributions from more than one human personal sub-state (“Where two or three gather in my Name...”, Matthew 18:20, New International Version). Pre-verbal, early emotional information in parent–child conversations can have a lifelong epigenetic effect on mental and physical health (Early Intervention Foundation 2017) and on later social well1

Trevor Griffiths, MA (Oxon), MBBS, MRCGP, is medically trained. In 2003 he founded the Emotional Logic Centre in Devon, UK (https://emotional logiccentre.org.uk) and now trains trainers internationally to introduce a brand of emotional literacy teaching into schools, healthcare, business, and church settings to equip people of all ages to adjust and adapt to change with less distress, thus preventing mental illness and socially disruptive behaviour.

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being, defined by Ryff (1989) as a state characterised by self-acceptance, positive relationships with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth. Cognition, including self-cognition, is proposed to emerge and transform throughout later life from a preformed substrate of self-beliefs and beliefs about the world that thus have been emotionally pre-shaped, creating emergent personal identity. While a maladjusted emergent personal identity may be restored by a lived relationship with the Holy Trinity, maladjusted beliefs, cognitions and feelings from memories may reactivate whirlpools of loss emotions in present-moment interactions that harm behaviour and relationships. These may trap people in distress or tension and limit their capacity to adjust and adapt to change. Jesus in his humanity experienced all these loss emotions but did not get stuck with them in whirlpools, as we can. We can learn from his divinity how to choose to turn emotions to Godly purposes that energise loving relationships when change has pushed people out of their comfort zones – a positive psychology. Keywords: Emotional chaos; emergent order; positive psychology; wellbeing; loss and grief; personal development; Jesus Christ; Holy Trinity; conversational skill; lifelong learning

Introduction Hierarchies of embedded systems, one influencing another This article presents a hypothesis to be tested by choice in each person’s life. It is not a hypothesis that can be tested by the old Enlightenment science method of controlling environments so that repeatable experiments can confirm or refute whether causes have predictable outcomes. For the last century this has been the basis of experimental psychology – measurement of behaviour or reported feelings under controlled conditions to predict future outcomes. The hypothesis presented here, about the emergence of healthy personal identity from uncontrolled physical–social environments, involves a Kuhnian paradigm shift of thinking (Kuhn 2012) into the new science of chaos (Gleick 2008). This new science can mathematically model natural non-linear dynamic systems – also called complex adaptive systems (CAS) (Cilliers 1998). This new science can map probable, but ultimately unpredictable, outcomes that follow from unmeasurably dynamic initial conditions. This makes the new science a science of self-organising, transformative life, not an old science based on dissection into parts. The paradigm in new science thinking shifts from the

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human being as a rational mind experimenting on and observing closed life, to the human being as a living participant having choices in open life with others. Our scientific understanding of nature must correspondingly shift to include personal choice as a transformative agent central to our understanding of nature’s dynamics. Hence the emergence of ecological science with its awareness of humankind’s participatory role, for example in pollution, or building unsafe roads. This article identifies a parallel between this adaptive self-organising principle of life and one theme in St Paul’s letter to the Ephesians on adapting to unity by Godly grace and love. This article explains by a series of diagrams how human personal and spiritual order can emerge socially in nature by participating in triune principles of organisation. These are the same principles of God’s grace that underlie every hierarchical level of order (every system of interactions) in Creation. It is these simple rules of Godly organisation that give God’s love a foundationally greater authority and power for life than any other power or principality in Creation that would steal or distort God’s love and truth to bring death. The fact that these simple rules of organisation can apply across widely divergent systems (physical and organic) explains why there is a universe, not a multiverse, and also why the brain, organising information using the same triune principles, is capable of orientating a person’s physical responsiveness in his or her dynamic social environment. Systems of interaction are embedded in a hierarchical order (Meadows 2008). For example, brain information processing is embedded in a physiologically sensitive body, which is embedded relationally in genetic family (Bowlby 2006) and households; these are in turn embedded in communal neighbourhoods, which have embedded in them also political, racial or religious group identities – and so on. A human being’s immune system, endocrine system, brain system and social messaging systems all have their internal organisation, and all influence each other’s dynamics. This creates the unpredictability that is as much a feature of responsive life as is the emergence of stabilising order. Any one of these systems can, however, get stuck in unresponsive habits, trapping life in maladaptive ways that generate disorder in one or more parallel systems. Restoring mutual adaptability is synonymous with healing love – agape love – which restores not just an individual’s mind but the whole of Creation, in which humanity is embedded physically. “For God so loved the world that He gave…” (John 3:16, NIV).

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Dust and Land Emerge from God’s Loving Grace Fact or parable, the truth is the same: Adam and his wife Eve were two piles of dust (Genesis 3:19, NIV). The fact that you and I now can understand each other, and each know that to some extent we may misunderstand the other, is an awesome feature of present-day piles of dust, communicating at a distance across space and time through this written word. Scientists and religious-minded people alike have marvelled at how dust can shape itself up into breathing, communicating, transforming and living bodies. It is an ongoing miracle, the continuous creation of living order out of a dusty chaos that might otherwise blow away in the wind. Adamah is Hebrew for the ground. Adam is a living creature, humankind, emergent from the ground in living relationship with the Creator God. The land (Tarazi 2009, 23–44; Munayer and Loden 2012) and dust (Werothegreat 2008) are concepts that have more complex meanings than ground but are related to it by emphasising the physicality of the ground in Creation. Expressed in terms of our evolving 21st century scientific cosmology, it could be said that the ground of all being, God in a Christian anthropology, is knowable to us human beings (Romans 1:20, NIV) through the physical world of energy that is entangling and transforming at quantum level into the atomic/molecular picture of matter, which scales up consistently through string theory vibrancy to the astronomical universe. Thus, when I talk about a pile of dust, I mean – in a Christian anthropology – a pile of dust that is full of the vibrancy of a loving God, the grace-filled ground of its being. Jesus said to some Pharisees who wanted him to rebuke his loudly praising disciples, “I tell you, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out” (Luke 19:40, NIV). St Peter picked up a similar theme about Jesus and his disciples in 1 Peter 2:4–9 (NIV), describing Jesus as a living Stone. His disciples were also described as living stones being built around the capstone of Jesus into a spiritual house, a living temple declaring the praises of God. The difference between a pile of dust and a living stone is the main theme of this article, in which it is proposed that emotion has a far greater role than cognitive psychology currently recognises. Each pile of dust that we call a human being is mixed with water into a very dilute solution of mud. Ever since the fall of humankind into selfawareness, people have clothed the surfaces of their mud to enhance its beauty or to protect it from traumas. In such a separated self-aware state, each individual may easily forget that his or her living body beneath those

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seemingly constant surfaces is continuously self-organising out of God’s ground. Bodies and matter so easily look constant, but every cell of a living body is in continuous turnover. Via food bought in supermarkets, lotions and drinks, the dust of human bodies is continuously reorganising in one shared physical environment, the land. It can be a cooperative or a competitive process, but it is not an individual process. Bodies emerge from the land in a give-and-take trade, in which God is the ground of all being but in which God’s grace for our free existence can be so easily forgotten. A false analogy is, “food is like energy to my body, as petrol is to my car”. It is not! A correct metaphor would be, “petrol is somehow turned into the car’s seats, windows, steering wheel, body, engine and exhaust, and they all belong to God”. This process of continuous turnover of the human body’s water and dust happens in a relationally cooperative or competitive off-balance with others. Consciousness (knowing with another…) is birthed in that process, whereby one can look on the other as I and Thou (Buber 2004). Of course, the scientifically trained mind can attribute the source of this selforganisation to the effects of double-stranded DNA and perhaps worship genetic chemistry as the cause of life. However, that ignores the origin and vibrant nature of the dust. The four diverse nucleotides that string into lengths of DNA are made of atoms that also are continuously made, at quantum level, by the same energetic movements of exchanges and entanglements from which the land emerges. The Christian anthropology presented here takes that emergence a step even deeper, into the heart of the One Living God, from and in whom all energy and matter is dynamically created, sustained and reconciled. Three centuries before Jesus of Nazareth walked this earth, Epicurus, towards the end of the Golden Age of Greek classical philosophy, developed an atomic theory of matter that had first been proposed by Democritus two centuries earlier (Brown 1990). The search has been on ever since for the smallest indivisible particles out of which our living experience of the world is made. People have perhaps subconsciously worshipped atoms for millennia (or other types of impenetrable solid substance to hide behind), hoping to set themselves free from the influence of gods in whom they have no trust. This is Epicureanism, ancient and modern. When Rutherford subjected the atom to a so-called split in 1917, having theorised the nuclear model of the atom, he opened the door eventually to quantum physics, which has since subjected atoms to so-called splits into

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ever smaller and fleetingly transient so-called particles. It is as if the human mind cannot let go of its hope for some substantial thing – some particle – to find peace and rest behind out of sight of gods. I believe humanity has a pervasive fear of loss of privacy. This leads people to want to hide behind substance rather than be at peace together in substance. This fear is so strong that it blinds most people’s minds to a fact that is well known to physicists. Every so-called particle is in reality a mathematical probability cloud – a field of energy influence. A particle is a transformative energy event of a field. It appears when there is a simultaneous transformation of another interacting field (commonly pictured as two particles colliding). The particle is, however, a soft and flimsy wave in which a relational event has brought change. The energy fields remain. They are not nothing, as we shall see. Matter is cyclical patterns of transforming relationships (wave-particles) within the fluid substance of interacting fields (Williams 2016; Lincoln 2013).

Logo-dust Explaining this hypothesis about personal development has reached the depth of thinking where the concept of words becomes necessary. Between human beings in a spoken conversation, words are analoguepatterned movements of molecules that constitute the air between us. These molecules are less densely packed at high altitude, where the environment and its moving, transformative words are quieter. Therefore, at high altitude, one human being (as a pile of moving dust) who intentionally generates words to convey meaning to another pile of dust who is, for example, walking towards danger, will need to communicate more assertively and with more effort than at lower altitude. We human beings are embedded in our environments, within which we are continuously forming and transforming and communicating. In the modern world, many technologies have been developed to diversify the intentionally expressed interactions between individual human beings (writing, radio), so that word-based transformative events can occur more easily. The concept of words in matter is, however, not new. St Maximus the Confessor (c. 580–662 CE) integrated the classical Greek concept of words (logoi), as unique packages of meaning, with the stillrevolutionary trinitarian Christian theology (Thunberg 1995). Under the influence of the Emperor Constantine, trinitarian theology had politically superseded Greek classical philosophy throughout the educated world as a

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description of life. A word has its relational existence because it is generated from a source and dynamically transforms the receiver of that word. St Maximus proposed that every entity we can identify in our lives (worldly and spiritual) has its inner logos – an inner dynamic transformation – that interactively transforms others in a string of continuous words that create life. He applied this concept to Jesus of Nazareth also, as the living Word – the Logos – generated from the One Creator God as Father, asserting the Chalcedonian orthodoxy that Jesus as one Person expressed that creative Word of God equally through both human and divine natures. This mystical theology and anthropology of St Maximus is a direct and absolute rebuttal of an atomic (digital) concept of self-existent particles of matter. Particles are neither self-existent nor solid. Particles are moving, transforming focal points where and when logoi (words, fields of transformative influence) interact. Expressed words thus change one pattern (one extended form) into another that is energetically equal but different in its dynamics. These energetic transformations of a conversation thus occur, so to speak, around an equals sign. In fact, all of Creation revolves around an equals sign; for example, as seen in Einstein’s famous equation, energy and mass are in a transformative relationship, the quality of which is equality, E = mc2. Particles are not solid. Particles are potentials for patterns of connectedness to change. Words also are potentials for patterns of connectedness to change. This hypothesis stands on an assumption that the probability fields described by present-day quantum physics (as the nature of all energymatter) are one and the same as the logoi described by St Maximus (as the nature of all energy-matter). Einstein is venerated by the scientific community for his general theory of relativity. St Maximus the Confessor is venerated by both Eastern and Western Churches as someone who upheld the Truth of One Creator God in whom all things hold together relative to each other and God. Science and religious anthropology can meet around this remarkable concept. Therefore, when the Judeo-Christian-Muslim religious texts assert that mankind is dust, and to dust will return, the concept we should fill our minds with is not a digital, atomic, inanimate, particulate, dry, randomising end to our human destiny. It is logo-dust, alive with the abiding potential for renewed life, in God’s grace freely given to those who humble themselves and rest in the substance of God’s love.

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Personhood One God as three sub-states – hypostases – that create life The council of Chalcedon in 451 CE is a tipping point around which the history of the Christian Church, and the later religion of Islam, spin. It is also surprisingly relevant to the personal development outcomes of secular and Christian psychotherapy. The orthodoxy affirmed at Chalcedon (Kelly 1977, 339–43) is that the One Almighty God – to be living, and to engage with the Created heavens and earth to guide human social behaviour – has a power of communication that is integral to the divine nature. To explain this, the term “Person” was invented. In ancient Greek theatre, actors wore a mask called a prosopon, a face by which the actor declared the part he or she played in the story (Zizioulas 1997, 27–49). Early Christian theology used this idea to conceptualise the three-Person revelation of God at the baptism of Jesus, God present and communicating from beyond, in and through Creation (Matthew 3:13–17, NIV): ƒ the knowable form of Jesus, showing the willing obedience of a Godly Son of Man, as also living Word of God in Creation, by his decision to go through baptism in water for righteousness sake; ƒ the voice of the Father, declaring Jesus to be “My Son, whom I love”, who is the generated Word of God as Father, not created, but radiant image and true likeness; ƒ Holy Spirit, who proceeds from the Father to empower and move life into the fullness of its diversity, settling on this Son of Man and God. The Greek word that the early Christian Fathers used for “person” is hypostasis, translatable as sub-state. The life of the living, loving God is revealed in Holy Persons who are three eternally co-responsive sub-states of One God. They are not attributes of God; their dynamic mutual responsiveness, as different modes of being, is the love of One Living God. From this love, Creation teeming with life in heaven and on earth is continuously created, sustained and redeemed.

The personal Almighty God beyond and through Creation All three interactive sub-states of One Living God were thus present at Jesus’s baptism, in and through the world. This overcomes simultaneously

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the two theoretical extremes of pantheism and polytheism, which Christianity is keen to avoid so as to remain true to Judaic monotheism. God is thus not a person. Almighty God (Elohim) is living and personal. To affirm God’s call on Moses, God gave for all time the name Lord – YHWH – Who I am will be (or, I am that I am), for God’s People. These names, Elohim (Almighty God) and YHWH (Lord), Moses heard spoken as he stood in awe at the burning bush (Exodus 3:13–16, NIV). God is a relational God present as Creator in and throughout Creation, but not one and the same as Creation. This personal Almighty God and Lord, the Genesis story tells us, created human beings male and female in relationship with God, and declared them to be in God’s image and likeness. This article presents a hypothesis that is consistent with the new science of order emerging from chaos, averring that God’s image and likeness means being diverse, evincing personally relating sub-states of Creation as a whole. In human parlance, “person” is a term akin to “father”, “sister”, “friend”, “employee”, “citizen”, and so on. These terms all innately imply that there is another. For example, to be an employee there must be an employer, and so on. Each status or mode is therefore a sub-state of some greater conversational whole, of a relational system. A human person is a relational individual (Gunton 1993). A person is an individual of a people. The term “personal” thus does not mean private. It means an individual who contributes unique living movement to a social or systemic reality. A whole person is incomplete alone.

Living Motion Emerges from God’s Substantial Grace One living God has an attribute of substance The Chalcedon declaration (451 CE) states that God’s three sub-states are of one essence (Latin esse = being or to be; Gk. ousia). In English translation, essence is rendered as substance, that upon which something else foundationally stands – its being or existence (Concise Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins 1986). English substance and Greek hypostasis (sub-state) are conceptually related except for one important distinction: -stance suggests something still and stable, while -stasis for state in new science systemic thinking (Cohen and Stewart 1995) implies something relationally dynamic and stable. This inner dynamic is inherent also in God’s name YHWH, because “Lord” is a personal term implying

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the subservient otherness of all Creation and a specific relationship of God with a Chosen People. A further important foundational point is that the English term “sub-state” is conceptually related to two concepts, both substance and understanding. Dualistic thinking has separated these concepts unhelpfully in English, so that they are imagined to refer to different physical and mental conditions respectively. However, this hypothesis about triune principles of organisation in Creation, derived from God’s three relating hypostases, reintegrates body and mind into one systemic understanding of shared personal life. Emotion, as we shall see, is foundational to this emergent personal level of life, more so than cognition.

An icon of triune principles of organisation – the triquetra The triquetra (meaning three corners, but not a triangle) shown in Figure 1 is an ancient Celtic icon for the eternal dynamic that underlies all that seems constant. Following the widespread Celtic conversion to Christianity, this icon came to represent the Holy Trinity. The three corners are labelled here with the integrative principles that bring order out of chaos in any relational system. The three peripheral spaces show how these principles derive from three revealed sub-states of One God. Further exposition of this icon is beyond the scope of this article, except to say that in this figure the central space represents Creation emerging from one integrating dynamic of love among three Holy Persons.

Substantial grace The hypothesis that this article asks each human being to test, about emergent personhood, is this: The substance of One God is the loving responsiveness of communication between God’s eternal sub-states, in which all humanity is invited to participate, and, on responding to this invitation to participate in God’s love, humanity will have a transformative experience of God’s grace. The proposition behind this hypothesis is that grace is the primary Creation from God’s love. Grace is the powerful presence of God’s unmerited responsiveness to restore life, eternally, somewhat like the springiness of a trampoline when a human being falls. God’s love holds people. The human experience of that may be called grace. At this primary

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level of redemption into grace, after creation and fall, there is no separation between physical and mental. It is a resurrection of a whole personal sub-state of Creation.

Figure 1: Triquetra representing triune principles as the substance of Creation. Source: Griffiths (2015)

This concept of loving responsiveness as the foundation of Creation may be called substantial grace. The substance of God’s grace, from which all Creation then emerges, may be pictured as the waters of Genesis 1:2 (NIV) over which the Spirit of God was hovering. If those waters are the grace of God’s love, then God truly creates out of nothing other than God’s unending life. The waters of God’s substance as grace could be imagined to fill the central space of the triquetra, a formless void over which Holy Spirit hovered bounded by space, time and God’s responsive presence (which is heaven). Across this substance the Father spoke His Word (Logos), stirring waves of change that we know and understand as light. Photons of light energy reflect and entangle as interference patterns through the central space of God’s grace, emergent forms thus appearing in creation by the empowering and diversifying movement of Holy Spirit, as Christ the firstborn Son over all Creation apportions grace in his

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Father’s will (Ephesians 4:3–13, NIV). The Son holds in Truth and grace all movement, responding to redeem and heal into unity, fulfilling God’s Word in Creation.

