Fifty years ago, Dr. Eric Wellisch, medical director of Grayford Child Guidance Clinic in England, called for a Biblical psychology, arguing that
The very word “psyche” is Greek. The central psychoanalytic concept of the formation of character and neurosis is shaped after the Greek Oedipus myth … . In ancient Greek philosophy, only a heroic fight for the solution but no real solution is possible. Ancient Greek philosophy has not the vision of salvation … There is need for a Biblical psychology (Wellisch 1954, p. 115).
Religious leaders in traditional societies often performed the function of applying the psychological wisdom implicit in the Biblical religious traditions to the particular life problems of members of their flock. Rabbis, priests, and pastors used Biblical wisdom to help people with concrete real-life problems. The contemporary situation is very different. The therapist is largely ignorant of if not antagonistic to religion, often in a manner incongruent with the...
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Acknowledgment
Dr. Kaplan is currently teaching an online course in a Biblical Approach to Mental Health, sponsored by the John Templeton Foundation (see www.rsmh.org).
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Kaplan, K.J., Schwartz, M.B. (2020). Biblical Narratives Versus Greek Myths. In: Leeming, D.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24348-7_73
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