The Psychotherapeutic Value of Byzantine Ecclesiastical Music

 

 

By Stavros Balogiannis,
Emeritus Professor of Medicine at the University of Thessaloniki

Byzantine Ecclesiastical music is a peaceful, spiritual chanting, which aims to elevate the human soul from the earthly world to the heavenly. Invoking the spirit of peace, dispassion, tranquility, effective introspection, real insight and self-knowledge, Byzantine music, in a harmonious interweaving with the Byzantine iconography of our temples, becomes a way of purifying the psychosomatic state of man.

In the human mind, which suffers from the constant interference of contemporary secular music and the aggression, restlessness, sadness, competition, dominance, demanding and inevitable impasses of contemporary society, Byzantine music is the ideal remedy for restoration of internal homeostasis and the harmonization of the higher mental processes with the spiritual aspirations and ascents of the soul.

Seven Nuggets in the Time of the Coronavirus (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

 

 

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

 

The coronavirus humbled us all, disorganized our society, took us out of our anxious "bliss", our self-sufficiency, our activism and the veneer of our faith. At the same time, it humbled the arrogance of some scientists and politicians.

Each of us, locked in our own monastic cell, thinks, "philosophizes", prays, fills our time creatively and plans. Others suffocate in the small spaces of their residence, contemplating the "before" and "after" of the coronavirus.

Technological Aesthetics and the Therapy of the Triodion

By Protopresbyter Fr. Thomas Vamvinis

Technological Assistance to Illness

In the press we have seen references to a book by British psychotherapist Susie Orbach, titled Awakening Beauty. It is a book written to help mothers communicate properly with their young daughters on issues related to body image, self-confidence and self-esteem.

On Superstition and Paranoia

By St. Nektarios of Aegina

Superstition is an unreasonable fear of God. It is an exaggeration and extremism, since balance is only retained by devout piety. The superstitious have a phobic consciousness, because they have not matured and they stand before the divine full of fear in a way that does not fit with God. Their knowledge is imperfect regarding divine phrases and they believe things about God that are unworthy of Him. The superstitious have a darkened mind and troubled intellect. Plutarch says about superstition: "Frightful is the darkness of superstition falling upon man, and confounding and blinding his power to reason in circumstances that most loudly demand the power to reason" (On Superstition).

The superstitious fear where no fear should exist and are troubled where peace should be found. They always imagine that God is pursuing after them and seek salvation in necklaces, which they hang around their neck. They believe in delusions and accept as truth pure nonsense. Everywhere they see and discern the victory of dark powers and ascribe greater power to them than God.

The superstitious are morally in bondage and intellectually humiliated. They suffer from religious persecution and their soul is ill. The superstitious person is unhappy and lives a miserable life.

Source: From the book Know Thyself. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

 

The Neurosis of the Holidays

By His Eminenece Metropolitan Hierotheos

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

Now that the Twelve Days [of Christmas and Theophany] have passed we must remember an interesting view of the great psychotherapist Victor Frankl that is related to the different types of neuroses, which are associated with the so-called noögenic neuroses.

In the works of this great psychotherapist he makes a distinction between psychogenic neuroses, which are reduced to the psychological field, and noögenic neuroses, which is associated with the noological dimension of human existence, namely the acquisition of meaning for life. He presents the truth that people today are suffering mainly because they have no meaning in their life, which manifests itself in many ways.

Among the various neuroses he includes "Sunday neurosis", which is when a person realizes their existential vacuum, exactly when "the burden of the busy week ends on Sunday, and the emptiness inside him suddenly appears." That is, when a person all week with continuous busyness and employment tries to forget this existential vacuum, forgetting that their life is meaningless. Thus, when they stop this activity, then they are occupied by melancholy, pain and with terrible consequences in their existence.

We could extend this aspect of Frankl, arguing that we observe many times the people around us holding on to the neurosis of the holidays. What he realized in regards to Sunday, is also noticeable during the major holidays of Christendom, such as Christmas, Easter, etc.

Apart from what Frankl says as to what takes place on Sundays, on major holidays we observe the same situations. People, especially here in Greece, prepare for the great feasts of Christmas and Easter. They think they will find something to satisfy their existential hunger and thirst. But they are not looking for it from the depths of their heart and approaching the deeper and true meaning of the events of the holiday. These involve repentance, humility, mental preparation, Confession and Holy Communion. Rather they focus on the external aspects, such as the purchasing of various items, traveling, making visitations, and the festive table. It is true, of course, that these external standard procedures do not satisfy a persons spiritual state of being, and thus the existential vacuum or emptiness remains.

Therefore, while a person expects the holidays to answer their existential questions, in regards to matters of life and death, yet they do not achieve it, since they remain on the surface and do not go deep into the events. This just leads to melancholy, despair and emptiness. It has been noted by many that during the festive season bickering takes place among families, crimes increase and psychic traumas grow. All of this is explained through this perspective, since on these major days man fails to give rest to his spirit, despite the vivid nostalgia and search.

One way to avoid the pain of the neurosis of the holidays is to follow the entire teaching of the Church with the forty-day preparation for the feasts. And of course, to participate as much as we can in the worship services.

Source: Ekklesiastiki Paremvasi, "Η νεύρωση των εορτών", January 1998. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

The Apostle Luke as Physician and Healer

By Dr. Sotiris Despotis

The Apostle Luke is known for writing two big books in the New Testament: the Gospel According to Luke and the Acts of the Apostles (52 chapters in all). He was a native of Antioch in Syria, and exercised the medical profession during the time of Claudius (42 A.D.) when he met the Apostle Paul. After returning to the Lord Jesus Christ he preached the Gospel in Greece and reposed at the age of 84 as a "diligent servant of Christ", according to an ancient prologue of Luke.

In the present article we will examine the personality of Luke in light of his medical background. He was the beloved personal physician of the Apostle Paul (Col. 4:14) and accompanied him not only on his travels overseas, but also during the difficult times of their imprisonment (Philem. 24; 2 Tim. 4:11). The Greek physician Luke, the only non-Jewish writer of the New Testament, had a multifaceted and multidimensional personality. Whoever carefully studies the works he sent to the mighty Theophilos (Lk. 1; Acts 1), is impressed by his historical accuracy, his excellent use of the Greek language, and the plasticity with which he writes the life of Jesus and the "birth" and spreading of the Church, particularly focusing on the work of the Apostle Paul, whom he closely "followed until his martyrdom". The two most beautiful parables - the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:30-37) and the Prodigal Son (Lk. 15:11-32) - come from the pen of the Greek physician Luke. From the literary point of view he has rightly been classified among the leading historians of the Hellenistic period.

Besides his writing ability the physician Luke also had a talent for painting. Icons which he drew himself survive, according to ecclesiastical tradition, until today. From these icons the researcher can understand that the physician Luke was not a cold anatomist of the human body, but a sensitive artist, a receiver of the messages of nature, an admirer of color and diversity emitted from the world and the universe, a venerator of true Beauty, which according to Dostoevsky, will save the world.

Besides his authorship and artistry the physician Luke was very sensitive regarding man and his problems. It is striking that he is the only Evangelist who deals so much in his Gospel with social problems (Lk. 4:18). An object of interest is poor Lazarus (Lk. 16:20-25), the marginalized woman due to the nature of her physical and psychological problems (which were experienced at the time of Christ) (Lk. 8:43), children (Lk. 18:16, 17), prostitutes and publicans (Lk. 5:29 ff.; 19:1-10). In contrast, an object of sharp criticism are those who are insensitive to human suffering, like the rich (Lk. 6:20; 12:13-21) and the complacent and snobbish Pharisees.

