Integrative Approaches To Psychology And Christianity Summary

4MAT Review: Entwistle

Summary

Integrative Approaches to Psychology and Christianity was written by David N. Entwistle. He is a licensed psychologist that works for Malone University in Ohio. The book displays important information about the integration of psychology and theology. Entwistle clarifies the historical reasons for the separation between the two areas. As he mentioned these historic events, he demonstrated how the knowledge today may reflect what happened in the past. For example, “During the past century, the relationship of faith and science has been a topic of intense debate” (Entwistle, 2015, p.8). The Tertullian only carried the view of faith and didn’t see any purpose for science. However, not all individuals

According to the text, “he called them secular thinking and Christian thinking” (Entwistle, 2015, p. 9). Entwistle made it apparent that individuals need to be cautious about being so closed off in their thinking process. The focus is on God and if we believe in creation then we would believe that God didn’t make a mistake when he created psychology. According to the text, “If we understand that all of what God created was good, then we must avoid creating an artificial separation between that which is scared and that which is secular” (Entwistle, 2015, p.11). Christianity has perpetually had a big impact on world history and the worldviews that were formed. People don’t pick a worldview, they’re typically learned. The book mentions some of the major worldviews that include: animism, polytheism, pantheism, theism, modernism, postmodernism, and syncretism. Entwistle studied several models of integration showing how Christianity and Psychology relate to each other. The five models include: Enemies model, Spies model, Colonialist model, Neutral parties model, and Allies model. He also showed that God is with us no matter where we are in our life or worldview. Entwistle demonstrates to his readers how Theology is like psychology in that they

For example, every single person is made in God’s image, however, each person is unique. God has given every individual a special gift to use in his glory, and they get free will to use it or not. God’s creation of mankind is both sacred and secular. According to the text, “Many Christians are caught in a trap in which the sacred and the secular are artificially severed” (Entwistle, 2015, p.11). All people are God’s people and Christians should not take the credibility and value that can be taken from the secular world. According to the text, “Integration involves identifying key Christian commitments that shape how we understand human beings, and it requires a firm grasp of the theories,