The human Fall into tripartite thinking

Figure 2: The heresy of tripartite thinking Source: Griffiths (2015)

The fallen human mind, however, hiding from nakedness, tends to split unities into separate or separable parts to analyse and control them (Figure 2). This then means having to decide (nonsensically) how they mystically interact with each other, because each part seems a self-existent entity. Such tripartite thinking about God and human nature is at variance with triune Christian understanding. Figure 2 shows this tripartite heresy. The human being is neither tripartite nor self-existent; the human person is triune and systemic. The mental capacity to split objects into parts to analyse changing situations is helpful,

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but only when balanced by an equal capacity for reintegrative thinking after diversifying the ideas. This is triunity – diversity in unity. Unfortunately, the human condition is such that letting go of cherished ideas about self-existence generates seriously deep loss reactions. These are dynamically real. They are physical. They systemically impact other lives and the whole order of Creation. When emotional loss reactions become self-defensive, they thus turn mere fleeting analytical ideas into spiritual strongholds.

Figure 3: Triune conversations Source: Griffiths (2015)

The true image and likeness of human persons is shown in Figure 3, which could be imagined embedded within the central space of Figure 1. Indeed, one of these conversational triquetra could represent the living God relating to a human being who has felt excluded from God’s heart but is now being welcomed back as a prodigal. (Figure 5 shows how these conversations can scale up into communion.) Following the line with your finger will give an experience of the utter interchange of a relationship, affecting simultaneously the substance and mutual understanding of two or more persons.

The Fall of Creation, and its redemption in Christ The same conversational order generates waves across substantial grace. In Figure 4 the Father speaks change, creating a sine wave through substantial grace that in space and time changes one form via the relatedness of Holy Spirit into another form. All thus transforms in unity

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within the Son, each form diversifying as it emerges from within as an utterly interrelated triune dynamic.

Figure 4: Energy-matter: logo-dust Source: Griffiths (2015)

Unbalanced tripartite thinking (and even bipartite thinking about body and mind) causes deep disruption of this emergent order. At the whole person conscious level, emotional loss reactions occur through misunderstanding, disagreement and separation between people. Ordered life emerging from substantial grace then breaks up into a chaos of deathly conflicts by creating division and violence. This affects even the Christian Church worldwide (Griffiths 2015), all Abrahamic religions, and every area where social disintegration follows, dividing the human psyche from a conversational reality in which reintegrative thinking could otherwise heal. Tripartite thinking sees body, spirit and soul as discrete, separable entities, which somehow mystically interact: body flesh may seem to be gritty molecular particles moved only by outside forces; spirit a pre-material but ontologically real and impersonal life force; soul an eternal selfpossession. In triune thinking, by contrast, soul is life – resurrected and relationally formed and transfigured from within by the call of One who loves you. The fact that Jesus wept before raising Lazarus from death (John 11:33–43, NIV) was a sign to those watching that Jesus loved Lazarus. Grief, loss reactions, within a person is part of shared ongoing love, not the end of love. Grief is the part of love that moves people from within towards healing after separation, brokenness and misunderstanding. God’s grief for humankind is the source of the outpouring of grace for

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healing relationship. Partitioned thinking gives scope for mythical powers and principalities to further break the human heart. God’s love, by contrast, overcomes all principalities and powers with grace, restoring ordered life from chaotic brokenness from within the heart. Triune principles of organisation may be defined as the intrinsic balance between form, change and relatedness by which order among diversity-inunity emerges sustainably out of chaos.

A Theological Anthropology of Emotion Emotion is physical; feelings of emotion are not Sir Isaac Newton delayed publishing his theory of gravity (Storr 1989, 98– 9), because he was worried that the scientific community of his day could not accept the notion of a solid physical object (such as an apple falling from a tree) being moved from within by an all-pervasive and invisible force. Newton’s answer was God, which was not acceptable to King Charles II’s newly established scientific Royal Society. A new science equivalent (scaled up) is that a physical, embodied person is emergent from and moved from within by God’s responsive grace. Scaling up from grace to logo-dust organised into human bodies is neither pantheist nor religious. God remains distinct from the Creation as loving Creator. God is in everything by love’s grace, and everything is in God, but they are not one and the same. This is panentheism (Larson 2010). Human beings in Creation are free to disbelieve the existence (the substantial grace) of God. They have the freedom to disconnect their cognitive minds and their conversations from the creative source of life. What they cannot disconnect is the fact (in a triune theological anthropology) that every molecule in their body and every emotive change of their physical-social organisation is grounded in God’s grace. Emotion is the energy of God’s grace in motion. Emotion in human experience is the meeting place of our physical and our spiritual (relational) natures. Salvation should be an emotional, passionate change of our social life. Emotion is rapidly changing social physiology. A human body (including its core brain) prepares emotionally for values-based action in, or withdrawal from, social situations. Feelings of emotion are different. The award-winning neuropsychologist Antonio Damasio has shown how the dynamic body image is constructed in a deeply hidden cerebral cortex area called the “insula” (Damasio 2000). Connections from there with memory

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and limbic systems add ‘meaning’ to the awareness of bodily emotions constructed there. Perceived emotional memories are thus projected from the insula to motor planning areas to modify core level responses. This is a feeling of emotion. It may further influence all higher cognitive processes by feedback loops. Feelings of emotion are thus an individual’s cognitions, which comprise information that is processed in higher brain. They are highly influenced by unique memories accumulated by individuals over time, starting even with pre-natal experiences before language or any adult cognitive framework obscures the primary social nature of true emotion. By contrast, embodied emotion is physically messaging into a wider social network in real time as a person’s presence. It systemically moves interpersonal life, being the social substance of utter relatedness prior to cognition.

Three orientating association areas of the cerebral cortex The higher brain’s association areas connect other sensory, motor and memory areas together, using feedback loops of neurone connections to compare, contrast and integrate elements into complex mental constructs. Three main association areas, well known to neuroscience, construct cognitions of space (parietal lobe), timing (infero-lateral prefrontal lobe) and object reality or presence (temporal lobe). They thus create a mental context in which the body image and its emotional feelings and meanings can be socially orientated. These constructs can all be disrupted, however, by drugs (including alcohol), anxiety, trauma and dementia. Therefore space, time and reality are not external absolutes that human awareness directly intuits. They are socially-gathered information (Brothers 1997) organised to create an impression of self-in-the-world. This occurs by interaction among these three brain association areas with a remarkable parallel use of the same triune principles of organisation that can be identified theologically in primary social Creation. The point to emphasise here is that an individual’s cognitive framework can thus dissociate from his or her real-time systemic engagement in the physical world of emotional transactions. This may occur, for example when day-dreaming or in psychotic mental states. Such dissociations create a personal separation, potentially a spiritual deathliness, a way of living in the head, that will affect behaviour, feelings, beliefs and relationships.

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The Triune Social Construction of Personal Identity Personal identity is the fact of being who or what a person is. It does not mean being a close similarity. Figure 1 is the theological model for personal identity. Figure 3 – the double triquetra – is however the core diagram for ongoing human personal dynamics, as sub-states of a people in communion (Figure 5 below). When people talk, they generate a conversational orientation. Each develops a unique personal identity as a sub-state in that conversational dynamic. Two conversational persons both become orientated in space, time and reality in their diversity – primarily male and female. The innate relatedness of triune principles is thus fulfilled beyond the individual, in someone else’s inner organisation or disorganisation. The mutual movement of this is the apportioning of grace in a personal relationship. Even if the content of the conversation is purely rational ideas, the preconscious intention of the conversation, and the weighting of the concepts discussed, embody this as an emotive process. This puts a dynamic of values into a cognitive relationship without necessarily entailing strong feelings of emotion. But academic arguments can be highly emotional. The grace, however, is generated in the Creative Godhead, where three sub-states choose to remain united in connection despite change and the created emergence of diversity in their grace-filled midst. If each sub-state has a reflective capacity (to make choice possible, and therefore to truly love), then any one sub-state of the One Godhead could look upon the relationship between the other two as a context for its (His/Her) identity. Thus, relatedness could understand itself as Spirit in a context of time/eternity; change could understand itself as Creator/Father in a context of space; form could understand itself as Christ/Son in a context of heaven (the loving presence of God). Understanding could thus be generated in a dialectical relationship of sub-states within the Godhead. Consciousness comes from the Latin con- (with) and scire (to know), to know or be privy to a thing with another or within oneself (Concise Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins 1986). The same would be true of a human being created as an image and likeness, provided that the human understanding of his or her personhood emerged from a triune conversational process (not an individual’s belief in his or her self-existent parts).

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The double triquetra for human conversations shows that, even if cognitively self-separated from God’s grace, one human being is the context in which another human being develops a personal identity (hence parenting). With maturing years, a human being has more experiences to compare within, so that evolving personal identity can be understood. However, personal identity is rooted in childhood emotive experiences. These have lasting epigenetic effects in brain organisation (Early Intervention Foundation 2017); these are effects that do not depend merely on genetic coding but on the person’s experiences and related responses. Instabilities of mental organisation may follow when emotional disturbance accumulates, because a sense of isolation or separation blocks the social purpose of emotion. Mental illness or socially disruptive behaviour may result in breaking the inner tensions of isolation. Other people’s real-time emotions may also be misinterpreted, perpetuating isolated personal states. However, Figure 3 also shows a potential solution, which is a human being praying in the Spirit with the One Creator God (or a human minister of God’s grace). The Father’s firstborn Son now apportions grace to the human being, who may emerge then as a restored person, bringing salvation with the possibility of emotional healing and peace, miraculous physical transformation, and spiritual liberation from strongholds. This may significantly impact the sense of personal identity, no longer that of an orphan but one adopted to be a child in God.

Emotional Chaos Theory Chaos, and emergent order by learned feedback Chaos theory concepts can be applied to personal relationships and mental health, providing new insights into the causes of and solutions or preventive strategies for mental illness and socially disruptive behaviour. The old science of fluid dynamics could analyse laminar flows of water or air, however its analytic method had no way to make sense of turbulence or chaotic fluid states such as rivers flowing over rocks and breaking into spray, or smoke curling into whirls and dispersing. Chaos theory mathematically explains these shifts from laminar flow into turbulent or chaotic states. It can also model possible outcomes after making small exploratory changes to initial conditions. Feeding into the system simple rules of communication can then establish stable patterns for information processing and create the conditions in which stable states can self-

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replicate. At a human social system level, this means stable marriages or partnerships in which diverse parenting skills can later emerge, so that children epigenetically are more stable as they grow into adulthood, thus reducing mental illness and social disturbance. Simple rules for order to emerge simultaneously in individual and social psychology cannot be imposed externally by learning dogmatic beliefs or behaviours. They are integral to the substance of emotional processing by which people adjust to loss by restoring relationships. They therefore can only be understood and fostered into effectiveness by the growth of relational sensitivity in individuals – truly personal development. These simple rules in human social dynamics are the way that seven core emotional states fit together constructively into one integrated process of adjusting – to the loss or potential loss of something or someone valued. Each embodied loss emotion (shock, denial, anger, guilt, yearning, depression, and acceptance in which sadness and joy are mixed) has its own useful purpose as a preparation state for action or withdrawal within this process to prevent or recover from losses. However, because they feel unpleasant, their cognitive associations can complicate and block the adjustment process. Emotional processing of potential loss is essentially a conversational flow of information at two inter-relating hierarchical levels simultaneously: (a) the social physiology of emotion, and (b) its embedded cortical information processing as the individual’s feelings. Order can return simultaneously to both these systems by feedback loops, which means learning in a safe relationship some simple rules about how unpleasant emotions have useful purposes that fit together into one integrated adjustment process during times of change. Self-respect can rapidly improve, bringing a feeling of safety, normality and empathy, and a capacity to make decisions.

Whirlpools of emotion – maladjusted ways to cope with emotional chaos Multiple personal values may be challenged in a changing situation, each generating its own loss reaction. People can feel angry about one loss, guilty about another, shocked about the whole situation, and depressed about the future, all at the same time, so that they do not know what they feel except that it is horrible. The person’s physical state and social messaging can become turbulent or chaotic. A person may temporarily

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lose their sense of personal identity at such times and behave out of character. Other people, receiving mixed emotional messages, may also be confused and feel unable to respond constructively. Empirical work done by the author over two decades – using a set of seven emotion cards with twenty-eight associated feelings cards to map chaotic emotional states (Emotional Logic Centre 2017) – has found that when people repeatedly experience just two of the seven core emotional preparations, for example anger and guilt, their emotional physiology and cognitions disrupt each other unhelpfully, generating distress, tension or confusion states depending on which two core emotional preparations are involved. We call this a whirlpool of emotion because, in the example given above, when the person experiences anger for any reason, he or she will automatically experience guilt also, and vice versa. The resulting physiological and cognitive states become something other than either of these – in this example an inner drive to obsessional or compulsive behaviour, such as self-harming or bulimia. Depression with anger, as another example, produces a different sort of inner drive to destructive irrational action, resulting in confrontation, violence and suicidal thoughts. People who work with convicted terrorists confirm that this whirlpool of emotion is used in radicalisation to create suicide bombers (Hanif Qadir and Mike Jervis, Active Change Foundation, personal communication, February 14, 2016). It is at this rough end of emotional literacy (not the touchy-feely end) that the inner feelings or emotional drives to behaviour can give emotion a bad reputation, so that reason has to be brought in to regulate it. A common view currently among psychologists is that emotion is primarily a product of limbic system activation displayed in an individual’s behaviour, which has to be cognitively regulated to avoid psychopathology (Sloan and Kring 2010). This view undervalues the socially constructive messaging of embodied emotion. Emotional logic is not about inner control of feelings of emotion and behaviour. It fosters emotional understanding as an essential feature of being a constructive sub-state in a social system. Grief emotions and joy are foundational to being a loving whole person.

The Positive Psychology of Love, known equally as Joy and Grief Whirlpools of emotion are maladaptive ways by which people discover they can simplify their emotional chaos. They temporarily generate a

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response to stress with a limited and predictable outcome. This gives a shadow of a sense of personal identity, for example “I am a self-harmer”, as if this is a role played in some Greek tragedy. However, this becomes a trap. The whirlpool of emotion may truly enable survival in difficult circumstances, but over time it will limit further personal growth. The Emotional Logic Centre in Devon provides its students with learning materials and unique chaos-mapping tools for use in a safe tutoring or befriending relationship. These enable a person (a) to know that their overwhelming emotions have truly been heard, (b) to see the emotional habits they have learned for survival, (c) to re-engage safely with the emotional chaos that has been oversimplified in that pattern, and then (d) to explore conversationally in a person-centred way how feedback learning can release that trapped emotional energy to effectively pursue values-based action plans that build honest relationships safely during times of change. This new learning about the useful purposes of unpleasant emotions quickly plants seeds of hope and new order within the personal chaos. The learned simple rules about emotional processing then can nurture emergent personal growth simultaneously in inner cognitive psychology and outer social integration. People emerge able to use this transferable conversational life skill anywhere, anytime, sharing this new understanding with others and thus fulfilling their personal identity in stronger relationships during times of change (Griffiths 2013). Although the learning of emotional logic as outlined above includes mostly the useful purposes of unpleasant loss emotions, this is set within a far wider context of love, which puts such lifelong learning firmly in the domain of positive psychology, defined as the scientific study of positive human functioning and flourishing on multiple levels including the biological, personal, relational, institutional, cultural, and global dimensions of life (Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi 2000). People grieve only if they have loved, in love’s widest sense of connection to something or someone valued. When the joy of love turns to grief on separation, brokenness or misunderstanding, the unpleasant emotions are there for a reason, not just to spoil life or as punishment. They move the person to recover named values by exploring new relationships, thus restoring the joy of love’s connection. A purely cognitive approach to naming personal values is often difficult, if not unachievable. People know what they value only because they experience grief emotions on seeing a risk of its loss (fear, anxiety, anger, guilt, yearning, despair and sadness). Unpleasant emotion is the evidence

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that someone has personal values and the energy to defend them. By normalising and making sense of these feelings, a “butterfly effect” improvement in personal identity may follow (thus, initial minor changes may lead to subsequent major ones).

Neighbourhood, befriending, and communion Lifelong learning of emotional logic complements cognitive therapies (Zahra, Langsford, and Griffiths 2016) by improving the capacity to build relationships, making outcomes more sustainable and generalisable. Because a human being comprises multiple embedded systems, all based on the same triune principles of organisation, when one human being is healed (reconnecting with substantial grace conversationally), the feedback loops that once caused distress can reverse. That person’s identity can change rapidly from being a victim of one’s past experiences and emotions to being one who can bless others by simply being present for them in the social mix of life. Figure 5 shows how the triquetra scales up beautifully to show true communion as interpersonal shared fulfilment.

Figure 5: Communion Source: Griffiths (2015)

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The testimony of a person’s healing could spread its benefits beyond just that individual’s renewed life – so that the family functions better, the children become less disruptive in school, colleagues at work cooperate better, the neighbours are less complaining, and the stomach ulcer settles down. This is called fractal scaling in chaos theory language (Fractal Universe 2014). Imagine that Emmanuel is one of those triquetra, God With Us. A relationship with Jesus brings the potential for peace beyond understanding from deep within that communion. The person Jesus has that influence in a life-giving way that welcomes diversity, discomfort and imperfection into the wholeness as the inevitable seeds of chaos, which come with giving people freedom of choice. In the beautiful journey of Christ through a lost world sharing God’s kingdom in grace, God’s model of healing is not healing the individual from problems. God’s healing is into a dynamic personal wholeness, seeding new beginnings.

Conclusion In the context of psychological therapies, emotion is commonly undervalued as a brain limbic system side effect of thought that disturbs behaviour. This is a consequence of a prevailing individualistic worldview associated with an old science approach to neuroscience that studies living systems by dissecting them into parts. This article presents a new science hypothesis, that personal identity emerges through social construction in which emotional dynamics play a far more foundational role than is commonly assumed. A triune Christian anthropology using a new concept of substantial grace can provide a consistent view of personhood, from a loving, living Creator God through to humans created in God’s image and likeness. This image and likeness comprises personal sub-states of the whole of Creation in conversation with each other and God, relating by the same triune principles of organisation in Creator and Creation. The grief emotions that are part of Godly love can complicate life for human beings, but when untangled by feedback learning can help to restore order from chaos.

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THERAPY OF RELIGIOUS CLIENTS WITH GUILT AND SIN FEELINGS IN CHRISTIAN ORTHODOX PSYCHOLOGY OLGA KRASNIKOVA1

Abstract In this article an Orthodox approach to psychology with specific reference to guilt and sin is presented. The term “Orthodox” is used to indicate the beliefs and doctrines held by the Russian Orthodox Church. Orthodox psychology therefore refers to psychology practised from a Russian Orthodox perspective. The focus of the article is the difference between feelings of guilt and feelings of sin or recognition of sin. Guidelines for psychological counselling focusing on the experience of guilt and recognition of sin are explored, followed by a discussion of the steps involved in the process of repentance. Keywords: Guilt; sin; repentance; confession; guilt feelings; neurotic guilt feelings; responsibility; forgiveness; Russian orthodox theology

Introduction The theme of guilt and guilt feelings has attracted the interest of various psychological schools and approaches, while the subject of sin and feelings of sin or recognition of sin has not been studied so thoroughly. In Russian Orthodox psychology it is impossible to consider these issues separately, since for Christian believers guilt and sin are closely intertwined. There are various reasons why Christians find it important to pay attention to the definition of guilt and sin concepts and to describe the specifics of counselling or psychotherapy offered by Russian Orthodox psychologists in this regard. These reasons will now be explored. 1

Olga Krasnikova is a counselling psychologist, lecturer in psychology and rector’s assistant at the Institute of Christian Psychology in Moscow.