The sensitivity to nature and to his fellow men explains the third major gift of Luke: his sensitivity towards God. Due to this love and the quest for the discovery of supreme Wisdom, which created the complex and harmonious universe, and especially the most symmetrical body, the physician Luke did not hesitate, perhaps at the expense of his professional career, to risk the danger of going on an odyssey, accompanying the Apostle Paul overseas on dangerous voyages. His own work is characterized by a continuous voyage for the proclamation of the "way of salvation" (Act. 16:17).

We can approach the multi-dimensional personality of Luke only if we understand what the role of the physician was before the time of the physician and apostle Luke. In Plato's dialogue Charmides Socrates admires the beautiful and the beauty of the young Charmides, and he tries to find out if this beauty is accompanied by a corresponding spiritual cultivation. The same young Charmides explains to Socrates that he is suffering from strong headaches. Socrates, taking occasion by this fact, puts forward to those with whom he is conversing what medical treatment is most excellent. It is impossible, according to Socrates, to heal someone with a sickness of the eyes, without considering the general situation of the head. And it is also impossible to cure any ailment of the head, without examining the entire body. It is also impossible to heal any illness of the body, without diagnosing the suffering of the soul! Then Socrates says that the Thracian physicians applied this overall diagnosis, while the Greeks failed to diagnose and properly treat human disease, because they focused on the partial rather than the total. Socrates concludes that when the soul, through friendly and nice words, is warmed and healed, then the entire body together with the suffering organ of the body are healed. Any medical instrument and drug (such as a specific leaf advised by the Thracian physicians to be applied to the forehead when a patient suffers from headaches) if not accompanied by dialogue, from a therapeutic discussion, does not bring any effect whatsoever.

As seen from this dialogue of Plato, an object of interest and the attention of the physician in ancient times was not only to examine the symptoms of a certain dysfunction of an organ or area of the human body, but the malfunctioning of the whole man. The Cartesian division of body and soul, man and nature, conscious and unconscious, was absent from the logic of ancient medicine. The disease and suffering of a bodily organ was the symptom of a deeper relaxation of the harmony of body and soul, man and nature, microcosm and macrocosm, creation and God. That's why in medical treatment natural products were used in combination with either personal dialogue as applied Empedocles (492-432 BC) or music, as reflected in the myth of Orpheus and applied by the Pythagoreans. It is precisely this global harmony that those contemporary to Luke, the physicians of Asclepius, were trying to achieve, bringing patients to the Holy of Holies in the Temples of Epidaurus or Pergamum, in an area that was part of heaven and Paradise on earth, so that through dreams and the symbolic (mainly through the serpent) appearance of the god it would restore the impaired unity of themselves with the god and be healed. It really is worth a closer investigation how paralysis, blindness and sterility were cured, as they took place at the Temples of Epidaurus and Pergamon and reflected in the thanksgiving offerings of patients, which were brought to light by the ancient Greek shovel. Long before Viktor Frankl recorded that the primary cause of neurosis in adults is the lack of religiosity, the ancient people equated the Holy of Holies with the place of the treatment of disease, and they discovered the root cause of human disease.

With the information above the interest of Luke with nature, man and God can be understood. E.Lienk-Danzig writes characteristically: "Paracelsus claimed that the physician comes from God. A division of power, which made ​​heaven and earth, animals and plants exist within the medical profession. We doctors are deacons and servants of life... To examine and heal is a creative act, even though the medical establishment (or better re-establishment) is a relative and not absolute divine work, because the physician is and remains a person. However to create one must have continuous clean hands and a pure heart." "The physician," notes Drewerman "is essentially a priest, a mediator and intermediary of human life and indeed in this life of God, Who is the giver and the source of life. But the priest is also a physician as a carrier of true life and faith/trust that can inspire towards God to restore the disturbed equilibrium of man to God and himself and therefore heal. The distinction of physician and priest is distinguished in modern times and is followed by the distinction of body and soul, subject and object, thought (reason) and emotion, conscious and unconscious. Medicine became lifeless and pastorship otherworldly."

It is a fact that modern medicine is trying to discover the mental/soul aspects of disease, as E.Lienk-Danzig notes again: "The new rediscovery and recognition of the 'soul' factor has been a heavy burden in medicine for many years. Without this factor things would honestly be more comfortable. The appearance of this factor is sure to shake much conclusive data in science." Since healings by Jesus Christ are described by the Evangelist Luke, I will not deal with the "miracle" factor and the huge problems that arise with it, nor the "supernatural" factor that played a major role in the healings done by Jesus Christ, but only to elements of "applied" medicine.

First, there exists a personal relationship between the healer and the one being healed. Usually treatment precedes a dialogue in which the patient feels real love and interest from the Lord. In this way there develops a personal and direct relationship, which leads to the development of faith/trust of the patient before the face of the Lord. This element causes special interest today where the physician is altogether lost behind the multitude of diagnostic equipment and other medical machines, thus creating an impersonal and professional relationship with his patient client, who instead of receiving at some point a real life-giving word or advice from their healing physician, they receive a recipe made of some chemical compounds capable of sedation or even partial cure of the diseased organ, but not the ability to provide comprehensive and total treatment.

Second, the physician Luke insists on treating not only the body, but also the soul. The Lord, Who is "the physician of soul and body" (Epistle of Ignatius to the Epheisans 7:12), did not aim towards a psychoanalysis that shreds people into even more pieces, but towards psychosynthesis, which is provided by finding a reference center, located not in the distant universe, not in human reason, but in God and the heart, since God resides in the heart. The "soul" factor, which was rediscovered recently by medical science, and its treatment, according to Luke and the entire theology of the Orthodox Church, which centered its attention through her Fathers not on metaphysics and philosophy, but on treating the heart of its passions and its nous of thoughts, is current.

Basil the Great applied psychosomatic medicine in the hospitals of the Basileiada. Basil, himself knowledgeable of medicine and a lover of the sick, considered medical science philanthropic. As he writes in his letter to the chief physician Eustathios, the competent physician "does not prioritize the healing art to the body, but seeks the correction of the sickness of the soul." We can note here from the Wisdom of Sirach (38:1-8):

Honor the physician with the honor due him, according to your need of him, for the Lord created him; for healing comes from the Most High, and he will receive a gift from the king. The skill of the physician lifts up his head, and in the presence of great men he is admired. The Lord created medicines from the earth, and a sensible man will not despise them. Was not water made sweet with a tree in order that his power might be known? And he gave skill to men that he might be glorified in his marvelous works. By them he heals and takes away pain; the pharmacist makes of them a compound. His works will never be finished; and from him health is upon the face of the earth.

That which I think shocked the physician Luke by the Lord Jesus Christ and made him become an initiate into the new teachings of Christianity, was not only the radiance of the Divine-human face of the Lord, but also the interest, love and tenderness shown by Christ to each of His patients that He healed. That the Lord did not use magic sayings and recipes, as it was done in those days, but it reached the point where God Himself physically touched the sick (many times they even bore communicable diseases), in order to lift human pain and restore health not only to the body, but the entire person.

