“For the soul is made after the image and likeness of God, as divine Scripture also shows, when it says in the person of God Genesis 1:26: ‘Let us make man after our Image and likeness.’ Whence also when it gets rid of all the filth of sin which covers it and retains only the likeness of the Image in its purity, then surely this latter being thoroughly brightened, the soul beholds as in a mirror the Image of the Father, even the Word, and by His means reaches the idea of the Father, Whose Image the Saviour is. Or, if the soul’s own teaching is insufficient, by reason of the external things which cloud its intelligence, and prevent its seeing what is higher, yet it is further possible to attain to the knowledge of God from the things which are seen, since Creation, as though in written characters, declares in a loud voice, by its order and harmony, its own Lord and Creator.” -St. Athanasius (Against the Heathen, 34)
St. Athanasius from Flickr, used by CC BY-NC 2.0
St. Athanasius was the great Church Father from the 3rd century who opposed Arianism. He was a staunch defender of Christian orthodoxy and the Patriarch of Alexandria. He was declared a Doctor of the Church. Here he compares the soul to a mirror, that once purified of sin, reflects and communicates with God Himself.
This is fascinating because St. Athanasius also suggests that the soul can be either brightened or clouded. When brightened, it beholds God the Father and the Word. When clouded, it cannot adequately access its divine intelligence and corresponding teaching. This corresponds well with the IFS notion of “blending” and “unblending.” When the inmost self (or nous) is darkened, or when the inmost self is unintentionally blended with a burdened part, it cannot access God’s grace, and it cannot adequately impart faith, hope, and love. But when it is purified, or brightened, when one is self-led, then the soul beholds God as if looking into a mirror. I assume here that the soul in this case more specifically refers to the inmost self which is sometimes called the “eye of the soul.” I have often equated the inmost self with the Greek term “nous” which connotes spiritual perception, the heart, as well as the intellect or mind.
The early Church Fathers and monastics would see the process of undarkening the soul as involving the removal of sin and the development of virtue.
“Having nothing to prevent him from knowing the Divine, his purity allowed him ceaselessly to contemplate the Father’s image, the Word of God.” -St. Athanasius (Against the Heathens, 2)
Here St. Athanasius explores the idea that we are to transcend the sensible world and all its corresponding vices to enter an awe-inspiring fellowship with God. This is done through the “power of his mind” as we “take pleasure in contemplating Him.” I would argue that this is near impossible to achieve when we have actively blended and burdened parts. It can only be experienced when we have internal integration. We cannot experience union with God, or with anyone, without some measure of this internal unity.
St. Hildegard of Bingen, the 12th century German mystic, Benedictine abbess and Doctor of the Church, describes angels as “mirrors of the divine light.” (Book of Divine Works 3.1.6) who reflect God’s light in their unending praise. When Lucifer and some of the other angels rebelled, it was because they wanted that mirror to reflect themselves rather than God. Created in His image, humans can also reflect the divine light as a mirror, but like the fallen angels we can turn it on ourselves rather than on Him. In uniting Himself to us, Christ shows us what it is to reflect the light of God’s love both in our hearts and to others.
In one of her visions, St. Hildegard hears God say, “I have composed humankind, who was rooted in me like a shadow.” (Divine Love 3.3.2). Because of the Incarnation, and through Christ, we can now see ourselves with clarity. Our humility overcomes Lucifer’s pride, and we allow ourselves to be mirrors of His great love. It is in this sacred and illuminated internal space of calm and clarity, that we know right from wrong, that we know our true calling, that we realize our worth, and that we experience inner peace and true joy.
In her autobiography, St. Hildegard says:
Some time later I saw an extraordinary mystical vision, at which all my inward parts trembled, and my body lost all capacity of feeling – for my knowing was changed into another mode in which as it were, I did not know myself. It was as if the inspiration of God were sprinkling drops of sweet rain into my soul’s knowing, the very same with which the Spirt instructed John the Evangelist when he drank in from the breast of Jesus the most profound of revelations. (Vita)
We are not likely to have profound visions like St. Hildegard, but we can sit in stillness connecting with our interior world and allowing God’s light to reflect in our soul as we receive grace and listen and watch for what He wants to reveal to us.
Time for Personal Reflection:
I invite you to a moment of recollection. This is a prayerful calling to mind of all your parts, becoming aware of the inmost self, our deep spiritual center, and opening of your heart to God’s presence.
As your parts rest in a kind of gentle internal quiet, notice your body relax, your shoulders drop, and your face soften. As your breathing both deepens and slows, you become more aware of that deep spiritual center, your inmost self. Notice how calm and restful that feels. Notice the presence of Jesus, the Word, who is Himself the perfect icon of the Father. Notice the presence of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, whose love flows from the Father, through the Son, and into your heart.
Allow yourself to rest in that beautiful and perfect love.
Notice how you reflect that enduring love.
You were created in His image to embody that creative love.
This love, flowing from the source of all love, can be shared with each and every one of our parts. This love draws our parts together into a sacred communion.
Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:1) where He has made His dwelling place.
Your soul, and in particular your inmost self, is a mirror reflecting His light and His goodness and His beauty.
St. Athanasius famously said, “The psalms seem to me to be like a mirror, in which one can see himself and the stirrings of his own heart; he can recite them against the background of his own emotions.” Let us reflect on the words of the Psalmist in the temple of the Lord (Psalm 84), now a temple of the Holy Spirit within:
How lovely is thy dwelling place,
O Lord of hosts!
