The Authenticity Of Faith The Varieties And Illusions Of Religious Experience, Written By Richard Beck

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395

Richard Beck

The Authenticity of Faith: The Varieties and Illusions of Religious Experience

(Abilene,tx: Abilene Christian University Press, 2012). 273 pp. $24.99 paperback.

How does one account for Christian faith after Sigmund Freud’s classic textThe Future of an Illusion? Echoing the great Jewish theologian Abraham Heschel, psychology professor Richard Beck asserts that the apologetical task today is to empirically prove the authenticity of faith while taking Freud seriously. For Beck, Freud is correct in claiming that “faith is a form of wishful thinking in the face of an unsettling existence,” a point that has been used “with devastating and deflationary effect” (22–23). But is Freud completely accurate? Drawing on William James’ Varieties of Religious Experience, Beck builds on and critiques Freud, thereby laying the groundwork for an empirical account of a diversity of faith experiences. Beck’s approach has deep theological, pastoral, and psy- chological implications, and can occasion sober reflection on the essence of faith.

The first section of the book examines Freud’s claims, and the legacy of his thinking about religion as a means of escapism from existential anxiety. This reality is evidenced in a number of psychological studies on “terror manage- ment theory,” which measure how participants respond to ideological Other(s). Beck cites two such studies: one deals with reactions to a political Other and the other to a religious Other. Participants first considered the subject of death and then were invited to react to two options. In each case, the participants favored perspectives that reflected their worldview and tended to look down on the ideological Others. The findings seem to indicate that Freud is right: religion is (often) an illusion, an anxiety buffer that protects us from existential terror (92).

In the second and third sections of the book, Beck responds to Freud by drawing on William James’Varieties of Religious Experience. Beck appropriates James’ concepts of the healthy-minded (the escapist) and the sick soul (111) to determine whether all religious experiences are a means of escapism. He then deploys his own psychological research to prove the existence of the Christian sick soul, and to determine how each type responds to existential concerns regarding the self (including the value of the body, aesthetic perception, and judgment), God (the doctrine of the Incarnation, the problem of theodicy and the “functional” dualism that might arise out of it), and ideological Other(s).

Beck repeatedly finds that the healthy-minded Christian proves Freud right: this kind of Christian tends to manage one’s terror by engaging in worldview defense, considering the ideological Other to be less intelligent or trustworthy (190). He also finds that the healthy-minded exhibit a “Gnostic flight from the

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body” (207), favor Christian art over high-level but religiously nonspecific art (219–220), and are more likely to exhibit a dualist attitude to cope with the problem of evil by citing the activity of the Devil rather than blaming God (239–240). But Beck also shows that James’ “sick soul” does exist and that it is not so sick after all: this type is more existentially flexible, more attentive to the Incarnation, the challenge of theodicy, and the existence of ideological Other(s).

In a pivotal chapter in the middle of the book, Beck offers Mother Teresa of Calcutta as a paradigm of the sick soul. As is now known, this saint initially enjoyed mystical union with God, but then lived forty years of her life in spiritual desolation.Yet she persisted in her faith and works.Thus, her life helps us understand “the full range of the faith experience” (125), for she experienced both spiritual health and sickness. This leads to Beck’s key theological and pastoral insight. Having exposed some alarming trends among the healthy- minded, Beck’s work can constitute a call to hold in view the paschal mystery in which all believers are to participate. To put it in Pauline language, faith is about knowing Christ and the power of his resurrectionand alsosharing in his sufferings by becoming like him in his death (cf. Philippians 3:10,nrsv). Beck’s workpointsthereadertowardsthiskindof faith,whichismoreauthentic,more realistic, and better equipped to live amidst the gaps in life (264).

Admittedly, the reader may find the variety of psychological concepts a bit overwhelming. Beck’s findings also raise important theological questions on the Incarnation, the existence of the devil, and the definition of and practice of faith that go beyond the scope of the book. Nonetheless, the reader will benefit from Beck’s approach and his response to Freud’s challenge. Instructors of introductory level courses, especially those on faith and reason, will find the book insightful. Students can benefit as well, since this book incorporates the insights of two classic works (Varieties and The Future of an Illusion). Finally, pastors may find it thought-provoking and helpful in their ministry.

David de la Fuente

Fordham University, Bronx, New York

[email protected]

PNEUMA 39 (2017) 365–424

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