The small approach described above of Luke as a physician, perhaps will contribute to the detailed approach to his person and work, especially by physicians so that medicine and theology can find the missing link that connected them for so many centuries.

Source: Ekklesiastiki Paremvasi, "Ο Απόστολος Λουκάς ως ιατρός και θεραπευτής: Ιατρική και θρησκεία", October 2000. Translated By John Sanidopoulos.

Big Brother or Big Father? : An Analysis of a Reality Show

The following article was published in January of 2002 in Greece and gives a brief yet interesting analysis following the conclusion of the first season of the Greek version of the popular television reality show Big Brother, which aired in the fall of 2001 and in the U.S. is shown every Summer.

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos 

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

The "television game show" Big Brother which was aired as a "reality show" and considered a risk to a known television channel has now completed. There have been many reviews by accredited journalists and other scholars on the new phenomenon, which, of course, we are not going to mention here.

Before the "game" began, we pointed out some things associated with it. Now, however, in light of the criticisms that were heard and the various comments, we wanted also to highlight the following precipitation of messages Big Brother conveyed to the Greek television audience.

First, it undermined the Greek Orthodox family, because it gave off the message of coexistence in the same house of many young people of both sexes. It is an example/model that many couples can cohabit together in the same place and have a good time, since society tolerates it. Thus it negates the duality of relationships.

Then, it gave an example of isolation from society, thereby limiting human thought, since there was no information from the outside world, with very informal conversations with meaningless content. It is a peculiar form of dictatorship, when they were speaking of a "Big Brother Democracy", because "it depicts all behavior and emotions, the subtle strangulation of critical thought, that control and boredom are constituent elements of this parody democracy, which is not imposed with a weapon, but seems to be a product of free choice" (Marianna Tziantzi, Kathimerini, 12/30/2001).

Further, it broadcasted the viewpoint of living with the fact that someone or some people are watching you at any moment in time. This implies a trivialization of the person and everything they entail. Because surely this feeling in the beginning creates fear of the unknown television audience, but then it creates a certain boldness. In this way someone learns to live without shame in their personal life. And we know from various analyses that these personal, special relationships between the two sexes, when exposed to public view, lose their personal character, and are perceived as sleazy relationships.

And it also even develops the psychological and spiritual illness of voyeurism, with terrible consequences for those who see these images and for those who are "playing".

Beyond these it largely cultivates the problem of acquiring easy riches and easy money, as well as rapid and uncontrolled publicity, beyond that of the mass-man Minotaur.*

Important is the observation that the "stars" of this kind of program "can be considered the first public demonstration of the 'humanoid' type who seeks to produce power: a humanoid or mass-man" (Cleanthe Grivas, Eleutherotypia, January 7, 2002).

Finally, from the ecclesiastical point of view, that which troubled me was the problem of self-excommunication. While those involved in the "game" were baptized Christians, they self-excommunicated themselves from the church community for over three months and cut themselves off from the possibility of church attendance, even on Christmas day. Of course someone can say that whether it be in this way or another way, they would not go to church anyway, like others. But this is not a reason for pardon. According to the holy Canons, whoever does not attend church for three consecutive Sundays cuts themselves off from the Church. And this fact shows the great problem of the secularization of ecclesiastical life.

Eventually we should not be very concerned with big brother as much as we should with big Father, that is, our Father who dwells in the Heavens, who controls everything and sees the secrets of our hearts, which will be revealed before all at the Second Coming. We should also be concerned with how we can be children of the Grace of this heavenly Father. And if we put ourselves under the spiritual guidance of the great Fathers, who had an illumined nous, then we will become brethren of our great brother, Jesus Christ, and of course "fellow citizens of the saints and of the household of God."

* In Greek mythology, the Minotaur was fed with live youth. Ortega y Gasset, the author of Revolt of the Masses, says "the mass-man is the pampered child of History". In this work, Ortega traces the genesis of the "mass-man" and analyzes his constitution en route to describing the rise to power and action of the masses in society. Ortega is throughout quite critical of both the masses and the mass-men of which they are made up, contrasting "noble life and common life" and excoriating the barbarism and primitivism he sees in the mass-man. [note by trans.]

Source: Ekklesiastiki Paremvasis, "Big Brother ή Big Father;", January 2002. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

A Psychological Perspective on Homeopathy and Alternative Therapy

By Father Antonios Stylianakis,
Child Psychologist and Psychotherapist for Children and Youth

This presentation will attempt to answer the following questions:

1. What is it about today's world that makes people look to alternative therapies all the more and more?

2. Is it possible to give a psychological explanation of the therapies in this domain and under what conditions?

3. Can an (Orthodox) Christian try these therapies without experiencing danger?

Approximately a year ago, some parents came to my Clinic with their eight-year-old daughter who was suffering from spastic paralysis and profound mental retardation/developmental delay. She had virtually no meaningful communication with the environment beyond visual contact. They had just returned from Germany where they had visited a center for alternative therapies and had been seen by a Chiropractor. They told me that he examined their child and told them that there was a fluid-build up on her right side, and so he performed some therapeutic manipulations. I asked the parents how the chiropractor discovered this (fluid build-up), and they said by grabbing hold of her head! I asked myself how he found this fluid by simply touching the surface of the child's head, something which medical doctors only find with specific tests. And so I clearly stated (to the parents) that I did not espouse these magical ways! The parents looked at me in a perplexed manner and left quite dissatisfied. They never came back! They had placed all their hopes for their child's improvement on chiropractic care and were unable to understand what I was trying to tell them: that in order for us to observe improvement in the child, a great deal of continuous hard work and effort would be needed, along with intensive physical and occupational therapy, and afterwards, perhaps speech therapy. They were just waiting for a miracle!

And there you have one category of people who seek out alternative therapists. Those who become discouraged with the status of their illness and believe that the help that (traditional) medicine gives is too narrow. It isn't by chance that many cancer patients and those diagnosed with AIDS, seek refuge in a wide range of alternative therapies in hopes that they will be cured/helped.

If one were to study these theories and the promises these therapies make, we would ascertain two things: According to their claims, they address the whole person (the holistic approach), his body, mind, and psyche! One can appreciate what an impact such a notion that one pill can heal the soul has on the world-at-large, since the treatment is holistic. In other words, we're talking about a demonic device of the first order! That they speak about forces which essentially perform miracles, whether they are of universal origin (worldly power) or from the human being (the vital force).

Recently, I was having a conversation with a Homeopathic Doctor and expressing criticism of the methods utilized. When he experienced difficulty in explaining the methodology, he responded that what interests him most of all is the end result; and accordingly, he is happy to see that cures and the alleviation of pain with the use of homeopathic remedies, are taking place on a regular basis.

It is necessary, now, to comment on this subject, to offer some responses on our topic. It has been set forth by previous speakers that Homeopathy places particular emphasis on its scientific base; however, I often ask myself why the water from a stream or waterfall, which flows naturally , and contains certain necessary elements for survival, such as iodine, isn't considered power imbued!

Nevertheless, I do not wish to get involved in occultism which is so outspoken in many cases, but rather I wish to look at those (therapies) which claim that they stay clear of such (occult-like) minglings and ways of thinking. Is this feasible?

I will address homeopathy, primarily, because it appears to be the most harmless/innocent and has been widely disseminated, and because it is practiced by medical doctors who don't need other credentials in order to practice without disturbance/interference.

