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Characteristics of tially, being forced to see the person as some kind of
machine operating by a series of determined causes and
a Christian Psychology effects. This ultimately reduces the person to a mere ob-
ject. In contrast, the a holistic perspective maintains that
Wolfram Soldan (Germany) subjectively experienced realities, such as relationships,
values, freedom, and spirituality, are essential subjects
of psychological research, which also means that there is
Abstract openness to including questions about the transcendent
A Christian Psychology wants to be psychology under a in psychological research. However, this transcendent le-
specific paradigm: A Christian worldview, epistemology vel is traditionally understood in secular psychology as
and anthropology. This article examines commonalities vaguely spiritual (or sometimes called: “transpersonal”)
and differences between a Christian Psychology para- and not related to real spiritual person such as a God who
digm and that of mainstream psychology, humanistic truly is, as would be the case in the Christian paradigm.
psychology and others. The topic of forgiveness psycho- This contrastswith theanalytical psychologyof C.G.Jung
logy is used to demonstrate the specific characteristics (Davison, Neale & Hautzinger, 2007), and to an even lar-
of Christian Psychology since this subject has found a ger extent, transpersonal psychology (Wilber, 1988) with
place in mainstream psychology as well. A positivistic its even more explicit inclusion of transcendence. The
mainstream psychology paradigm inhibited forgiveness second common alternative current to positivism is what
research in psychology up to the 1980s but even current- I would identify as constructivistic in the postmodern
ly, Christian Psychology often can ask questions and give sense: Mankind cannot have a valid approach to reality
answers that secular psychology can hardly address, such or truth that is “objective”. Valid reasonable approaches
as false empathy/compassion or multidimensional per- are always “constructions” of (a) subject(s), i.e., inevitable
spectives on moral shortcomings. “subjective”. The term “objective” would only make sen-
se in the meaning of “intersubjective,” i.e. “relevant sub-
Characteristics of a Christian Psychology jects” have agreed on a shared/common construction of
a reality (von Schlippe & Schweitzer, 1997; Kuhn, 1981).
What is Christian Psychology? The constructivistic paradigm radically calls into ques-
To open a discussion of the characteristics of a Chris- tion quantitative empirical science and its positivistic
tian Psychology, we need to determine what Christian paradigm. While constructivism has not become a do-
Psychology means. Under the presupposition that any minant view, it plays an increasingly vital role not only in
psychology operates from the foundation of worldviews systemic family therapy and the accompanying systemic
and epistemological presumptions, Christian Psychology psychology and philosophy (von Schlippe & Schweitzer,
seeks to take on psychological questions on the basis of 1997 ), but also in community psychology (Duncan et
fundamental presumptions that are in accordance with al., 2007; Zaumseil, 1997; Bezadi & Hermann, 2008; Du-
God’s revelation of himself through the Bible. The me- cket, 2009), social psychology (Fuks 2008; Denzin 2003;
thods as well as the issues maintain a deeply relational Flick 2003; Bohnsack 2005), psychiatry (Simon, 1999)
dimension, i.e., disorder and healing must always be seen and psychosomatic medicine (Uexküll, Geigges & Plass-
in the context of an existentially disturbed relationship mann, 2002; Simon, 1999)
dynamic between humans and/or between God and man
and its restoration through God’s love (cf. Hübner Das Christian Psychology as a Paradigm
Menschenbild, Hübner Patchwork-Identity, Hübner, Pro- Now how does the worldview of Christian Psychology fit
legomena and Hübner, 1992; Johnson, 1997; Langberg, in to this landscape of paradigms? Much like positivism,
2008; Roberts, 2003; Soldan, n.d.). Christian Psychology would hold fast to the possibility
and sense of an objective reality, but it would emphasize
Secular Psychological World Views or Paradigms at the same time that the objective view of reality is re-
What are the typical world views or paradigms found served for God. That is, only God knows reality purely
in psychology? The most prevalent models in psycholo- and perfectly. Objective reality therefore cannot be in-
gy, which we may call mainstream, are epistemological vestigated easily, directly and methodically; rather, it is
presumptions that, for the sake of simplicity, one could always quite dependent on revelation. We will be able
call positivistic. The goal in positivism is to gather and to investigate only that which God in the end wants to
interpret objective discoveries without a value judgment. reveal to us in some form, but perhaps also in the form
Understood in this way, psychology has more affinity that makes something “investigable” for us (cf. Delitzsch,
with “hard” science than the humanities. Particularly an- 1855; Soldan, 2010b).
chored in these presumptions are quantitative empirical Along with humanistic schools of thought, we would
psychology and, for the most part, neuropsychology. consider ChristianPsychology tobe holisticwith astrong
There are at least two common main alternatives in the emphasis on the relational aspects of persons. Thus im-
current psychology scene: holistic and constructivist. The portant researchsubjects forChristian Psychologyare re-
goal of the holistic perspective is to consider the psyche alities such as relationships, values, freedom, and spiritu-
of the person as a whole. Positivism is criticized for not ality, similar to those of humanistic psychology. Since all
being able to consider what it is to be a human existen- reality, and consequently also the exploration of reality, is

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