When Terror Inhabits Our Souls

As a civilization, we have allowed the scientific revolution to make us invincible: science has offered solutions to every problem in physics, technology, medicine, global communications, even the psychology of self-understanding.

 

Until recently.

When logic seems to be failing us. And in its place? A void.

Although there are many gains from science, we are seeing its limits: science is not answering questions about why we are here, the purpose of our life, or what happens to us when we die.

Indeed, regardless of measured attempts to control wealth and regulate financial security, the global economy is  precarious. Drug addiction is increasing, despite new psycho-social treatments. We are experiencing the impact of climate travail on a planet abused too long and too expansively. We read of horrific killings and torture by Muslim extremists such as ISIS, Boko Haram, and Al Qaeda around the world and in the USA, bewildered by their illogical barbarity. We are living on a planet without solutions to terrorist threats and attacks reported daily as the new reality. 

 

As a consequence, I believe one overarching phenomenon dominates our experience every day.

Terror.

Terror is more than a feeling. It is a cognition, a sensation, and a perception. That's why it can get under our skin and negatively impact our pulse rate, our sleep, our breathing—and our view of the world.

When terror inhabits our souls, it brings its cousins: fear, apprehension, dread, anxiety, panic attacks, paranoia, and even loss of faith and hope and love. The mind and heart, body and spirit: our human nature itself, terrorized.

Where do we seek a solution?

Compass Psychotheology suggests that the Bible offers a larger truth. The Bible views all human beings as sharing a common human nature: our mind and heart; body and spirit, made in God's image. As such, we are universally called to know God and walk in his light. Or, if we refuse God's call and persist in choosing evil, we will walk in darkness.

 

As the Son of God, Light of the World, and Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ offers the antidote to our experience of terror in two ways.

How?

1) The Peace of Christ.

Jesus Christ, the God-man, knew the terror of death on the cross for crimes he did not commit, so that he could rise again to offer interpersonal fellowship with you and me. Jesus offered his blood to build a living connection between each of us and God, a rock of salvation who overcomes earthly terrors through the inner presence of the Holy Spirit, Christ's most precious gift to every believer at the moment of their conversion.

Jesus' peace that passes logical understanding provides the antidote gifted to John the Baptist, Mary, Peter, James, and John, each tested almost beyond endurance. It's the same antidote that early Christians experienced, even though hunted down by Roman legions in the catacombs or fed to hungry lions in the Colosseum. Even a Caesar could not stop them from singing hymns.

"I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart," Jesus said. "And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid" (John 14:27).  

 

2) Christ's Return.

Many of us in the 21st Century perceive a great darkness enveloping humankind, a darkness so great that Billy Graham, among others, sees us truly qualifying as the generation alive at Christ's Second Coming, an event that Jesus himself foretold:

Jesus said:
"People will be terrified at what they see coming upon the earth, for the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then everyone will see the Son of Man coming on a cloud with power and great glory. So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near" (Luke 21:26-28).

Christ returns to judge the living and the dead. The Son of God will transfigure the Earth into a new creation: A pristine and sinless Heaven-Earth in which the redeemed in Christ will flourish and thrive. "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared" (Revelation 21:1).

Now is the hour to read the Bible as never before, not to join the skeptics who mock the promise of Christ's glorious return. 

Now is the hour to dig into the living Word of God, personally guided in your reading by the Holy Spirit, taking hold of the inner resources of faith, hope, and love—as a daily, sometimes hourly, antidote to terror.

"But what about the newscasts? What about the disaster movies? What about the worry that consumes the people around me?" Joshua chose to challenge fear-based thoughts, even when enemies surrounded him, by declaring, "As for me and my household, we will follow the Lord!"

"Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows," Jesus said. "But take heart, because I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). 

How Compass Psychotheology Bridges the Diviseness within Christianity

Have you ever wondered about the many paradoxes embedded within Christianity? The greatest paradox is this: God's absolute, eternal, and transcendent Being stands apart from this present world, while at the same time God's historical, temporal, and immanent Becoming infuses the world and calls all human beings to know and love him.

