Emotions
“Having come to church in extreme need, a person thinks that he and his life should change drastically. If I was depressed, I’ll become joyful. If I was aggressive and gloomy, I will become amiable and sweet. But nothing happens. I’m the same as before. It’s easy to get disappointed, offended, and go to look for miracles elsewhere. Or a dangerous attitude may appear: “I have come to God, so I must be joyful.” And once I start demanding something from myself, especially emotions, religious neurosis begins. Of course, it happens that the Lord gives a person light, peace, grace, and joy. But it is not because he suddenly became a believer. Religion is not a pill. Although we really want a pill. But this is a normal desire.” (Marina Filonik)
“…when we grew up in a stressful environment, or later in life were subjected to an experience in which we had little to no control, we struggle with feeling powerless…we can go through the rest of our lives with an intense fear of being in a situation where we perceive ourselves as powerless. Any present-day change, event, or relationship that involves emotional struggle or pain can make us feel as if the original event were happening all over again…To process something means to understand fully and thoroughly how it affected us. It is only then, that our mind and heart will let us move on without tugging at us, in the form of some emotional distress or a troubled heart, to go back and deal with it.” (Fr. Joshua Makoul)
“People often complain that after receiving joy from the sacraments, from Communion, they cannot hold on to it for a long. Our emotional lability varies. A feather has fallen on someone, and it’s the end of the world for him. Another is in a lot of trouble, but he’s smiling. This is our nature and constitution. But at the same time, everyone understands when they have done something that causes darkness in their souls. We can keep track of these things. But not always. So if the Lord has poured grace into your basin, but you couldn’t bring it home, don’t exaggerate: not everything is in your power. And at this moment we need God even more. May He come and settle in my heart, which I cannot control. Because I can’t carry this basin without spilling its contents.” (Marina Filonik)
“…psychological research itself has begun to move away from the analysis of feelings and towards the importance of cultivating such emotional habits as love, gratitude, and compassion…In Orthodox Christian therapy, we reactivate the priesthood within a man or within a woman or within a child through the sequence of Beauty, Goodness, and Truth. In Orthodox therapy, we are taught to minimize the emphasis given to the causes of spiritual and emotional poverty, in ourselves and in others, and to instead refer everything to God. We promote a rich relational life with God and man in Christ by seeing the best, or at least hoping for the best, in everyone. We don’t analyze the self to exhaustion but balance self-awareness with unknowing.” (Timothy G. Patitsas)
“…emotions have physical effects, often before we are conscious of them… becoming aware of what is happening at the level of physiology (a sensory process known as “interoception”), we can grow in the skill of emotional intelligence…as we grow in self-awareness of our own emotional states, we become better able to understand and empathize with others.” (Robin Phillips)
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