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Guilt and Sin One of the reasons that guilt feelings require some kind of “rehabilitation” is the fact that many psychologists today completely deny the importance of guilt. Psychologists consider these feelings only as destructive emotional reactions which are to be combated. For example, the wellknown Moscow psychotherapist Elena Lopuchina writes that “Guilt feelings are ineffective and even destructive human emotional reactions to self-blame and self-condemnation. Guilt in fact is self-directed aggression – self-abasement, self-reproach and a desire for selfpunishment” (Lopuchina2 2016; my translation). This author describes the experience of neurotic guilt feelings but ignores the possibility of its constructive role in personal emotional and spiritual life. Some psychologists view the psychoanalyst’s task as helping clients to get rid of guilt feelings. One can certainly find an entirely different psychological opinion, expressed by Kozlov (2010) as follows “Guilt is an essential component of personality in cases when a person would otherwise fail to choose socially useful and constructive forms of interaction with other people and groups”3 (my translation). Such a contradictory attitude to this emotional phenomenon requires further clarification of the fundamental fact that the guilt feeling is necessary for the human being and is rooted in personality structure, in values and in the spiritual sphere. Not only is it widely believed that guilt must be combated, but another problem is that the terms “guilt” and “guilt feelings” are usually treated as synonymous, which is not necessarily the case. In addition, they are interpreted fairly one-sidedly as the unpleasant feeling that arises when a person’s action has caused some harm. This is partly true, but the question arises for what reason psychologists sometimes deal with cases where guilt feelings have arisen in the absence of harm done. How are our guilt feelings associated with sin feelings and repentance practice? And why do people sometimes say after confession, “I confess, I confess; I have recognised my fault and confessed my sin but do not feel released and am

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Elena Lopuchina, “Guilt Feelings – Spirituality or Immaturity?” [in Russian], Psychology Today e-journal (July 13, 2016), http://psychologytoday.ru/public/chuvstvo-viny-dukhovnost-ili-nezrelost/. 3 Nikolay Kozlov, “Guilt Feeling” [in Russian], Psychologos (2010), http://www.psychologos.ru/articles/view/chuvstvo-viny.

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still suffering from guilt feelings”? As psychologists, we constantly face questions like this in counselling sessions, lectures and seminars. In the next section, answers to these questions are proposed that could explain such experiences of guilt and guilt feelings. In order to gain clarity, a distinction between the concepts of guilt and guilt feelings is presented.

Guilt and Guilt Feelings The term “guilt” usually refers to misbehaviour, transgression or fault and is associated with the infliction of physical, material or moral damage. The most important aspect of this definition is that it avoids any explicitly negative interpretation of the concept of guilt and does not indicate a direct connection between it and feelings of guilt. This moves one closer to understanding guilt as a form of responsibility.4 Indeed, a person may feel guilty regardless of his or her actual fault. It may be noted that small children under a certain age have no guilt feelings, even though their activities often “cause harm”. Guilt feelings are unpleasant experiences associated with failing to meet personal selfexpectations, but babies have no self-expectations. Children learn to feel guilty step by step, realising that not all their actions and manifestations are desirable and approved. Adults, by explaining to them where they were mistaken and what was wrong about their behaviour, and pointing to the proper way of action, are setting assessment criteria for behaviour, which are initially external but eventually integrated into a person’s own mental structure. Comparing oneself and one’s actions to the assimilated ideal model and realising that the “real Me” falls far short of it causes awkward feelings, tension and uneasiness along with sadness, anxiety and selfdisappointment. This set of physical sensations and emotional reactions is usually called guilt feelings. The function of guilt feelings is to signal when people fall short of their self-expectations or have done something wrong and not what they wished or approved of. Guilt feelings differ from the shame feeling, which 4

James Hollis, Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places (Moscow: Cogito Centre, 2006), 30.

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indicates that a person has not met other people’s expectations. Guilt could also stem from resentment, which is a reaction to our failed expectations of others, of life in general or of God. When a person feels guilty, this signals that attention is required to thoughts, feelings, desires, words or actions, which should be evaluated according to the person’s system of values and beliefs of what is “right” and what is “wrong”. Relevant questions to be asked in this case include: “What has happened? Was there anything depending on me in the situation? Have I done something wrong? Was there an opportunity to act in a different way?” These questions enable a person to define the area of relevant responsibility and help one to understand if there was concrete fault or misdemeanour. If no specific mistake is found after analysing the situation, the person could begin to comprehend that the experienced guilt feeling was false. Then guilt is replaced by regret about what had happened: “I’m sorry that it happened.” If, however, a person finds that they have harmed someone, a psychologist can help them delve deeper into their guilt feelings and perhaps realise and admit that what had happened was not just a mistake but that the person had sinned.

Sin and Sin Feelings It is appropriate here to elaborate on the concept of sin. Russian secular psychology and psychotherapy do not recognise the spiritual nature of person, so there is no scientific and psychological definition of sin. Orthodox psychology takes its explanation of the concept of sin from theology and Christian anthropology. According to Christian teaching, sin is an act or intention, a feeling, a thought, a word, which in its nature is opposed to human beings and their relationship with God and with other people. Sin is not a part of human nature in its essence. Sin is always introduced into human life from outside, as initially there is nothing sinful in the individual human being. From the anthropological point of view, sin is thus something extrinsic.5 Consequently, in psychology it can also be considered extrinsic, alien, not akin to God-created human nature. Metaphors that are frequently used to 5

Andrey Lorgus, “Sin”, in Theological Anthropology: Russian-Orthodox/RomanCatholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions), edited by Andrey Lorgus and Bertram Shtubenrauch (Moscow: Palomnik-Nikea, 2013), 246–51.

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describe human sinfulness include mud, wound, filth, ulcers, and damage to nature. Sin does not belong to the person’s essence, being temporary and extrinsic. Sin can therefore be “washed away” and removed from the soul. A person can choose to either live in sin or get rid of it by repentance. In the next section, how a person chooses to deal with sin will be discussed.

Psychotherapy Practice concerning Guilt and Sin At the Institute of Christian Psychology (ICP) in Moscow, Russia, the psychologists have elaborated on the steps of psychological self-help enabling clients to work (personally or with a psychologist) with guilt and sin feelings.6 A detailed analysis of this development, based on recent years’ experience, is now presented. The ten steps of repentance and confession are: 1. 2.

Realising the guilt feeling. Clarifying one’s relevant responsibility and recognising the real guilt. 3. Repentance and asking for forgiveness. This includes the possibility of reconciliation with others and self-reconciliation. 4. Recompensing for harm caused (if possible). 5. Moral evaluation and self-forgiveness. 6. Transformation of the guilt feeling into the sin feeling. 7. Repentance before God – confession. 8. Joy and relief. 9. Gratitude, generosity, mercy. 10. New experience through a change of attitude towards oneself and others that enhances life. Each of these steps will now be described in more detail.

6

ICP rector, Andrey Lorgus, who is a priest and psychologist, and his colleague Olga Krasnikova developed the technique. The summarised results of this development are presented in their article “Guilt and Sin” [in Russian], Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3 (2010), 165–75.

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1. Realising the guilt feeling When one experiences unpleasant sensations, such as heaviness, tension and lack of energy, it is not always possible to determine their nature and source. Psychological exploration may be necessary in order to understand one’s feelings. Some feelings can “hide” or disguise their true nature, for example by being projected onto others. In certain situations it could take a long time to recognise, identify, acknowledge and verbalise one’s emotional state. This is not such an easy task and is especially difficult for those not paying attention to their own emotional intelligence development.

2. Clarifying relevant responsibility and recognition of real guilt After one has experienced an unpleasant feeling and recognised it as guilt, the first aspect to investigate is its cause. People are reminded that guilt has a signalling function. Questions to ask are: Is there any real fault or misdemeanour that this person has committed? How significant is it? What was the person’s particular responsibility in this situation? As guilt is a form of responsibility, it is important to clarify what is included in the area of relevant personal responsibility and what is not. Questions that can aid this process are: What can we control and change? What can we influence and what not? Areas of relevant responsibility for healthy adults (which will be different in the case of children and sick persons) include all manifestations of their personality, namely thoughts, needs and desires, feelings, attitudes and actions. A distorted vision of one’s own faults or those of others can result from shifting responsibility for one’s own life onto others, from shouldering someone else’s responsibility, or from misconstruing one’s own capabilities and limitations. For example, when people blame relatives for forcing them to do something wrong, they deny their guilt for having accepted others’ persuasions and not defending their own opinion; they thus also deny their responsibility for agreeing to ignore their own rules and values for the sake of pleasing relatives. One and the same action can make someone happy, indifferent or angry; we are not responsible for the feelings and attitudes of other people but are responsible for our own actions, feelings and relationships. Nobody can be blamed for the fact that someone loves or does not love them; the sympathy and antipathy of others depend on many factors that are sometimes impossible to influence.

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If people learned to draw the line between relevant and irrelevant responsibility, it would not be difficult for them to define what is really their fault and what they are not guilty of, as nothing depended on them. As Hollis7 writes: For one to begin to deal with guilt in a mature fashion, recognition is essential. Consciousness involves the recognition of harm done to self or other. It may be that at first one may not legitimately understand the harm done, but when such recognition is available, then consciousness must acknowledge that, yes, I did that, caused that, am responsible for that.

Guilt is one of the most unpleasant feelings, and recognition of guilt sometimes requires remarkable strength and courage. Amazingly, at the same time, people often exaggerate their real guilt or even take on a baseless guilt. In such cases it is necessary to find out the reason why the person, being innocent, suffers from a guilt feeling and takes responsibility for the mistakes of others or for compelling circumstances. Horney8 believed that such irrational guilt plays a key role in neurosis manifestations. In her opinion, persons suffering from neurosis are usually inclined to feel guilty for the slightest reason; they are also far from desiring to get rid of this unpleasant feeling but are literally revelling in their guilt. These persons excuse the truly guilty parties, blaming only themselves and vigorously resisting any attempt to relieve themselves of this burden. When they realise that others have begun to take their selfincrimination seriously, neurotic persons may fall into extreme indignation. All these reactions and actions lack any sound logic but as a rule hold an implicit benefit for the neurotic person. By carefully examining the guilt, manifested in such ways, one can discover that the guilt feelings are really not what they appear to be. For example, a person may exaggerate their guilt or wrongly ascribe blame to themselves in a distorted way by saying “It’s ALL my fault!” or “It’s ALL because of me!” This is an attempt to claim a non-existent power over people and circumstances. For example, a man telling his family history said, “I’m THE BIGGEST piece of trash! I have ruined the lives of three women!” These words displayed his pride in having the power to determine other people’s fates. Such behaviour gives the impression of low self-worth and weakness, which is more burdensome than exaggerated 7

James Hollis, Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places. (Moscow: Cogito Centre, 2006), 32. 8 Karen Horney, The Neurotic Personality of our Time [in Russian] (Moscow: Academic Prospect, 2006), 164.

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guilt, but it feeds the illusion of control and almightiness – “I am the reason for everything that goes wrong”. Thus an irrational guilt feeling serves a protective function, losing its function of signalling guilt related to an actual fault. The system of religious rules, regulations and canons provides a more comprehensive ethical and moral culture than is generally found in a secular context. The religious orientation has an ancient history and advanced practices; it is therefore very important in the spiritual life of the believer who experiences guilt. Christian psychologists sometimes meet religious clients with exaggerated guilt feelings which are not due necessarily to their religiosity, because many other psychological reasons can be pointed out. The problem, however, is that some believers justify their exaggerated guilt feelings by citing religious postulates, interpreted one-sidedly or misunderstood. Sometimes a distortion of religious practice is so obvious that it is difficult to deny that the pursuit of true Christian virtue is not the real issue. For example, there are women who call themselves “the GREAT sinners”, believing that in this way they demonstrate their repentance and humility, although it is more like a manifestation of hidden pride. Since ancient times, experienced ascetics have warned that strong irrational guilt feelings can lead to self-reproach, discouragement and despair, and one can also fall into spiritual temptation. Another distorted perception of one’s guilt involves diminishing or denying one’s own actual responsibility – “I have nothing to do with it”. Such persons unconsciously hide the real guilt from themselves in order to protect themselves from self-disappointment. Thus saving their selfesteem, they can then shift responsibility for the caused harm onto other people or circumstances, but consequently deepen their own guilt and resist change and personal development. When people have committed some error or offence, it presses heavily on them. They may not recognise their guilt, but they cannot help feeling the gravity of the offence. Denial of their guilt will not cancel the consequences of their actions. In this case the psychologist’s task is to help such people to recognise their responsibility for previous choices and for their own life. Conversely, if the psychologist tries to save such people from guilt feelings, he or she will offer a disservice. In the form of guilt, as

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Hollis observes, “denial or unconsciousness adheres one to the past without hope of change”.9

3. Repentance and forgiveness: reconciliation and self-reconciliation After realising and clarifying one’s relevant responsibility and recognising real guilt, the next step is repentance, expressed in the words, “I’m sorry I did it.” There are people for whom true repentance is a heavy spiritual and psychological task that would require subsequent difficult changes, so they try to hide in self-excuses or blame of others. They admit doing harm but do not express regret, trying to find excuses for their actions or to diminish the consequences of the inflicted harm. The following example illustrates this point: A woman, having confessed that she had beaten her child, tried to prove that in some cases physical punishment was a very effective method of parenting. She gave the following reasons: “I was beaten by my mother all my childhood and was black and blue all over, but I have grown up a normal person. So I have beaten and will beat my daughter when she is to blame! If she only behaved properly! How else can I reach out to her? I understand that it is not good to beat my child, but nobody taught me to act differently.” By blaming her daughter for provoking her, this mother did not take responsibility for her choices. Her parents had not provided an example of how to discipline one’s child in a healthy manner, and she disregarded the consequences of beating her daughter by minimising them. Furthermore, forgiveness was not viewed as important, and the situation remained the same or worsened as the mother started to smoke and drink to cope with her stress. Repentance could eventually have caused an improvement in this situation. It is not only repentance that can lead to favourable changes. Selfreconciliation is also required. When doing harm to someone, we are harming ourselves at the same time, and it is also our fault. We could not find the right path, took a wrong turn, got lost, “made a mess of things”, let ourselves down, not kept to human and spiritual heights, and have suffered from our own mistakes. So after the “fall” it is important to recover self-trust, recognising the mistake and coming to self9

James Hollis, Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places (Moscow: Cogito Centre, 2006), 33.

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reconciliation. This is necessary, as moving forward is impossible without self-trust. Self-rejection and the lack of peace in the soul deprive us of energy and prevent us from taking the next step. A sincerely repentant person has the desire to ask the victimised person for forgiveness. Even if for some reason it is impossible (perhaps one does not know the person, or they are not available now or have moved, died or stopped all communication), one can always ask for forgiveness symbolically, in the heart, in prayer. Asking for forgiveness, one may not always receive it, but it is not a goal in itself – it is not necessary to seek forgiveness at any cost. Perhaps the victim does not have enough time to cope with pain, or wants to take advantage of the situation and use the other’s guilt for manipulation. How often a guilty person hears: “I will forgive you only if you or when you...” Forgiveness is a free gift that is not to be earned. The task of the guilty person is to say aloud or silently: “Excuse me, I recognise my fault and I am sorry about what I have done!”

4. Recompensing for harm caused A person can recompense someone for harm inflicted on a physical, material or moral level. Recompensing should be done as much as possible and according to one’s resources and capabilities. For example, a man slandered his colleague and ruined his professional reputation, and as a result the slandered man lost his job and career prospects. The victim applied to a court and the judge imposed a huge fine on the slanderer, compensating the victim for financial losses and moral damage; but the monthly penalty payment had to be limited to a certain percentage of the slanderer’s official salary, because although he was guilty it was felt that the recompensing should not cost him his livelihood.

5. Moral evaluation and self-forgiveness This step could also be taken earlier; for example right after guilt is recognised, in cases violating moral values. The steps are described in the preceding order to indicate that working through the guilt feelings could be completed this way unless the fault violated only moral values or commandments. Otherwise, as indicated, working through guilt may be done through repentance, asking for forgiveness and recompensing the victim for the damage inflicted. By so doing, a person correctly responds to the guilt signal and does everything possible to honourably accept the consequences of making wrong choices.

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In the last step of the process, self-forgiveness is to be fulfilled, as it is necessary to change one’s personal position in relation to the specific guilt. This is the growth point where a transition from “me-action” to “myaction” takes place. It involves separating oneself from one’s action. Differentiating me from an action, event and reality of guilt is the main functional content of repentance. The ability to distinguish between me and mine, according to Frank (1997, 238), is the critical moment when one becomes a person. I cannot repent of what I am, but I can repent of what I did. If I have done something bad, it does not mean I am bad. Coming to self-forgiveness, one recognises the absolute worth of one’s personhood and stops blaming and judging oneself for the misconduct. At the same time it is important to keep rejecting the evil that was done. From this moment on, a person’s conscience is at peace; the guilt feeling has fulfilled its function for this particular matter and should no longer disturb the person. For example, a boy broke his mother’s cup while playing a game, immediately told her about this accident, and asked for forgiveness. He followed this up by buying her another cup from money he had saved. His fault did not violate the commandments and moral laws, so the matter of his guilt was closed. If an action is sinful, then sooner or later the situation is to be assessed from the value system perspective. For example, a boy broke his mother’s favourite cup on purpose to get back at her, purposely to hurt her, because she would not let him go to the movies. Just asking for forgiveness will not be enough in this case – there is also a need for repentance and confession of the committed sin. This step is not clear to non-religious people, because there is no concept of sin in their worldview. However, the religious attitude to one’s own actions, states, thoughts, words and feelings is formed by a more advanced assessment system that is ethical, moral, spiritual and canonical.

