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Psychology a Religion?

The Neo Nerd

Well-Known Member
I stumbled across this article in while researching an assignment.

http://www.psychoheresy-aware.org/images/Psych_02.pdf

I found this particular point interesting:

Psychology has become something of a substitute for old belief systems. Different schools of therapy offer visions of the good life and how to live it, and those whose ancestors took comfort from the words of God and worshipped at the altars of Christ and Yahweh now take solace from and worship at the altars of Freud, Jung, Carl Rogers, Albert Ellis, Werner Erhard, and a host of similar authorities. While in the past the common reference point was the Bible and its commentaries and commentators, the reference today is a therapeutic language and the success stories of mostly secular people changers.

To me it makes a certain amount of sense. Psychology gives us inner peace, a meaning to life, hope, personal power. It gives us everything religion gives us but with a healthy does of occums razor.

Another interesting point i found:

A large and growing number of psychotherapists are now convinced that the Eastern religions offer an understanding of the mind far more complete than anything yet envisaged by Western science. At the same time, the leaders of the new religions themselves—the numerous gurus and spiritual teachers now in the West—are reformulating and adapting the traditional systems according to the language and atmosphere of modern psychology.

For example the buddhist concept of mindfulness very much matches the psychological theory of the same name.

Buddhist Channel | Buddhism News, Headlines | Healing & Spirituality | The Science of Mindfulness Meditation

A fascinating new study by UCLA researchers combines modern neuroscience with ancient Buddhist teachings. The scientists believe they have discovered the first neural evidence for why “mindfulness” — the ability to live in the present moment, without distraction — seems to produce a variety of health benefits.

What does everyone think.

-Q
 

Zephyr

Moved on
Too much psychology is non-scientific BS, and it tends to drown out the real hard science you can find in behaviourism. Hail Watson, hail Skinner!
 

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd
WELL....

Psychology tends to take the place of spirituality. Where religion once gave people validation, rules to live by, and a spiritual nature, psychology tends to take the former two. The latter, spiritual nature, is still being somewhat drained out of our society, or tends to become cultish, or the people desire answers, and go to older traditions like Buddhism for spirituality, or they come up with their own flavor of spirituality to make up for that which has been sucked out of society.

I have actual evidence to back this up. What I said is a terrible paraphrase of part of Jacob Needleman's book, "The New Religions." It was fascinating, and seemed to ring true when I read it.
 

Buttons*

Glass half Panda'd
"Psychology a Religion?"

I think the opposite.

It's funny, because religion and spirituality came long before modern psychology. The only real difference between the two is that there is no spirituality in psychology... imo...
 

Oberon

Well-Known Member
Psychology has a fairly strong scientific base. A great deal of research is undertaken according to strict scientific principles (double-blind experiments, peer-reviewed studies, etc). However, it is a fairly new discipline, and aspects of it (particularly in clinical psychology) are more akin to new age spiritualities than science.
 

The Neo Nerd

Well-Known Member
"Psychology a Religion?"

I think the opposite.

I believe that religion would not work or be needed without psychology (but then again im a chaote)

For example most religions seem to have a concept of opposites the christians have good and evil, many earth based religions have night and day, discordians have serious and humorous.

There even seems to be a penchant for trinities to appear in some religions.

What about the buttloads of religions that have the 'saviour born to a virgin mother, betrayed, executed and raised from the dead' story (and there is quite a few)

Is there some need buried within our psyche that explains these similarites or is it just religion after religion borrowing from its predecessors.

Does psychology need religion to function or exist. Nope. Is religion nothing more than the opiate of the masses. If i was to say yes, then my own beliefs would be kinda pointless.

-Q
 

sandandfoam

Veteran Member
To me it makes a certain amount of sense. Psychology gives us inner peace, a meaning to life, hope, personal power.

I accept this is what you might get from psychology. I find it extraordinarily interesting but I cannot say I gain any such benefits :)


It gives us everything religion gives us but with a healthy does of occums razor.

What constitutes a healthy dose of parsimony seems to me about as objective as what constitutes complexity. :)
 

The Neo Nerd

Well-Known Member
What constitutes a healthy dose of parsimony seems to me about as objective as what constitutes complexity. :)

I disagree parsimony has a minimum value '0' whereas complexity has no maximum value.

Ahh but it seems i am arguing semantics here. I'm quite well known on other forums for railroading topics really quickly hehehe

-Q
 

rojse

RF Addict
In what regard is psychology religious in nature? It uses empirical observations about individuals, and seeks to answer behaviours in a rational, and is closely related to sciences such as neurology.

Remarks about Eastern views of the mind being closer to reality than the western view are not made on religious preferences, rather, through physical observations of the brain and it's workings.
 

LuisDantas

Aura of atheification
Premium Member
Psychoanalysis is very much clinical mythology, and therefore not too different from some forms of religion.


Behavioral Psychology, however, is by no means a religion nor a mythology.

Of course, it can and it does happen that many people seek relief for psychological problems in their religious practice, which is sometimes a good idea, and many other times not so.
 

blackout

Violet.
I do not know if psychology is a religion.......
(Though like anything else, it certainly COULD BEcome one
to an individual who looks to Psychology's "findings"/capitol P
as the final "Word" on all thought/Reality.:bow:)

but I think it's safe to say that religion is a psychology.
At the very least, religion is psychological.

As One who thinks and acts along the lines of Setianism/Chaos Magick/Discordianism
I am ACCUTELY & purpose-fully aware of my "psycology" a great deal of the time...
(except when I "put it away" for the sake of a work or an action.
Which is also a psyco--logical move. :D )
 

Oberon

Well-Known Member
Is Psychology the "Logic of the Phyche"?

psyche is greek for soul (more or less) but "ology" comes from greek logos. You could literally render the combination as something akin to "accounts of the soul" but it really means study of the psyche. Most -ology endings have that meaning.
 

blackout

Violet.
Words are really fascinating.

"Accounts of the Soul"

'Word of the Phyche'.
It has a nice ring.

PsycoLogical. :D I still like that.

lol psycologos. and there is always psycobabble.

When I play Scrabble, you get extra points for creativity. ;)
(It's not even like "Scrabble" is a "real word". erm....It's not, right? lolol )
 

The Neo Nerd

Well-Known Member
In what regard is psychology religious in nature? It uses empirical observations about individuals, and seeks to answer behaviours in a rational, and is closely related to sciences such as neurology.

Remarks about Eastern views of the mind being closer to reality than the western view are not made on religious preferences, rather, through physical observations of the brain and it's workings.

Did you read the article?

Basically it says that psychology gives the same benefits as religion.

Could you please explain your last sentence on buddhism i didnt quite get it
 

rojse

RF Addict
Did you read the article?

Basically it says that psychology gives the same benefits as religion.

The foundations that each set themselves upon are entirely different. That both provide the same effects does not make them the same at all.
 

rojse

RF Addict
Im unsure what you are saying. The article is very interesting thanks for the post.

But it backs my assertion up.

-Q

You wished for an explanation of my statement "eastern views of the mind are closer to reality than the western view". I supported my statement.

As for what it is saying, I am not really sure, but any statement with the phrase gamma-rays is automatically fifty percent cooler than an identical statement without that phrase.
 
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