There, the concepts of false self and true self took on a deeply personal meaning for me. The purpose of this dissertation is to propose a Christian theory of the false self and the true self. Since ancient times, thinkers have written about aspects of phenomena related to the behavior of the true self and the false self.
Despite the diverging interest in the concepts of the false self and the true self, robust definitions are still lacking. The aim of this thesis is to provide such articulation of the false self and the true self. The fifth chapter will conclude with a synthesis of these answers, to propose a Christian perspective on the false self and the true self.
The first text to be considered is the Bible, the primary ground of a Christian epistemology. The authors of Scripture do not describe how the human capacity
In this way, this dissertation operates under the umbrella of Johnson's proposal to “translate” the discourse of secular psychology in favor of the theory and practice of Christian care for souls.21 This is not an easy task, and even if done well, it will never be fully completed, but we hope that it will this work encouraged further dialogue between secular and Christian communities for the benefit of both. This study aims to synthesize insights from Christianity and secular psychology to answer four questions: (1) Why do humans think about themselves. The first text to consider is the Bible, the primary foundation of Christian epistemology.
Scripture is meant to reveal the self-knowledge people have repressed so that they can know and internalize the truth about themselves and become whole. This is done through the preaching of the gospel, which is the message of reconciliation in the cross of Jesus Christ. Several evangelical interventions that promote true self-understanding will be considered from the Gospel of Matthew and the letters of Paul.
The third chapter begins with arguably the most influential
Instead of basing themselves on God, sinners deceive themselves into believing that they can rely on themselves—especially their reasoning powers—to obtain well-being, and they refuse to know themselves as dependents, that is, as God's children. Kierkegaard defined the self in terms of relationship, saying that the self is an entity that exists and comes into fuller existence by relating to another, and that the ultimate Other to which the self can relate is God. Kierkegaard believed that if people are to experience full selfhood, they must leave behind smaller ideals and reach the highest possible criterion: "The child who previously had only his parents as his criterion becomes, as an adult, a self by getting the state as his criterion." . criterion, but what an infinite emphasis there is on the self in having God as its criterion!"24 The ultimate criterion for the self is God, because God made man to become a self in relation to him.
When individuals avoid this relationship through defenses and self-deception, they suppress their awareness of God and in doing so miss out on the self God intended them to become and enter a state of "despair." On the other hand, by accepting God's call to be one self in relation to him, sinners can be freed from despair through faith: "The formula that describes the state of the self when despair is completely eradicated is this: in relation to itself even to itself and in willing to be itself, the self rests transparently in the power that established it.”25 Faith means assent to the true state of one's existence as a being. Human beings have the privilege of self-awareness and free consent to their unique existence among God's creatures. Men were to be set apart in the world as sons and daughters of God, actively participating with Him in their formation and flourishing.
Chapter 4 will consist of a presentation and critique of the theories of two prominent secular psychologists who have devoted significant attention to the
Such a relationship with the outside world depends on the quality of the relationship between the child and the mother, especially when it comes to whether the mother has facilitated the development of the child's true self or false self. Winnicott's theory mainly focuses on the basis of the false self and the true self in childhood. The second secular psychologist, Susan Harter, extends the discussion to childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Susan Harter is a developmental psychologist whose research has focused on the cognitive and social construction of the self.
The construction of the self expresses one of her central theoretical concerns: "how the authenticity of the self, the ability to act in accordance with one's true inner self, can become threatened in the course of development."26 Within her understanding of the cognitive and social factors that determine how a person develops, she notes the formation of a false self in childhood, adolescence and adulthood. The worldview adopted by these and other secular scholars distorts their research and limits how well they can answer the study's four questions. The subject of chapter 5 will be to propose a Christian theory of the false self and the true self, which answers the main questions of the study with four theses.
The object of chapter 5 will be to propose a Christian theory of the false self and true self that answers the main questions of the study with four theses
Johnson, Healing Words: The Therapeutic Resources of the Christian Faith (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, forthcoming). First, sin becomes a conscious possibility through the law. Christians face "the sufferings of this time" until the "revelation of the sons of God" (Romans 8:18, 19).
