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Introduction to the Science of Mental Health
A hardback version of this is available The soft back and hardback versions include all three of the following volumes in on Vol. Philosophical Psychology This text, the first of three volumes in the "Introduction to the Science of Mental Health" series, treats the science of mental health and illness and is based on the writings of St. Thomas Aquinas. The text is divided into three What constitutes a valid science of psychology; The principles one must know in order to discuss mental health and illness; What is mental health and illness according to St. Thomas and what are the causes of mental health and illness from a Thomistic perspective. The Forward and imprimatur for the text are by His Excellency, Fabian Bruskewitz, bishop of the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska. Vol. Sacred and Other Spiritual Causes This second of the three volumes addresses the various aspects of Catholic Theology as they affect mental health. Some of the areas covered Relationship of psychology to theology; Sin as it affects mental health; Infused Virtues, Sacraments, Gifts of the Holy Ghost and Prayer; Demonic Influences. Vol. Quodlibetal Issues and Practica The third text in the series, this volume addresses the various aspects of psychology which are not covered in the prior two volumes as well as the practical application of Thomistic psychology. Some topics included Music; The Subconscious Dreams; Hypnotism; Self Knowledge; Personality and Temperaments; Addictions; Developmental and Educational Psychology; Diagnosis and Counseling; The Role of the Empirical in Psychology.
826 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
35 people are currently reading
443 people want to read
About the author
Chad A. Ripperger
21Ìýbooks118ÌýfollowersChad Alec Ripperger, F.S.S.P. is an American Catholic priest, theologian, philosopher and exorcist. He is well known among Traditionalist Catholic circles and has given numerous talks around the country on various religious topics. Many of these are available for viewing on YouTube.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 31, 2014
tldr version: Every so often I read a book that profoundly changes how I look at the world. Such is this magnum opus of Rev. Fr. Chad Ripperger. Faithful and insightful this three volume series examines mental health through the lens of St. Thomas illuminating what true mental health is: virtue.
Full version: Ever since I learned about Catholic spirituality at St. Mary Seminary, I wondered why St. Thomas was not more integrated into the material. Integrating modern psychological and counseling approaches into traditional spirituality, my teachers attempted to put new wine into old wineskins. They did so with the absolute best of intentions, but also, with an ignorance of traditional Catholic philosophy. Although Ripperger's work is not meant for spiritual direction, it provides an essential grounding to all truly Catholic counseling. Consequently, it is essential reading for priests.
In the first volume of the work, Ripperger clarifies how people think, will, and act. I have read a third of the "Summa Theologiae," and I did not possess nearly a complete understanding of how the possible intellect relates to the common sense, imagination, memory, passive intellect, and memory before reading this work. I do now! Moreover, Ripperger's analysis shows how sin, especially mortal sin, can deform people's intellect and cause per se mental illness. Understanding how virtue and vice effect how one thinks is essential to giving sage counsel to people struggling with sins and compulsions.
Having establishes a Thomistic psychology, the second volume examines what causes mental health in the spiritual realm. Scales fell from my eyes as I read how grace perfects the intellect and will. Also, this volume clarifies how the demonic can cause not only temptations but also mental illness. Reading this volume has enabled me to perceive much more clearly what graces to pray for in particular for people who seek my help as a priest.
Lastly, in the third volume Ripperger tackles a variety of miscellaneous issues and practical matters related to psychology. For example, he debunks the myth of the subconscious as a modern misunderstanding of how the appetites interact with the passive intellect. He also goes over what a good psychologist and good directee should strive to be. For psychology is not merely a method that can be applied but relies principally on the mental health and goodness of the psychologist as well as the directee. Just as a person who does not want to be cured will not be, a psychologist who is not mentally healthy can not help others become mentally healthy.
This work advances the Kingdom of God by providing all who read tremendous insight into how the human person thinks. Since man is a rational animal, such knowledge allows one to grow in true human excellence, which is virtue. I cannot recommend this book more. I only hope that Fr. Ripperger continues to write. May God bless him and his ministry.
Full version: Ever since I learned about Catholic spirituality at St. Mary Seminary, I wondered why St. Thomas was not more integrated into the material. Integrating modern psychological and counseling approaches into traditional spirituality, my teachers attempted to put new wine into old wineskins. They did so with the absolute best of intentions, but also, with an ignorance of traditional Catholic philosophy. Although Ripperger's work is not meant for spiritual direction, it provides an essential grounding to all truly Catholic counseling. Consequently, it is essential reading for priests.
In the first volume of the work, Ripperger clarifies how people think, will, and act. I have read a third of the "Summa Theologiae," and I did not possess nearly a complete understanding of how the possible intellect relates to the common sense, imagination, memory, passive intellect, and memory before reading this work. I do now! Moreover, Ripperger's analysis shows how sin, especially mortal sin, can deform people's intellect and cause per se mental illness. Understanding how virtue and vice effect how one thinks is essential to giving sage counsel to people struggling with sins and compulsions.
