Archive for ‘Student Posts’

I have always had a sort of fascination with the Holocaust – as strange as that may sound. It astounds me to think that people could have been so absolutely monstrous to other human beings. But in the destruction and tragedy of the Holocaust, there was also hope. Viktor Frankl saw this too. He found that when prisoners (in the concentration camps) found meaning in their lives despite the awful circumstances, those prisoners continued to live. Frankl taught that no matter what kind of situation you are in, you can make it better or worse depending on your attitude and actions. This is why I associate Frankl with both the Fall and Redemption. Although the world was falling apart around him, Viktor Frankl rose above it and inspired others to do so as well. Despite the fact that his wife, mother, and brother were all killed in concentration camps and he himself was stuck in one for three years, he found little rays of hope all around him. Frankl even found suffering to be meaningful. He is quoted as having said, “Suffering ceases to be suffering the moment it finds a meaning.” He also stated, “He who has a *why* to live can bear with almost any *how.*”

Viktor Frankl. We learned about him in class today, and I think that was one of my favorite lectures of this semester. What an incredible man. His story is heart wrenching, his character is beyond unique; it is steadfast and loving and humble and open. He has many Christ-like qualities and I put him in the category of the Fall- not because he himself seemed fallen, but because the world around him was crumbling and he rose above it.

I have been to Auschwitz concentration camp. It was at the end of a mission trip to Poland my youth group went on. I remember reading Night by Elie Wiesel and actually finishing it as we pulled up to the camp. You can’t really describe what it is like to walk around and see all the brick buildings, the dorms, the shoes, combs, hair. The gas chambers. It is like walking around a ghost town, only wondering in a sort of awe at the horrors that happened there. That was a fallen time. That was a time where death and life intermixed in a twisted dance that left everyone stumbling. Evil prevailed in expected and unexpected ways. Evil blinded; evil killed.

Frankl seemed to remain certain through his time at Auschwitz. He helped others, he cared for the sick, he survived. Frankl decided to persevere as best he could, and he did so with grace. This reminds me of Christ as he carried the cross through the streets of Jerusalem. He was scorned, spit at, discouraged, beaten, broken. Yet he showed kindness and perseverance to finish the task. Frankl had accepted death as a possibility. So did Jesus.

I believe that Victor Frankl should go under redemption. Not just because he had such a positive view of life after his time in concentration camps but because of his view of man’s ability to be something greater than himself. His view of behaviorism being just a basis for man i feel is very inspiring. Free will is something that i have always been interested in and Frankl shows how man can over come any circumstances in a positive way shows mans free will. To look at tragedies and still over come them while still letting them shape you shows how Frankl should be placed under redemption. I also feel this has a huge impact on Christianity. Jesus teaches us to turn the other cheek and i feel that with Frankl’s view of free will shows how one could forgive the aggressor and not be impacted by their actions.

I believe that Freud could be placed under the fall. His work on the unconscious and behavior shows what seems to be a darker side of peoples behavior. To think that sex is the main drive in human behavior avoids the point of morals and things that are not personal. I feel that this limits mans ability to sacrifice his own needs to help others. I also feel that he goes under the fall because of how little research he actually did. If he cannot prove his own works yet be so influential to the field of psychology then he should be placed under the fall. I also feel that his work on the unconscious limits mans ability to control his actions leading to the lack of free will which should be placed under the fall. Although some of his views could be placed under different categories I feel that the fall best fits freud.

What do we make of Freud’s depiction of humans? He brings us the idea of the unconscious mind. A scary thought. A new thought. An awakening thought. Freud sees into each individual, diving deeper than others before him to explain why we act the way we do. What drives us. What motivates us.

Freudian thought falls under many categories. Under Creation, we see Freud’s view of man, that man possesses innate tendencies and instincts that want to act out. How does this fit into our view of God’s creation of man? Are we born with original sin, or are we born good? Is our id, as Freud calls it, our sinful nature? Do we constantly struggle against our id, try to overcome it and act in a more righteous way? This sounds a lot like the book of Romans to me. So Freudian thought falls under the category of the Fall too, that man has these desires that are primal, sexual, lead to potentially bad things. That man makes mistakes and wants for selfish things. Then we add the ego and superego, redemptive qualities to complete Freud’s theories. Qualities that find parallels with religious morality, values, faith. Would you consider your moral code to be your superego? Is it defined by your faith and religion, or other things as well?

I would have to say that Freud brings us ideas about the Restoration category as well, for he presents psychoanalysis as a pathway towards healing. It is relieving- after all his explanations about how we are truly thinking, how we really feel, even if we might be suppressing or repressing those feelings- that he provides a type of therapy to work through those feelings, process and try to understand ourselves. One very positive thing about Freudian thought is realizing even if we do not know where our desires and motivations come from, we have a chance to understand and pay attention to them.