Compass psychotheology offers a bridge-building theory that brings together therapeutic psychology with Trinitarian biblical theology. Seeing Christianity through the Compass lens provides insight into contemporary trends within the Christian faith. This insight may facilitate healing where there is presently disturbance and divisiveness.

God's Being & Becoming

On the one hand, there is the paradoxical tension we can characterize as the Fundamentalist/Progressive polarity. 

In the Fundamentalist view, the absolute truths of the Bible reveal God's Being as holy, humanity as fallen, and conversion to Christ as the purpose of the Church. The application of Scriptural propositions forms the basis for personal living that resists the eroding forces within culture. 

In the Progressive view, God's Becoming is manifest in the unfolding process of history, the gradual enlightenment of humankind from superstition, and the accomplishments of science, education, and God's urgent call to social justice in every generation. One follows Christ by accepting the universal love of God for people, and seeking to live a compassionate life of service.

On the other hand, there is the paradoxical tension we can characterize as the Evangelical/Pentecostal polarity. 

From the Evangelical perspective, God's Being stands over against a sinful world and requires the evangelization of the nations, and the application of well-formed theologies that articulate doctrine and guide ethical choices. 

In the Pentecostal view, God's Becoming takes center stage, with a prime emphasis on the power of the Holy Spirit as the action component of God. The Holy Spirit is experienced in the joy of conversion and baptism, the glory of worship, and the awe of healing, prophecy, and personal guidance in daily life.

Compass psychotheology places these polarized traditions within the compass paradigm and offers the following interpretation.

Christianity Being & Becoming

Placing these two sets of polarities within the Compass Model allows each to form a rhythmic continuity with the other, yielding a dynamic synthesis that encompasses a continuum of truth, integrating Being with Becoming. These are complementary polarities in holistic integration, a process that Donald Bloesch says, "is not to be confused with taking the middle road for it embraces the truth in both camps and negates the untruth in these positions as well."

Thus, there lies within this compass paradigm a challenge for each of the four traditions: a challenge that each tradition both value its foremost contributions, while at the same time valuing the key contributions of the others.  

The Fundamentalist and Progressive traditions, for example, are challenged to value both the need for conversion to Christ and living by biblical truths, as well as fostering an openness to science, culture, and dialogue with non-Christians in respectful ways. 

The Evangelical and Pentecostal traditions are challenged to value both sound theological doctrine, and the Holy Spirit's power to impart gifts of service and joyful worship in the Lord.

In such a way, the paradox of God's Being and Becoming is honored within the Body of Christ, a goal affirmed by Gordon Fee when he writes in his commentary on 1 Corinthians 3:23: "Our slogans take the form of 'I am of the Pentecostals'...'I am of the liberals,' or 'of the evangelicals,' or  'of the fundamentalists,’ but to be 'of Christ' is also to be free from the tyrannies of one's own narrowness, free to learn even from those with whom one may disagree."

For more, read: 

COMPASS PSYCHOTHEOLOGY: Where Psychology & Theology Really Meet 

How The Aristotelian Mind-set Impacts Christian Liberal Theology

During the Renaissance and Enlightenment, theologians, scientists, and philosophers rebel against classical theology by championing an Aristotelian this-worldly mind-set. They openly challenge the Platonist perception of God as a spiritually perfect being who reigns over-and-above an inferior material world.

Renaissance thinkers like Francis Bacon, John Locke, and Isaac Newton undertake to shift theology from God’s immutable being per se to the exploration and development of God’s creation. Immanuel Kant summarizes the principle of Aristotelian worldliness and its role in the Enlightenment when he asserts:  “Have courage to use your reason.” 

Have courage to use your reason

In the nineteenth century, Sören Kierkegaard (1813-1855) emphasizes the God/human relationship with his perspective that the Christian God desires people to subjectively apprehend and experience him. Kierkegaard faults the Church’s otherworldliness for constraining believers with bonds of passivity and joylessness.