WHO USUALLY TURNS TO HOMEOPATHY

I believe it is obvious from the presentations of the previous speakers that Homeopathy is quackery/charlatanism with few medical, psychiatric or thought-provoking features.

In any case, one only has to think on the fact that G. Vithoulkas, founder of Homeopathic Medicine in Greece, had no background in medicine, as he was a Civil Engineering Assistant (it is recorded, as well, that he never obtained his degree!).

In principle, the individuals most likely to turn to homeopathy have a certain psychological make-up or else are under certain pressures in life; I do not, however, wish to imply that they are not from the mainstream of society. Most often, they have tested out many different kinds of medically based therapies without experiencing significant results, usually because their condition has many psychological parameters which, of course, are not eliminated by taking medication! In fact, the presence of chronic pain syndromes is often the case (headaches, lumbago, chest pains, etc.). They refuse, however, to accept or else ignore the existence of psychological problems, and they find it "convenient" to believe that one pill is going to make them well. For this reason, they turn to a homeopathic doctor and not to a psychiatrist!

Furthermore, they may be individuals who like to involve themselves in the prevention aspect of unpleasant health conditions. They consider it necessary to be involved in some kind of treatment, such as that of homeopathy, albeit on a preventive basis! It is the insecure who, for a variety of reasons, may even go to their General Practitioner, to ask to be treated with vitamins or tonic, on a preventative basis. If the Internist tells them they are okay and doesn't pay particular attention to them or their request, these same individuals may very well continue their health search in the direction of alternative therapies. It is obvious that there are deeper psychological issues for this.

THE MAGICAL SOLUTION TO A PROBLEM, NAMELY, REPRESSION OF THE PROBLEM

Sometimes clients will come requesting medication, and although I will explain to them that psychological healing comes about by changes in one's way of thinking and behaving which results from working together in psychotherapy, they will refuse this and ask for medication, which in some magical way will cure them. And, in fact, sometimes, (a therapist) may succumb to the temptation (the client's request), and prescribe the medication, in which case we see amazing results, at least at the beginning, a phenomenon known as the placebo effect!

I, personally, never do this, and consider it totally unnecessary (if not completely unethical, for the patient not to be aware exactly what treatment he is undergoing, although there are patients who are, in fact, indifferent to this!).

A few years ago I remember talking to a veteran psychiatrist, when psychiatry was still in its early stages, and he was commenting on a particular situation that occurred in his clinic, whereby he was administering an injection of plain water (that is, distilled water like that in homeopathy) to a few clients and observed really amazing results every time. Both the doctor and patients remained satisfied with (the results of) this treatment which took place more or less monthly!

Which is what happens in homeopathy. You get well, and they tell you, "Come back in two or three months for preventive measures or else for maintenance!"

It's a shame, however, that the medical profession is reduced to such a level by some of its professionals, because the latter don't make the effort to examine the deeper needs/concerns of a person and thus to administer treatment that will address the problem at its roots. Unfortunately, Psychiatry as a profession here in Greece has been drawn, like Hector, into the arena by Neurology for so many years and now very timidly is coming into its own, that is, recovering from this identity crisis.

Homeopathic medicine usually acts in a similar way. Perhaps, the senior physicians remember the Kamaterou "curative" water which many years ago claimed to cure even cancer! (The cured patients would go public and be interviewed!). Initially, patients would get enthusiastic and claim results even before the medication had a chance to get to the stomach. After a certain period of time though, days to years, they would revert back to the same (state of affairs).

At bottom, some people are aware of this. But they still want to believe in the "magical" cure-all remedy, €œthrusting aside their other problems, psychological or otherwise. It's much easier to swallow a pill than to talk about current or childhood traumatic experiences. The first solution will make you a satisfied customer of alternative treatment; the second (solution) may, perhaps, help you to understand why you (tend to) avoid certain things in your life and why you continue living miserably in a vicious circle.

So, this is how the homeopathic practitioner takes on the role of a psychiatrist, unwillingly and supposedly treats "all illness" (phobias, depression, neuroses, and even schizophrenia), although he has not specialized in any area of medical science! And this is really paradoxical if one stops to think about it!

HOW (STANDARD) MEDICINE WORKS

Quite often, the people who resort to medical intervention are those with chronic pain, such as headaches, heart condition, muscle aches and pains, and lumbago. Unfortunately, what many Internists only know how to do each time to prescribe a particular pain medicine depending on the condition.

Sometimes, if they don't find what the problem is by examination in the clinic, they may say, "There's nothing wrong with you," or "ust forget about it,"or else "It's all in your head."

There's nothing worse than for someone who is waiting for help to encounter this kind of response. He is being told, more or less, that he is imagining his illness! So he will turn to an acupuncturist or a chiropractor or homeopathic doctor who will surely heal him. In this way he will prove indisputably that he was right about feeling pain, but you Mr. Internist/General doctor, weren't able to treat him.

And if you don't have the time or the energy to set aside an hour or so to discuss with your client his emotional problems, the best thing that you can do, at the least, is to make a referral, to a competent psychiatrist or psychologist, without fear and obsession.

I received such a referral from an Internist, of a young man, a few years ago.

His problem was that he suffered from disturbing headaches for which he had undergone acupuncture, but with only temporary relief. Later, he had chest pains that resulted in him visiting seven different specialist doctors since his private insurance covered the visits and he didn't have to pay-out-of-pocket. He made his health problem the center of his life.

He had undergone all the most expensive examinations and testing (NMR) without there being anything pathological. What was left was psychiatric care (which in fact wasn't covered by his private insurance), and so he ended up in my office. He wondered how (in the world) he was going to be treated, without medication to relieve him from pain, and I asked him to entrust himself to me for a period of three months' treatment at least.

We began by examining together in a psychoanalytical manner, discussing all the issues from this point on and back to his childhood years. All his pains disappeared during the first month, but our working together extended to six months, without him complaining of other symptoms. What was more significant, was this: there were problems in his relationships which had not been mentioned initially, and which were now being resolved, and one might wonder how this came about. By delving deeply and analytically into his interpersonal relationships, especially early childhood experiences, which revealed quite a lot, as he had grown up essentially with his grandmother and without his mother around, who had to work day and night. Our discussion brought to light shady areas in his personality, which helped him to start a process of maturing which he had denied up to this point for his own emotional reasons.

Another thing which impressed me, is that this young man had literally gone to every available therapist seeking advice. And although he was not a church-going person, he had even made it to the Holy Mountain to meet Elder Paisios, whose meeting, however, did not stop him from taking refuge in witchcraft and mediums, and applying what they would tell him!

Perhaps you have been wondering what was the meaning, symbolically speaking, of all the untreatable pain experienced by this 20 year old young man. From my "analysis" of him, I believe that (the pain) was significant for the following reason: He had been deprived of "the maternal hug", when he desperately needed it, and so now he was trying to replace it with continual care of and attention to his body, that he sought by going to the doctors, who were incapable of curing him, exactly because it is impossible to replace a mother's caress which he had been deprived of.

I don't know if you remember the scene in your (own) childhood when you had fallen down and hurt yourself, and your mother said to you, "Come here, so I can kiss it and make it well, mwaaa." And oh, miracle of miracles, that mother's kiss, what unrivaled curative power!

That is how "alternative" therapy works today. Not only that! Even every medication a person gets from the doctor.