6. Transformation of the guilt feeling into the sin feeling In Christian religious practice the slightest guilt feeling leads to an immediate search for its causes, which in turn often results in the recognition of true guilt or sin, based on the subtle spiritual scale of values. In patristic Orthodox practice, some of the spiritual skills are referred to as concepts such as discernment of spirit, sobriety, attentiveness of heart, spiritual watchfulness, and the spirit of reasoning. The functional significance of these spiritual skills is much wider than just

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repentance, self-judgment and self-accusation. For example, the spirit of reasoning helps to distinguish real guilt from false guilt and from sin. Differentiating guilt feelings from sin feelings is required as a precondition for repentance. The respective feelings relate to different aspects: guilt feelings relate to one’s self-attitude, own actions and thoughts, while sin feelings concern one’s attitude to another aspect of being that is alien to the self. Sin is not intrinsic to me as a person; sin is something alien to the soul, like a coating or dirt. It is viewed as something non-essential, and therefore it can be taken away. It can be washed away through repentance and the Sacrament of Confession. In this case the sin feeling disappears, losing its ontological reason. The sin feeling arising from human experience causes a change in personality structure. A special layer of personality is being formed – the attitude to self-sinfulness, to one’s own sins, in relation to one’s conscience and to God.

7. Repentance to God and confession The traditional culture of repentance in spiritual life involves a skill that requires conscious training and practice as well as spiritual guidance. No one is born ready for spiritual life. The art of repenting, of self-observation and self-evaluation comes in adulthood. The sacrament of sin through which God forgives is a supra-personal act, which cannot be the subject of psychological analysis. But the very process of repentance and preparation for confession, as a personal process, may be of interest for psychologists. Thus, two paths lie ahead of a person: deliverance from sin or repression of the sin feeling. Obviously these paths are not equal, from the point of view of either personality structure or personal development prospects. Deliverance from sin requires a high measure of awareness and therefore greater personal integrity. In addition, the release of sin leads to development and strength. Repression is the avoidance not only of sin feelings but also of the sin locus inside the person, involving splitting of the ego, by using unconscious defence mechanisms. The path of repentance leads one to a feeling of growing hostility to one’s sin (in the Bible even hatred towards sin is mentioned).10 At some point a person decides to undertake confession. This refers to the mental willingness and determination to confess one’s sin. It is important to note 10

See, for example, Isaiah 61:8, Proverbs of Solomon 8:13 and Romans 7:15.

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that the transformation of sin feelings into the action of repentance is on a different personal, active, dynamic and developing level. If the confession takes place from both canonical (mystic) and psychological points of view, the confessed sin disappears. The Lord liberates the soul from the sin in the mystical act of the Sacrament – this is the object of our faith and confession, the fact of religious life. Sin, being an injury or wound of the soul, paralyses and binds its powers and abilities. Absolution, the mystical removal of sin from the soul, leads to a dynamic revival, not affective but energetic. Through repentance one regains powers that had been bound, lost or alienated from one’s being.

8. Joy and relief Daring to confess, one brings hope of forgiveness to one’s heart. Anticipating liberation from sin and relief after repentance is a part of the Christian experience. A genuine confession gives a deep and solid feeling of lightness and joy to many believers. People become frustrated when they lack the feeling of release after confession of a particular sin. Christian doctrine says that in such cases repentance has not been so deep and sincere. This is true from the point of view of both spiritual practice and psychology, because people could repent formally or try to diminish their real guilt for other reasons. Perhaps a person is led to repentance by irrational guilt feelings (exaggeration or erroneous assumption of guilt), but in this case true repentance and release through the Sacrament is impossible, as there is no real guilt or sin. There are only guilt feelings, but the guilt feeling itself is not a reason for repentance! The reason can only be a sin feeling, identified and meaningful. The sin feeling arising from imaginary guilt has no real ground, and repentance passes over the deep layers of the soul. The soul, metaphorically speaking, can’t get rid of non-existent chains. Being captivated by such imaginary sin can lead to neurosis (from a psychological perspective) and to spiritual temptation (from a spiritual point of view). A sober focus is required and, if possible, dispassionate reasoning, self-discipline, realism, and walking before God, which means mentally and emotionally keeping oneself before God’s eyes. Another possible reason for not feeling released from sin after confession is that guilt, despite being real from the point of view of interpersonal relations or social rules, does not always indicate a fault or sin from the point of view of Christian ethics and spiritual realities. For example, a

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student confesses that he reads only a few books from the list recommended by lecturers, but this is not a sin, though it may complicate his studies. The feeling of such imaginary sin also finds no relief in repentance. Repentance also does not bring release in the case of existential guilt. This “guiltiness” is associated with one’s belonging to national, human or family systems. No one is able to bring repentance for the whole human race, for the country or the people, or for one’s parents, children or other relatives. Shouldering the burden of responsibility for all humankind or for one’s ancestors is viewed as either pride or foolishness if such responsibility is not sustained by greatness of spiritual growth, experience, humility and obedience. In any case, it cannot lead to true repentance and forgiveness. In Orthodox ascetic history there have been ascetics who prayed for all the world and people (for example, Silouan of Athos11). The greatness of their feat, however, is the measure of the human sin taken “as if their own” but in reality only to the extent that their awareness of belonging to the world was part of the experience and wisdom relevant to their humility. Without humility of the soul, taking existential guilt as a personal burden leads to pride and ineffective repentance. If repentance does not result in relief and joy, then psychologically it can lead to a neurotic transformation of personality. Lacking release, a person who feels guilty gets used to viewing this as inescapable, undefeatable by anyone, but it is a distortion of Christian doctrine – a denial of Christ’s deed, who atoned on the Cross for the sins of the whole world. In this distorted view, repentance and confession become worthless and turn into a ritual.

9. Gratitude, generosity, mercy After repentance, if this is truly affirmed in the Sacrament of Confession, a person enters a new stage. Washed, freed from the gravity of real sin through repentance, the soul releases the powers that were previously constrained by the guilt and sin feelings. New powers overwhelm the soul, opening new opportunities for growing and gaining integrity. Being grateful to God for forgiveness and self-grateful for treading a difficult 11 Sophrony Sakharov (Archimandrite Sophrony), Saint Silouan the Athonite (Sergiev Posad: Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, 2011), 303, 307, 322.

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path of repentance, one wants to sing and share one’s joy of liberation with others. The heart is so full of love and generosity that the person becomes merciful, able to accept and forgive.

10. New experience and changing attitudes The aspiration to change and to grow is one of the basic personal needs of human beings. We strive for self-development, to fulfil the potential that God has blessed us with. After repentance a person gains a new spiritual and psychological experience that is embedded in an experience of soul healing. The valuable experience of repentance must necessarily include its spiritual result and the experience of overcoming sin – that is, empirical knowledge of how to prevent mistakes and how to recover integrity and a healthy soul after we have erred. The spiritual result encompasses the powers and abilities, growth and development, given by repentance and forgiveness, and includes the memory of one’s own deeds. One thus becomes more sober in self-assessment, better knowing one’s own strong and weak points. One’s attitude towards other people changes, for example from being arrogant and unforgiving towards others to being mindful of one’s own errors and sins. Furthermore, one tries to be more tolerant and not judge others or oneself harshly. One learns to distinguish between the attitude towards persons and the attitude towards actions. Having suffered from one’s sins, one gains more courage to fight the manifestations of evil in the world.

Conclusion This article has discussed the concepts of guilt feelings and sin feelings, the critical importance of repentance from a Russian Orthodox theological perspective, and the step-by-step process for guiding clients to reach a level of genuine repentance once they have recognised sin and true guilt. It was proposed that following these steps and working through the guilt and sin feelings repeatedly not only changes the emotional background of one’s life but also enables one to advance on the path of spiritual growth. This belief is supported by fifteen years’ experience of counselling many clients, students and participants in training and therapeutic groups. Psychologists and psychotherapists can help a Christian believer to deal with guilt, selecting all authentic aspects of this feeling, setting aside the irrational and existential forms of guilt and thereby preparing clients for a more effective confession.

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Sources Frank, Semyon L. 1997. Reality and Man. Moscow: Republic. Hollis, James. 2006. Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places. Moscow: Cogito Centre. Horney, Karen. 2006. The Neurotic Personality of our Time [in Russian]. Moscow: Academic Prospect. Kozlov, Nikolay. 2010. “Guilt Feeling” [in Russian]. Psychologos. http://www.psychologos.ru/articles/view/chuvstvo-viny. Lopuchina, Elena. 2016. “Guilt Feelings – Spirituality or Immaturity?” [in Russian]. Psychology Today e-journal, July 13. http://psychologytoday.ru/public/chuvstvo-viny-dukhovnost-ilinezrelost/. Lorgus, Andrey. 2013. “Sin.” In Theological Anthropology: RussianOrthodox/Roman-Catholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions), edited by Andrey Lorgus and Bertram Shtubenrauch, 246–51. Moscow: Palomnik-Nikea. Lorgus, Andrey, and Olga Krasnikova. 2010. “Guilt and Sin”. Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (Special Issue on Christian Psychology) 3: 165–75 [in Russian]. Sakharov, Sophrony (Archimandrite Sophrony). 2011. Saint Silouan the Athonite. Sergiev Posad: The Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra.

LONGING FOR THE FATHER – FATHER WOUND IN CHRISTIAN THERAPY SAARA KINNUNEN1

Abstract In individual psychotherapy, when clients tell their life story, it often transpires that their fathers have wounded and disappointed them, and have failed to fulfil their deep, basic longings to be connected, to be valued and to have impact. The goal of the therapy process is to help these clients get in touch with their longings and their disappointments and help them to process their emotions and understand the footprints of the “Father wound” in their life, including the beliefs they have formed and the survival strategies they have created. Questions arise on issues such as where God has been when they have suffered and what the redemption of Jesus means in the therapeutic process. The aim of the therapy process is the reconciliation of internal beliefs, thoughts and painful emotions and the relationship with the father. Through reconciliation, clients can gain freedom from the chains and shadows of the father wound and come to realise that only God the Father can completely fulfil their longings. Keywords: Beliefs; Christian psychotherapy; coping mechanism; deep longings; father–child attachment; father wound; father trauma; forgiveness; reconciliation of mind; survival strategies

Introduction The author has found in her therapy practice that at the core of many individuals’ problems there is often a wounded relationship with their father. The author has developed over time a model that aims to explore

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Saara Kinnunen is a psychotherapist, supervisor and trainer of counselling and Christian therapy. She has authored fifteen books about marriage, family issues, child development, parenting, counselling and integrative Christian therapy.

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the client–father relationship and to identify the imprints of the wounds made by this relationship in the client’s life. The model leads to reconciliation in the relationship with the earthly father and to a deeper relationship with our heavenly Father, who can respond in a perfect way to deep paternal longings. The pain of a wounded relationship with the father casts a shadow over many areas of life, such as academic performance (Blanchard and Biller 1971) and quality of attachments (Grossman et al. 2002). The feeling of inadequacy caused by fatherlessness can follow even into adulthood. While the past cannot be changed, it can be reconciled. The heart and mind can get peace, even if history cannot be rewritten. Jesus came to tell us that His Father is different from fleshly fathers and that God can become our Father (Matthew 7:11; Luke 12:28). At best, this can happen in therapy when spirituality is integrated into it.

Theoretical Background of the Model The theoretical background of the model includes Erikson’s (1950) theory of development, Bowlby’s (1988) attachment theory, Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs perspectives of trauma and crisis psychology, methods of cognitive and behavioural therapy, Crabb’s Christian therapy model, and narrative therapy (Crabb 2013). At creation, God instilled three deep longings in human beings: longing for connection, longing to be valued and longing to be significant (Crabb 2013). In a meaningful relationship one can experience acceptance and security. When acknowledged by significant others, one feels valued and important. Every person has dignity based on the divine uniqueness and worth of humankind. The fulfilment of these three deep longings confirms the identity of a person as a valuable human being and creates a solid platform for all human growth and development. A father can respond to these three deep longings in a special way by means of a secure attachment with the child. In general a child wants to make an impression on their father. When fathers admire and delight in children, this nurtures a sense of their own value. The way in which fathers respond to children confirms the importance of their life. Even a glimpse of the fact that the father appreciates the child can go far. Everyone desires to be a good daughter or son to a good father, but at the same time a child longs for a father who would communicate that this is the case.

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This need can be a likened to the experience Jesus had before He began His public ministry. The sky was torn and there was the Father’s voice, saying “You are my beloved Son, in whom I am pleased”. Every child wants to hear his or her father saying, “You are my beloved son/daughter, and I am pleased with you”. In words which the child understands, this means, “You are my beautiful girl/boy, and I love you very much”. Even an adult needs the approval of a father and affirmation of something done well. Bowlby (1988), the originator of attachment theory, asserted in the early part of his career that the mother is the primary attachment object of the child. When Bowlby’s son Richard, himself a psychologist, asked his father what the role of the father is in attachment theory, Bowlby’s answer was that a child does not need two mothers. Later on Bowlby valued the role of the father highly. He talked of how sons suffer especially from the loss of a father. At the end of Bowlby’s career he postulated that both mother and father are primary attachment objects to the child. Each has a specific and distinct role in the development of a child. Grossmann et al. (2002) have done outstanding longitudinal research on the importance of the father–child attachment to the child’s development. According to this research, the quality of the social functioning of children and young people seems to correlate strongly with the nature of the relationship of the father and child from childhood. The father helps children to succeed in challenging situations by advising, encouraging and commending.

Identification of the Father Trauma When a client in therapy feels alienated, distressed, depressed and exhausted, the cause could be father trauma. This could underlie female clients’ difficulties in trusting their own femininity, or male clients’ susceptibility to overwork through striving to be good enough for their father. As a result, such clients may suffer physical diseases or burnout. A person who has been neglected as a child easily concludes that they have created their own difficulties. Because the child’s needs have not been met, they have not learnt to express their needs and to trust other people. At some point the person comes face to face with their brokenness, shame, guilt, anxiety, loneliness, poor self-image and worthlessness. In such a situation, people may have the same feelings as the prophet Isaiah

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when he says, “Your whole head is injured, your whole heart afflicted.͒ From the sole of your foot to the top of your head there is no soundness— only wounds and welts and open sores” (Isaiah 1:5–6). The therapist can start the healing process by simply asking the client to speak about their childhood, using questions such as: “What might have happened to you in your early childhood?” “Did you get what you needed?” “Could you grow up during your first year of life with enough security?” “Tell me about your father.” “How was your attachment to your father?” Sometimes people relate that they have had a good family. Still, they experience an uneasy feeling that does not go away but activates itself in close relationships, such as fear, helplessness, lack of trust, or pressure to survive by oneself. If this is evident, it is time to explore the client’s attachment to their father and its effect on their life. This could lead to the client realising that they have grown up in a dysfunctional family.

God’s Omniscience The client’s current reactions and pain could originate in the first years of their life, which are beyond their memory. If people from their childhood are still alive, the client could ask them about their childhood and about the home atmosphere or their father`s relationship to the children. Even if there is nobody who could tell a completely accurate story of their childhood, God is omniscient and knows the past. God, who “reveals the deep things of darkness and brings utter darkness into the light” (Job 12:22), knows the history no one can remember. God can “reveal deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him” (Dan 2:22). When the client gets insight into the painful incidents of the past, it could trigger anger, sadness and intense feelings. In the end it could lead to understanding. The Holy Spirit, who is also the Defender (John 14:16), can create the necessary emotional security for a client to remember and face painful past events. In Christian psychotherapy there is hope in God’s promise: “I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security” (Jeremiah 33:6). The Holy Spirit is not bound by the present but can move freely to past situations where the client has been wounded to bring healing and create new opportunities for wellbeing in the client’s life.

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Many people who have been wounded by insecurity have found compensatory, steadfast security in God. The secure therapeutic relationship may give a glimpse of such security. The client’s limited trust in people can grow, step by step, by trusting in God. Finding security in God can also strengthen the ability to trust people.

Reconciliation: Dealing with the Father Trauma Internal reconciliation of painful experiences stemming from the father trauma is possible even if nothing in the relationship has changed outwardly. It is unnecessary to live in shame for having lacked an attachment with one’s father or to have a feeling of inadequacy because of a demanding father, or to have a sense of nullity because of a father who forsakes you, or to be angry and full of hatred because of an unjust father. The first step in recovery is to recognise and acknowledge the pain caused by the conduct of one’s father. This should be followed by acceptance of the pain. If a son does not recognise this pain, he may display the same behaviour as his father when he is a father. A daughter with a father wound may instil the emotional pain into her marital relationship. Undefined painful feelings can be revealed in therapy. The second step is to ask: “What situations activate the pain?” “Can you find signposts to the roots of the pain in those situations?” The following quote from a client (A) who suffered from anxiety and anhedonia illustrates this point. Once I was at my friend’s house with some other families. Suddenly I felt a tearing sensation in my chest. I saw a little girl climbing onto her father’s lap. The father stroked her hair with his chin. I realised that I had never had that kind of experience. On the contrary, the touch of my father had caused a lot of harm.

The anecdote was an excellent starting point for the therapy process. The client could start to share painful memories and the feelings they awakened. Another helpful question in order to recognise the deepest pain is: “What is the deep longing which did not get fulfilled?” The answer would probably be among the three basic longings. The client (A) stated immediately that the longing for connection and the longing to feel significant and valued constitute the deepest pain. Male clients often express the pain of feeling that they did not measure up to their father’s expectations. The underlying feelings are the longing to be significant and

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to feel competent. If a genogram is used or the client draws a lifeline, it could help to activate memories of forgotten incidents. Old photos are good signposts to the feelings of childhood. The client could look at their father and themselves and ask questions, such as: “Where is my father?” “What does he look like?” “Whom is he looking at?” “Who is close to him?” “Where am I?” “How do I feel when I see these pictures?”

Facing Childhood Memories The third step is to face the painful memories. The following questions may help: “What activities did you do with your father as a child?” “What made your father happy?” “What made him angry?” “How did you feel when your father came home?” “What did you wish for from your father as a child but never got?” “Where was your father when you felt insecure, abandoned, guilty, inferior or ashamed?” “Where was your father when you were a rebellious teenager and escaped into a gang?” The therapist could probe the client further by asking questions about proximity to their father. For example: “If your father was in this room right now, where is he sitting and where will you sit?” “What does he look like?” “How does he feel?” “What does he think about?” “What does he want to say and to whom?” The client has to connect with their inner child to experience the pain of the past. This can arouse strong emotions. This is where the client connects with the deepest pain. The client may experience emotions they did not dare to feel as a child. They could not express those emotions then or have the verbal capacity to name them. The emotions can now be expressed in the therapy context, which provides a safe place for them. The therapist`s duty is to stay with the client and validate their experiences.

Facing the Emotions of Anger and Hate When clients become aware of unmet needs, they often become angry with their fathers. They may also get angry with their mothers, who did not protect or support them. A person who feels worthless, especially as a child, does not know how to use healthy anger or hatred to protect themselves and how to stand up

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against unfairness. Anger towards the parents may feel wrong and be experienced as transgression of the fourth commandment. In a secure Christian therapeutic relationship, the Holy Spirit provides the security that clients need to be able to face their hidden hatred towards the parent who has caused the painful events. At this point the hatred could be used as a friend helping them to be free from the pain their father or mother caused. There is room and permission to be angry at their parents for their actions. We encourage the client to speak to God openly about the anger and hatred being felt toward their father and mother. God is not intimidated by the intensely negative emotions of a person. Questions about where God was when the bad things happened might be asked, or whether God has forgotten about the child and their pain. Once the questions and anger have subsided, the client might be able to hear God’s confirmation that He has been present at every moment of their life (Psalm 23) and in all their distress. Jesus was also distressed but fulfilled his calling (Isaiah 63:9). Jesus often pointed out that He was affected by every wrong done to children (Matthew 18:5, 25:40). The client could find comfort in knowing that Jesus suffered with them and did not leave them alone in a pit of pain.

