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what is the relationship between religion and spirituality?
essay on freud approach to religion
Sigmund Freud view of religion
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In terms of the psychology of religion, many thinkers have commented about the origins of religious belief. Some of these support these religious beliefs, some don’t. However it is first appropriate to establish whether or not they are actually making a valid comment on the subject of religion or not.
Georg Hegel (1770–1831) was the initial scholar to step foot into this field. He redefined God by creating a character he often named ‘Spirit’. He attempted to make "God" sound theistic by giving God a mind. In some passages, this mind was made to resemble the transcendent mind of Christianity's theistic God, although some interpreters recognised that ‘Spirit's’ mind was actually nothing but the collective psyche of man. For this reason, and also because God had a physical aspect of which man was a part (We are made “in the image of God”), God/Spirit was essentially humanity. Inwood modifies theism to pantheism: Hegel was "a metaphysician" who "saw the world as a whole on the model of a mind."
The second scholar to attempt to engage in the psychology of religion was Ludwig Feuerbach (1804–1872). He was an atheist who picked up from Hegel’s ideas, and thus was committed to a materialist ‘Hegelian’ account of religion. Hence from is perspective, religion has evolved and ‘branched out’. In The Essence of Christianity, The force of this attraction to religion though, giving divinity to a figure like God, is explained by Feuerbach as God is a being that acts throughout man in all forms. God, "is the principle of man's salvation, of man's good dispositions and actions, consequently man's own good principle and nature". It appeals to man to give qualities to the idol of their religion because without these qualities a figure such as God wou...
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... Jung on Religion, the primal horde theory is at the very least, shaky. Totemism turns out not to be quite. The primitive form of religion that Freud’s account requires it to be, and the suggested place of ritual cannibalism is also counter to contemporary understanding of early human groupings. Interestingly, Westphal presents giving up a degree of personal happiness for the greater societal good as a utilitarian action, nonetheless Freud demands that we all sacrifice religion (if it is false) and this becomes more and more the any challenging. McGrath makes a sharp point a by the time Freud had finished, however, psychoanalysis was no longer primarily a form of therapy, designed to liberate people from the hidden tyranny of repressed traumas. In the spirit of the Enlightenment, it had virtually become a global hypothesis, capable of explaining just about anything.
Religion has been a controversial topic among philosophers and in this paper I am focusing
Pecorino, Philip A. "Section 4: What is Religion?" Philosophy of Religion. 2001. 15 November 2007.
Similar to Marx, Freud believes humans simply make up the idea of God in explanation to things science could not disprove. Humans take relationships from our Earthly fathers and compare it to our Heavenly father. According to Freud, “Religion is an attempt to master the sensory world in which we are situated by means of the wishful world which we have developed within us as a result of biological and psychological necessities.” (H/R,p.26) Science can neither prove or disprove religion. Freud chooses to believe science and claims religion is only comforting and hopeful thinking to our purpose after
To answer the set question I will explore Freud’s Totem and Taboo looking at his theory of the primal horde and Oedipus complex and his theory on religion as an illusion. Also looking at Freud’s theory that religion is unhealthy psychologically. To conclude I will explore his relationship with Jung and the affect his criticism of Freud’s theory had on their professional collaboration.
Erich Fromm in his psychoanalytical approach to religion is distinct from the earlier works of Sigmund Freud. Fromm defines religion as “any system of thought and action shared by a group which gives the individual a frame of orientation and an object of devotion.” Fromm argues that irreligious systems including all the different kinds of idealism and “private” religions deserve being defined as a “religion.” Based on Fromm’s theory, it is explained that there is no human being who does not have a “religious need,” almost every part of human life reflects religious need and its fulfillment, in fact he states it to be “inherent” in man.
...en civilization and the individual. Living in a nation still recovering from a brutally violent war (Germany), Freud began to criticize organized religion as a collective neurosis, or mental disorder. Freud, a strong proponent of atheism, argued that religion tamed asocial instincts and created a sense of community because of the shared set of beliefs. This undoubtedly helped a civilization. However, at the same time organized religion also exacts an enormous psychological cost to the individual by making him or her perpetually subordinate to the primal figure embodied by God.
