Psychoanalysis Phenomenological Anthropology And Religion

In this volume we have brought together some of the most important contributions of Antoon Vergote to the field of what is now called 'clinical psychology of religion'. Most of these contributions were not published before in English. They cover the field in two ways. On the one hand we selected some articles in which Vergote reflects about the foundations of the (clinical) psychology of religion. This first part of the book is about the psychoanalytic and philosophical-anthropological approach of some major topics in the study of religion: e.g. mythical thinking and symbolisation, moral law and the idea of sin, religious experience... . In this part we also included a critical reflection about the classic psychoanalytic criticism of religion and about the epistemology and the limits of the psychology of religion. The second part, on the other hand, contains clinical-empirical and psycho-historical studies about concrete religious phenomena. The first section of this part is, amongst other topics, about the psychological approach of the person Jesus, about the psychological profile of the priest and, about some aspects of folk religiosity. The second section deals with problems in the field of mental health and religion: the differentiation of true and false mysticism, religion and psychopathology and a psychological approach of the experience of visions and apparitions.

This book is a philosophical study of the Freudian psychoanalysis of religion from a hermeneutical perspective. Drawing on the work of Paul Ricoeur, the twentieth-century French phenomenologist, the author offers a sustained and rigorous reflection on Freud's critique of Christian religion and raises the pertinent question of whether psychoanalysis should be conceived of as a form of hermeneutics. To this end, the author details the often acrimonious debates and discussions that took place between Ricoeur and Jacques Lacan, as well as drawing on the work of Slavoj Zizek on this intriguing subject, with Lacan and Zizek resisting any attempt to interpret psychoanalysis along the lines of hermeneutics. Having brought Ricoeur's reflections to bear on both Freud and Lacan, the author next engages with the Thomist metaphysical tradition. He deals especially with Aquinas' famous five arguments for the existence of God, the relevance of which becomes apparent in the last chapter when the author sheds a Lacanian light on Thomas' mystical experience. The author argues that the 'real' God - the God of Thomas' experience - pertains to the (Lacanian) order of the Real. The book concludes with a précis on the beauty of belief.

In this provocative book, W. W. Meissner, a Jesuit and psychoanalyst, attempts to bring about a rapprochement between psychoanalysis and religious thinking. Utilizing the resources of modern psychoanalytic insight, he examines Freud's views on religion, explores the dialectical relationship between psychoanalysis and religion, and applies more contemporary concepts in psychoanalysis to the understanding of religious experience. Dr. Meissner has written a book which is consistently interesting, often challenging, and impressive for its wide range of scholarship in two fields not often combined in the same work...Dr. Meissner has done us a service in this scholarly work by demonstrating how two perspectives of the human condition have over the course of the last several decades come to similar conclusions.-Otto F. Thaler, M.D., Journal of the American Academy of Religion A rich and stimulating book addressing important issues that lie at the intersection of psychoanalysis and religion.-Paul C. Vitz, Contemporary Psychology Meissner has made a challenging useful contribution that will be pondered, applied, and debated.It will undoubtedly also achieve the goal of bringing about more understanding between analysts and theologians.-Lowell Rubin, M.D., Newsletter, Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute

Psychology of religion is one of the rare fields in psychology where an interdisciplinary approach has been preserved. Psychohistory especially, understood as the systematic application of psychological knowledge in explorations of the past, has enjoyed substantial attention. Traditionally, the emphasis in such studies has been on biographical research. This volume attempts to broaden the horizon and to include studies of phenomena as well on a group or subcultural level. The volume contains chapters on such subjects as apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Belgium, attitudes towards suicide in seventeenth-century Sweden, the pillarization of Dutch Calvinists. There are also studies of famous individuals such as Hitler, Stalin, Freud, Van Gogh and J.H. Newman. Among the contributors are well-known authors like Donald Capps, Michael P. Carroll, William W. Meissner, Ana-Marìa Rizzuto and Antoine Vergote.

Paloutzian (experimental and social psychology, Westmont College) and Park (psychology, U. of Connecticut) provide a 33-chapter handbook on the psychology of religion and spirituality, for social and clinical psychologists, pastoral counselors, and students and researchers in psychology and religious studies. Psychologists and a few religious studies specialists from the US and some countries in Europe address the foundations, including definitions, core issues, measurement assessment, research methods, psychodynamic psychology and religion, and evolutionary psychology as a foundation for the psychology of religion; religious and spiritual development across the lifespan; and the neural and cognitive bases of religion and connections to emotion, personality, culture, and social behavior. They discuss religious practices and rituals, conversion experiences, prayer, spiritual struggles, fundamentalism, forgiveness, values, and morality, and implications for individual and collective well-being in terms of health, mental health, coping, psychotherapy, workplace spirituality research, terrorism, and other areas. New topics in this edition include cross-cultural issues, spiritual goals, emotional values, and mindfulness. Most chapters have been redesigned or rewritten, with 25 new and eight revised chapters. The main themes of the book are more integrated, and the introductory and concluding chapters argue that the application of religious meaning systems and the multilevel interdisciplinary paradigm can allow reconceptualization of the field and expand research. Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com).

Addresses the growing interest among anthropologists about self and subjectivity

In this book, Suzanne Kirschner traces the origins of contemporary psychoanalysis back to the foundations of Judaeo-Christian culture, and challenges the prevailing view that modern theories of the self mark a radical break with religious and cultural tradition. Instead, she argues, they offer an account of human development which has its beginnings in biblical theology and neoplatonic mysticism. Drawing on a wide range of religious, literary, philosophical and anthropological sources, Dr Kirschner demonstrates that current Anglo-American psychoanalytic theories are but the latest version of a narrative that has been progressively secularized over the course of nearly two millennia. She displays a deep understanding of psychoanalytic theories, while at the same time raising provocative questions about their status as knowledge and as science.