Posted by Carol on August 02, 2004 at 18:10:11
In Reply to: Transpersonal Psychology posted by Perry on July 22, 2004 at 13:26:39:
I'm more or less on the same page as OldtimerToo with regard to the utility of psychology as a transformative science, although my line of reasoning is somewhat different and my conclusions are altogether different.
In my worldview, there are brain diseases that can be treated through medications and/or evidence-based therapies. These are not to be confused with "problems of living" which have more to do with environmental stressors and limitations in one's ability to cope. It's flat-out hard for even the strongest character to cope well with certain environmental stressors (poverty, violence, injustice), and over time, these stressors can and do lead to changes in the brain chemistry of many people.
Nevertheless, the way to help people struggling with the effects of such environments is not necessarily to medicate them so they can cope--or teach them (as some religions do) to "offer up" their sufferings to God in the firm hope that there will be pie in the sky when they die. In my way of seeing things, problems of living are about learning life's lessons, becoming older and wiser, and moving on to a new set of problems & lessons--continual growth.
People change when they are empowered with the hope and courage to change. This empowerment comes about through a generation or re-generation of faith in one's capacity to change. I personally believe that the empowerment process of personal and situational change ultimately depends on tapping into one's Higher Power, but since people have many diverse ways of understading and accessing their Higher Power, I leave explanations of how this works up to the individual.
If there is something in your investigation of transpersonal psychology that leads you to a deeper, more authentic awareness of and connection with your Higher Power, then that is a good thing. I don't believe that adherence to Christian orthodoxy is the only viable way to find one's Higher Power or necessarily the most accessible way for everyone to understand and open up to the transformative possibilities of Higher Power.
My spiritual journey does not depend on how many people find Higher Power, experience Higher Power, and explain Higher Power exactly the same way I do. This is where I differ from evangelical Christians. As a matter of fact, I strongly adhere to the notion that each person must find the Higher Power of his or her own understanding--and until they do, they are more or less riding on the coattails of someone else's faith. This is how it is with children and the spiritually immature.
My "third step" Higher Power is a deeply personal, idiosyncratic experience. Nevertheless, it's universal, because Spirit is always there speaking the truth within each of us. If we don't come to understand our own Higher Power exactly the same way--or communicate with the same cultural idioms about the name and nature of our own Higher Power--that's OK with me as long as your higher power isn't giving you a rationale to violate the principles of civil society (i.e., blow yourself up and take out a few infidels in the process, sexually seduce children as a "revolutionary" act of "spiritual" liberation, or scream in my face that I'm damned and God-forsaken).