Other theologians of the nineteenth century deepen the Aristotelian “hands on” ethos by rallying people toward social action for the improvement of humanity. They encourage people to face, feel, and solve the practical problems of this world.  

Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834), Albrecht Ritschl (1822-1889), and Walter Rauschenbusch (1861-1918) lay the foundations for liberal theology, so-called for its human-centered concerns and doctrinal pragmatism. In their view, Jesus came not to challenge the world, to pronounce judgment upon sin, or even to be a savior, but to embrace culture and improve the human condition. For these theologians, the kingdom of God concerns the realization that God calls each person to accept and love one another in the here and now of this earthly life.

As classical theism is rejected, so, too, is the authority of Scripture. Liberal theologians lay aside orthodox doctrines considered unreasonable, such as the virgin birth, the miracles Jesus performed, or the prophecies of the Old and New Testaments. Christ is more morally inspiring than divine. He becomes the ultimate model of love and justice.

In the next generation, theologians like Paul Tillich (1886-1965) continue to find value in the Aristotelian mind-set. Tillich seeks to correlate the Biblical message with the needs of contemporary society by redefining God as the ground of Being. He argues that God is found in the form of ultimate concern embedded in the depth of people’s personalities and life-situations.

God as Ground of Being

In addition to the liberal protest, there are other challenges to the Platonist mind-set of classical theism. Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947), Henri Bergson (1859-1941), and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955) develop a characteristically Aristotelian fascination with God’s this-worldly immanence as the actualizing force, or entelechy, that pushes all creation toward the fulfillment of its purposes. 

In their view, God is not static and fixed, but always in flux, moving forward, co-creating history with humanity. Christ is not so much a historical person as an evolutionary cosmic process. This intuitive and pragmatic approach to Christian thought is known as process theology.  

The inherent difficulty, of course, is that God is so completely identified with the immanent Becoming of this world that the transcendent Being of the Trinity dissolves into the fabric of creation.

Late twentieth-century formulations with an Aristotelian thrust are found in the black theology of African-American James Cone, the liberation theology of Peruvian priest Gustavo Gutierrez, and the feminist theology of Elizabeth Schussler Fiorenza.

Each of these individuals share frustration, even resentment, toward what they consider the rigid mind-set of a traditional theology that is caught up in abstractions to the point that it is oblivious to racial, social, and gender injustices. Theology is not simply the rational study of the Being of God, Cone asserts, but the study of God’s liberating transformation of the world. In the view of Cone and other liberation theologians, the oppressed will “risk all for earthly freedom, a freedom made possible in the resurrection of Christ.”

Liberal progressive theologians have vigorously critiqued what they consider the centuries old white male patristic dominance of Christianity. They consider it an influence that too often sides with the status quo of the ruling class and thereby crucifies Christ anew by persecuting minorities, the poor, and women. 

Christ is seen as struggling for justice alongside the victimized and marginalized against all forms of social oppression, which can even include the Church herself. In a decisive break with a centuries-old conservative praxis, the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) opened the doors to the influence of the Aristotelian mind-set, including the involvement by Catholic laity and clergy in radical social politics.

From more, read: 

CHRISTIAN PSYCHOTHEOLOGY:

Where Psychology & Theology Really Meet 

Plato, Aristotle, and Compass Psychotheology

It is commonly accepted that the Greek philosophers, Plato and Aristotle, made essential contributions to the foundations of Western civilization. Less recognized is how the diametrically opposed ideologies of Platonism and Aristotelianism influenced the formative centuries of Christian thought, creating theological fault-lines whose tensions reverberate to the present day.

For the purposes of compass theory, the original philosophical positions held by Plato and Aristotle assume importance for psychotheological reasons. Their philosophies, we propose, are foundational to the development of two opposing mind-sets that profoundly impact Christianity and the Western world. Here is a summary of each position.