And as long as doctors don't know how to talk to the sick person and to discuss with him his problem, so also the medications will not do their job, despite the fact that new and proven-to-be-better (medicines) are put on the market day after day.

You are aware that physicians write prescriptions for most of the psychotropic medications: I, personally, have reached the point where, many times, I don't even remember the names of the drugs, because I so rarely prescribe them. The reason is that I allocate a lot of time for talking with my "€œclients" about their difficulties and their emotional needs, and the solution is met with at its source, on a psychological level, and so the symptoms disappear on their own, without having to ask (the patients) to come back for "maintenance"!

A while ago a young mother came to my office, having lost her husband in an auto accident. She was asking for advice on how to break the news to her child of the death of his father, and furthermore, she begged me to tell the child the news. The woman was in a state of depression from the unexpected loss of her husband with whom she had a very loving relationship. Suddenly, however, she had lost all hope for him (for she didn't believe in life after death) and so she got rid of all his pictures in the house. Of course, I discussed with her in detail all the events and her emotional reactions, something which caused her, several times, to burst into tears, but which also caused her to become aware in the end of how she had been handling the situation wrongly.

When she left my office, it had not been necessary for her to get on medication nor for me to see her child, because she was persuaded that now she could tell him everything that she had come to accept well enough within herself.

Why did I refer to this case? Because, here is someone who could have easily gone to a homeopathic practitioner (as in the cases that have come to my attention). She would have taken some miracle pills which would have helped her to overcome her grief, but only after a few months, something which would have happened on its own (with the passage of time). However, this would not have helped her in the least to become aware (of the fact) that she perceived the death of her husband wrongly, and in turn this would have not been at all beneficial to her child, who might have then developed various phobias and disorders.

So the issue here with respect to medical care, is not just the avoidance of doing harm (to a patient), but also that (the medical profession) must help when and wherever feasible, and utilize as much as possible all the scientific knowledge one has. Even the slightest delay in treatment of someone, can have earth-shattering consequences in the life of an individual.

HOLISTIC VERSUS CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE

The practitioners of Alternative Therapies proclaim that they view the person totally and not just his symptoms. On closer examination, however, of how certain situations are dealt with, what is shown? That the person is seen as the sum total of his symptoms, which are treated by administering a pill that is quite individualized (a cure-all). In short, the remedy (term used by Homeopathic practitioners for the medicines they use) becomes the end-all, possessing divine powers.

Whatever problems and emotional needs the person may have are not as significant for them as finding the remedy "that one and only medicine “that suits him (the patient)," they say with smugness. "From the moment we have found it, we have cured him! And we are then indebted to this mystical power."

Tell me now, if it isn't any wonder that little by little and unwillfully, the person enters into an occult-like path, even if his doctor is Christian Orthodox!

And in this manner are phobias treated even at a distance and by a phone call prescription! Isn't it a known fact, even among the least informed, however, that a phobia is preeminently, a psychological phenomenon and can't be treated without at least engaging the phobic person in dialogue in order to see what the problem is? And this is the primary job of the psychiatrist. So, they (the alternative therapists) are usurping, and harmfully so, the practice of psychiatry, which they have no knowledge of (they haven't studied it).

Of course, it can be said that, as a result of a personal experience, someone was able to cure his own phobia. I don't doubt that this may happen at times! But what needs emphasizing here is the psychiatrist's goal, which is to treat the individual disturbance, and not just to cure the symptoms.

What often happens is that just as one symptom is cured, another one pops up, as in the case of a patient who was cured of his fear of heights only to acquire a phobia of electrical currents. And from there he went on to experience a phobia of sharp objects, and so forth.

An individual disturbance is (the result of) an internal conflict which may be attributed to a dilemma over a (very) serious decision, which needs to be looked into by the psychiatrist; and when the person has seen it for what it is (through analysis), then the symptoms will disappear immediately.

Administering medication, at this point, is like prescribing aspirin to a cancer patient. And it's a fact that many cancer patients have taken refuge in alternative treatments, initially, which promised miracles, thus losing precious time. And after having grown weary from (trying) the various potions, fractions, and other (remedies), they went to a physician and began cancer cell treatment and other therapies, but then it was (too) late. Had they gone earlier, they might have been cured.

So here you see how the practice of new medical treatments (I should say here, anti-medical care!) cannot be viewed as harmless, as they proudly teach. If only because of the precious time lost, the expense incurred and the (loss of) trust in a physician, and because with the disappearance of a symptom, which is the body's way of giving off a warning sign, the wrong signal is given instead, that is to say, the mechanism of safety is neutralized/eliminated without there being a warding off of danger.

It is not enough to say that the person is seen holistically; you have to know what you're doing and alternative therapy is not able to do this, simply because it doesn't have the knowledge.

THE ROLE OF THE THERAPIST

The issue here is not that the medical profession is losing its clientele! And perhaps it's good at this point to make reference to the fact that medicine, as it is practiced today in Greece, is tending more and more, in recent years, to lose its human face and is becoming a career of prescription writers. And here is definitely the delicate point, giving more accountability, that is to say, the reason for why homeopathy and alternative therapies are gaining ground.

If we glance at the medical profession, we'll often observe that we can't "see the forest for the trees." I believe that overspecialization in the medical field is to blame for this phenomenon. Also to blame is the inadequate education of doctors, at a basic level, who learn a lot about the illnesses, but (they learn) little or nothing about the sick person as a psychosomatic entity!

I have heard of cases where clients undergoing homeopathic treatment were cured in just one interview, which they described as wonderful. But in fact, what is happening here is that, because the interview takes two hours and the practitioner asks many detailed questions about the client's personal life, they feel that the doctor really cares about them; and this fact alone produces powerful therapeutic results, albeit temporary. And what are the questions asked? "What side of the bed do you sleep on?" "Do you like fatty foods, coffee?" "What kind of dreams do you have etc.!"

In psychiatry, where about 400 methods of psychotherapies exist in America alone, a repeated subject for discussion is whether the therapeutic outcome isn't, many times, as dependent on the personality of the therapist as on the method of therapy practiced. It isn't by chance that Hippocrates happened to become the father of medicine. The same can be said about the gifted Hanneman, whose writings, if you read them, are both entrancing and impressive for his times, with his breadth of knowledge and systematic way of conveying what he has to say.

If one reads homeopathic literature, he will find more theory and dogma than scientific research.

SPIRITUAL RAMIFICATIONS

The phenomenon, of course, has psychological ramifications primarily, but becomes spiritual, as well, from the moment that a Christian becomes aware or simply suspects, or albeit subconsciously he imagines, that he is taking a drink of water (with powerful effects from having been stirred up!) rather than medication and that he is waiting for some mysterious powerful potion to cure him.

However, it is quite common/natural, even if a person hasn't thought of it in this way, subconsciously, to wait for help from some unknown source, which is neither connected to (traditional) medicine nor to faith in God (and thus windows of opportunity are left for the crafty one to penetrate) and then here comes the big trap, which, I think, quite a few spiritual fathers have missed, and so have ended up encouraging their spiritual children in the direction of homeopathy, having been misguided by a humanistic mask.

