Page 46 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 17
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truth is discovered in dialogue between fri-      son in relationship with the state structu-
             ends which are different, — also in Ukraine,      res,  concerning  its  internal  decisions  and
             Werner May expressed his longing: to unite        for  defense  of  interests  of  victims  before
             psychology and Christian faith and to form        courts. The legal status of the Association
             an integral identity of psychologists as spe-     as NGO opens access to the official infor-
             cialists and simultaneously Christians, bea-      mation and obliges the state employees to
             ring  responsibility  before  science,  health    respond on its official requests. Mr. Pohori-
             care  system,  psychological  societies  and      lenko told about the concrete points of the
             Church. Quoting Dietrich Bonhoeffer, that         Associations’ statute, its structure and the
             it is impossible to speak about God and the       statute activities, especially — an analysis
             world without Jesus Christ, he stated that        of educational and informational products
             our  relationship  to  Jesus  Christ  —  to  the   (also concerning their destructiveness) and
             Triune God — shall be a fundamental reali-        an  expert  evaluation  of  the  scientific  ela-
             ty of psychology, which forms a life attitude     borations. A legal status of the Association
             of the psychologists themselves, and deter-       opens the possibilities of funding the sepa-
             mines their practice, and as well influences      rate units in different countries and of in-
             their relations with clients and colleagues,      ternational cooperation, especially concer-
             Christians and non-Christians. Though our         ning observance by Ukraine and by other
             theological knowledge is partial and limited      countries of the international Charters and
             (as shown by the plurality of Christian con-      Conventions, as, e.g., the “European Con-
             fessions), the dialogue and mutual respect        vention on Human Rights” and the “Univer-
             is possible, also towards the non-Christians      sal Declaration of Human Rights”, especial-
             and non-believers. Concerning our attitude        ly concerning the guaranteeing of the right
             towards the different psychological schools,      to live from the moment of conception till
             Werner May cited the position of St. Basil        natural death, influencing thereby the state
             the  Great  about  the  Christian  evaluation     juridical structures.
             of the different philosophical systems: we
             shall conduct ourselves like bees gathering       In the following discussions the participants
             nectar from different flowers and transfor-       discussed the question of Christian virtues
             ming it into good honey.                          (especially a correct understanding of hu-
             Werner  May  acquainted  the  participants        mility), of a  proper motivation for ethical
             with the psychology and psychotherapy sy-         conduct  and  morally  relevant  actions,  as
             stem in Germany, where, unlike the USA,           well the difference of a Christian finding of
             there  is  no  academic  subject  “Christian      the true “self” of the personality as distinct
             psychology” at the Universities, but there        from  the  Buddhist  one.  At  the  end  they
             are two main streams. Nevertheless there          discussed the possibility of legal protection
             is  a  possibility  to  join  spiritual  elements,   of  the  Christian  psychologists  who  refuse
             therefore — also a Christian approach. At         to grant some services due to conscience
             the end Werner May encouraged to form             reasons;  the  question  of  legal  protection
             interconfessional  groups  of  psychologists      of the Christian specialists (physicians, phi-
             in Ukraine, emphasizing, that common fri-         losophers, theologians, scientists of religi-
             endly meetings (and a common prayer —             on…) from the side of the leftist politically
             though from different churches) are more          influential but pseudo-scientist groups; the
             important  than  the  scientific  research  it-   question of licensing of the Christian psy-
             self, and wished a blessed “honey harvest”.       chology programs and of defense of scien-
             Mr.  Arthur  Pohorilenko  elucidated  the  le-    tific theses of spiritual direction.
             gal  aspects  of  the  Ukrainian  Association     (Written  in  Ukrainian  and  translated  into
             of Christian Psychology activities, showing       English by Petro Husak.)
             advantages of its status as a juridical per-





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