Plato’s Transcendent Realm of “Eternal Being” 

Plato

Both a brilliant philosopher and mathematician, Plato (428-348 BC) favors the use of abstract reason in theorizing about the nature of God and humanity. It is interesting to note that Plato draws many of his examples to support such propositions from the field of mathematics, an area of study that reflects upon perfect but lifeless entities.

Beyond this spatiotemporal world, Plato hypothesizes, there exists a noncorporeal and perfect world, one of eternal being, that is nonphysical, nonspatial, and nontemporal. This is Plato’s world of Ideal Forms. A world that is in stark contrast to the imperfect shadow of this physical world in which human beings live.

Here is Plato on the subject:

This, then, which gives to the objects of knowledge their truth and to him who knows them his power of knowing, is the Form or essential nature of Goodness...And so with the objects of knowledge: these derive from the Good not only their power of being known, but their very being and reality.

At a practical level, Plato implies that the world ordinary people experience as being real—the world of changing, growing, living things—is not real at all. It is but an illusory and inferior representation of the eternal and changeless realm of Ideal Forms.

The highest and most noble aspect of the self is the mind, with its ability to contemplate abstract ideals and apply them to the disciplined life of human reason. The lowest and most ignoble aspects of the self are the emotions and bodily senses, because of their inherent “irrational” qualities.           

Since reason possesses greater stability and most accurately corresponds to the noncorporeal world of ideal being, it therefore follows that abstract thinking is superior to emotion, sensation, and intuition.

Such reliance upon reason is applied to natural theology as well. Plato attributes intelligence to God and a reasoned order to the universe. Like the Christian God, Plato’s deity is good. Indeed, God is termed the Form of the Good, positioned at the summit of the pyramid of knowledge, the perfect expression of eternal being.

But the Form of the Good is an impersonal creator, and while the created universe is ordered and ordained for a purposive human destiny, this is a mechanistic rather than personalistic universe.

“The emphasis (is) most decidedly placed by Plato on the sphere of perfect Being, of true Reality,” notes philosopher of history Frederick Copleston: “On Being, rather than on Becoming.”

Such mental preoccupation with absolute ideals, based on the otherworldly perfection of God’s eternal being, defines the essence of Plato’s mind-set.

The sense world of human experience is entirely separate from the world of Ideal Forms. This separation results in dualism: an unbridgeable chasm between eternal Being and spatiotemporal Becoming—in theological terms, between the transcendence and immanence of God.

Aristotle’s Immanent World of Change and “Becoming”

 

Aristotle

Aristotle (384-322 BC) investigates this present world for the purpose of organizing data and discovering the principles of change that govern the world of sense perception. In his fascination for earthly creation, Aristotle shows considerable gifts for practical, empirical, and intuitive investigation. He favors biology as the model science, developing a curriculum for the study of imperfect but living organisms.

For Aristotle there is no dualistic separation of eternal Being from spatiotemporal Becoming, as Plato would have it. There is only one world, the world of actual things that are moving dynamically toward fulfillment. Although he accepts the concept of Plato’s eternal forms, Aristotle sees such forms as embedded in the concrete particulars of this world, as inner forces of growth and change. These forms are self-actualizing trends of the spatiotemporal world, a concept that he terms “entelechy.” 

God is seen as pure and complete actuality. There is no sense of god as a person who cares about or provides for humanity. Instead, God is a metaphysical necessity, the force behind entelechy that drives all things toward fulfillment in the here and now world of becoming.

In clear contrast to his mentor, Plato, “Aristotle was possessed by the concept of Becoming,” Copleston notes. Aristotle’s interest in this-worldly concreteness characterizes the subsequent mind-set of Aristotelianism, derived from Aristotle’s search to describe and understand the sensible world, a passion absent in the philosophy of Plato.

For more, read: 

COMPASS PSYCHOTHEOLOGY:  

Where Psychology & Theology Really Meet

 

How The Scriptural Self Compass Challenges Churches

Why do you suppose Jesus Christ encountered his churches with so specifically in Revelation 2? The Bible tells us why: So that “all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds," Jesus says, "and I will repay each of you according to your deeds” (Rev 2:23).