A few months ago when I was on the Holy Mountain, I was gratified to learn from a reliable and learned monk, that even Elder Paisios characterized homeopathic remedies as demonic substitutes for holy water and that he was against these kinds of therapies. I was impressed with the appropriateness of this comparison, because this is exactly how this medicine affects people in wider circles, psychologically. It is also of note and characteristic of him, that the saintly Elder Porphyrios would only accept traditional medicine and not the so-called alternative therapies. (He said of homeopathy that some of the remedies that were imported from abroad were under a spell that had been exposed to witchcraft). I say this because often the argument is used that the Holy Mountain is accepting of homeopathy. Those who accept it do so out of ignorance and tell themselves that they are harmless, and make use of natural preparations, just as our grandfathers and many grandmothers in the villages used products from nature.

Today we are being served/presented with the myth of the New Medical field. However, the science of medicine is forever young as a science, for it does away with every kind of anachronism and end result, and accepts whatever is considered better, based on scientific research. And subsequently, there are not many medical fields; there is but one science of medicine.

IN SUMMARY

It should be absolutely apparent that in any particular treatment relationship, there is the patient as the focal point, but also the therapist and his personality; and also there is the unbiased therapeutic method (Medicine, intervention). It is not by chance that a particular patient undergoes a particular medical treatment, since he (the patient) chooses the therapist/doctor. I know doctors who have become objects of worship, more so because of their personality rather than their scientific ability. And it often happens, that is, there's a tendency for the patient to idealize his therapist, because, after all, he'€™s expecting to receive more help from him.

At this point here, there are two challenges:

One refers to the physician and the unequivocal power he has in his hands. Will he make use of it in conjunction with the rules of medical etiquette and without conveying a sense of personal conceit and all-powerfulness? If yes, then he will offer his best to the patient, and simultaneously, he will leave open, the path for God'€™s help/intervention, the source of all and from which the patient can always have as a reference/source (for help).

The second challenge relates to the patient. Will he convey to the doctor the attributes which fit his situation, so as to benefit from the treatment, psychosomatically, or will he seek more things which may be related to his need for an affectionate father or mother but also to (his search for) filling the metaphysical emptiness inside? Then there is the possibility that he will get entangled/involved in unforeseen extenuating circumstances and consequences.

The (larger) issue here, however, is for us not to risk reverting back to the times when there were witch-doctors, which, of course, still exist among the primitive tribes of Africa and which, in addition, are openly making their appearance in Europe and America, under the official cloak of Medicine of the New Age. This is my great concern, which merges with the struggle and watchfulness of the Church.

Bibliography (suggested)

Vithoulka, G. Homeopathy, Publisher: Homeopathic Medical Center, 1985.

Tamtakos, Z. Homeopathy today, Thessaloniki 1990.

Diamantidis, S. Homeopathic Medicine, Estias Bookstore, Athens.

Stylianakis, Father Antonios, "Homeopathy from a Psychological and Spiritual point of view",  Issue 1995 ? (intellectued)

David Sneed, A Critique on Medical care in the New Age, Stereoma Thessaloniki.

Samuel Pfeifer, Homeopathic Practice, Publisher: Pergamos 1992.

Source

The Foundations of Orthodox Psychotherapy

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos

I have examined the subject of Orthodox Psychotherapy early in my life and published at least six books, which have been translated to other languages, and I have also examined it in other books of mine. In today’s presentation I will focus on some points of relevance to the present Conference.

1. THE TERM “ORTHODOX PSYCHOTHERAPY”

The term I used in my first book, published in 1986, caused considerable reactions – positive and negative – and thus I have had to explain it on various occasions. I will present some of these explanations here.

First, the term “psychotherapy” was coined in the West by various psychological, psychoanalytical and psychotherapeutic schools of thought which did not comprehend the soul (“psyche” in Greek) in the same way the Orthodox Tradition does. By “psyche”, modern psychology denotes the set of conscious and unconscious manifestations of experiences and behaviors. In the Orthodox Tradition, however, the term “psyche” denotes the spiritual element of man’s existence, which is in unity with the body and constitutes a hypostasis. I used the term psychotherapy adding the word Orthodox, and as I have explained many times Orthodox psychotherapy has a different anthropology than the anthropology of western psychotherapy.

Second, I associate closely the term “psychotherapy” with the neptic-hesychastic tradition. This is a life described in the works of the Holy Fathers regarding man’s inner life, in watchfulness (“nepsis”) and prayer. Of course, this neptic-hesychastic tradition can also be found in the books of the Old and the New Testament. Thus, the term “Orthodox psychotherapy” is to be understood not as a psychological, emotional and intellectual balance, but as the way for man to know God. In essence, it is the cleansing of the image of God that was darkened due to the original sin, it is the activation of the path to the likeness of God, which constitutes man’s communion with God, namely deification, theosis.

Third, although the discussion is about Orthodox psychotherapy and this refers to the term “psyche”, it is actually used for the cure of the entire person, both body and soul, without, of course, ignoring the medical science. In fact, as we see in the patristic tradition, the soul is closely linked with the body and there are interactions between these two elements of human existence. Therefore, inner peace is related to both the soul and the body. It is important to note that the hesychast movement that occurred in the 14th century, as expressed in the teaching of St. Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessaloniki, and in the texts of the Councils between 1341-1368, some of which are read on the Sunday of Orthodoxy in the Synodikon, refers not only to the soul but also to the body. Barlaam, the philosopher who expressed western scholasticism, devalued the human body. On the contrary, St. Gregory Palamas demonstrated the great significance of the human body, due among else to the incarnation of the Son and Word of God, and developed theologically the teaching of the Church regarding the deification of the whole person, soul and body.

The entire work of the Church deals with the cure of soul and body. Through the Sacraments, that is, Baptism, Chrismation, Holy Communion, Ordination, Marriage, Unction, Confession, the whole person is blessed, consisting of soul and body.

Fourth, Orthodox psychotherapy does not overlook medical methods for therapy, even modern psychology, psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. Orthodox psychotherapy aims at man’s deification, while humanistic psychotherapy is interested in man’s psychosomatic balance and his socialization either within the family or within the society. In fact there has to be a cooperation between the Spiritual Father who employs Orthodox psychotherapy and the psychiatrist who is interested in curing illnesses related with the neurological system and psychological imbalances.

I believe that to a great degree the term “Orthodox psychotherapy” refers to psychology, psychotherapy, and neurology. We know that in the past there had been a great divergence between psychotherapy and neurology. Recently, however, it has been realized that these two disciplines have to cooperate, because illnesses of the neurological system affect man’s psychological aspect, and likewise psychological illnesses affect the neurocells, the genes, etc., namely the body itself. Thus, Orthodox psychotherapy relates psychology to neurology, but goes beyond them because, as will be explained later on, Orthodox psychotherapy functions beyond the limits of science, without ignoring it. At the same time it helps both the psychosomatic composition and the socialization of a person.

Compared to the several schools of psychotherapy in the western world, “Orthodox psychotherapy” has more similarities with existential psychology-psychotherapy, as articulated by Viktor Frankl, without being identical to it.

It is in this context that I have employed the term “Orthodox psychotherapy”, and it has been comprehended as such by those who study things in a serious and responsible manner, not irresponsibly. To be fair, I have to mention that in my analysis I was influenced by Fr. John Romanides who taught that Orthodox theology is a therapeutic science and that if Christianity had first appeared in the 20th century it would have been received as a therapeutic science, and in its methodology it would appear to be psychotherapy or neurology. The title of one of his articles is indeed telling: Religion is a Neurobiological Illness and Orthodoxy is Its Cure.