In the life of a believer, the old and the new age are intertwined. For believers, however, Paul says that the cross is "the power of God" and. Knowing God's law cannot set them free, because the flesh "weakens" the law and turns it into a carnal means of obtaining one's own righteousness, which is "hostile to God."
100 Since the word of God is "living and active" (Hebrews 4:12), the gospel is a force or power that works and through it the salvation and justice of God are revealed in the present. From a biblical perspective, the problem of the false self is that people hide the truth that they belong to God and that they have abandoned their true humanity as beings in relation to it.
Jesus tells his disciples, “Beware of practicing your
At the same time it was their disobedience; for neglecting true self-understanding, they refused to act upon what Jesus taught them. 114 As long as people truly seek God's reward and not others, then their motive is right and their deeds are truly righteous and worthy of God's reward. The reason Jesus advocates secrecy is that it is the surest way to cut short the temptation to seek reward from other people instead of God.
In all three examples of piety - giving alms, prayer and fasting - Jesus contrasts the way disciples should do it and the way hypocrites do it (Matt. Because hypocrites only evaluate outward appearances and not their inner motives, they neglect to understand their moral. and spiritual condition completely and truly, leading to false self-understanding. To know their true moral and spiritual status, people must become aware of their motivation for pious behavior by performing acts of piety in secret.
Secrecy in piety forces potential disciples to become aware of their motivation, especially as to whether they are seeking reward from God or from other people. This intervention helps bring to consciousness the moral and spiritual rules of existence, and thus can reveal the heart and its motives, or "treasure," as Jesus says, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21). The reason why disciples should make their devotion a private act between themselves and God, rather than a public exhibition, is that it will lead.
114 It is significant that there is no contradiction between this passage and Matt 5:16, as Hagner explains: "The acts of righteousness performed by the Christian will naturally be seen by others. According to 5:16, followers of Jesus must let their light shine 'before others [precisely the language of our pericope], so that they can see your good works.' Although this may seem like a contradiction at first, 5:16 goes on to say 'that they may glorify your Father who is in heaven', which is in stark contrast to the hypocrites' desire that 'they may be glorified by others ' (v. 2). Hagner, Matthew 1-13, 140.
A second intervention can be discerned in Jesus’ words to his disciples about judging others. He instructs them to refrain from judging other people in a
Finally, a third intervention can be drawn out from Jesus’
W. Winnicott
What takes place in the "facilitating environment" of the mother's care sets the stage for all future relationships. The other half of the theory of the parent-child relationship concerns maternal care, that is, the qualities and changes in the. Winnicott, "The Theory of the Parent-Infant Relationship," in The Maturational Processes and the Facilitating Environment: Studies in the Theory of Emotional Development (New York: International Universities Press.
Winnicott called this the 'holding phase', referring both to the mother's actual physical holding of the baby and also to the baby's overall experience of the environment. 12 How the vulnerability of this condition can be severely exploited is demonstrated in the discussion below of the false self. It may be the only way a mother can show her love to the baby." Winnicott, "The Theory of the Parent-Child Relationship," 49.
Winnicott, "From Dependence to Independence in the Development of the Individual," in The Maturational Processes and the Facilitating Environment: Studies in the Theory of Emotional Development (New York: International Universities Press. First, the roots of the true self naturally precede the formation of the false self. samples of a personal pattern of the patient's emotional life or psychological reality appear in the unconscious transmission.
Winnicott thought it was central to therapeutic intervention because play is the domain of the true self. The task of the therapist is difficult, and the strain of dealing with sick people may tempt one to look for a reward in the patient-therapist. Harter is a developmental psychologist whose research has focused on the cognitive and social construction of the self.
As a person's cognitive abilities develop in childhood and adolescence, the complexity and coherence of a person's self-representation grows until they form a general theory of the self (that is, the I-self).
