Working in Britain and in Poland, the authors independently arrived at an interpretation of spirituality as a natural phenomenon. From the point of view of the British author, spirituality is based on a biological predisposition that has been selected for in the process of evolution because it has survival value. In several important ways this approach is in harmony with the psychological perspective of the Polish author that sees spirituality as a socioculturally structured and determined attempt to cope with the (...) existential human situation. Thus interpreted, spirituality is a human universal appearing in many secular as well as religious forms, although its most typical manifestations have been in religious experience. In this essay we discuss research data in support of this theoretical point of view and highlight some of the issues in bringing the two theoretical perspectives together. (shrink)

This paper examines the contemplative techniques that comprised wesley's method of spiritual transformation. By employing a psychoanalytic perspective that explains the pastoral effectiveness of the method, I claim that Wesley's view of spiritual growth was therapeutic and transformative as measured by contemporary clinical standards. Wesley's developmental model involved a series of spiritual phases each characterized by techniques and meditations that culminated in sanctification, a cognitive-emotional transformation marked by the eradication of sinful temptations and the perfection of altruism. Couched in a (...) theological idiom, the method helped individuals to work through conflicts created by the three main traumata of British middle class childhood: authoritarian parenting and unresolved bereavement grief. This paper argues that religious-cultural symbolism may promote transformations of archaic affect and neurotic conflict that progressively reshape these pre-reflective materials into complex existential insights and convictions. (shrink)

Haartman responds to points made by Malony and Carroll. Malony suggests that Methodist repentance was characterized by "devotion" and "joyous possession" rather than fear. Haartman argues that the hysterical crises and the persecutory ideation that accompanied Methodist conversion was often triggered by Wesley's invitation to accept God's love. The data points to a conflict model involving rage and anxiety, as well as devotion. Haartman concedes to Carroll's argument that the majority of Methodists hailed from the lower working class and that (...) the psychology of evangelical nurture does not apply to this constituency. However, the authors of the official autobiographies were drawn from the middling ranks and revealed struggles with authoritarian parenting. Haartman challenges Carroll's emphasis on orality and regression as the primary psychoanalytic explanation for Methodist spirituality. (shrink)