Page 20 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 7

Christian Psychology as a Challenge

to us. It’s only when we take our stand inside phrase best characterizes Christianity’s place
and under the authority of Scripture that the in the 21st century? It was a bit of trick questi-
world makes sense to us. It’s only in Christ that on. I think Christian psychology will do its job
things cohere for us. It’s only, as Calvin says, as best when we can hold those two truths about
we wear “the spectacles of Scripture” that psy- Christianity together. We need to admit that,
chological data come into focus for us. I bet the- empirically, the Christian worldview is indeed
re are many folks in the mainstream who would one option among many in the marketplace
like Christians to have the courage of their con- of ideas. This takes humility: we don’t demand
victions and explain why they feel this way, and special privileges or have any desire to compel
what difference it might make for psychology! belief in our worldview rather than theirs. But,
Certainly as Christians we are called to be simultaneously, we need to engage with the
humble. But I wonder: in our current intellec- conviction that it is indeed the true story of the
tual context, is epistemological humility balan- whole world. If we try to make that case - with
ced with epistemological courage or boldness? all gentleness and respect - in a mainstream en-
Do we actually think that Christianity is true vironment, that’s courage.
true, or only true for us? If we think it is true,
we should construct psychologies that openly In that same class I’ve asked my students “what
reflect that. would we do if the mainstream granted us the
space to make the case for the Christian world-
I don’t think I’m the only Christian saying view? Or if a student or professor from nearby
something like this. I’ve been impressed that McMaster University came to visit us at Re-
there are many thinkers who seem to push us in deemer and asked, “what difference does the
this direction, coming from different traditions Christian worldview make to your understan-
within the church. Cornelius Van Til’s trans- ding of psychology?” Would we have anything
cendental argument was that the world does to say? I think the fact that we hesitate to answer
not make sense apart from the Christian world- that question is strong evidence that we need
view. Alister McGrath argues that the Christian Christian Psychology to flourish.
worldview and the Holy Scriptures are a lens
that make sense out of the findings of modern Werner May: You mentioned the importance
science. Alasdair MacIntyre, John Milbank, and of a historical perspective. Therefore my que-
PJ Watson argue that we ought to try to “out stion: What role do you see history playing in
narrate” our intellectual competitors, and CS Christian Psychology?
Lewis’s well-known quote: “I believe in Chri-
stianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not Russ Kosits: Boy, I’m tempted to say a lot in
only because I see it, but because by it I see eve- response to this question! But I’ll be brief: I
rything else.” That’s the basic idea, and the basic see history as providing the narrative that will
case I believe we must make going forward if inspire and justify the Christian psychology
Christianity is going to have any credibility in and integration movements. In a way, Robert
psychology’s future. Robert’s original vision for Christian psycholo-
gy had a large role for history. The whole pro-
Here’s another way of saying the same thing, ject of “retrieving the Christian psychology of
that gets at the balancing act such a public ex- the past” was a type of historical project. In his
pression of Christian faith requires: a few weeks original chapter, he cited people like Augusti-
ago, as the semester came to a conclusion, I ne, Jonathan Edwards, Dostoyevsky, and im-
wrote two seemingly contradictory phrases on portant non-Christian influences on Christian
the blackboard in my history of psychology psychology like Aristotle. As we mine the re-
class, to help us wrestle with the question of the sources of historical psychological thought, he
role of our Christian faith in the public square: argued, Christian psychology will be helped. So
“One story among many” and “the true story of important! But we need much more than this -
the whole world”. I asked my students: which we need an entirely new historical narrative to

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