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The Psychology of Spirit
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Product Code: PsychSpiritF
Manufacturer: Kappeler Institute Publishing
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Booklet, 19 pages
Level:
SUBJECT(s):
Preparing Yourself to Study Science
Handling Evil/Mortal Consciousness
Healing and Christian Science Practice
RELATED RECORDINGS:
M-40, The Christ-idea vs. Human Thinking (1.5 hours, audio)
SYNOPSIS: This booklet contrasts the psychology of Spirit, God (see S&H 369:25) with the psychology of human thinking. It uncovers the extent to which we let ourselves be influenced by the general mental atmosphere. The spiritual method of mental self-knowledge enables us to maintain a divinely correct concept of what constitutes our true self and our relationships. We learn to discover who we are as defined by God's nature as Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, and Love (see S&H 465:10). We learn to stop regarding ourselves and our families according to our human nature as mortal mind (ignorance), good and evil, sin and egotism, personal sense and dishonesty, lack, sickness, fear, and hate. Ordinary psychology and psychotherapy work with material psychophysical (material-mental) means. Often "human conversation" stands in the center of treatment. This mental process is not the method of the psychology of Spirit. In addition, the paragraph "Anatomy defined" is analyzed (see 462:20–463:4).
CONTENTS:
Chapter 1: The Science of Spirit in Contrast to Psychological Thinking
Chapter 2: Mental Self-knowledge in Christian Science
Chapter 3: Anatomy Defined
- Mind
- Spirit
- Soul
- Principle
- Life
- Truth
- Love
Chapter 4: Summary
EXCERPT:
From Max Kappeler, The Psychology of Spirit, pp. 5–6.
Mental Self-knowledge in Christian Science
In a short paragraph with the title "Anatomy defined" (462:20–463:4), the 13th chapter of the Textbook specifies the foundation of the psychology of Spirit. This explanation appears in the chapter "Teaching Christian Science" with good reason. The 13th chapter deals primarily with the state of consciousness of the true representative of Christian Science, who, through strict adherence to God (that is, to the seven synonymous terms for God), attains the perfect standard. In other words, the chapter explains how strict adherence to Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, and Love establishes in us an attitude that makes us Principle-idea, the true Christian Scientist. Through this impersonal attitude, we see that the true Christian Scientist is not a human person but the idea of divine self-perfection. This divine self-perfection reflects itself in consciousness when, through mental self-knowledge, we maintain a divinely correct concept of what constitutes our true self. We learn to discover who we are from the standpoint of the categories of divine being and stop defining ourselves according to the human-material system of reference. Accordingly the spiritually conceived mental self-knowledge or psychology makes quite definite demands on us—spiritual demands to which human thinking must bow. What are these demands?
The demands of mental self-knowledge. If we read the section in the Textbook on mental anatomy, we find the following definite and distinct demands. With analysis, or the "dissection of thoughts," we should:
1. Discover the quality, quantity and origin of thoughts (Mind);
2. Order thoughts rightly (Spirit);
3. Excise or destroy error (Soul);
4. Base ourselves on the right mental anatomy that Christian Science teaches (Principle);
5. Give up false methods and find the true methods of life (Life);
6. Attain dominion over the body (Truth);
7. Fulfil the predetermined goal and so effectively overcome disease (Love).
Many lines of psychology would agree to most of these demands. However, this partial agreement as to what should be done gives a further reason why psychology sometimes exercises such a strong power of attraction over us. Instead of accepting this attraction to psychology, we should recognize the crucial difference, namely, the difference in how these demands are to be fulfilled, for methods differ greatly. This cannot be otherwise. To grasp its subject, psychology appeals to everything which is at the disposal of human thinking. By contrast, Christian Science teaches that the student must never substitute "his own views for Truth" (462:11); everyone who "would demonstrate the healing of Christian Science" must abide strictly by the rules of Truth, that is, by that which God declares and knows. All "deductions from material hypotheses … differ from real Science because they are not based on the divine law" (273:7).
How does the psychology of Spirit provide us with a wholly spiritual method of mental self-knowledge? To answer this question we must consider more closely the divine law of mental anatomy or mental self-knowledge as it is stated in the Textbook on pages 462:20–463:4. Different from every other teaching, this method of mental self-knowledge rests on the activity of the nature of God as Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, and Love. Mental self-knowledge teaches us as students of Christian Science how to recognize our true self. Specifically, through seven demands, we see how we can accept our divinely based and formed mentality.
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