Perfectionism in Religion and Psychotherapy or: on Discerning the Spirits
Taking the Mormon prophet, Joseph Smith's controversial King Follett Sermon as an expression of endemic American perfectionist strivings, the author suggests that perfectionism may be the conscious expression of its unacknowledged opposite — despair. The problem of perfectionism constantly emer...
| Published in: | Journal of psychology and theology |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Sage Publishing
1976
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| In: |
Journal of psychology and theology
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Taking the Mormon prophet, Joseph Smith's controversial King Follett Sermon as an expression of endemic American perfectionist strivings, the author suggests that perfectionism may be the conscious expression of its unacknowledged opposite — despair. The problem of perfectionism constantly emerges both in American religion and more recently in American psychology where it is apt to take on a cultist dimension in the newer therapies. The inheritance of the Age of Reason propels the various therapies to disguise their philosophical/theological assumptions in a cover of secularized science. Perfectionism and adulation of “science” can lead to antinomianism cloaked in professional garb if psychotherapists fail to recognize the limitations of science, the presence of a faith system in all therapy, and the possibility that psychotherapy at its best is an art with a scientific base. The danger of scientific professionalism is likened to a failure to discern the spirits. |
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| ISSN: | 2328-1162 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of psychology and theology
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/009164717600400103 |