In any case, the term “Orthodox psychotherapy” was accepted by scholars, as demonstrated in the voluminous book titled Manual of Psychotherapy and Religious Diversity, published by the American Psychological Society. The book describes therapies offered by religions. In a chapter titled “Psychotherapy With Eastern Orthodox Christians”, written by Tony Young, there is extensive reference to the psychotherapy offered by the Orthodox Church and the calming effects deriving from Confession and the Jesus Prayer recited in the heart.

Another important article has been written by Paul Kymissis titled From Neurobiology to the Uncreated Light, which discusses the great significance of the Orthodox Tradition for man’s spiritual health.

2. BASIC PRINCIPLES OF ORTHODOX PSYCHOTHERAPY

When I wrote about an “Orthodox psychotherapy” I did not establish a new system. I simply summarized the teaching of the Fathers of the Church on man’s therapy. In what follows I will mention some basic principles found in patristic theology regarding man’s therapy.

a) Nous and word

According to the teachings of St. Maximus the Confessor, St. John Damascene and other Fathers of the Church, the human soul possesses rational and noetic energy, namely, reason and nous. These are two different energies which are not identical and have a different mission. Noetic energy (nous) is the organ through which man communicates with God, and rational energy (reason) has knowledge and communicates with created things.

In the Forefathers before the Fall, the nous acted according to nature, it received the Grace of God, which is transmitted through the nous to the body and the non-rational creation. This way man’s intellect had correct concepts, because it accepted the illumination of Grace from the nous. St. Maximus the Confessor says that the nous views things, especially God, correctly, while an educated intellect articulates the experiences obtained by the nous.

After the sin of the Forefathers, the nous was darkened and was identified with the intellect, the passions, and the environment, as Fr. John Romanides used to say. Therefore, the nous is no longer able to get in communion with God and acquire the knowledge of God, and this is how religions and rationalism, where the ratio is the center, are created.

Therefore, Orthodox psychotherapy is primarily concerned with the darkened nous and tries to return the nous to a state according to nature and lead it to a state transcending nature, so that it has knowledge of God. This way the whole man is sanctified. That is, Orthodox psychotherapy’s priority is neither the neurological system, nor simply emotions. It rather aims at the good functioning of the noetic energy (nous) of the soul. Through this perspective, there are changes happening in human existence. Modern psychology and psychotherapy differs from “Orthodox psychotherapy” because they do not know the function of the nous which is contrary to nature or according to nature or transcending nature; in fact, they do not even know what the nous is.

b) The intelligent and passible parts of the soul

Plato, the philosopher, referring to the soul distinguishes two parts, the rational and the passible part. The rational one is concerned with thinking, judgment, and handling of various issues, related to philosophy, scientific knowledge, and to associating with the world around us. In the passible part of the soul there operate the passions, physical and mental. And he claims that the rational part is the noblest element of man’s existence. Because the soul is by nature immortal and pre-existed in the world of ideas of God, the rational part, being the most important energy of the soul, belonged to the unborn world of ideas. On the contrary, according to Plato, the passible part of the soul is connected to the body. Therefore, in order for the soul to enter into communion with God, its passible part has to be mortified.

The Fathers of the Church accepted the division of the soul into the rational and the passible part, without accepting Plato’s theory on the distinction between a naturally immortal soul and a naturally mortal body. They also rejected the suggestion for the mortification of the passible part of the soul. Instead, they argue for the transformation of the passible part of the soul. In the therapy proposed by the Fathers it is clear that the intellect is associated with the passions of pride, unbelief, etc., and the passible part of the soul, which is divided into the appetitive and the incensive parts, is associated with the passions of avarice, pleasure-seeking, anger, etc.

c) Noetic energy in relation to blameful and blameless passions

In the terminology of the Fathers, the nous is also called noetic energy and plays a great role in human life. St. Maximus the Confessor says that a nous distanced from God becomes either subject to the demons through pride or bestial through the passions associated with the passible part of the soul. The nous is what establishes a balance in all the energies of soul and body.

Fr. John Romanides writes:

In its natural state, the noetic energy regulates the passions, namely, hunger, thirst, sleep, the instinct of self-preservation (that is, of the fear of death) so that they become blameless. In a sick state the passions become blameful. In combination with an uncontrolled imagination, they create magical religions to restrain natural forces or to bring the soul in a state of happiness (“eudemonia”) or even to bring happiness to body and soul.

Analyzing this important observation, we may refer to the teaching of St. John Damascene on the distinction between blameless and blameful passions. Blameless passions, also called natural, are the ones related to hunger, thirst, fatigue, etc., while blameful passions are the ones that are evidence of man’s spiritual sickness. Both blameless and blameful passions refer to body and soul, because the soul expresses itself through the body.

What is important is that blameless passions may easily turn into blameful, that is, hunger may turn to gluttony, thirst may turn to love of drinking, fatigue may turn to listlessness (acedia) etc. Similarly, blameful passions may be transformed into blameless ones; that is, gluttony may be cured so that man eats to simply preserve the body; love of drinking may reject the impassioned element so as to only satisfy the need of thirst; acedia may be turned into vigor and fatigue so as to demonstrate love for God and for man, etc.

This work is done by the noetic energy, when it functions properly and is strengthened by the Grace of God. That is, the noetic energy prevents blameless passions from turning into blameful ones, and also cures blameful passions turning them into blameless ones. When we refer to the noetic energy illumined by the Grace of God we actually mean the noetic prayer of the heart.

This shows the great importance and value of Orthodox psychotherapy, namely, the teaching and practice of the Church for the cure of man, so that he behaves correctly towards God and fellow humans. This shows the significance of Orthodox psychotherapy which is concerned with the body too, not only with the soul. Actually, we know from medical science that any excesses by the soul or the body have repercussions on the neurological and physical state of the person. Thus, when the nous is healthy, that is when the noetic energy functions according to nature and transcending nature, several bodily diseases are avoided and some bodily diseases are even cured. This excludes hereditary diseases, of course, but when a person has a healthy nous he is able to transcend the consequences of these diseases, with patience, endurance, faith in God and prayer, as well as the entire sacramental life of the Church.

d) Religion and the Church

Several religion scholars discuss polytheistic and monotheistic religions and include Christianity among the monotheistic ones. This is done in order to present the common and the distinguishing elements among religions. However, according to the Orthodox Tradition, Christianity is not a simple religion. It is rather a Church, the Body of Christ. There is wide difference between religion and the Church.

Usually, a religion identifies the uncreated element with the created one, thus attributing to God what is actually created and finite. This is how various kinds of religions have been established, associated with sorcery, superstition and mysticism. Christianity, however, functions as a Church, namely, a specific community which is the Body of Christ and Christ is its head. The three characteristics, sorcery, superstition and mysticism, are not characteristics of the Church.

In the last two centuries there has been a lot of criticism against religion from a philosophical, social and psychological perspective. There are various schools of thought accusing religions of the way they function and the way they express themselves.

The philosopher August Comte portrays religion as “spiritual alienation”. The term “alienation” implies that certain important characteristics of religion are lost and it is transformed into something else. According to his view, mankind evolved progressively from the theological state to the metaphysical-philosophical state and then to the scientific and positivist state. The scientific method of observation and experiment constitutes the fulfillment of man. The science of sociology includes all other sciences. He attaches religious characteristics to sociology. Thus positivism acquires a mystical form and actually becomes a true religion with its worship, its representatives and all other religious elements. This shows that religion, as understood by the general public, in its magical and superstitious form, is a “spiritual alienation”.

