Page 45 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 17
P. 45
Review of the Seminar “Theoretical Foundations of the
Christian Psychology” by the Ukrainian Association of Christian
Psychology on 29.01.2022
(It was send to the publisher one day be- that reality — the immaterial soul — is a
fore the war started. We are staying in foundation of each psychology: theoretical
prayer for peace.) and practical.
The Online Seminar consisted on the series The second report titled “On the Spiritual
of reports with discussions (questions and Paradigm of Psychology” and was held by
answers). the Professor of the Drohobych Pedagogi-
The Co-founder and Head of the Ukrainian cal University, Mr. Myroslav Savchyn. He
Association of Christian Psychology, Mrs. told that the spiritual capacities of perso-
Ludmyla Hrydkovets, opened the Seminar nality are a ground of his/her psychological
with an introductory speech about the As- health. Prof. Savchyn cited the widespread
sociation and reason of its existence: inso- ideas on the personality’s formation: the
far as psychology is the science of the soul, corporeal-somatic, the social and the sub-
Christian psychology lays in its foundation jective (self-development) components,
the Christian understanding of the soul, be- and showed, that scientists often omit
cause we are Christians. It rests on the two the spiritual dimension: the transcendent
pillars: 1. It recognizes the preciousness of spirit which has an immanent existence
the human person from the moment of in humans, — a Divine spark in humans.
conception till natural death; 2. It proceeds From the synergy and coordination with it
from love and so rediscovers the foundati- depends integrity and strength of the per-
on of all psychology and takes responsibi- sonality which through repentance, love
lity for itself, for others and for the future. of God, of the others and of him-/herself
Mrs. Hrydkovets told about the attacks on reaches his/her happiness in self-sacrifice
Christian psychology from the side of lef- and service to the other. In order to achie-
tists and encouraged not to fear to recogni- ve it, God, the Lord, shall be in the center of
ze oneself as a Christian psychologist. one’s life, and one should understand his/
The first speaker was Mr. Petro Husak, her life as a “work in the vineyard” and a
Ph.D., the Head of the regional NGO “Pro- preparation to Eternity. A client shall see
life Movement”, on the topic “Theological that a specialist-psychologist lives in such a
Anthropology at the Foundation of Chri- way: only the client could change him-/her-
stian Psychology”. He elucidated first the self. Prof. Savchyn told also about his “Test-
main characteristics of human person from questionnaire for determining of the fun-
the philosophical point of view: self-cons- damental world-view ideas of personality”.
ciousness, self-presence in knowing him-/ The third report was by Werner May from
herself, self-possession and self-giving, Germany — the President of the European
which testify that his/her personal center Movement for Christian Anthropology,
is immaterial. Then he passed to the theo- Psychology and Psychotherapy (EMCAPP
logical consideration of the “breathing in of — the member of which is the Ukrainian
the breath of life” (Gen 2, 7) in a material Association of Christian Psychology) and
structure (“dust of the ground”), by which co-founder of the Institute for Christian
God donated man an existence of an ac- Social Workers in Switzerland. At he begin-
tively living soul (therefore — Himself) and ning of his speech, Werner May invited the
made the man a composed — spiritual- participants to honor the Triune God in the
material reality. The spiritual component of silence of heart. Following his motto that
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