Why I Study Psychology and Theology
Posted by TulipGirl | Under Christianity and the Church, Heart, Mind and Soul, Theology for Girls Thursday Jan 31, 2008Nearly all the wisdom we possess — almost everything we know — can be summed up under the knowledge of God and the knowledge of ourselves.
That’s a great quote! I wish I had it when I was going to university studying psychology and some aquantances of my parents questioned how a Christian could study such a subject.
Fabulous quote! I am so excited that you are studying! My grad school applications are going out soon and then I may be joining you as a student once again.
Hugs!
Sheila, did you end up majoring in psychology? Go on the grad school? I think there is good reason for Believers to have yellow flags about much of psychology–there is a great need for discernment anytime we are talking about the soul and people and behaviour. But God has created our world! And we learn so much about the Creator from studying His creation!
Woohoo, Rebecca! Keep us updated on the grad school apps. . . and you know, everything comes in the right season. I *might* finish my BA in the summer, if the classes line up just right. And that would be good, since Hubby’s finishing his thesis now and who knows where we’ll be or what we’ll be doing next.
[...] in America and Bible (Old Testament) as Literature. See a theme? I’ve been focusing on the intersection of psychology and theology (even though the local uni doesn’t exactly offer much direction there.) At this point, [...]
I am interested in pursuing a MA in Psychology and Theology…where did you go for that? What other colleges offer both of these degrees?
Shannon, unfortunately I’m not in a program that integrates psychology and theology. The psych I’ve studied in school, and the theology I’ve studied mostly on my own.
There are some excellent programs around the country, however, that do integrate the two — as well as some research journals and books. I’ll do a post soon on the ones I like the most, but for starters you might want to look into the books written / edited by Stanton Jones (I like him a lot) like “Modern Psychotherapies: A Comprehensive Christian Appraisal”; “Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling,” is another good book (which I have never actually finished reading.) The Rosemead School of Psychology http://www.rosemead.edu/ and the psych program at Wheaton both produce good research. If you are in college already, you can use the library online to access the Journal of Psychology and Theology.
I hope this helps, Shannon!