Sorrow over Losses Once the client has dared to give room to anger and has stood up for their inner child’s justified rights to good childhood, attention and love from their father, sorrow and grief start to flow. The sorrow reveals the pain from what the client lacked as a child. It is sadness over things that never were, the missing care that every child should have. Pain is often expressed in crying. Sorrow comes from realising one’s father was absent or did not fulfil his duties as a parent. It could also stem from a longing for the loving embrace the client never experienced. They cry because of a lack of acceptance, and mourn for the connection that never formed. The client mourns that they never felt important and lovable in the eyes of their father, and because their self-worth is low as a result of this. They may feel pain about never getting feedback and admiration, never felt that their actions had any importance for their father. The client mourns for a lost happy childhood, which they did not experience and remained a dream. Sorrow includes a taste of what life could have been, and crying over the bad things that entered into their life.

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Sorrowing helps clients to give up the dreams that never materialised. Sorrow gives room for quiet acceptance of one’s life history and the fact that one’s father was not capable of better parenting. The mourning process can free a person from hopeless attempts to seek a father’s acceptance and love or to gain these from other people instead. Understanding a father’s behaviour better does not mean the acceptance of wrong actions. Breaking the cycle of emotional pain can release the client to experience new things. If sorrow is not processed when trauma is experienced, grief often becomes somatised as physical ailments. Some people get entangled in anger and bitterness or start using intoxicants. An energetic person might channel painful feelings by becoming a busybody; someone else might make drastic life changes in the hope that a new phase will bring a better life.

Imprints of Father Trauma The therapy process guides clients to look at their life and see what the absence of a good father has caused, how it has affected their view of themselves, what beliefs have formed as a result, and what coping mechanisms they implemented. Where can the imprints of fatherlessness be seen?

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Figure 1: The process of healing of the father-wound

A result of fatherlessness is a distorted view of oneself, of life, and of one’s right to have good things. A mental image of oneself forms and is engraved as a thought pattern even if the original situation has changed. The most common belief seems to be “I cannot be loved”. The thought probably began in an experience of an uncaring father or one who did not express his love.

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The feedback and reprimands from a father could cause the child to believe “I cannot”. The father may have had expectations that the child was unable to meet, and as a result the child thinks they are good at nothing. For example, someone remembers that their father said, “If something can be done wrong, you will manage to do so”, which caused them to doubt their ability to manage anything capably. Some people have the belief “I must adjust”, which dominates their life. For example, if a child has grown up in a family rife with crises arising from the father’s unpredictable behaviour, they might develop this belief in continual self-adjustment. They become oversensitive to the moods and needs of the parents, for example to whether the father is drunk or whether the mother is angry, and feel responsible for restoring stability by adjusting their behaviour. Self-adjusting children becomes self-adjusting adults. They listen to what others need and become bridge builders and overseers of others’ wellbeing. These adults are liked as a result, but there is a risk that their own life is left aside, own needs are not heard and own abilities are not developed. A demanding father instils in children a belief that “I must be good” in order to measure up to the father’s demands. When the child has fulfilled the father’s expectations and been praised for their achievement, they have wanted to continue being good so as to feel accepted. Perfectionists are demanding toward themselves and consequently can often perform well, but this can be driven by an unexpressed need to gain the father’s continued acceptance. Sometimes, however, burnout stops and awakens the perfectionist, when their power and strength for better performance is drained.

Recognising the Coping Mechanisms Therapists help clients to recognise the coping mechanisms they have developed in order to avoid pain. Questions to ask are: “What habits have you developed to survive?” “What are the hurtful ways you have dealt with the heart pain?” “What have been your protective walls?” When the deep longings of the heart are not met, the person seeks consolation in relationships, money, entertainment, achievements or addictions. These things bring pleasure and stabilise the painful feelings, but at some point the person notices that they have not satisfied the deep

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desires. These things could be likened to the broken cisterns that Jeremiah talks about (Jeremiah 2:13), which are soon drained of their succouring content. In unstable circumstances a person may feel pressure to adjust and to draws conclusions about conduct they should always display or avoid. For example, they may declare inwardly “I will never…” or “I must…” or “I shall always…”. Such unconscious decisions and vows might have helped them in their survival process but at the same time restricted their life. After reflecting on these unconscious decisions, many clients perceive the narrowing of their life that has resulted over the years, and they recognise how they have harmed others by being too defensive. This is an area they cannot blame others for, even though the mistakes of others lurk in the background. Every adult must bear responsibility for their own decisions. The client will recognise their own mistakes and repent for their part in the matter.

Letting Go When a client faces the truth about their life, dares to look at the imprints of the father trauma, feels anger and sorrow and recognises all the consequences caused by the longing for the father, it is time to ask: “Do you want to proceed in life?” “Do you want to let go of the past and be free from the chains that bind you?” In the therapy process the therapist might ask which beliefs are no longer true, which survival methods are no longer necessary, and which feelings connected with pain can be left behind. Therapists should not expect an immediate answer, because this is a significant turning point in the client’s life. It is a point from which a client can look back and see the path of pain of the past and what it has created. It is also a point from which to look at the future and at what one desires for that future. Jesus the Messiah has come to set the prisoners free and cut the chains (Isaiah 54:2). This is the promise everyone can take hold of. This is the point at which the results of the fall of mankind are confronted by the reality of being set free by redemption through Christ. It is essential to explicitly name things that clients want to let go of and then ask Him, who is our Redeemer, to set the person free and to give them renewed inner growth.

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Can I Forgive? In the world of people with incomplete life skills, who are developing and growing, forgiveness is God's answer to achieve reconciliation. People need forgiveness because they are guilty. People must forgive because others are guilty. If people hold on to their pain, it leads to bitterness. To be able to forgive, clients must realise what they have lost and what they will never regain. Painful events should be faced as discussed above, and forgiveness should be extended to the perpetrators. Otherwise pain and bitterness could get a grip on a person. The journey to reconciliation is slow, and forgiveness cannot be rushed. Forgiveness is not like a package which is just moved aside without being opened. Forgiveness is demanding because the package must be opened, and all the violation and pain that is inside must be faced. The forgiving process is part of the journey into the past experiences and painful emotions that were not dealt with. The journey is difficult, as memories reveal many rejected and painful events. Furthermore, it does not end in childhood or youth, for many adult clients still have a father who keeps violating and insulting them. This leads to a crossroad: whether to choose violation and being insulted or to choose forgiveness over and over again. It is good to remember the lesson Jesus told Peter: You need to forgive seventy times seven for the same thing. Following the path of forgiveness is a choice of the will. Jesus asked those who were seeking healing, “Do you want to be well?” (John 5:6). The decision to forgive is a strong step in recovery and reconciliation with the past. Because forgiveness involves letting go, it frees up energies to live life today.

Forgiveness and Feelings The feelings of forgiveness come when clients start to understand the background of their fathers and the painful events of their father’s life. Clients can eventually experience positive feelings toward their fathers; but if these positive feelings are never experienced, this should not cause self-blame or guilt. Forgiving, however, frees and liberates us so that it is possible to leave the harmful things behind. The memories are still present but they lose their cutting, bitter edge. When the memories come to mind, a person can say, “I have forgiven everything that has happened and I don’t want to think actively about those things any more.” The memories

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are not painful or violating as they were before. Forgiveness is the possibility to build togetherness. One must forgive not because the other person deserves it but because God forgave. When the client looks at their father as created by God and loved by God, they realise that God’s plan for his life was good even before his birth, and they can have tender feelings for their father. When the client sees how much their father has been wronged and how much he has lived in the lack of love, the client can feel empathy and sadness toward the father. Forgiveness enables persons to treat their fathers as if they did not commit harmful deeds (1 Cor 13:5). When persons bless their fathers and speak good of them, they gradually notice that their own heart feels unchained. This is how God treats us also. He forgives, treats us as His beloved children, does not remember things that were forgiven, and blesses us abundantly in multiple ways. Humanly speaking, it is not possible to forgive while in difficult, insulting and hurtful situations. One can ask help from God, who is merciful and forgiving, “Help me forgive”. This kind of prayer is always pleasant for God. He wants to answer that prayer, for it is His will for people to have peace on earth (Luke 2:14).

Reconciliation as a Goal When clients look at the imprints of the father wound, they notice that they are also guilty. The existence of the father wound has cast a shadow over their relationships as well. The clients notice that they have caused difficulties for other people through their survival strategies. They have acted in a wrong way towards the father, have said hurtful things or have had a harsh attitude. The following quote from a client’s story illustrates this point. I had gotten used to paying back to my father the same way. When he demanded a pay-back for everything he gave or did for my family, I demanded a pay-back for each penny he owed, for example if he had asked me to buy him milk from the store. Father would exclude himself when we went to visit. He would greet us, but withdrew himself and watched TV. I could visit my parents for an entire day and he would not raise a finger to say something. Gradually I started to understand that I was responsible for my own behaviour. It felt very repulsive to think that I should ask my father’s forgiveness for my harsh behaviour.

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The first step toward reconciliation can be the conscious change of behaviour. Each and every one is responsible for their own actions. From a systems perspective this is viewed as interconnectedness. When one part of a system changes it affects the other parts as well. The act of correction in common behaviour can be a starting point for a change which makes relationships better. If it is possible to discuss this situation with one’s father, it can be like building bridges between two people. Honesty and clarifying perceptions and experiences and forgiving bring people closer to one another. The goal in asking for forgiveness and in forgiving is reconciliation. It is the starting point for a new beginning. Reconciliation between children and parents can effect a change in the relationship with God also. Most people have unopened locks in their relationship with their father. It is not always possible to fix what went wrong, as fathers might have passed away or be incapable for health reasons of dealing with difficult issues. When the father is asked to forgive, he might just be gruff and say: “There you see, I was right!” If clients have experienced painful events in trying to speak to their fathers, it is wise to guide them in protecting themselves from new insults. In these situations the reconciliation process is worked through alone. The goal is to be set free from bitterness and the destructive power of insults, even though the concrete reconciliation between the two parties remains a dream. Sometimes the only way to protect oneself is to step back and create a distance.

The Reconciliation of the Heart Lack of the father, maltreatment and lack of motivation have slowed the growth process for many. These things have increased the yearning for the father. Reconciliation with the father is not possible when he is no longer there or withdraws from contact and is unwilling to engage in conversation. Then there is a crossroads: do I carry the father wound and become bitter because my yearning is not fulfilled, or do I forgive? Jesus is an example of forgiveness even though those who hurt him did not repent at all. The martyr Stephen followed Jesus’s example. They both said: “Forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” The mind can find reconciliation with the father only through forgiving, even if nothing changes in practice.

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The road to reconciliation runs through forgiveness. It can be a long and painful process, but it gives freedom from the past, helps one to let go of the past and helps to gear thought toward today and the future. The client is no longer a victim, but a responsible adult and an active agent. They take responsibility for what the future will look like. The starting point is defining the preconditions for making life as good as possible. At this point there is no blaming of the father, no remembering of the evil deeds. All has been forgiven. We want to help the client create a new internalised father figure. We help them to find at least some good moments with the father or to remember other men who have been important to them. We are interested in these kinds of narratives: “Tell me about some good or encouraging word that your father said.” “Tell me about a moment when you had a good time together.” “Do you remember a moment when you sat on his lap or he stroked your hair?” “Tell me about other men who were interested in you, who talked with you or were good to you and who trusted you.” “Who has taken father’s place in your life?” “Tell me about men in your later years who have been significant to you.” Resource-focused work helps the client to create a wider picture of their life. We can use solution-focused questions and fantasise about how their life could be in future, for instance after five years. We can “think back the future” when the pain is over by asking questions such as these: “What has happened to make the situation better now?” “What have you done to make things better?” “What kinds of steps did you take, and what deeds did you perform that changed things for the better?” “Who helped you?” These positive pictures of the future have an effect on the brain and evoke good feelings and hope. Often clients recognise the difficulty of respecting the father, as the Bible urges, when the father is the cause of many evil things in the family. “How can I ever obey the fourth commandment and respect a father of whom I have no good thoughts or experiences?” Sometimes this question can be answered by stating the fact the he is their father. That is the basis for respect and honour. This answer can be painful if the client thinks someone else would have been better as a father than their biological one. In the end we are left with the need to respect and honour the father as much as any human being who has been created by God and redeemed by Jesus. We can find the right way of honouring and respecting when we realise that our bad father was originally one of God’s dreams, created and

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loved by Him, a man who has godly dignity as a person. This thought generates tenderness and sympathy and helps one to look at the father through the eyes of God.

Sources Beck, Judith S. 1995. Cognitive Therapy: Basics and Beyond. New York: Guilford Press. —. 2011. Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Basics and Beyond. 2nd ed. New York: Guilford Press. Blanchard, Robert, and Henry Biller. 1971. “Father Availability and Academic Performance among Third Grade Boys.” Developmental Psychology 4, no. 3: 301–5. Bowlby, John. 1988. A Secure Base: Parent–Child Attachment and Healthy Human Development. New York: Basic Books. Crabb, Larry. 2013. Inside Out. Colorado Springs: NavPress. Enright, Robert D. 2005. Forgiveness is a Choice: Step-by-Step Process for Resolving Anger and Restoring Hope. Washington, DC: APA LifeTools. Erikson, Erik H. 1950. Childhood and Society. New York: Norton. Faris, Ariana, and Els van Ooijen. 2012. Integrative Counseling and Psychotherapy: A Relational Approach. London: Sage. Grossman, Karin, Klaus E. Grossman, Elisabeth Fremmer-Bombik, Heinz Kindler, Hermann Scheuerer-Englisch, and Peter Zimmermann. 2002. “The Uniqueness of the Child–Father Attachment Relationship: Father’s Sensitive and Challenging Play as a Pivotal Variable in a 16year Longitudinal Study.” Social Development 11, no. 3: 301–37. Kinnunen, Saara. 2013. Sovintoon elämän kanssa [Reconciliation with life]. Kauniainen: Perussanoma Oy. —. 2016. Isän kaipuu [Longing for the father]. Kauniainen: Perussanoma Oy. Maslow, Abraham H. 1943. “A Theory of Human Motivation.” Psychological Review 50, no. 4: 370–96. McMinn, Mark. 1996. Psychology, Theology and Spirituality. Wheaton: Tyndale House. McMinn, Mark R., and Clark D. Campbell. 2007. Integrative Psychotherapy: Toward a Comprehensive Christian Approach. Downers Grove: IVP Academic. Schreurs, Agnata. 2002. Psychotherapy and Spirituality: Integrating the Spiritual Dimension into Therapeutic Practice. London: Jessica Kingsley.

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Sinkkonen, Jari. 1998. Yhdessä isän kanssa [Together with my father]. Helsinki: WSOY. —. 2001. Varhaislapsuuden tunnesiteet ja niiden suojeleminen [Early childhood and safeguarding emotional ties]. Helsinki: WSOY. Wadsworth, Michael. 1979. Roots of Delinquency: Infancy, Adolescence, and Crime. London: Martin Robertson. White, Michael. 2007. Maps of Narrative Practice. New York: Norton. Worthington, Everett L. 2003. Forgiving and Reconciling: Bridges to Wholeness and Hope.Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press. —. 2009. A Just Forgiveness: Responsible Healing Without Excusing Justice.Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press.

SETTING BOUNDARIES IN A DIALOGICAL WAY1 WERNER MAY2

Abstract Being able to say No or to set boundaries is more than a social competence for purposes of self-protection. Rather, it is an important building block in a trust-based relationship and helps people in overcoming inner shame and mistrust. Based on an investigation of developmental psychology, clarification is provided for the five Yes’s that should accompany a No, which could turn the setting of boundaries into a healing process. For every No as an answer, a five-fold Yes is required in order to open up deeper relationships and even have a therapeutic effect. The Yes answers include a Yes to the No, a Yes to the other person, a Yes to oneself, a Yes to a relationship and a Yes to providing support. Two of the author’s surveys are presented: the first illustrates that there are five different No answers, which are seen as posing different levels of difficulty; and the second utilises the coercion/support questionnaire used in psycho-social rehabilitation centres. Two important results from the latter are that setting boundaries (1) can be experienced as support but (2) can also trigger an experience of being coerced. The more sensible a rule or command appears to persons, the more they interpret it as being supportive. Finally, there is a discussion of some connections between God’s Yes and No answers or commands and the importance of people’s fundamental competence in dealing with a No. People often need a reconciliation process when No is the answer.

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An earlier version of this article, “The Healing No”, was published in the ejournal Christian Psychology Around the World 2, 2012, 32–45. http://emcapp.ignis.de/2/#/32. 2 Werner May is an author and editor and president of EMCAPP (www.emcapp.eu) and has been president of the IGNIS Academy for Christian Psychology (www.ignis.de) for 25 years.

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Keywords: Setting boundaries; trust; mistrust; institutional rules; laws of God; relationship; identity; support; reconciliation

Introduction The author’s own understanding of personal difficulty with saying No came after encountering the battlefield of saying No in counselling foster families and step-families. In these families saying No and setting boundaries became a frequent and central theme. The author’s reluctance to say No stemmed from fear of relational stress; however, the realisation dawned that saying No represents a social competence that not only furthers one’s own goals of self-protection but also serves as a building block in fostering a trusting relationship. This insight was then applied to therapy. Furthermore, by saying No the author increasingly discovered that there is a treasure embedded in God’s commandments, as the Holy Scriptures say: “The commandments of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes” (Psalm 19:8, NIV). As long as No represented only a place of distrust for the author, he could not accept commandments as gifts; he wanted to accept only a Yes from God. It is therefore of far-reaching importance that people allow themselves to be reconciled with a No answer.

A Personal Journey Discovering the No The author’s counselling experience with foster and adoptive families between 1995 and 2005 entailed the interesting phenomenon that even the slightest No to relationally disturbed children led to an escalation of behavioural problems. It was evident that No impacted them more than the caregivers and parents had thought. Their reactions also represented more than frustration because of restrictions placed on their behaviour and the right behaviour being pointed out. The simple No, regardless of how tactfully or tactlessly it was spoken, released deep feelings of rejection and distrust, so that children could no longer control their reactions. This generally led to unhelpful counter-reactions from the caregivers.

