Integrating religious practices in psychotherapy? A Christian orthodoxic perspective by Frank-Gerald B. Pajonk in Journal of Clinical Case Reports Medical Images and Health Sciences
Integrating religious practices in psychotherapy? A Christian orthodoxic perspective by Frank-Gerald B. Pajonk in Journal of Clinical Case Reports Medical Images and Health Sciences Abstract Mental illnesses are related to the spiritual and religious dimensions of human experience. This has not yet been sufficiently taken into account in diagnostic and therapeutic processes. The aim of this overview is to show, on the basis of the rich tradition of the Christian Orthodox faith, not only that there is a history of Far Eastern provenance with regard to relaxation techniques and mental strategies, but also that the inclusion of spiritual and pastoral elements can help the individual patient to reach “peace of mind” (hesychia). Even severe psychiatric and psychosomatic illnesses, some of which are not always accessible through verbal and cognitive methods alone, can benefit from approaches to soul-spiritual concentration and ritual power such as the “Heart of Jesus Prayer”, bec...