In the midst of his already successful career, Sigmund Freud decided to finally dedicate a book of his to religion, referring to the subject as a phenomena faced by the scientific community. This new work, Totem and Taboo, blew society off its feet, ultimately expanding the reaches of debates and intellectual studies. From the beginning, Freud argues that there exists a parallel between the archaic man and the contemporary compulsive. Both these types of people, he argues, exhibit neurotic behavior, and so the parallel between the two is sound. Freud argues that we should be able to determine the cause of religion the same way we determine the cause of neurosis. He believes, since all neuroses stem from childhood experiences, that the origins of this compulsive behavior we call religion should also be attributed to some childhood experiences of the human race, too. Freudian thought has been dominant since he became well known. In Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans, religion becomes entirely evident as a major part of the novel, but the role it specifically plays is what we should question. Therefore, I argue that Freud’s approach to an inborn sense of religion and the role it plays exists in The Last of the Mohicans, in that the role religion plays in the wilderness manifests itself in the form of an untouchable truth, an innate sense of being, and most importantly, something that cannot and should not be tampered with.
Kung, Hans. The Incarnation of God: An Introduction to Hegel's Theological Thought As Prolegomena to a Future Christology. T&T Clark, 2001. hard cover.
The necessity of religion is a topic that has been widely debated by many people for many years. The vast majority of the 7 and a half billion people on this earth practice some sort of religion but for what purpose? Whether it’s too give people hope for an afterlife or too fuel their need for contact with others people can list hundreds of different reasons why they rely on religion but is religion actually essential to our wellbeing and and life quality on this planet?
After reading a few of the chapters in "Psychology Through the Eyes of Faith", I feel as if I have learned more in one sitting than many in years of my life. The chapters were not life altering, but simply stated things that I have overlooked. The topics that affected me most were on living with the mysteries of faith, benefits of true rest, and the emotion of happiness. Yes, they are really in no way related, but each of these topics impacted me in a different way, and made me think about what was being presented.
Religion is a symbolic representation of society. The sociological approach to religious belief looks at how society behaves on a whole, to answer the question, “Why are people religious?” We express our participation in religious events through plays, acts of confession, religious dances, etc. To begin to understand why we have such term, let’s understand the common elements of religion. There are different types in which people believe in or follow and that is: animatism, animism, ancestral spirits, god and goddesses, and minor supernatural beings. Beyond these different elements, such one is to have religious leaders to follow.
A framework of five models is shared: Enemies, Spies, Colonialists, Neutral Parties, and Allies. The Enemies model either associates no relationship between Christianity and psychology. The Spies model focuses on what works best for them from both Christianity and psychology. Colonialists use psychology only to the degree that it fits theology. Neutral Parties model holds that psychology and theology are independent with possible correlation between findings of the two, however that is about as far as one discipline may encroach on the other. Allies, the model considered by Entwistle, acknowledges that while psychology and theology are separate, they are still dependent, based upon the underlying unity of truth of God’s written word and His Works (Entwistle, 2010). The underpinning of the integrative approach to psychology and Christianity appears to be that of anthropology; this may be seen in the two books, God g...
Religion can be defined as a system of beliefs and worships which includes a code of ethics and a philosophy of life. Well over 90% of the world 's population adheres to some form of religion. The problem is that there are so many different religions. What is the right religion? What is true religion? The two most common ingredients in religions are rules and rituals. Some religions are essentially nothing more than a list of rules, dos and don 'ts, which a person must observe in order to be considered a faithful adherent of that religion, and thereby, right with the God of that religion. Two examples of rules-based religions are Islam and Judaism. Islam has its five pillars that must be observed.
When first looking at the relationship between philosophy and religion, I found it easier to explain the differences rather than the similarities. I began this paper the same way I do others. This generally involves a profound amount of research on the topic at hand. However, in contrast to the other papers I have done, the definitions of philosophy and religion only raised more questions for me. It was fascinating how the explanations differed dramatically from author to author.
THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR THE PSYCHOLOGY OF RELIGION. (2009). Journal of Psychology and Theology, 37(1), 72. Retrieved April 21, 2009, from ProQuest Religion database. (Document ID: 1675034711).