My research has led me to a few slightly different findings. For instance, you mentioned
that psychology and Christianity have different origins, beliefs, and goals.
Johnson (2010) describes that both Christianity and psychology have as their primary goal
the search for truth, with theology seeking the truth via revelation and psychology via
observation. Furthermore, Sproul (2000) suggests that psychology and Christianity have
congruent roots in the work of ancient Greek philosophers, in particular the work of stoics
and epicureans.
It's undeniable the existence of significant distinctions between philosophy, theology, and
psychology. It is also possible to perceive the similarities and how each domain has
affected one another over the years, including the focus on improving human life (Johnson,
2010).
Many ideas that are nowadays seen as unsophisticated (i.e., Thales of Miletus's perception
of water as the unifying substance) were, thousands of years ago, innovative and crucial to
the birth of scientific approaches to search for truth. Questions raised about the validity of
well-accepted knowledge are vital to ignite debates and generate new lines of thought.
In one way or another, psychology and Christianity encourage us to maximize our potential,
and by doing so, we honor God by fulfilling our calling (Esqueda, 2014). Thank you for
your response, however, I have not read “The Consequences of Ideas:
Understanding the Concepts that Shaped our World. Crossway” but as of this past
Saturday have started to read some of the chapters. I guess you could look at
Christianity and psychology having congruent roots if you view a if form a heuristic
view point. a It's important to remember the differences between the Stoics and
the Epicureans, the Stoics cared more about virtuous behavior and living
according to nature, while the Epicureans were about avoiding pain and seeking
the necessary pleasure.
a a With this understanding, Christianity could have similar joining roots if you view
it as God being nature, and psychology being comparable to having the avoidance
of pain and seeking pleasure or scientific facts. It’s an interesting read, thank you
for sharing, however, depending how you view psychology and Christianity you
could draw different conclusions to findings based off of reference points or
individual experiences. This is true for any type of context, based on reference
material and life experiences.
a a I believe that the more facts that come from uncovering biblical history, the
more psychology regardless of the origin are going to be more incline to support
each other. The past does not stay the past forever, once what was thought to be
theory becomes reality as we progress on our discovery’s of the past. As we
evaluate the differences and similarities between Christianity and Psychology as it
relates to truth, we can determine that it is a great debate. You clearly laid out the
operational definition of each area which makes it clear and concise to take a
stance on where we can see a fit. Looking psychology as a science one can claim
that science is what is most prevalent because empiricism is critical when looking
at cause and effect. We need observation and trial & error as environment and
society play a factor in determine how individuals think, act and feel. However, it
is Christianity that has laid the groundwork in the evolution of being and what it
right from wrong, moral & ethical as individuals engage and interact with one
another.
In your discussion, my takeaway is that you believe that there is more of a
connection than opposing challenges between modern psychology as a science
and Christianity and after reading your thread as well as reading Wolters (2005), I
must admit that I also conclude the same. Modern Psychology and Christianity
play a key role with one another. He says that Christians have confessed that
Scriptures have the authority of God and this is supreme over everything else.
Whereas Johnson (2010), states that faith connects the science of psychology
not only by motivating scientific inquiry and sensitizing individuals to implicit
values in so many other ways.
This has led me to believe that Christianity has been scripted for us so that we
can prove its theories with the psychology of science.
We share the same thoughs on the combination of Psychology and Christianity,
Christianity adheres to what is written in the biblical records while psychology
centers concepts concentrating on the mental status of an individual. Johnson
(2010), acknowledged the value and difficulty of this challenge for individuals who
desire to be both Christian and psychologist, as well as the ability to establish a
basis for the integration. In the past, these two have been viewed as polar
opposites, when in fact they may be they share similar focuses.
Your reflection on how we were raised with Christian values and how we act and
react our shaped by those concepts. As Baptists, we were taught that being
submerged in the water was the practice of being baptized, whereas Methodists
believe that being sprinkled is sufficient. I truly believe this is how we have so
many denominations because they have read the bible and made their own
interpretations as to how those scriptures should be viewed. If God’s word, said it,
then that settles it. At the end of the day, there will not be separate sections of
heaven geared to what your specific denomination was on earth. I feel strongly
that the study of psychology can be viewed similarly, we might not agree with
every aspect, but we can agree on its benefits to maintaining mental health
because if you are not right mentally, you can be right spiritually. God has
promised power, love, and a sound mind (Holy Bible, New King James Version,
1982/1994, 2: Timothy 1:7). With the cohesion of these two, the results would
significantly be favorable, there is something we could use from each to gain
knowledge on how to live a mentally healthy life.
a a Thank you again, I’m going to read more on the references you provided,
especially the book “Psychology and Christianity: Five views” to gain a better
insight on the text and the authors perspectives and beliefs.
References
Esqueda, O. J. (2014). Biblical worldview: The Christian higher education foundation for
learning. Christian Higher Education, 13(2), 91-100. https://doi-
org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1080/15363759.2014.872495
Johnson, E. L. (2010). Psychology and Christianity: Five views (2nd ed.). IVP Academic.
Sproul, R.C. (2000). The Consequences of Ideas: Understanding the Concepts that Shaped
our World. Crossway.