Feuerbach portrays religion as an “anthropological alienation”, meaning that religion projects man’s essence to God. He writes: “Religion is the official revelation of man’s hidden treasures, the confession of his most intimate thoughts, the public confession of his love secrets”. The projection of all these anthropological elements to God constitutes an anthropological alienation. Man renounces his own characteristics in order to attribute them to God. So, divine characteristics are actually human characteristics. Therefore, man should rediscover his own characteristics, cease projecting them to God, view them as his own and develop them. Consequently, according to Feuerbach, “religion is the essence of mankind’s childhood”. Man has to proceed to a philosophical maturity and regain his consciousness, not continue projecting it subconsciously to that imaginary being called God.

Karl Marx portrays religions as “economic alienation”. Following Feuerbach’s analysis, he created his own theory on religion, according to which the economic factor enters the scene and man is alienated by religion and therefore he must be liberated from it. Marx’ basic theory is that “religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature”, and this is why it is “the opium of the people” who are suffering under harsh economic conditions. So, mankind should reject these delusions about its condition. Actually, Marx believes that an unjust society produces misery, and this is why it produces religion. This implies that one should struggle to transform society, and this is done through the revolution of the proletariat. When social classes are abolished, then religion will disappear.

Freud portrays religion as a “psychological alienation”. Following the analyses of the writers mentioned above, and especially Feuerbach’s theory, he views religion as a projection of human psyche to superior forces. So, he interprets religion through conflicts in the human psyche, not through social conflicts. Mankind has a need to create a belief in supernatural forces protecting it in order to avoid the dangers threatening it. It follows that religion is an escape from reality, a rejection of real pain, an inability to transcend the fear of death and uncertainty. It is actually an illusion.

Indeed such manifestations, as described by the four thinkers mentioned here, can be observed in religion. This is the reason that I consider the Church not to be a religion. The Church rather functions as a psychotherapy, liberating man from all beliefs, myths, superstitions, and mysticisms. God is a person who communes with man in the Church, and then man, cured from the slavery to the senses and to observable things, loves God and his fellow humans sincerely, he acquires the love of God and the love of men.

Of course, it is well known that many Christians, including some Orthodox, feel that the Church is a religion, and they behave in the way we described previously. However, this does not mean that the role and the purpose of the Church are altered. The role and the purpose of the Church are against religion, since the Church actually rids man from the disease of religion. This is what the Prophets, the Apostles, the Fathers, and primarily Christ did. They struggled to liberate mankind from religion and idolatry.

In what I briefly presented previously, the basis and the foundations of “Orthodox psychotherapy” are defined. This is a psychotherapy which has no similarities to any western or eastern type of psychotherapy; it has its own different character, a specific distinct anthropology. We find this in Holy Scripture and in the patristic texts, especially in the so-called neptic-hesychastic Philokalia ones. Thus, “Orthodox psychotherapy” as theology and practice may be interpreted through the neptic and hesychastic tradition of the Orthodox Church. The West rejected this tradition or forgot it, and was based on rationalism, moralism, and human autonomy. As a result, it discovered humanistic psychology and psychotherapy in order to solve man’s existential problems that deal with concerns beyond reason and morality.

Contentment Comes From Within

By St. Nikolai Velimirovich

"If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that" (I Timothy 6:8).

The apostles of God taught others that which they themselves fulfilled in their own lives. When they had food and clothing they were content. Even when it occurred that they had neither food nor clothing they were content. For their contentment did not emanate from the outside but emanated from within. Their contentment was not so cheap as the contentment of an animal, but costly, more costly and more rare. Internal contentment, the contentment of peace and love of God in the heart, that is the contentment of greater men, that was the apostolic contentment.

In great battles, generals are dressed and fed as ordinary soldiers and they do not seek contentment in food nor in clothes but in victory. Victory is the primary principle of contentment of those who battle. Brethren, Christians are constantly in battle, in battle for the victory of the spirit over the material, in battle for conquest of the higher over the lower, man over beast. Is it not, therefore, absurd to engage in battle and not to worry about victory but to concern oneself with external decorations and ornaments? Is it not foolish to give to one's enemies the marks of identification? Our invisible enemy [Satan] rejoices at our vanity and supports us in every vain thought. The invisible enemy occupies us with every possible unreasonable pettiness and idleness only to impose upon our minds the heavy forgetfulness relative to that for which we are here on earth. The invisible enemy [Satan] presents to us the worthless as important, the irrelevant as essential and that which is detrimental as beneficial only in order to achieve victory and to destroy us forever.

O Lord, Holy, Mighty and Immortal, Who created us from the mud and breathed a living soul into mud, do not allow, O Lord, that the mud overwhelms! Help our spirit that it always be stronger than the earth.

Prayer for Intercession Against One's Inner Darkness

My most holy Lady Theotokos, by thy holy and all-effective prayers drive from me thine unworthy servant all despondency, indecision, folly, carelessness, and all impure, evil and blasphemous thoughts, from my wretched heart and my darkened mind. And quench the flame of my passions, for I am poor and wretched, and deliver me from many cruel memories and deeds, and free me from all their bad effects; for blessed art thou by all generations, and glorified is thy most honorable name unto the ages. Amen.

See also: Prayer Rule Against Evil Thoughts

Orthodox Theology and Psychotherapy

From an interview with Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos:

Question: Blessed Elder Paisios of Mount Athos frequently had stated that some of the most serious problems experienced by contemporary humanity is the ever increasing spread of mental illnesses. Would it be right to think that these ailments of the soul have a spiritual background, and consequently, the only true psychotherapy for them should be the one which the Orthodox Church could provide?

Answer: Mental and spiritual illnesses, even illnesses of the body, are related to man’s existential problems, that is, his distancing from God and the entry of death to our existence. Sin is viewed as a spiritual illness. The death of the body, which we inherit from our parents and lies in our cells with the genes of aging, is a consequence of man’s distancing from God.

The Orthodox Church preserves this therapeutical method, the neptic tradition, which we may call Orthodox psychotherapy. According to St. Gregory Palamas, the Church is the Body of Christ and a communion of deification. The phrase “communion of deification” shows the way one experiences deification by Grace in his personal life.

Mental illnesses have repercussions on the body, the same way illnesses of the body affect the soul. Beyond this, there are neurological illnesses due to physical exhaustion, there are demonic influences, or sometimes God allows an illness for man’s spiritual aid. This is why in some cases illnesses of the body assist man’s spiritual life more than health does.

I believe that spiritual fathers who work on man’s therapy must distinguish between bodily, spiritual, psychological and demonic illnesses. This distinction is the objective of Orthodox theology. A theologian is Orthodox if he is able to discern between the created and the uncreated, the demonic and the divine, the psychological and the spiritual, the physical and the spiritual.

Since you mentioned Father Paisios, I have a personal view that on various illnesses he referred the ill ones sometimes to spiritual fathers, sometimes to physicians and other times to saints. He used to say often: “This kid needs a saint” and would send him to Saint Nektarios, to Saint Gerasimos, et al., while other times he would send him to physicians he knew.

Sobornost, September 2006.