Saying No – a General Human Challenge However, it is not only relationally disturbed children who have to battle with the word No – everyone struggles with it. Every person has a history that holds emotional burdens from encounters with No’s. This history

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entails childhood and later life experiences of how No’s were said to them and how their own No’s were received. Developmental psychology offers some helpful insights. According to Seiß (1985) the first No (as soon as the child can crawl) comes from the main attachment figure. For example, this person may thwart the child’s impulse to crawl towards a stairway by lifting the child away from it, linked to a verbal No and sometimes a light penalty. The child thus experiences an emotional-physical disapproval of its own impulse. This leads to a conflict: continue to crawl and risk disturbing a relationship or refrain from crawling and respond trustfully. A positive resolution for children comes through subordinate identification, triggered by and associated with the attachment figure, which enables them to experience a safe area of trust. Children need to experience the intervention of the attachment figure. When this is done sympathetically, children are encouraged to try out their newly discovered mobility and independence in a safe space of trust. Finally, when the subordinate identification succeeds, children learn to ignore their impulses for the sake of something bigger – the love of their mother. Identification with the mother’s No in the context of trust and love means this: children discover, in adopting the will of another, the ability to control their own world of impulses. Children develop an inner picture of the No connected with an internal sense of their superordinate relation to their own impulses, and thus learn that they need not give in to their impulses but can refrain from doing so. This relates to impulse control out of love for something more important. In contrast, a troubled resolution may result if the setting of boundaries does not happen sympathetically or is perhaps linked with aggression. In such a case, attachment is experienced as a permanent attacker, since no freedom of decision or movement in a safe environment is experienced. This could lead to identification with the aggressor, with the result that the child does not experience free self-determination regarding his or her own world of impulses, and therefore no impulse control develops. At any stage of life, people subjected to others’ No’s that are too frequent, traumatising or arbitrary may consequently battle with feelings of rejection when anyone says No to them in an important area of life. This may

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happen in one’s private life, such as in the family and marriage, or at one’s place of work. If, in addition, one’s own No is not taken seriously – for example, if one is laughed at, left unnoticed or even punished – then one will have continual difficulty saying No in important situations without fearing that this will lead to relational stress. The fact is that the daily task of saying No and accepting No from others often provokes personal and existential distrust. Only when this is resolved by a uniting, through a healing No which awakens confidence, can conflict be turned into concord.3

Identity and No The child psychiatrist Franz Resch (1996) identifies four inner mental boundaries, namely the perception boundary, attention boundary, involvement boundary and alarm boundary, which define corresponding interaction zones.

Figure 1: Inner mental boundaries (Resch 1996)

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This applies mainly to Western cultures. Asian cultures, in contrast, are generally considered cultures in which a direct No is inappropriate. In China, for example, there are two reasons why No is not said: firstly to avoid disharmony, and secondly to leave open the possibility of changing one’s decision afterwards. To receive a confrontational No is seen as a loss of face. “Let us think it over (again)” would be a more appropriate way to say No.

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The following example illustrates these points: Imagine you are walking along a street on the pavement. When you look ahead, you see another person coming towards you. If you had previously been looking ahead, the person would have been visible to you earlier but has only now crossed your perception boundary. As the person approaches, you ask yourself if you know him or her. This is the moment when the person crosses your attention boundary. Normally, if you do not stop and speak, you will pass each other, and the person will soon pass beyond your attention boundary and your perception boundary and disappear from your inner world. But if the person is not an acquaintance but stops to ask if you know of a low-cost place where he or she can spend the night, then the person crosses the involvement boundary. You are prompted to engage with the person and must decide whether to make your time available and take the trouble to think about an answer. The person will normally thank you for your answer and then move beyond your involvement boundary, attention boundary and perception boundary. However, suppose that after you have explained the way to the nearest hotel, the person asks whether you would like to have a cup of coffee with him or her. If you feel threatened by this, the person will have crossed the alarm boundary. Resch (1996) calls these our inner world boundaries. For us to have a stable identity, we must learn to establish these boundaries in freedom, become confident by stating our No, and of course respect these boundaries in others. The ordered, concentric boundary areas in Figure 1 are more irregular in real life. Not all the spaces defined by the boundary areas will be equally large, and each can be formed earlier in one person and later in others, or not at all. No not only regulates our relationships but in the process also stabilises our experiences of self and objects, and thus also our identity.

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Holding, yes, but How? German educational literature of the nineties devoted space to a fastgrowing debate on the question of setting boundaries, which was unleashed by the popular but controversial approach outlined in 1989 by Jirina Prekop, called holding therapy (Prekop 2006). The aim of this therapy was to prevent the daily battles over rules between parents and children from escalating to more extreme and frequent punishments; if these continue indefinitely, they can lead to helplessness on the part of the parents. Prekop recommended embracing and holding the child physically until his or her resistance gives way to trust in the arms of the parents. The apparent violence is then said to have been transformed into embrace inside the child. This is argued to be the trustful holding for which a child and, in principle, every person longs. It was on precisely this practical point of holding therapy that criticism was focused at the time. The action of embracing and holding the child was said to have the damaging effect of actual violence more than of a supportive personal hold. In the author’s own guidelines for parents and caregivers, Kindern Dialogisch Grenzen setzen [Setting boundaries for children in dialogue] (May 2008), the basic hypothesis of the discussion is that the essence of the No escalation is a battle between trust and distrust, between threatening violence and protective holding. The question that followed was how to hold. This led the author, against the background of the dialogue principle of Martin Buber (1974), to the concept of setting boundaries in dialogue. The physical holding was to be replaced by inner persuasion of the fairness of the No and by consistent communication and maintaining of the No, without separating oneself inwardly from the child or allowing oneself to be provoked by the child. In addition, success depends on then turning to the child with comfort and support, without taking back the No, until the distrust in the heart of the child is transformed into trust. Currently the author calls this process “das verbindende Nein” [the healing No] (May 2011). This is a No which creates and deepens relationships and also enables wounds to be repaired and healed. The author was encouraged in this by reports from inter alia Hockel (1981) about therapy for children with oppositional defiant disorder (DSM IV), which stated that without physical contact defiant behaviour receded but

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that trust grew as a result of the constant setting of boundaries, as evinced by the holding experience.

The Healing No Model and Further Insights During the last twenty years more and more publications on the topic of saying No have appeared, such as that by Rogge (1995) and, principally in the Christian area, by Townsend and Cloud (1995). The author found confirmatory and explanatory thoughts for the first time in the work of William Ury (2009).

The healing No Ury (2009) clarified his approach to the positive No in a three-step sequence, namely Yes – No – Yes: first, find an inner Yes to the No, an inner confirmation of the boundaries set for oneself; second, communicate the No clearly; and third, as a second Yes, invite the other person to join in achieving a positive result together despite the original No or even in gratitude for it. These steps of Ury (2009) helped the author to develop a new model, No with 5 Yes’s (a healing No supported by five Yes’s). This implies that there is a No which is, at heart, actually a Yes. When one says “No” in order to protect oneself or someone else, this makes sense. Or if one says “No” because otherwise one will not reach a particular goal, this also makes sense. Although these No’s make sense, they may nevertheless be perceived by others to convey the message that the speaker is against me. However, when the No is supported by five Yes’s, it takes on a healing and socially therapeutic significance. A brief explanation of the five Yes’s is now presented: ƒ First, saying Yes to the No itself acknowledges that this No makes sense and is good. ƒ Second, saying Yes to the other, to whom the No is said, indicates that one is responsive and supportive of the other. ƒ Third, saying Yes to oneself is not to signify self-respect but, above all, to affirm that others and God are supportive and standing behind one’s No. ƒ Fourth, saying Yes to relationship affirms that one does not allow the No to cause separation from the other, even though the No itself is not retracted.

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ƒ Fifth, saying Yes to holding and comforting the other if they cannot deal with one’s No is the healing dimension of the No with 5 Yes’s model.

The No can retraumatise Most people experience a lifelong healthy rhythm between independence and attachment. At its two poles, as two anxieties, there slumber the anxiety of being encroached upon and the anxiety of separation. This task of experiencing a healthy rhythm between independence and attachment has been described by various authors, including Levinas (1989) and Riemann (1990).

Everyone frequently experiences these anxieties to some degree. For traumatised people it could be confusing to experience once again the anxiety of too much closeness and, simultaneously, the anxiety of separation. For them any No, no matter how sympathetically it is put, poses the threat of separation and isolation and thereby retraumatisation. However, even the spoken Yes poses the threat of too much closeness and encroachment, even to the extent of feared abuse. Furthermore, some people make an immediate transition from one threat to another. Their alarm boundary is close to the edge of what they can tolerate. Everything in relationally disturbed children cries out, “Do not come too close to me” but also “Do not go (too far) away from me!” This leads to contradictory behaviour, which expresses the alternating tension between both anxieties.

Research into the No Which No is easier to say? Every No sets a boundary in our interpersonal relationships. Jannsen (1998) speaks of three kinds of boundaries, namely those relating to the

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safety of children, to the needs of parents, and to value concepts, respectively. Safety boundaries seek to protect the other, that is our children. The author’s own surveys have shown that it is easy for people to say No to express a safety boundary, as it is one of the tasks of parents to protect their children. The question arises, however, whether a danger is involved with this boundary, namely overprotectiveness. It is therefore important to ask oneself what one wishes to protect children from, so as to name the concrete danger and examine whether it is a real threat or not. Need boundaries are those connected with the needs of the parents. According to the author’s surveys, these boundaries cause most difficulties. People generally find it difficult to recognise their own needs, to formulate them and to stand firm on them. Religious groups, such as Christians, are required to serve others with their lives, which can result in not recognising their own needs, even to the extent of forbidding themselves to have needs or of regarding their needs as wrong or inappropriate. Therefore the challenge is a positive two-edged one, namely to live and shape one’s life but also to put one’s needs second to love. This implies that there are two life tasks that have to be mastered, namely to become familiar with one’s own needs, recognising that they are important, and secondly to renounce them voluntarily and put them second to love. The dangers involved in this are also twofold: either a person could develop an excessive preference for their own needs, placing them before those of others, or the person could ignore and deny their own needs. Value boundaries are those connected with value concepts and generally begin with the phrase, “I find it is important that …”. Setting such value boundaries does not seem to be difficult for people, but since everyone has different values, based on valid reasons, conflict between values can arise. This happens not only with teenagers but also with others and can escalate quickly. In this case it is necessary to listen to the other person, and it becomes valuable to be open to their values and convictions by listening carefully and acknowledging the importance of their thoughts and emotions. This subdivision of boundaries not only applies to childrearing and to distinguishing what is important to a person in respect of each boundary, but it also plays a meaningful role for the healing No. The more clarity one

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can find in oneself regarding which boundaries are constantly in conflict, the more inner conviction one will have about the validity of the No and its goodness for oneself and for the other. In addition, the more sensitive one is to the weak points of the No, which could cause conflict, the more one becomes capable of saying No in a way that supports a uniting relationship.

Survey results The author and co-workers from the Institute of Christian Psychology (ICP) in Switzerland did a survey to determine how difficult it is for people to say No. More than three hundred persons (all from the Christian faith tradition) participated. The survey was done by means of a sevenpoint Likert scale, ranging from 1 for very easy to 7 for very difficult. The purpose was for participants to indicate how easy or how difficult they found it to say No in given situations. Two items are provided as examples: ƒ You are sitting on the sofa and feel happy, at last, to be able to relax and read a book. A friend phones and asks if you have time to listen while he tells you about his recent holiday. How easy or difficult would you find it to say No and to stand firm on your decision? (If you would on no account say No, you need not mark any option.) ƒ You have started a new job. You have invited your boss to your home. After a short time, he asks whether he may smoke a cigarette in your house. You do not like this, particularly because you keep your flat clean. How easy or difficult would you find it to say No and to stand firm on your decision? (If you would on no account say No, you need not mark any option.) Generally, the results showed that it was not so difficult for the participants to say No. The mean value, however, lies significantly higher in situations in which it is a question of protecting one’s own needs by using a No.

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Table 1: Results of Support/Coercion survey

Safety Needs Values Valid replies (in list)

N

Minimum

Maximum

934 931 924 694

1.00 1.00 1.00

6.67 7.00 7.00

Mean value 2.8112 3.9871 2.6450

Standard deviation 1.10814 1.27276 1.28478

Results of the Support/Coercion survey The research project Support/Coercion started in 2010 in cooperation with Roland Mahler, the director of ICP Switzerland. The main educational purpose of the ICP in Switzerland is to train social workers in collaboration with Christian children’s homes and homes for young persons as well as rehabilitation centres for the mentally ill and for drug addicts. One of the challenges for the staff in these homes is the repeated need to penalise individuals after the rules of the homes have been broken, such as rules about going out, bans on smoking and alcohol, and cleaning rooms. The task of the staff is to guarantee the daily keeping of house rules, with the aim of imparting to the rehabilitation patients an inner structure of selfcontrol over impulses and needs. The important question is how the daily lives of rehabilitation patients can be structured without too much friction and a constant battle over boundaries. The research team’s formulation of the question was as follows: Regarding keeping the rules, setting boundaries, and saying No: Can this task also be fulfilled in a supportive way? How much coercion can be applied, and how do the staff members and patients experience it? This developed into a support/coercion questionnaire, titled: How do we experience orders or laws? The data was initially collected online. The questionnaire was reduced, after some preliminary versions by a working group, to six requirements which are pertinent in Germany and Switzerland: 1. The requirement of punctuality 2. The ban on regular shop opening on Sundays 3. Speed limits on motorways

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4. The forbidding of adultery 5. Remaining quiet at night 6. Regular dental care For each of these six requirements, six characteristics were to be evaluated on a five-point Likert scale. Three characteristics were associated with the area support (protects me; is good for me; and gives me orientation), and three characteristics were associated with the area coercion (controls me; puts me under pressure; and restricts my freedom). In addition, there was an evaluation of how sensible the requirement was felt to be. The factor analysis pointed clearly to two factors, namely support and coercion. Setting boundaries can be experienced as support but also as coercion.

Sensible orders are experienced as supportive The following hypothesis was confirmed: The more sensible one considers an order to be, the more one associates it with support. Table 2: Mean value overview Scale: Not at all – 1 – 2– 3 – 4 – 5 – Very strongly Requirement Regular dental care Remaining quiet at night The forbidding of adultery The requirement of punctuality Speed limits on motorways The ban on regular shop opening on Sundays

Support 4.13 4

Coercion 1.72 1.8

Sense 4.87 4.65

4.11

1.7

4.63

3.75

2.45

4.34

3.91

2.38

4.33

3.17

2.3

4.24

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Experiencing consequences as unpleasant diminishes the feeling of support and increases the feeling of coercion The research team also had the opportunity to complete the questionnaire with a group participating in a rehabilitation centre for mentally ill patients. In this group of participants, the support value for all requirements was significantly higher than the coercion value, as was also the case with a random internet sample. If one now compares both male groups4 in both random samples, one finds no difference in their total assessment of the coercion represented by the requirements. The rehabilitation centre males, in contrast, gave significantly lower values to the support questions and sense questions. This is understandable, as support and sense correlate with each other in the internet survey. Table 3: Internet survey results Internet group Mean value support Mean value sense

3.794 4.416

Rehabilitation group 3.312 3.957

Significance 0.01 0.01

In the support values, there was a significant difference between the ban on shop opening on Sundays and the forbidding of adultery. The rehabilitation group evaluated both requirements as less supportive. It is furthermore noticeable that the members of the rehabilitation group surveyed were all unmarried and not professionally employed (protected workplace), which makes this low support value understandable. The rehabilitation group evaluated the speed limit as less constraining, without any comparable rise in the support value. None of those asked in the rehabilitation group owned a car or drove one.

4

Please note: Because of statistical conditions, comparison was possible only between the male groups, as the number of females in the rehabilitation centre was small (7 females, 27 males), while the proportion of females in the internet survey was much higher than that of the males (508 females, 175 males).

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Remaining quiet at night, in contrast, was considered more constraining by the males in the rehabilitation group than by the males in the internet survey group, which was again explicable in the light of the frequent conflicts on this matter in the shared accommodation groups. The probability of being subjected to a requirement oneself, and the pleasant and unpleasant experiences associated with it, played a role in the support and coercion evaluation of that requirement. From the survey of this rehabilitation group, the following conclusions can be drawn as supplement to the results collected from the internet group:

Practical conclusions The sensibleness of rules, laws and regulations must at all costs be communicated. It is even better if those affected can contribute to formulating them. Regarding the aims and sensibleness of rules, it is important to win over both the rehabilitation patients and the staff. It seems impossible that staff members can represent a rule constructively without ever having devoted any thought to why they should represent this rule and whether they want it at all. Individual enquiries show that initiation into house rules and associated motivational work take place only briefly and impersonally and in some cases not at all. However, a very encouraging report was received from a staff member at a therapeutic centre for drug addicts. This report indicated that this staff member was called on to present her house rules in a more understandable form, including motivations for these rules. She then took the trouble to publicise reasons for each rule in writing. Providing house rules in a written form and including motivations had a tangible effect on the atmosphere at the centre.

The Healing No as a Topic of Christian Psychology Christians proclaim a God of love, including His decisions to say No, which means that Christians do not view God as a God who says Yes to every request.

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More than thirty years ago, before the author became a Christian, this was precisely the point which made the Christian faith unattractive to him. The author viewed the Christian faith as consisting entirely of prohibitions. It seemed as if God forbade everything beautiful in life and was against us, and that if individuals did not keep the commandments, they would be punished. Looking back, the author recognises that the picture of a punishing God arose from his own childhood experience of violent parental authority. How does this view look today? The author is deeply convinced that God’s commandments contain a personal meaning, and he desires to discover this meaning in every commandment. God’s commandments are not against me, but for me, in keeping with Jesus’s words that “the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27, NIV). The author knows that he will encounter love on this journey of discovery and that God desires what is good for him. “The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart” (Psalm 19:8, NIV). If people do not trust God’s commandments – His Yes and No in certain areas of life – they will create their own commandments or adopt those of others. Without rules, consciously or unconsciously followed, there is no life. Our faith and trust in God grow not only because His Yes to us becomes a blessing, but also because His No becomes a precious treasure!

No Basic Trust without No or Yes The psychologist Petermann (1996) describes trust in terms of three criteria: 1. I trust the other because I believe that he or she is for me. 2. I trust the other because he or she tells the truth and is shown to be reliable. 3. The other is predictable; the person’s behaviour, viewpoints and convictions are demonstrated consistently. All three criteria are necessary in order for trust to remain or to grow. We could say that each No and Yes that we hear and say a hundred times a day becomes one of the important places at which trust grows. When feelings of rejection are awakened inside us, the burning question remains: “Is the

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other there for me in his No and in his Yes?” and “Does he or she stand firmly by it, and is it lasting?”

