- Genre:psychology
- Sub-genre:Psychotherapy / Counseling
- Language:English
- Pages:136
- Duration2 Hours 29 Minutes
- Paperback ISBN:9781098305444
- Audiobook ISBN:9798350939408
Book details
Overview
This book connects resources from the vast field of psychotherapy with resources from the equally vast fields of Christian theology and Christian anthropology. Christian anthropology asserts that humanity began with God, will end with God, and, in the time in between, we women and men are free to choose to walk with God…or not. Applied Christian anthropology works to develop awareness of God's intent by seeing psychotherapy as a resource for understanding human psychology, development, and needs. Deacon Ray has been inspired by the Catholic Psychotherapy Association (CPA) whose mission is to support mental health practitioners by promoting the development of psychological theory and mental health practice which encompasses a full understanding of the human person, family, and society in fidelity to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. This book will also foster both the development of a community of CPA members and function as an opportunity for professional development both as therapists and as people of faith. This book most specifically aims to respond to CPA's goal to "Encourage and support the presentation of scholarly work and writing that is relevant to the mission of CPA…" At this early stage of CPA history, a preliminary grouping of resources linked to the normal course of development in the Christian life might appear useful for client seekers as well as therapists, clergy, and teachers. It his hope that his book will contribute to Catholic psychotherapy literature and a jumping off point for others to improve. This volume deals with the beginnings of faith because without faith further steps become impossible. I came to refer to Catholic anthropology rather than Christian anthropology. Though Catholics share many elements of Christian anthropology with other Christian traditions, with the passage of time, the Catholic understanding of the human person has continued to diverge or at least become distinct from the understanding of our brothers and sisters in other religious, even Christian religious, traditions.
Description
Pope Benedict XVI (2010, p. 50-56) advocates that truth is possible and that we need to have the courage to assert the truth as we understand it. For Deacon Ray that means that he does not aim to impose on anyone what he sees as the truth by force. Rather, as Pope Emeritus Benedict puts it, "The truth comes to rule, not through violence, but through its own power; this is the central theme of John's Gospel." To paraphrase Benedict's chapter, he advocated that we have "…criteria for verification and falsification…" (p. 51) but we accept others even if their values are not ours. Too often we do just the opposite: we are relativistic about our values and rejecting of persons with different values. In psychotherapy the only place the client can begin is from where the person is. As a practicing psychotherapist for 40 years Deacon Ray's job was to acknowledge the values of others as theirs, accept that the begins from another place, and to then to get to know and try to understand wherever the other's starting point might be. Readers will see that Deacon Ray's outline is from chapter 13 of Matthew's gospel. That chapter functions as an outline for his purpose of stitching together faith and psychotherapy. Matthew 13:1-52 talks about basic faith and the spiritual life of faith... or the lack thereof. His starting point is intended as an entry point for searchers of all types: the "nones" (White, 2014, 2017) who claim no religious affiliation, the confused, the depressed, the anxious, the skeptical, or the uninformed. Chapter 13 highlights a few basic elements of Christian faith quoting Jesus' own words. The hope is that those words may provide motivation for the uninvolved, food for the starved, and relief for those stuck on their journey in faith or psychological healing.