Having establishes a Thomistic psychology, the second volume examines what causes mental health in the spiritual realm. Scales fell from my eyes as I read how grace perfects the intellect and will. Also, this volume clarifies how the demonic can cause not only temptations but also mental illness. Reading this volume has enabled me to perceive much more clearly what graces to pray for in particular for people who seek my help as a priest.
Lastly, in the third volume Ripperger tackles a variety of miscellaneous issues and practical matters related to psychology. For example, he debunks the myth of the subconscious as a modern misunderstanding of how the appetites interact with the passive intellect. He also goes over what a good psychologist and good directee should strive to be. For psychology is not merely a method that can be applied but relies principally on the mental health and goodness of the psychologist as well as the directee. Just as a person who does not want to be cured will not be, a psychologist who is not mentally healthy can not help others become mentally healthy.
This work advances the Kingdom of God by providing all who read tremendous insight into how the human person thinks. Since man is a rational animal, such knowledge allows one to grow in true human excellence, which is virtue. I cannot recommend this book more. I only hope that Fr. Ripperger continues to write. May God bless him and his ministry.
August 26, 2017
An absolute must read for aspiring psychologists or those simply wanting a deeper understanding of mental health.
By having its basis in Thomistic philosophy, the perennial philosophy, it builds a solid and holistic framework for the proper understanding of what constitutes mental health and it's inverse, mental illness. The book avoids the pitfalls of modern psychology, which is largely based on materialistic philosophy and therefore doomed to not only be insufficient but sometimes even detrimental to true mental health.
In the end, only a psychology which takes into account the true ontological structure of man, his relation to God, the reality of sin and it's subsequent effect on mental health, and the indispensable importance of virtue as opposed to vice in regards to mental health will have any hope at successfully treating those with mental illness.
By having its basis in Thomistic philosophy, the perennial philosophy, it builds a solid and holistic framework for the proper understanding of what constitutes mental health and it's inverse, mental illness. The book avoids the pitfalls of modern psychology, which is largely based on materialistic philosophy and therefore doomed to not only be insufficient but sometimes even detrimental to true mental health.
In the end, only a psychology which takes into account the true ontological structure of man, his relation to God, the reality of sin and it's subsequent effect on mental health, and the indispensable importance of virtue as opposed to vice in regards to mental health will have any hope at successfully treating those with mental illness.
March 19, 2021
(Working review)
Sweet mercy! This book is DENSE. Dont drop it or it will have the equivalent effect of a neutron star hitting the earth! All kidding aside so far so good. The editing is weird and i feel the text seems smaller than usual. Maybe I need glasses. Great introduction though.
Sweet mercy! This book is DENSE. Dont drop it or it will have the equivalent effect of a neutron star hitting the earth! All kidding aside so far so good. The editing is weird and i feel the text seems smaller than usual. Maybe I need glasses. Great introduction though.
December 5, 2024
Words to describe this book: impressive, advanced, technical, structured, coherent, disciplined, scholarly work. Hardcore Catholic Philosophical Psychology not for the faint of heart.
It treats extensively wide variety of topics relating to mental health.
First it explains the importance of applying the philosophical method to the advancement science of psychology. 2nd it defines terms used throughout. 3rd it explains anthropology- mostly what are and how human faculties function. There’s no point skipping or reading superficially/inattentively because no word is unnecessary and the whole thing is hardly understood, it’s closer to philosophy than anything but let me tell you, the parts where he explains st. Thomas show that reading Thomas is even worse than this (given that authors native language isn’t Latin and he lives in this day and age).
But it’s worth the trouble, the read is arduous but satisfying and rewarding. Above all it makes sense and can be of great help to catholic counselors who need solid grounding in their own faith and understanding of human nature to separate the sheep from the goats both in further psychological /psychoanalytical study and practice in order not to harm their diretcees by confusion and to attain greater authenticity and virtue. That said this book seems to cover it all using its own terminology and mechanisms like “cogitative power assessment� and “habituation of different faculties� explain for multiple phenomena described by many different authors like Jung and many others in different words. But when the others are cherry picking from their fantasy of eastern spirituality in order to make a religion to suit their appetites, Ripperger points that reality/truth is what it is and from this concludes that following the appetites does not beget mental health, and perfect mental health consists in adequation of will and intellect to the truth and consequent subordination of lower faculties to their command through practices like custody of mind, prayer and mortification, contemplation of truth and other ways of growing in virtue.
But in order for such statements to be self evident one needs to read the book.
It treats extensively wide variety of topics relating to mental health.
First it explains the importance of applying the philosophical method to the advancement science of psychology. 2nd it defines terms used throughout. 3rd it explains anthropology- mostly what are and how human faculties function. There’s no point skipping or reading superficially/inattentively because no word is unnecessary and the whole thing is hardly understood, it’s closer to philosophy than anything but let me tell you, the parts where he explains st. Thomas show that reading Thomas is even worse than this (given that authors native language isn’t Latin and he lives in this day and age).
