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Heritage College & Seminary

Psychology & Christianity: Five Views Book Review

Submitted to: Nancy Wahl
PCS101

Kerina Morris
October 8th, 2014

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Introduction:
How are Christians supposed to commit themselves to the discipline of psychology? This
question is of interest and sometimes a concern to Christians because of the importance that is
placed on a correct understanding of our human nature. Psychology is often seemed to be
disconnected and not associated to the Christian perspectives on life. This book illustrates five
differentiating views for understanding and comprehending the connection between psychology
and Christianity. These views include the Levels-of-Explanation view, the Integration view,
Christian Psychology view, the Transformational Psychology view, and finally the Biblical
Counseling view. These models of psychology will help us to better understand the relationship
that we need to see between psychology and Christianity.
A Levels-of-Explanation View:
In the view of Levels-of-Explanation, it is important to realize that multiple layered
realities (like we live in today), provide a different perspective from which we can study nature
and where we are located in it. The perspective that is most relevant or applicable depends on
what you want to talk about. For example, romantic love from a physiologists point of view
might say that love is a state of arousal. A social psychologists point of view would look at how
the different characteristics and conditions (such as good looks and similarities of the partner)
would enhance the emotion of love. A poet would describe the experience of love, and a
theologian would describe love as a goal of human relationships given to us by God. Love can be
described all at once at various levels, and we need not to assume that one level is in causation of
the other. The emotional and physiological views that we experience are just two complementary
perspectives. When looking at romantic love in a multilayered way, we often see a correlation
that allows us to build on and connect between different perspectives. When we recognize the

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complementary relationships formed between the various explanatory levels, it frees us from a
pointless argument over whether or not we should view human nature scientifically or
subjectively. As Andrew Greely said Psychology cannot explain the purpose of human
existence, the meaning of human life, the ultimate destiny of the human person. (Johnson 52)
Psychology is an important perspective that helps us to view and understand ourselves, but it is
not the only one.
An Integration View:
In the Integration view, in order to comprehend the relationship of psychology and
Christianity, this approach believes that psychology is a science and professional practice. An
integrationist believes that the Christian psychologist should use and draw on the resource of
God to answer the ultimate questions, for a solid foundation on how we should engage the
science of psychology and how we should structure our practice in the profession of psychology.
However, the integrationist believes that Scripture does not provide us all that we need in order
to fully comprehend humans; there is a strategic role for psychology as both a science and
profession in giving us intellectual and practical tools for understanding and bettering the human
condition. Integration of Christianity and psychology is our living out in this particular area
of the lordship of Christ over all existence by our giving special revelation Gods true word its
appropriate place of authority in determining our fundamental beliefs about and practices toward
all our academic subject matter in particular. (Johnson 102) A weakness of this view found by
critics is that the word integration is criticized because it doesnt fully capture and communicate
the relationship of faith and secular thought. Some critics believe that this term wrongly
implies mixing two components that dont naturally belong together. However, what ultimately
matters is not the term, but what it summarizes, and that is the complex understanding and

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commitment to living out our faith with integrity. Essentially, Johnson states that We seek to
integrate because, in a perfect world, that which would go together seamlessly is now, in this
world, dis-integrated and fragmented. (Johnson 102)
A Christian Psychology View:
In terms of the Christian psychology view, the Christian psychologist would want to
investigate the varying categories of blessedness to learn what traits are actually commended.
The Christian psychologist would also want to know how people become poor in spirit,
peacemaker and etc They ask the questions, what is the therapy for those who are not? How
can people be helped in this undertaking? And what are the consequences of not having those
traits? What kinds of things tend to go wrong in the lives of people who lack the traits? The best
way to answer these questions would be a combination of conceptual-historical and empirical
research. (Johnson 160) Not very long ago, many people thought psychology as a scientific
discipline, fully analogous to chemistry and physics that originated in the late nineteenth
century. (Johnson 149) Times are ever-changing, and in recent years, positive psychologists
have begun to recognize that psychology dates back far beyond the nineteenth century to Plato
and Aristotle; likewise to ancient thinkers in China and India. Christian psychologists avoid
psychologys goal of fa universal psychology that describes all human beings generically,
believing that it is less scientific than it might be. Contrastingly, we wish to develop a
psychology that accurately describes the psychological nature of human beings according to
historic Christianity.
A Transformational Psychology View:

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This view of psychology is an attempt to rediscover and redesign our traditional way of
thinking of psychology in relation to Christianity, as well as rethinking the nature of science.
Essentially, doing science and psychology is ultimately an act of love. Their goal is to argue for a
spiritual formation approach to psychology and Christianity, which takes the spiritual-emotional
transformation of the psychologists as the foundation for understanding, developing and
preserving the process, methodology and product of doing psychology in the Spirit. This model
is less a model of relating psychology to faith and more a transformation of psychology into
something that is a single act of faith and love. However, because sin clouds our view, it is
possible to do psychology naturalistically in terms of methodology, manner and outcomes
outside of a relationship with God. (Johnson 200) In transformational psychology, there are
several foundational notions about the vision and sources that relate to what it is to do
psychology in faith. First, the person doing psychology within a history or tradition of
psychology, next is the person doing psychology anew in the Spirit. Thirdly, the person doing
psychology grounded in reality, including the realities known by faith, next the person doing
psychology as one, single, yet complex, study of reality in faith (of reality observable to all those
realities known by faith). And finally, the last foundation is the person doing psychology as a
science that is both descriptive and prescriptive in nature. The main focus of this
transformational model is for each generation (or psychologist) to do the work of psychology
renewed in the Spirit, grounded in reality and faith, open to other and earlier traditions, but not in
a way that hinders the personal process of doing psychology for themselves.
A Biblical Counseling View:
In the Biblical counseling view, they believe that Christian faith is a psychology. The
revelation of Jesus Christ offers a distinctive interpretation of the thoughts and intentions of the

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heart. (Johnson 245) Scripture gives an interpretation of nature (potentials of the body) and
of nurture (interpersonal experiences). A Christian understanding systematically differentiates
from how other psychologies explain the same experiences. They also believe that Christian
ministry is psychotherapy. The revelation of Jesus Christ creates a distinctive conception of the
relationship between counselor and counselee. This systematically differs from how other
psychotherapies deal with the same problems. However, this is not to say that a Christian
psychology and psychotherapy come straight in the pages of the Bible. Johnson states that it is
outworking of biblical faith into the particulars of our time, place, problems and persons.
(Johnson 245) This raises the questions of how Christian faith practices relate to other
psychologies and psychotherapies that live in our surroundings. What are the similarities and
differences between other psychologies and Christian faith between other psychotherapies and
Christian practice? How do others challenge us? What can we learn from them, and how do we
challenge them? We all share the desire to help make right what goes wrong in our personal and
interpersonal life, yet we see things with a different perspective and proceed with different
intentions.
Conclusion:
From reading about all these various views of psychology, I believe that the view that I
deem the best is the Levels-of-Explanation view because I feel that the multi-layers that this
view believes that psychology has all coincide with each other; Each academic discipline
provides a perspective from which we can study nature and our place in it. (Johnson 51) These
levels vary and range from scientific fields that study the elementary building block of nature, to
philosophy and theology which address lifes worldwide questions. I believe that the perspective
that is most relevant or applicable depends on what you want to talk about; a successful

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explanation of how humans function at one level shouldnt be in contradiction with any of the
other levels. Therefore, the Levels-of-Explanation view is the best view because of its multiple
view mentality.

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Bibliographic Reference
Johnson, Eric L. Psychology & Christianity: Five Views. Illinois, US: InterVarsity Press, 2010.