No Relationship without No or Yes The description of the Fall portrays the snake arousing distrust of the first No regarding the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil – which incidentally also tells us that boundaries and No’s were even part of Paradise. This indicates that the question of saying No is not simply a matter of social competence, that No does not have to stand in opposition to trust, and that God in His love believes we can comply with this requirement. The great theme of faith and trust versus doubt and distrust has been ignited by our everyday experience of No since the beginning of human history. We will not respond adequately to God’s commission to love if No is not just as evidently part of love as Yes. Always saying Yes is loveless; No shows love in every sense. Whoever cannot say No cannot say Yes either! No and Yes are the essential components of a relationship, and our Christian faith is a relationship faith because at its centre is the commission to love (agape). This moulds not only our interpersonal relationships but also our relationship with God.

No Overcoming Distrust without No or Yes Most Christians value Psalm 139:5 as words of security and protection: “On all sides you surround me and hold your hand over me” (LB, own literal translation). If we look at this verse not in the Martin Luther translation but in that of Martin Buber (1974), “Behind, in front, you press in on me, lay your fist upon me” (own literal translation from the German version), the feeling of security is replaced by one of threat, confinement or hopelessness. Both translations are legitimate in view of the original Hebrew text. Feelings of either security or threat can arise during any experience of boundaries being set. One can therefore speak of the double-sided face of boundaries. People are part of a fallen creation, and therefore the aspect of threat and constriction will usually be felt in association with experiences of setting boundaries. Above all, the Healing No approach has the aim of activating the other side or face of the boundary, namely the feelings of security and

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safety, or at least enabling this aspect to be recognised. Thus we should experience the person who sets a boundary as being on our side, not as wishing us evil; they are not breaking off the relationship or rejecting us but remain with us. This boundary-setting behaviour can best be described as comforting and helping someone in weakness back to normal strength. Our God reveals Himself time and again as the God of all comfort and the Holy Spirit as the Comforter! If we dare to take the step of faith of allowing ourselves to be comforted, the distrust in our hearts can be overcome.

No Person without No or Yes God is a personal God, and this is an important component of our faith. God has a will, has freedom, has feelings, has aims and intentions; and people, standing face-to-face opposite Him, as His redeemed images, have the same characteristics. The competence to find identity through setting boundaries is part of becoming a person and therefore part of the Christian concept of humankind.

No Freedom to Give or Take without No or Yes Setting boundaries in order to protect our own needs is a very difficult task for us. The right to do so is not only linked more or less with selfconfidence; it is also linked with salvation and having the courage to be oneself, to stand firm on one’s own rights, to live these out, but then also to waive rights out of love, to renounce them freely. (This also includes the right to wrestle with God.) All giving and taking in trust is a receiving of life. Giving and taking means action – that is what we were created for and are called to!

Conclusion To be reconciled with the No means taking orientation from Jesus, who said, “Let your Yes be Yes and your No be No. Nothing more” (Matthew 5:37, LB, own literal translation). Without risking a No – risking burdening a relationship with anger – distrust cannot be overcome. If, in contrast, we say No and at the same time show clearly that in doing so we are for the other, we can recognise that saying No is something good, personal and meaningful (as with someone else’s No).

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Only a love which is familiar with No and can live with it is genuine love.

Sources Buber, Martin. (1954) 1974. “Ich und Du” [I and Thou]. In Die Schriften über das dialogische Prinzip [Writings on the principle of dialogue]. Heidelberg: Verlag Lambert Schneider. Hockel, Michael. 1981. “Psychologische Behandlung bei Kindern, Jugendlichen, Familien und Bezugspersonen” [Psychological treatment of children, adolescents, families and caregivers]. In Berufsverbands der Psychologen [Professional Association of Psychologists], Handbuch der Angewandten Psychologie [Handbook of applied psychology], Vol. 2, 691–713. Landsberg am Lech: Verlag Moderne Industrie. Holy Bible, New International Version. 1995. © International Bible Society. London: Hodder and Stoughton. Jannsen, Hans. 1998. Kinder brauchen Klarheit. Wie Eltern Regeln finden und Grenzen setzen [Children need clarity: parents make rules and set limits]. Freiburg: Herder. LB. See Lutherbibel Levinas, Emmanuel. 1989. Humanismus des anderen Menschen [Humanism of the other]. Hamburg: Meiner. Lutherbibel Sonderausgabe zum “Jahr mit der Bibel 1992”. ©1991. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft. May, Werner. (2001) 2008. Kindern dialogisch Grenzen setzen [Setting boundaries for children in dialogue]. 3rd ed. Kitzingen: IGNIS. —. 2011. Der Vertrauensmodus und die Kunst des verbindenden Neins [The trust mode and art of healing No’s]. Kitzingen: IGNIS. NIV. See Holy Bible, New International Version Petermann, Franz. 1996. Psychologie des Vertrauens [Psychology of trust]. Göttingen: Hogrefe-Verlag. Prekop, Jirina. (1989) 2006. Hättest du mich festgehalten... : Grundlagen und Anwendung der Festhalte-Therapie [If you had held me... : Principles and applications of holding therapy]. München: Goldmann. Resch, Franz. 1996. Entwicklungspsychopathologie des Kindes- und Jugendalters [Developmental psychopathology in childhood and adolescence]. Weinheim: Beltz. Riemann, Fritz. 1990. Grundformen der Angst [Basic forms of anxiety]. München: Ernst-Reinhardt-Verlag. Rogge, Jan-Uwe. 1995. Eltern setzen Grenzen [Parents set limits]. Ravensburg: Rowohlt.

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Seiß, Rudolf. 1985. Identität und Beziehung [Identity and relationship]. Stuttgart-Neuhausen: Hänssler-Verlag. Townsend, John, and Henry Cloud. 1995. Nein sagen ohne Schuldgefühle: wie man sich gegen Übergriffe schützt. [Saying no without guilt: how to protect oneself from abuse]. Kehl: Edition Tropisch. Ury, William. 2009. Nein sagen und trotzdem erfolgreich verhandeln [The power of a positive no]. Frankfurt: Campus Verlag.

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS AND BIOGRAPHIES

Andrey Lorgus is a psychologist, anthropologist, Orthodox priest, EMCAPP board member, rector of the Institute of Christian Psychology in Moscow (ICP), counselling psychologist, lecturer of psychology and anthropology, and head of the ICP online department of distance education (www.lorgus.net). A psychology graduate of Lomonosov Moscow State University, he was later first dean of the psychology faculty at Saint John the Divine Russian Orthodox University. His research interests are personality psychology and family psychology. Selected publications: 1. Lorgus, Andrey. 2015. Ɍɟɥɟɫɧɨɟ ɜɨɫɤɪɟɫɟɧɢɟ: ɤɚɤ ɷɬɨ ɛɭɞɟɬ? Ɉɬ ɫɦɟɪɬɢ ɤ ɠɢɡɧɢ [Bodily resurrection: how will it be? From death to life. Collected articles]. Moscow: Pravmir.ru. 2. Lorgus, Andrey, and Krasnikova, Olga. 2015. ȼɥɸɛɥɟɧɧɨɫɬɶ. Ʌɸɛɨɜɶ. Ɂɚɜɢɫɢɦɨɫɬɶ [Love, falling in love, addiction]. Moscow: Nikea. 3. Lorgus, Andrey, Maksim Pervozvanskiy, and Vladimir Luchaninov. 2015. Ȼɥɚɝɨɫɥɨɜɟɧɧɵɣ ɬɪɭɞ [Blessed labour]. Moscow: Nikea. 4. Lorgus, Andrey. 2014. Ʌɨɪɝɭɫ.Ʉɧɢɝɚ ɨɛ ɨɬɰɨɜɫɬɜɟ [Book of fatherhood]. Moscow: Nikea. 5. Lorgus, Andrey. 2013. Ʉɧɢɝɚ ɨ ɫɱɚɫɬɶɟ [Book of happiness]. Moscow: Nikea. 6. Lorgus, Andrey, and Bertram Shtubenrauch, eds. 2013. Ȼɨɝɨɫɥɨɜɫɤɚɹ ɚɧɬɪɨɩɨɥɨɝɢɹ. Ɋɭɫɫɤɨ-ɩɪɚɜɨɫɥɚɜɧɵɣ/ ɪɢɦɫɤɨɤɚɬɨɥɢɱɟɫɤɢɣ ɫɥɨɜɚɪɶ: ɢɡɞɚɧɢɹ ɧɚ Ɋɭɫɫɤɨɦ ɢ ɧɟɦɟɰɤɨɦ ɹɡɵɤɚɯ/ [Theological Anthropology: Russian Orthodox/Roman-Catholic Dictionary (Russian and German editions)]. Moscow: Nikea. 7. Lorgus, Andrey, and Dudko Michail. 2001. Orthodoxes Glaubensbuch. Eine Einfuhrung in das Glaubens – und gebetsleben der Russissischen Orthodoxen Kirche [Orthodox faith: an

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introduction to the worship and prayer of the Russian Orthodox Church]. Würzburg: Der Christliche Osten. Anna Ostaszewska has been a psychotherapist for 33 years. She works at the Integrative Psychotherapy Centre in Warsaw (individual psychotherapy) and in the psychological centre of the Warsaw branch of the Association of Christian Psychologists (ACP) in Poland, of which she is a former president. She also lectures psychotherapy at the PWT Academy in Wroclaw and is a supervisor for the European Certificate of Psychotherapy of the European Association for Psychotherapy. She is secretary of the Polish Council for Psychotherapy and vice-president of EMCAPP. Anna’s formulation of the concept of a person and the integrative psychotherapeutic approach has been translated into several languages (www.psychoterapiaintegratywna.com/library.html). Email: [email protected] Selected publications: 1. Ostaszewska, Anna. 2015, 2017. Psychoterapia integratywna w podejĞciu chrzeĞcijaĔskim [Integrative psychotherapy: a Christian approach]. Sopot: GWP. 2. Ostaszewska, Anna. 2014. “Badania nad efektywnoĞcią wáączania tematyki duchowoĞci i religijnoĞci w psychoterapii” [Scientific research on the effectiveness of including spirituality or religiosity in psychotherapy]. Psychoterapia 2: 5–18. 3. Ostaszewska, Anna. 2012. “Anxiety Therapy from the Perspective of the Integrative Psychotherapy: A Christian Approach”. EMCAPP Journal: Christian Psychology Around the World 1: 58– 75. http://www.emcapp.eu. 4. Ostaszewska, Anna. 2009. “Psychoterapia wzmacniania osoby” [Psychotherapy of strengthening a person]. In Od depresji [From depression], edited by Stanisáaw Tokarski, 67–96. Páock: PIW. 5. Ostaszewska, Anna. 2006. “Wzmacnianie osoby w terapii zaburzeĔ osobowoĞci” [Strengthening a person in therapy of personality disorders]. In Osoba, osobowoĞü, zaburzenia osobowoĞci [Person,

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personality, personality disorder], edited by Stanisáaw Tokarski, 35–58. Páock: PIW. Dorothy du Plessis has been involved in secondary, private and higher education for more than 30 years. She holds a BEd degree with majors in English, Afrikaans and education, MEd and DEd degrees in the psychology of education, and a diploma in translation and editing. Dorothy has a special interest in parenting and education in the family context and presents workshops in systematic training for effective parenting (STEP) and in anger management. She has provided private counselling for many years, focusing on parenting, trauma, anger management, relationships, marriage, divorce, and personal and family counselling. She has been an e-learning facilitator and lecturer in communication at tertiary level in technical and vocational colleges and been a moderator of N6 national examinations in communication. Dorothy is also involved in freelance translating, editing and proofreading and has written various articles for the popular Christian magazine JOY. Elena Strigo is a psychologist and psychotherapist and head of the psychological counselling centre ABIGAIL in Krasnoyarsk (Russia), which offers recovery from trauma – the first and only registered centre for Christian psychology and psychotherapy in the Krasnoyarsk region. She is a full member of the Professional Psychotherapeutic League of Russia, a holder of the European Certificate of Psychotherapy of the European Association for Psychotherapy, and a board member of EMCAPP.

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Elena graduated in psychology from Saint Petersburg State University. She has also trained in psychoanalysis through the Eastern European Institute of Psychoanalysis in Saint Petersburg and is a certified specialist in the psychoanalysis of Freud–Lacan. She has developed and conducted seminars on healing from psychic trauma and focused on an approach to trauma therapy based on Christian anthropology. Selected publications: 1. Strigo, Elena. 2013. “The Psychic Reality and the Image of God in Christian Psychotherapy.” Christian Psychology Around the World 3: 102–21. http://emcapp.ignis.de/pdf/journal_3_2s.pdf. 2. Strigo, Elena. 2016. “The Moral Word in Reconstruction of Person in Christian Psychotherapy.” Christian Psychology Around the World 9: 23–9. http://emcapp.ignis.de/pdf/emcapp_journal_9.pdf. Francesco Cutino is a psychotherapist (CTA EATA). He has been a member of the Italian Association of Catholic Psychiatrists and Psychologists (AIPCC, www.aippc.net) and he is currently a member of the EMCAPP board. He is in the process of establishing the Institute for Christian Psychology in Rome. He graduated in psychology before obtaining a master’s degree in anthropology at La Sapienza University and a PhD in clinical psychology at the Salesian Pontifical University. Later he attended a further master’s degree programme in vocational psychotherapy at the Pontifical Lateran University. Francesco’s work experience has included several years in psychiatric rehabilitation and community care in London and practice as a clinical psychologist in the National Health Service (fields of dependencies, sexual abuse and adult, child and adolescent mental health). He subsequently organised a multi-setting ecotherapy project at an olive farm near Rome, receiving individuals and groups from abroad. In recent years he has collaborated with Puridicuore.it and in a pastoral counselling project with Barbara Marchica in Milan (www.barbaramarchica.it) and has collaborated with Robert Enright through the International Forgiveness Institute in Rome, which he chairs. Selected publications: 1. Cutino, Francesco. 2017. “Ecoterapia, ecologia umana integrale e

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rivelazione cristologica” [Ecotherapy, whole human ecology and Christological revelation]. Paper presented at the National Conference of APTEBA (Associazione Pet Therapy e Bioetica Animale), November 2017, Rapallo. 2. Cutino, Francesco. 2012. “Ecoterapia: esperienze e modelli operativi a confronto” [Ecotherapy: experiences and operating models compared]. Paper presented at the National Conference of APTEBA, October 2012, Rapallo. 3. Cutino, Francesco. 2010. “Potenziale terapeutico, educativo e riabilitativo delle city-farms” [Therapeutic, educational and rehabilitation potential of city-farms]. Paper presented at the National Conference of APTEBA, October 2010, Rapallo. 4. Clarkson, Petruska and Cutino, Francesco. 2000. “Gesù Cristo e le cinque modalità della relazione terapeutica” [Jesus Christ and the five dimensions of the therapeutic relationship]. Paper presented at the First AIPPC National Conference, March 2000, Rome. Krzysztof A. Wojcieszek is a professor of education at the Pedagogium School of Social Sciences in Warsaw. He holds two MSc degrees, in molecular biology and ethics, and a PhD in philosophy, and he is author of more than 150 articles and books. His passion is to develop effective forms of education. He is an expert in the construction and implementation of original prevention programmes on alcohol related problems (Noe, Debata, Korekta), widely used in Poland, and is a consultant to many central and local institutions in the field of drug and alcohol related problems. He is a former president of the European Society for Prevention Research and is a trainer in prevention science. He is also a member of the Polish Mariology Society and has developed a modern version of the philosophy of St Thomas Aquinas. Email: [email protected] Selected publications: 1. Wojcieszek, Krzysztof. 2016. Nasze dzieci w dĪungli Īycia. Jak pomóc im przetrwaü [Our children in the jungle of life. How to help them survive]. Kraków: Rubikon. 2. Wojcieszek, Krzysztof. 2016. “Can Despair lead to Belief in God? The Case of Edith Stein.” In The Hat and the Veil: The

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Phenomenology of Edith Stein, edited by Jerzy Machnacz, Monika Maáek-Oráowska and Krzysztof Serafin, 258–67. Nordhausen: Verlag Traugott Bautz. 3. Wojcieszek, Krzysztof. 2013. Optymalizacja profilaktyki problemów alkoholowych. Pedagogiczne implikacje grupowych interwencji krótkoterminowych [Optimising the prevention of alcohol related problems]. Kraków: Rubikon. 4. Wojcieszek, Krzysztof. 2010. Czáowiek spotyka alcohol [Man meets alcohol]. Kraków: Rubikon. 5. Wojcieszek, Krzysztof. 2004. “Human Coming to Be: A New Proposal for the Old Thomistic Theory.” In Christian Humanism in the Third Millennium: The Perspective of Thomas Aquinas [Proceedings of the International Congress, 21–25 September, 2003], Vol. I, 733–43. Vatican City: Pontifical Academy of Saint Thomas Aquinas. Mar Alvarez-Segura (MD, PhD) is a child and adolescent psychiatrist who specialises in the treatment of trauma. She works at the Sant Joan de Déu Hospital in Barcelona as a psychotherapist in a programme for witnesses to domestic violence, and she is a lecturer at Abat Oliba CEU University in Barcelona in the field of personality. She is also a member of the Rielo Institute for Integral Development. Mar was trained through the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma and through group interventions for traumatised children at Bellevue Hospital in New York, where she was a fellow in child psychiatry. She has conducted research on the intergenerational effects of trauma in Latino populations. She is especially interested in the transformative experiences of personality, and her research interests include anthropology, ethics, and spirituality in psychiatry. She is passionate about researching and communicating the anthropological foundations that provide people with extraordinary resources for recovery. Selected publications: 1. Alvarez-Segura, Mar, Martin F. Echavarria, Montserrat Lafuente, Charles Zeiders, Patricia Antonin, and Paul C. Vitz. 2017.

