Page 34 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 14

Paul C. Vitz (USA)
Comment to Paul C. Vitz, Ph.D.

Scholar
“Stress and the Cross - Senior Professor,
and
A psycho-theological Institute for the
Psycholog ic a l
interpretation of human Sciences, Divine
struggle” Mercy University;
Eme-
Professor
ritus, New York
University (Ph.D.,
This is a very stimulating essay and my com- Stanford University)
ments will be mostly additions or reinforce- Dr. Vitz’s work is focused on the integrati-
ments of his points. First, Jarworski’s emphasis on of Christian theology, especially Catholic
on the positive importance of stress and hard- anthropology, with psychology and breaks
ship in life is important and often neglected in from secularism and post-modern relati-
psychology. He writes “A certain optimal level vism. This is expressed in his work on the just
of stress and struggle is necessary for successful published Catholic Christian Meta Model of
life… .” From learning to walk, to learning to the Person. He also addresses: hatred and
read and write, to learning to play a sport or a forgiveness; the importance of fathers; psy-
musical instrument, the same is true. In the US chology of atheism; and the complemenen-
this understanding is often expressed as: “No tarity of men and women. He has published
pain, no gain.” seven books and many articles, videos, Op-
Eds, etc.
In this context Jarworski notes that members
of the present generation have had so few diffi- Former contributions in our eJournal by
culties, because of over protecting parents, that Paul you can see her:
they are endanger of rejecting all stress and are https://emcapp.ignis.de/9/#p=60
leading weak, unfulfilled lives. There is certain- https://emcapp.ignis.de/7/#/26
ly a group of the under-stressed in the present https://emcapp.ignis.de/5/#p=128
generation. In the US we are aware of many https://emcapp.ignis.de/5/#/134
young people who feel entitled to success. Of- https://emcapp.ignis.de/5/#/150
ten, their parents constantly hovered over them https://emcapp.ignis.de/5/#/160
in a protective way. (We call them “helicopter
parents” because they so frequently hover over
their children.)
hough each level has its own epistemology and
However, I think there is an even larger group independence, nevertheless, all three occur to-
who come from the growing number of dys- gether when we experience stress. As he points
functional families that have produced, not out, each level needs to be evaluated for its own
under-stressed, but over- stressed children. contribution to stress. But, also, because they
These young people account for our increasing interact with each other. For example, though
number of youthful suicides and a high level of he doesn’t mention it, there is the well- known
general depression in the younger generations. placebo effect; that is a person’s belief that when
he or she has been given a helpful medicine, the
What is perhaps most important in Jarworski,’s belief somehow results in a positive physiologi-
piece is that he addresses the physiological, cal response although the medicine was, in fact,
psychological and theological (spiritual) ap- inert. A hopeful psychological state positively
proaches to stress: the three levels of stress. Alt- effects their bodily response.

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