In the final analysis local churches don’t belong to a denominational headquarters, but are living components of the Body of Christ, and as such do well to develop the balance found in Christ’s personality. Paul concurs, “so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col 2:2-3).

To that end, compass personality theory suggests that churches, as temporal expressions of God’s community on earth, can with good benefit discern and correct any tendencies to exaggerate one or more Self Compass points to the exclusion of others.

Scriptural Self Compass

By purposefully initiating congregational stretches into lesser used compass points, Christ’s personality wholeness becomes more fully manifested “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming” (Eph 4:12-14).

To the church in Pergamum, Christ offers this salute: “I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives. Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality” (Rev 2:12-14).

The Pergamum congregation has manifested the Love and Weakness compass points, being faithful witnesses to Christ and enduring the vulnerability of severe persecution. Now Jesus wants them to round out their compass virtues by confronting false teachers (Assertion) and standing firm in the Gospel (Strength).

Standing Firm

A church that exaggerates the Love compass point takes on people-pleasing and theatrical-histrionic traits. There will be much friendliness, tolerance, and even service to the community through caring projects. The services will be warm, compassionate, and enthusiastic. So what’s wrong with this? 

Assertion is missing, which can cause interpersonal naivety about sin, people not knowing how to handle negative emotions and darker realities of human nature like egotism, aggression, and swindling. 

Christ in his earthly life knew the essence of human nature and didn’t trust people’s perceptions carte blanche. He cared for the disciples but sometimes reproved them. He didn’t court people’s favor or placate them, but spoke the truth in love. Following in his footsteps, the Love-stuck church learns to teach and live the whole Word of God, including learning how to diplomatically confront unrighteousness, stand fast against eroding cultural influences, and balance Love with Assertion in order to deepen often superficial relationships.

For more, read: 

Christian Personality Theory: 

A Self Compass for Humanity 

Christian Personality Theory

Auguste Comte, Humanism, and the Christian Faith

It's a bit odd for me to single out one person in the history of western philosophy, and say, "Look at this and you foresee America's future." Especially when this man lived from 1798-1857. That's around the time Beethoven was dazzling Europe with his nine symphonies.

Auguste Comte, a Frenchman, lived in that transitional time when Christianity was being uprooted and replaced by science and the scientific method. He coined the term "altruism," and came to be called the father of sociology and the father of the philosophy of science -- no small accomplishment.

Why is his thought so important in 21 century America? I'll tell you in capsule summary what beliefs he championed, and then perhaps you can judge for yourself if this view has purchase in America today.

Comte believed that Christianity was finished, done, kaput.

Humanity no longer needed fairy tales and superstitions to grant meaning to life. Yet he knew people had an instinctual need, a passion even, to worship what he called Grand-Etre, the Supreme Being. So in God's place he substituted Humanity itself. He instituted a calendar of saints to celebrate the new humanism, mostly renowned scientists and intellectuals. He also created a catechism, near the end of which he says, "Humanity definitely occupies the place of God."

The sacraments of humanism included Initiation at the age of 14, then Admission at the age of 21 when a person becomes able to serve humanity. Destination or career choices takes place at 28, and Retirement at age 63.

Since Comte realized that Reason itself could not carry the day on such a proposed new direction, he added Feeling and Activity as an afterthought. Altruistic service to humanity would be fostered through an education process that hero worshiped all who brought prosperity, scientific advances, and social progress to society. Even a flag was designed to inspire love and loyalty to Humanity.

Who would create human values and resolves ethical issues? Why, experts, of course. Certainly not the people themselves, who could never represent the most disciplined and highly trained minds. Certainly not God, who never existed in the first place. And certainly not the Bible, which needed replacement by thousands of scientific studies, journal articles, and books showing people how to conduct every aspect of existence, helping all of life become "a continuous and intense act of worship," focused from birth to the grave on the truly human moral standard of "living for others."

In place of the theological notion of Providence—or divine guidance to nations and individuals—Comte stressed human effort and good intentions. He states that "we must look to our own unremitting activity for the only providence by which the rigor of our destiny can be alleviated."

