Neurotic Attitudes toward Religion

The over-all purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between personality and religion. There is indubitably a resurgence of interest in religion in America at present. A recent survey has shown that membership in churches of all denominations has risen almost seventy per cent in a generation, outstripping the population increase by two to one.1 This trend is rooted in numerous social, political and personal conditions peculiar to our present culture and it offers the opportunity, even the obligation, to consider some of the personal motives contributing to it, among which are both healthy and neurotic.

During psychoanalysis questions relating to the patient's religion are brought up and must be analyzed. Sometimes these attitudes may be expressed early in the analysis, even appearing as a major and immediate problem. Sometimes they may not be brought up until the analysis is well under way. Or they may be mentioned casually and early as constituting a problem, then dropped to be worked on much later. Finally, there may be a complete lack of mention of religion, which might indicate an emotional avoidance, which the analyst might profitably question. As with most concrete or situational problems brought out in analysis, the patient is usually unaware of its many facets, the feelings underlying it and of his symbolic use of it.

The emotional charge invested in religious feelings is often very great, whether this be applied toward acceptance or rejection of religion or avoidance of awareness of it. In some instances the individual may have herein crystallized crucial conflicts and solutions of his neurotic character structure. Here we may find expression of his entire relationship to other close significant figures in his environment, to society, and especially to himself, to his inner feelings, their reality and closeness to him.

Since we are using the word in our title, it behooves us to consider what is meant by religion, and in so do