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“Defense Mechanisms: Determined or Ethical Choices or Both?” European Journal of Science and Theology 13: 11–25. 2. Alvarez-Segura, Mar, Martín F. Echavarria, and Paul C. Vitz. 2017. “A Psycho-ethical Approach to Personality Disorders: The Role of Volitionality.” New Ideas in Psychology 47: 49–56. 3. Grupo de Estudios Pykhé and Mar Alvarez-Segura. 2016. “Contribuciones y confusiones de la espiritualidad en salud mental” [Contributions and confusions of spirituality in mental health]. Gaceta de Psiquiatría Universitaria 12: 353–58. 4. Alvarez-Segura, Mar, Martín F. Echevarría, and Paul C. Vitz. 2015. “Re-conceptualizing Neurosis as a Degree of Egocentricity: Ethical Issues in Psychological Theory.” Journal of Religion and Health 54: 1788–99. Michael G. Sheldon obtained a London University medical degree at Middlesex Hospital. He subsequently ran his own general practice in Banbury. An interest in computers in medical practice helped him to become the lead GP at Nottingham University Medical School, where he became involved in developing decision-making aids and computers for the GP setting. Owing to health problems, Michael resigned his university post and, with his family, joined Youth With A Mission (YWAM) to develop the medical side of missions. For this purpose they worked mainly in Uganda developing community health and counselling. He then returned to academic general practice in London at St Bartholomew’s Hospital and London University. There his main interest was in developing a whole person understanding of medical practice. He also worked part time in a local practice and developed a whole person clinic using medical, counselling and chaplaincy skills. To develop these interests he established a charity, the Whole Person Health Trust. Sadly, Mike passed on shortly before this book was published, but his achievements and aspirations will continue to influence practitioners of patient-centred whole person care. Selected publications:

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1. Sheldon, Michael, and Nigel Stoddart, eds. 1985. Trends in General Practice Computing. London: Royal College of General Practitioners. 2. Sheldon, Michael, John Brooke, and Alan Rector, eds. 1985. Decision Making in General Practice. London: The Macmillan Press. 3. Sheldon, Michael, and David Ames. 1999. To Bind Up the Brokenhearted. Mildenhall: Mission to Marriage. 4. Sheldon, Michael, ed. 1992. Counselling in General Practice. London: Royal College of General Practitioners. 5. Sheldon, Michael. 1987. Health, Healing and Medicine. Edinburgh: The Handsell Press. Montserrat Lafuente-Gil (MD, PhD) is a psychiatrist and philosopher who teaches professional ethics and personality in the department of psychology at the Abat Oliba CEU University of Barcelona. She also works at the Galatea Clinic in the integral care programme for healthcare professionals suffering from mental disorders. Montserrat’s interest in the training and care of the healthcare professional led to her research on the academic follow-up of medical students, their personality and their learning style. Her current research interest is the influence of spirituality, ethics and personality on the mental health of healthcare professionals. She is also a member of the Rielo Institute for Integral Development, a group of intellectuals who collaborate to develop solutions to the problems of poverty, migration and marginalisation, particularly in the field of health. Selected publications: 1. Alvarez-Segura, Mar, Martin F. Echavarria, Montserrat Lafuente, Charles Zeiders, Patricia Antonin, and Paul C. Vitz. 2017. “Defense Mechanisms: Determined or Ethical Choices or Both?” European Journal of Science and Theology 13: 11–25. 2. Aragona, M., D. Pucci, S. Carrer, E. Catino, A. Tomaselli, F. Colosimo, M. Lafuente, M. Mazzetti, B. Maisano, and S. Geraci.

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2011. “The Role of Post-migration Living Difficulties on Somatization among First-Generation Immigrants Visited in a Primary Care Service.” Annali dell’Istituto Superiore Sanitá 47, no. 2: 207–13. 3. Aragona, M., E. Catino, D. Pucci, S. Carrer, F. Colosimo, M. Lafuente, M. Mazzetti, B. Maisano, and S. Geraci. 2010. “The Relationship Between Somatization and Posttraumatic Symptoms Among Immigrants Receiving Primary Care Services.” Journal of Traumatic Stress 23, no. 5: 615–22. 4. Bitrán, M., D. Zúñiga, M. Lafuente, P. Viviani, and M. Beltran. 2005. “Influencia de la personalidad y el estilo de aprendizaje en la elección de especialidad medica” [Influence of personality and learning styles in the choice of medical specialisation]. Revista Médica de Chile 133, no. 10: 1191–99. Nicolene Joubert is a psychologist and trauma therapist who holds a PhD in psychology and is the founder and head of the Institute of Christian Psychology in South Africa (www.icp.org.za). She has been a practising psychologist for 35 years and is a postgraduate supervisor at the South African Theological Seminary. Nicolene is a board member of the Council for Christian and Spiritual Counsellors (CPSC) and the Association of Christian Religious Practitioners (ACRP) in South Africa. She is also a board member of EMCAPP. Her research interests are in the fields of trauma therapy, dissociative disorders and the integration of spirituality and psychology. Selected publications: 1. Joubert, Nicolene L. 2007. “An African Perspective on Miracles.” In Miracles: God, Science, and Psychology in the Paranormal, Vol. 3: Parapsychological Perspectives, edited by J. Harold Ellens, 117–38. Westport, CT: Praeger. 2. Joubert, Nicolene L. 2010. “How Christian Spirituality Spurs Mental Health.” In The Healing Power of Spirituality, Vol. 2: Religion, edited by J. Harold Ellens, 238–66. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger.

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3. Joubert, Nicolene L. 2015. “Christian Community Psychology.” Christian Psychology Around the World 8: 50–66. https://emcapp.ignis.de/pdf/emcapp_journal_8.pdf. 4. Joubert, Nicolene L. 2018. “The Value of Applied Christian Community Psychology in Healthcare.” In Proceedings of the 2nd Biennial South African Conference on Spirituality and Healthcare, edited by André de la Porte, Nicolene Joubert and Annemarie Oberholzer, 51–69. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars. 5. Joubert, Nicolene L. 2018. “Ethical dilemmas and pastoral counselling in the healthcare environment.” In Proceedings of the 2nd Biennial South African Conference on Spirituality and Healthcare, edited by André de la Porte, Nicolene Joubert and Annemarie Oberholzer, 171–91. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars. Olga Krasnikova is a counselling psychologist, lecturer of psychology, EMCAPP participant, head of the psychological centre Sobesednik (Conversation partner) and assistant rector at the Institute of Christian Psychology in Moscow. She graduated from the faculty of psychology of Lomonosov Moscow State University and has been working as psychologist, teaching psychology at universities and holding seminars and workshops. She also practised counselling for several years. Olga started teaching Christian psychology at Saint John the Divine Russian Orthodox University. Sheparticipated in establishing the Institute of Christian Psychology, the first of its kind in Russia, where she currently heads her own original courses on age-related stages of personal development, Christian family psychology, and spiritually-oriented practical psychology. Selected publications: 1. Krasnikova, Olga. 2017. Ɉɞɢɧɨɱɟɫɬɜɨ [Loneliness]. 3rd ed. Moscow: Nikea. 2. Krasnikova, Olga. 2017. Ɉɩɨɡɞɚɧɢɹ ɢ ɧɟɜɵɩɨɥɧɟɧɧɵɟ ɨɛɟɳɚɧɢɹ [Delays and unfulfilled promises]. 3rd ed. Moscow: Nikea.

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3. Krasnikova, Olga, and Andrey Lorgus. 2016. ȼɥɸɛɥɟɧɧɨɫɬɶ, ɥɸɛɨɜɶ, ɡɚɜɢɫɢɦɨɫɬɶ. Ʉɚɤ ɩɨɫɬɪɨɢɬɶ ɫɟɦɟɣɧɨɟ ɫɱɚɫɬɶɟ? [Love, falling in love, addiction. How can family happiness be built?]. 2nd ed. Moscow: Nikea. 4. Krasnikova, Olga, and Andrey Lorgus. 2016. Ɇɭɠɱɢɧɚ ɢ ɠɟɧɳɢɧɚ: ɨɬ ə ɞɨ Ɇɵ. Ʉɚɤ ɩɨɫɬɪɨɢɬɶ ɫɟɦɟɣɧɨɟ ɫɱɚɫɬɶɟ? [Man and woman: the way from I to We. How can family happiness be built?] 2nd ed. Moscow: Nikea. 5. Krasnikova, Olga. 2014. Contributor to Ⱦɭɲɚ ɜɚɲɟɝɨ ɪɟɛɟɧɤɚ. 40 ɜɨɩɪɨɫɨɜ ɪɨɞɢɬɟɥɟɣ ɨ ɞɟɬɹɯ [Soul of your child: 40 questions of parents about children], compiled by Marina Nefedova. 2nd ed. Moscow: Nikea. Olena Yaremko is a psychologist and psychotherapist specialising in integrative Christian psychotherapy. She holds a PhD in social psychology and psychology of religion from the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. She also studied integrative Christian psychotherapy for several years in Warsaw, Poland. Olena has been working as a psychologist in the spiritual-pastoral department of the Ukrainian Catholic University since 2003. In her online practice in Germany she offers psychological counselling. Her fields of scientific interest are the psychology of religion, pastoral psychology, personality psychology, social psychology, Christian psychology and psychotherapy, and the cultural adaptation of psychological methods. Olena is an experienced youth worker, international trainer and accreditor of the European Voluntary Service, and she founded the Academy of Ukrainian Youth, which she headed for ten years. Email: [email protected] Selected publications: 1. Yaremko, Olena. 2015. Psychological Research Methods concerning Religiosity. In Spiritual and Psychological Basics of Christian Psychology, edited by Ludmila Hrydkovec, 161–83 [in Russian]. Lviv: Skrynya.

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2. Yaremko, Olena. 2012. “Integrative Christian Psychotherapy: Basics of the Psychotherapeutic Approach.” Newsletter of the Kiev Institute of Business and Technology 4: 93–7 [in Russian]. 3. Yaremko, Olena. 2011. “The Role of Personal Traits in Interpersonal Relationships and Relationships with God.” In Problems of Modern Psychology 13: 751–63 [in Russian]. Kamianets-Podilskyj: Aksioma. 4. Yaremko, Olena. 2011. “Personal Correlates of Religiosity.” Social Psychology 5, no. 49: 50–8 [in Russian]. Romuald Jaworski holds a doctorate and is a theologian, psychologist, psychotherapist, supervisor and Catholic priest. He is an assistant professor of psychology at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw and head of the department of psychology of religion. He also works as a psychotherapist at the Catholic psychological centre, Dewajtis, in Warsaw. He previously served terms in Plock as rector of the Higher Seminary and director of the Theological College and the Metanoia centre. Romuald co-founded the Association of Christian Psychologists (ACP) in Poland and served terms as its vice-president and president. He was subsequently director of ACP psychotherapy study, to which he also contributed as a lecturer. Selected publications: 1. Jaworski, Romuald. 2017. Bibliodrama jako spotkanie [Bibliodrama as a meeting]. Páock: Páocki Instytut Wydawniczy. 2. Jaworski, Romuald. 2015. Kiedy miáoĞü boli. O zranieniach i przebaczeniu w maáĪeĔstwie [When love hurts: about wounds and forgiveness in marriage]. Páock: Páocki Instytut Wydawniczy. 3. Jaworski, Romuald. 2015. “Anthropozentrische und theozentrische Spiritualität: Eine psychologische Studie” [Anthropocentric and theocentric spirituality: a psychological study]. Magazin de Ignis 50: 20–7. 4. Jaworski, Romuald. 2014. “Christliche Glaube und psychische Gesundheit. Empirische Forschungsergebnisse über die heilende Wirkung einer personlichen Gottesbeziehung” [Christian faith and

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mental health: empirical research findings on the healing effects of a personal relationship with God]. Magazin de Ignis 48: 17–24. 5. Jaworski, Romuald. 2012. “The Role of Religious Trust in Overcoming Conflicts: Empirical Verification of the Pastoral Psychology Paradigm.” Christian Psychology Around the World 1: 34–42. http://emcapp.ignis.de/1/. Saara Kinnunen is a psychotherapist and a family and couple therapist. She holds an MA degree in social psychology, education and musicology and worked in the family counselling centre of the Lutheran Church in Finland. She is a board member of the Association of Christian Counsellors in Finland and a supervisor and trainer of counselling and Christian therapy. She has presented parenting courses for 35 years and marriage courses with her husband, Arto, in Finland and Russia. Saara is the author of 15 books, the last two being on integrative Christian therapy; Longing for the Father was recognised as the best Christian book of Finland in 2016. Saara, with her team, leads seminars and workshops on the topic Reconciliation with life. She runs programmes on reconciliation with the past, with oneself, with difficult emotions, and in close relationships. Selected publications: 1. Kinnunen, Saara. 1996. Luottamustehtävä, koti lapsen hengellisen kasvun tukena [Commission of trust: home and the child’s spiritual life]. Lohja: Karas-Sana. 2. Kinnunen, Saara. 2003. Anna mun olla lapsi [Let me be a child]. Kirjapaja, 2003. 3. Kinnunen, Saara. 2007. Kahden kauppa [We two and our relationship]. Helsinki: Kirjapaja. 4. Kinnunen, Saara. 2011. Lapsen usko, kuinka tukea lapsen hengellistä kasvua [The child’s faith: how to support children to grow in faith]. Ryttyla: Uusi Tie Oy. 5. Kinnunen, Saara. 2014. Sovintoon elämän kanssa [Reconciliation with life]. Kauniainen: Perussanoma Oy.

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6. Kinnunen, Saara. 2016. Isän kaipuu [Longing for the father]. Kauniainen: Perussanoma Oy. Trevor Griffiths studied medicine at Oxford University. As a general medical doctor for 25 years, he pioneered whole person approaches to medicine that included counselling and befriending schemes. With his wife, Marian, also a doctor, he developed a conversational alternative to systemic family therapy that reduces stress and improves relatedness and personal development. Now called emotional logic, this has proved a safe and effective homebased alternative to counselling and cognitive therapies to reduce common mental illnesses, socially disruptive behaviour, suicides and self-harming. Trevor now works full time in the UK and internationally through the Emotional Logic Centre, a UK registered charity, training trainers to promote the personal development of resilience in families, workplaces, professions, community and church. He has developed the emotional chaos theory as a new way to understand distress, tension and confusion (integrating medical physiology, neuroscience and social constructionist psychology). Selected publications: 1. Zahra, Daniel, Marian Langsford, and Trevor Griffiths. 2016. “Emotional Logic Development Profiles – Validating the Benefits and Safety of Emotional Logic Training.” International Journal of Psychiatry in Clinical Practice 20: 141–45. 2. Langsford, Marian, and Trevor Griffiths. 2015. “Learning and Teaching Emotional Logic in Zimbabwe: A Lifelong Learning Emotional Literacy Training Package that Promotes Healthy Adjustment in Resource-poor Settings.” Tropical Doctor 45, no. 3: 158–63. 3. Griffiths, Trevor. 2015. Building Bridges of Grace: The Strength and Resilience of an Emotionally Intelligent Church. Plymouth, UK: Emotional Logic Publishing. 4. Griffiths, Trevor. 2013. “Preventing Alienation and Social Disorder with Emotional Logic.” Safer Communities 12, no. 2: 79–85.

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Werner May is a psychologist and author of books (in German) in the area of Christian counselling and education. His practical focus until 2003 was counselling to foster families and adoptive families. Werner has been president of the IGNIS Association of Christian Psychology Germany (www.ignis.de) for the past 25 years and is the current president of EMCAPP (www.emcapp.eu). He is the publisher of the free web journal Christian Psychology Around the World (http://emcapp.ignis.de/). Selected publications: 1. May, Werner. 2013. “God is Present: The Concept of Christian Counseling at IGNIS, the German Association for Christian Psychology.” In Transformative Encounters: The Intervention of God in Christian Counseling and Pastoral Care, edited by David W. Appleby and George Ohlschlager, 155–67. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. 2. May, Werner. 2012. Verliebte Liebe – Sieben Fäden für ein Liebesnetz, das halt. [Fondest love – seven strands of loving connection]. Kitzingen: IGNIS. 3. May, Werner. 2011. Der Vertrauensmodus... und die Kunst des verbindenden Neins [The trust mode – and the art of the healing No]. Kitzingen: IGNIS. 4. May, Werner. 2004. Schluss mit den schlechten Gewohnheiten – Sich verändern, mit Gottes Hilfe [Breaking bad habits – changing oneself with God’s help]. Kitzingen: IGNIS. 5. May, Werner. 2001. Kindern dialogisch Grenzen setzen – ein Leitfaden für Eltern und Erzieher [Setting boundaries for children in dialogue]. Kitzingen: IGNIS. 6. May, Werner, ed. 1998, 1999, 2000. Die Jahrbücher der IGNISInitiative Aufgenommene Kinder [Yearbooks of the IGNIS Adopted Child Initiative]. Kitzingen: IGNIS. Details of all Werner’s publications are available online at https://wernermay.jimdo.com/.

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Wolfram Soldan is a physician and psychotherapist. He has worked for the past 25 years at the IGNIS Institute for Christian Psychology in Kitzingen, Germany, serving as a psychotherapist and supervisor and author of various study manuals. He is also a tutor for the Institute of Christian Psychology in South Africa (Germiston) and a teacher of Christian counselling courses. He is a member of the German Christian professional network Akademie für Psychotherapie und Seelsorge (APS) and the expert advisory board of its journal, P&S (http://www.punds.org). Wolfram has developed a specific Christian forgiveness model. His main interests are forgiveness processes, a Christian approach to sexuality and sexual pathology (a God-designed journey of knowing God, oneself and the other, using the Hebrew concept of yada), dealing with biblical texts in a dialogical way in counselling (biblical teaching dialogue), and a Christian psychological model of epistemology (hermeneutic spiral). Selected publications: 1. Wolfram, Soldan. 2012. “Characteristics of a Christian Psychology.” Christian Psychology Around the World 4: 7–15. http://emcapp.ignis.de/4/#/6. 2. Wolfram, Soldan. 2003. “Der Weg der ‘Inneren Heilung’ bei sexueller Gewalt an Kindern.” In Handbuch sexuelle Gewalt an Kindern [Manual of sexual violence against children], edited by Elfi Brinkmann and Sandy Hoffmann, 176–93. Moers: Brendo. 3. Wolfram, Soldan. n.d. Christliche Therapie – Ganzheitliche (Psycho)Therapie auf der Basis einer biblischen Anthropologie [Christian therapy – a holistic (psycho)therapy based on a biblical anthropology]. Kitzingen: IGNIS.

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Zenon Uchnast (PhD) is professor emeritus at the Institute of Psychology at the Jesuit University Ignatianum in Krakow. He was previously head of the department of general psychology at the Catholic University in Lublin, Poland. Zenon’s scientific interests relate to psychological theories, William Stern, the personalistic and idiographic approach in psychology, theories of personality, the psychology of natural gestalts, and psychological questionnaires of personality traits and vital orientations. Email: [email protected] Selected publications: 1. Uchnast, Zenon. 2016. RóĪnice indywidualne ujmowane w terminach typów psychicznych C.G. Junga i stylów Īycia A. Adlera [Individual differences between C.G. Jung’s psychological types and A. Adler’s lifestyles]. Rocznik Filozoficzny Ignatianum 22: 100–38. 2. Uchnast, Zenon, ed. 2013. Charakter: JakoĞü osobowego dziaáania w podejĞciu teoretycznym i empirycznym [Character: the quality of personal action in the theoretical and empirical approaches]. Lublin: TN KUL. 3. Uchnast, Zenon. 2009. “Human predispositions and personal competences.” Nowy Sącz Academic Review 5: 32–9. 4. Uchnast, Zenon. 2009. “Biology–Psychology: Integration from the Perspective of Gestalt Psychology and the Synergetic Approach: Comments on L.A. Pervin’s Paper.” Roczniki Psychologiczne 12: 42–7. 5. Uchnast, Zenon, ed. 2008. Wspóádziaáanie–rywalizacja. Wybrane zagadnienia z psychologii kierowania [Cooperation–rivalry: selected issues from the psychology of management]. Lublin: TN KUL. 6. Uchnast, Zenon. 2001. “Empatia osobowa: metoda pomiaru” [Personal empathy: the measuring method]. Przegląd Psychologiczny 44: 189–207.