Orthodox Psychotherapy: The science of the Fathers

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Metropolitan of Nafpaktos Hierotheos
translated by Esther Williams

370 pages

This book contains the important message that the church can heal an ailing personality. The term "Orthodox Psychotherapy" does not refer to specific cases of people suffering from psychological problems of neurosis. Rather it refers to all people. According to Orthodox Tradition, after Adam;s fall man became ill; his "nous" was darkened and lost communion with God. Death entered into the person's being and caused many anthropological, social, even ecological problems. In the tragedy of his fall man maintained the image of God within him but lost completely the the likeness of Him, since his communion with God was disrupted. However the incarnation of Christ and the work of the church aim at enabling the person to attain to the likeness of God, that is to reestablish communion with God. This passage way from a fallen state to divinization is called the healing of the person, because it is connected with his return from a state of being contrary to nature, to that of a state according to nature and above nature. By adhering to Orthodox therapeuthic treatment as conceived by the Holy Fathers of Church man can cope succesfully with his thoughts (logismoi) and thus solve his problems completely and comprehensively.

Publication Data: Levadia, Greece: Birth of the Theotokos Monastery, 2006
Format: softcover
Number of Pages: 380
Dimensions (l × w × h): 23.5 cm × 16.1 cm × 2.5 cm
ISBN: 960‒7070‒27‒5

   
Metropolitan of Nafpaktos Hierotheos
translated by Esther Williams

“Much is being said today about psychological problems. I believe that the so-called psychological problems are mainly problems of thoughts, a darkened mind, and an impure heart. The impure heart as described by the Fathers, the dark and gloomy mind and impure thoughts are the source of all the so-called psychological problems. When a man is inwardly healed, when he has discovered the place of his heart, when he has purified the noetic part of his soul and freed his intelligence, he has no psychological problems. He lives in the blessed and undisturbed peace of Christ.”
—“Introduction”

CONTENTS

Translator’s Note
Preface to the English edition
Author’s Prologue
Introduction
1. Orthodoxy as a therapeutic science
1. What Christianity is
2. Theology as a Therapeutic Science
3. What Therapy is
4. Method of Therapy - Therapeutic Treatment
   How then is the soul cured?
2. The orthodox therapist
1. Prerequisites for the role of priest therapist
   The value of the priesthood
   The calling and ordaining of the Apostles
   Basic prerequisites for ordination
   The three degrees of priesthood
2. Rekindling the Spiritual Gift
   Basic qualities of priest-therapists
3. Spiritual Priesthood
4. The search for Therapists
3. Orthodox psychotherapy
1. The Soul (‘Psyche’)
   What the soul is
   Sickness and dying of the soul
   Therapy of the soul
2. Interrelations of soul, nous, heart and mind
   Nous and soul
   Nous and heart
   Nous and reason
   Nous and attention
3. Nous, heart and thoughts
   a) The nous
      The natural life of the nous
      Sickness of the nous
      Healing of the nous
   b) The Heart
      What the heart is
      Characterisations of the heart
      Sickness of the heart
      Curing of the heart
   c) Intelligence (logiki) and thoughts (logismoi)
   I. Intelligence
   II. Thoughts - Logismoi
      What logismoi are
      The cause of evil thoughts
      Consequences of evil thoughts
      Curing of evil thoughts
4. Orthodox Pathology
1. What the Passions are
2. Types of Passions and their Development
3. Cure of the Passions
4. Dispassion
5. Hesychia as a Method of Healing
1. Hesychia (Stillness)
2. Hesychasm
3. Anti-hesychasm
6. Orthodox Epistemology
1. The three kinds of knowledge according to St. Isaac the Syrian
2. Knowledge of God according to St. Gregory Palamas
Prayers
Index of persons
Index of subjects
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