My soul longs, yea, faints
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and flesh sing for joy
to the living God.
Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at thy altars, O Lord of hosts,
my King and my God.
Blessed are those who dwell in thy house,
ever singing thy praise!
Blessed are the men whose strength is in thee,
in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
As they go through the valley of Baca
they make it a place of springs;
the early rain also covers it with pools.
They go from strength to strength;
the God of gods will be seen in Zion.
O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob!
Behold our shield, O God;
look upon the face of thine anointed!
For a day in thy courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
he bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does the Lord withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts,
blessed is the man who trusts in thee!
May God bless you on your journey this week!
Resources:
- If you’re interested to learn more, here are a few resources you might want to check out: Hildegard of Bingen: An Integrated Vision by Anne H. King-Lenzmeier, published by Liturgical Press. Among St. Hildegard’s many talents, she composed liturgical music. You might enjoy discovering the beauty of her compositions. Here are two examples on YouTube, her Hortus Deliciarum and her Femina Forma Maria.
- You can also listen to St. Athanasius’ On the Incarnation here.
- Here is an article by an Eastern Orthodox priest Fr. Aidan Kimel exploring St. Athanasius’ understanding of the soul, and humanity as the image of the Eternal image titled St Athanasius: The Creation of Humanity in the Image of the Image
Christ is Among us!
Dr. Gerry Crete is the author of Litanies of the Heart: Relieving Post-traumatic Stress and Calming Anxiety Through Healing Our Parts which is published by Sophia Institute Press. He is the founder of Transfiguration Counseling and Coaching, Transfiguration Life, and co-founder of Souls and Hearts.
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Audio Summary of Dr. Gerry’s Litanies of the Heart
Check out the excellent and balanced five-minute Essens Audio Book Summary of Litanies of the Heart here.
The St. Hildegard of Bingen cohort of the Resilient Catholics Community is open for applications until October 31
Every cohort of the Resilient Catholics Community (the RCC) is named after a saint, and the next one is for St. Hildegard of Bingen.
The RCC is all about working on your own human formation – emotions, thoughts, desires, attitudes, impulses, intentions, values, the connection with your body, all of the elements in the natural realm for you.
In the RCC, we shore up the natural foundation for your spiritual formation. In the RCC, we practice our human formation arithmetic to improve our spiritual algebra. Our next cohort will begin the programming in mid-January.
Join nearly 400 faithful Catholics are working on their human formation, both in small groups and with a companion, in addition to doing their internal work individually. We are on a journey, a pilgrimage together to flourishing. The RCC is not about surviving, or muddling through – it’s about breaking through to a whole new way of being and loving.
We do this together through a structured, step-by-step, program that is 12 months long to walk you through so much about parts work based in a Catholic understanding of the human person. We start at the very beginning – in weekly 90-minute company meetings, you will listen to a pre-recorded Inner Connections talk from me about all the important aspects of Internal Family Systems. We also do experiential exercises in every company meeting, to help your parts feel safe enough to be seen, heard, known and understood, so that you can love them, and thus be much better equipped to love God and your neighbor.
As part of the application process, you will experience the PartsFinder Pro (the PFP), a set of 18 measures to help you come to understand 10-15 of your parts (managers, firefighters, and exiles) and how they relate to your innermost self and to each other. You’ll get feedback on your PFP through a 6-to-7-page report and can ask questions about it in a 15-minute Zoom interview with a Souls and Hearts staff member. And after the first year ends, you take the PFP again and get a report that assesses your progress in so many areas, so you can see how you’ve grown.
Are you ready to apply? If so, click this registration link to get started. For more information, check out our RCC landing page or get in touch with me at crisis@soulsandhearts.com or on my cell at 317.567.9594.
Join Dr. Peter to work on your values statement live on October 25
We have more than 120 who are working through their personal values statements with me in our Zoom workshop. The third workshop on values with me is on Friday, October 25 from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM Eastern time; Dr. Peter will be discussing natural aspirational values and sharing with his process of determining his personal values, and how his values are connected to his vision statement, “I will become Love.”
If you would like to join in, let Dr. Peter know at crisis@soulsandhearts.com – there is no charge for these workshops. Check out the series on vision and values statements in the archive of reflections which began on July 24, 2024.
Past RCC member Carrie Archual on the Restore the Glory podcast
Check out former RCC member and Dr. Peter’s friend Carrie Archual in episode 114 of the RTG podcast with Jake Khym and Dr. Bob Schuchts titled Healing & Trust with Carrie Archual. Here’s the episode description:
This week, Jake and Bob are joined by Carrie Archual, a longtime friend and prayerful intercessor in their families’ lives. Carrie walks us through her profound journey of a cancer diagnosis. From learning surrender to experiencing deep spiritual consolations, Carrie shares the transformative power of faith in the face of suffering. They also discuss the duality of pain and healing and how true healing isn’t always physical restoration alone.
Key Points in this episode:
- Healing is often more than just physical restoration of our bodies
- Faith can provide a profound peace amidst chaos and suffering
- Offering one’s suffering for another brings meaning to the suffering
- God is already there with us in our darkest moments
- The physical and emotional wounds we experience in our lives are opportunities to see and experience God’s faithfulness and grace.
Please pray for us…
Everything we do at Souls and Hearts must be supported by prayer, so please pray for us. We rely on your prayer.