Hall’s fascination with evolution led him to the belief that each person reenacts every stage of the human species over time. At each stage of the individuals development they exhibit characteristics of the past. Hall uses the example of young children who are impulsive and do not act within a moral framework. They are showing the signs of less civilized evolutionary ancestors. As life continues, more stages from the past manifest themselves.

The continuous cycle that exists according the the Recapitulation Theory exemplifies the Fall. The Fall explains our separation from God due to our blemished nature. Recapitulation Theory developed after evolutionary theory which explains that creations in existence in the present are those that were most fit and adaptable. This idea could fit under Creation or New Creation. However, Hall’s notion that our lives manifest aspects of prior stages of the human species shows that even while we develop and adapt to become more fit we cannot escape the past. A child exhibiting cruelty in his play has an inherent aspect of cruelty in his nature that he cannot escape. As fallen beings we were separated from God through the desires of our flesh and even if we have been reconciled with God we will stumble because of the sinful nature that still wars against our souls. For this reason Recapitulation Theory seems to best fit with the Fall.

Most people associate Darwinism negatively with Creation – that is, they believe Darwinism contradicts Creation completely. I do not believe this to be true. While I do not think that humans evolved from another species entirely, such as fish, apes, etc., I do recognize that humans have in fact evolved over time. For example, our ancestors may have been more short and small because they needed to be compact in order to fit into wherever they could find shelter – usually (presumed to be) in caves. People nowadays, although ranging in shape and size, tend to be larger than our cavemen counterparts. So, did we come from apes or fish or some other non-human-like creature? I highly doubt it. Have we evolved in order to better suit our environments? Absolutely. God created us to evolve, but He created us as our own race from the beginning.

Charles Darwin is the famous natural scientist accredited with the idea of ‘Survival of the Fittest’. On his voyage on the HMS Beagle, he observed the different traits of sparrows from island to island, how their diets and beak shapes were altered. His evolutionary theory revolutionized the way we look at ourselves as a species, as well as our role in the universe. Darwin researched the adaptive habits of many animals to determine how their feeding habits, mating habits, ecosystems and other factors affected their genetic makeup. Darwin specifically studied animals adapting to diet and climate changes to see how their species developed, in order to determine ideas about their origin. This is why I would categorize Darwin’s work under Creation.

Darwin’s goal was to explain where we came from and animals and plants descended, evolved, and mutated to become whatever they are today. I have read the book, “On the Origin of Species,” and drew conclusions that Darwin sought answers to creation-like questions; how are we different from other primates? Natural selection as an ecological principle is based on the branching pattern of evolution over time. Scientists (who accept this theory) believe that living organisms innately need their genes to prevail.

Extremely controversial, this principle is thought to deny the existence of a God in some ways, although it is not popularly believed that this was his intention. The immense theological implications of this theory of evolution were unparalleled. People could not believe that Darwin would deny divine creation. Still today, people have trouble distinguishing the difference between the theory of evolution and atheism.

I believe that the case of Phineas Gage goes under the fall. If man’s personality is guided by the brain then it shows that when there is damage or a development to the brain then man could be more influenced to do things that are considered wrong or impolite to do. This should go under the fall because man should always be influenced to do God’s will over their own. In Phineas Gages case his personality changed when his accident damaged his brain. This helped people show the relationship between the self and the brain. If man can be influenced by changes in the brain but can still choose to act the same then it could go under the category of redemption do to it over coming the inclination to act differently. However in Phineas Gages case he started to not be able to regulate what he said do to his damage to his frontal lobe causing him to change and seem more rude. This should go under the fall because it shows how easily man can be influenced to not do God’s will.

The human mind is different from any other creature or mammal that is on earth. We have all heard that quote, but has anyone every asked why? Because it can process things in milliseconds, because it can store an immense amount of information, or because it can comprehend things like God and the universe. Obviously animals can not do what we do with our minds like talk to Christ. Animals don’t think about their actions or have deeper intention for them.

Franz Clemens Brentano was very interested in the processes of the mind not the content. For example judging, recalling, doubting, and hoping are unique processes of the mind. I believe we take these abilities for granted daily.  I appreciate how he wanted to study them. I liked that he thought oral communication was the best way. Even though these things are hard to measure of completely capture, he was on to something. The way you process things and what you process makes a big impact on your mood and how you go through life. For example, if you believe no one likes you all the things you experience or remember may line up with that. Your low self-esteem makes you a target for bullies and it reaffirms your belief.

I think this view of the mind could be categorized in the fall or redemption. God created our minds and knew how they would work or form beliefs. Based on the truth that we grasp it could either hinder us or free us. Bad news: we get to choose what we believe. Good news: We get to choose what we believe. Great news: We know who the Truth is. I believe that God programming our brains the way he did showed us how important and special the mind is, especially the human one since it does things only animals could dream of. lol (Get it?)  Don’t waste those minds of yours. They are capable of such great things!

Ps Sorry if this sounded like my last post.