Above all, there must be the supremacy of the intellectual elite, because only experts can understand the technical problems of administering a complex mass society. Though he had unmitigated positive optimism for the worship of Humanity, he died too soon to see his theories made real. But made real they were, and many in America and Europe draw their perceptions of life's meaning from experts in science and technology, the humanities, and the sociopolitical governance of Western nations.

But Comte was wrong about his primary assumption. He was wrong that Christianity had died and needed replacing with sociology and humanism. In fact, during the next century and a half there came an outpouring of the Holy Spirit greater than the world has ever known, affecting a billion people, according to Harvey Cox at Harvard Divinity School. Thus Christianity is still a major force in the world today, now about 1/4 of the world's population, and a recent Gallup poll reporting that 78% of Americans declare themselves Christian. 

Compass psychotheology suggests that God's plan for humanity always includes a remnant of believers who are not assimilated into the humanistic social matrix of their day, but who derive their identity from Christ and their values from Scripture. These individuals respect experts in modern fields of human endeavor, but retain the right to define the purpose of their lives through worshipping the Holy Trinity and look beyond contemporary society to the coming transcendent-eternal Kingdom of God.

Indeed, a major distinction between Auguste Comte, the father of sociology and the founder of the philosophy of science, and Jesus Christ, the Son of God the Father and the founder of Christianity, is that Comte is dead and Jesus is alive.

How Compass Virtues Replace Personality Patterns

There is a curious paradox rooted in our personality patterns (personality disorders). Every one of these patterns possesses a particular virtue unique to that pattern. Yet it is only accessible by embracing your whole Self Compass. If you have been stuck on the Assertion compass point in the Rule-breaker pattern, for example, it is only by embracing the caring of the Love compass point that you reap the virtue of creativity inherent in the Antisocial Rule-breaker pattern. 

Virtue of Creativity

 

Why? Because true creativity requires caring for others. Without it, creativity deteriorates into manipulative ploys to deceive. But once Rule-breakers reach for the Love compass point, energy used for deception shifts to creative enhancement of other’s lives as well as sincere self-expression.

As rigid patterns fall away, in their stead comes the harvest of your labor: Compass virtues. Virtues that can now sprout forth as fruits of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22). This is because you are surrendering your patterns to the Lord.

The Dependent Pleaser and Histrionic Storyteller patterns yield to the Love compass point virtues of charity and good cheer. The Paranoid Arguer and Antisocial Rule-breaker patterns give way to the Assertion compass point virtues of courage and creativity. The Avoidant Worrier and Schizoid Loner patterns transform into the Weakness compass point virtues of empathy and objectivity. And the Narcissistic Boaster and Compulsive Controller patterns find wholeness in the Strength compass point virtues of autonomy and discipline.

Compass Virtues

 

The rhythmic and self-correcting polarities of Love, Assertion, Weakness and Strength—combined with a deep reliance on Christ—support your transformation from the inside out. Notice how a person’s trust in God replaces the fear produced by personality patterns when you “trust in the Lord with all your heart” (Prov 3:5).

For The Dependent Pleaser Pattern

When nurturing others' well-being is combined with the willingness to stand up for your needs and confront unfairness, the capacity for healthy love, untinged with resentment, grows. 

By exercising the Strength compass point, you develop confidence in your personal power and loving concern for others, realizing that you really count in the world. Instead of automatically disowning compliments, recovering Pleasers are finally comfortable receiving them. You humbly accept your imperfections, knowing that God and others love you as you are.  

With the full use of the Self Compass comes the authentic virtue of charity, uniquely expressed by each redeemed Pleaser:

• Sensitive and sympathetic.
• Doesn’t need the limelight.
• A good listener and follower.
• Tender and talented in care for children.
• Quick to forgive. 
• Compromises easily.
• Is kind and helpful.             

For more, read:

COMPASS PSYCHOTHEOLOGY"

Where Psychology & Theology Really Meet