But it’s worth the trouble, the read is arduous but satisfying and rewarding. Above all it makes sense and can be of great help to catholic counselors who need solid grounding in their own faith and understanding of human nature to separate the sheep from the goats both in further psychological /psychoanalytical study and practice in order not to harm their diretcees by confusion and to attain greater authenticity and virtue. That said this book seems to cover it all using its own terminology and mechanisms like “cogitative power assessment� and “habituation of different faculties� explain for multiple phenomena described by many different authors like Jung and many others in different words. But when the others are cherry picking from their fantasy of eastern spirituality in order to make a religion to suit their appetites, Ripperger points that reality/truth is what it is and from this concludes that following the appetites does not beget mental health, and perfect mental health consists in adequation of will and intellect to the truth and consequent subordination of lower faculties to their command through practices like custody of mind, prayer and mortification, contemplation of truth and other ways of growing in virtue.
But in order for such statements to be self evident one needs to read the book.
September 10, 2024
I read this book in order to form myself as a mental health counselor, particularly from a Catholic perspective. It was a long and difficult read, but well worth it for any therapist.
The book is not a therapeutic methodology (nor does it claim to be), but an overview of important philosophical principles within the domain of psychology. Most of it draws heavily from St. Thomas Aquinas. It is divided into three parts: one that overviews epistemological and metaphysical considerations of what psychology is and what human nature (particularly in reference to the mind) is; one that looks at moral and spiritual factors important to mental health; and one that thinks through additional relevant topics to mental health and describes important factors in the counseling process itself.
I have a master's degree in mental health counseling and a basic-intermediate familiarity with Aquinas, and this was a challenging read. It is very foundational, and I do recommend it for any mental health counselor, but be forewarned that it is a tough one unless you have a robust philosophical background. When I completed my master's degree, I took a month off in order to read this book, and got through the first two volumes by reading for at least two hours each day, and then worked through the third volume much more slowly while I was working. In a lot of ways, the book also felt like a prerequisite to itself, as many parts referenced later parts, and I gained more understanding of what I had already read by pressing on. I imagine I will get even more out of it if I get around to reading it through a second time.
I also do recommend purchasing the hardcover edition - you're more likely to keep coming back to an aesthetically pleasing book.
What I Liked
I very much appreciated that this book was able to define things such as "mental health" and "mind" in concrete, philosophical terms. It was also not afraid to call out areas of negligence in the current field of psychology, such as, for example, the lack of a clear definition of those exact terms in many therapist educational programs.
After reading this book, I feel I have a much more robust understanding of what the mind actually is, which is such an important foundation for the practice of helping people bring health into it. Sometimes, when reading on the ontological structure of man, or on the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or the virtues, I felt myself wondering, "why is this the first time I am learning this, as a lifelong Catholic?" At the same time, although the material is foundational for a robust understanding of the human person, it is quite complex, and most of what is in there is certainly at a graduate level.
I also feel from this book that I have a better sense of what counseling is in general, and am better able to examine my own conscience and practice as a therapist based on the principles he has outlined.
Areas For Improvement
Several areas of improvement could be highly beneficial in future editions. The most immediate is more careful typological and format editing. Particularly towards the end of the second volume, there were a number of typographical errors that distracted from the text. If there was more dynamic layout editing as well (e.g. clearer delineation of section headings, subheadings, etc.), it may lend the book to become a more pleasant read. Included in this would also be greater consistency in citations - citations from Aquinas are very detailed, but at other times footnotes citing other sources have had details of book title and publication whereas others were just a URL, or even a footnote directing the reader to Google something (I believe this was in the inattentional blindness chapter). Internal citations of the book itself, such as when chapters referenced each other, could be improved in consistency - for example, usually when a future chapter is cited it just says "there will be a chapter about this later" whereas when a previous chapter is cited, it gives the specific chapter number and name. Updating these all to a consistent format, in my opinion would be a small detail but it would enhance the project. There is also the point that some claims go uncited, for example the reader just has to take at face value the claim that most psychologists can't satisfactorily define the term "mental illness" - I don't doubt the claim, but some follow-up demonstrating the claim would be beneficial.
This ties into my next point, but one thing that could be really helpful is both the inclusion of more examples, as well as more diagrams within the text. While there were a large number of examples used to explicate concepts, there were quite a few times in the first and second volumes in which I found myself saying "gosh I would really understand that better if I had an example." Diagrams, too, could be very useful - while in the appendix there is a diagram of the ontological structure of man, the first volume could benefit highly from many diagrams as a visual aid for learners. For example, a diagram of the relationship between the four interior senses, or a diagram of the process by which sensory information is translated into a phantasm and then into a form, would be extremely helpful.
The main area for improvement, however, is the book's accessibility. At the end of the day, this might be a call for a separate project rather than an improvement of this one. But most of the Catholic therapists with whom I have spoken are aware of this book, and most of them own a copy, but I am the only person I know who has read through the whole thing. Most of the people with whom I have spoken about it have tried to get into it, but struggled to do so. Perhaps some kind of more basic and bite-sized introduction, or one that people could read in order to prepare for reading this one so that the concepts and terminology are familiar, could be a huge help. An introduction to the Introduction to the Science of Mental Health, as it were. Perhaps such a thing already exists and I am not aware of it. The material presented in this book is such an important foundation for psychotherapeutic practice, and there is a desire to know it, but a barrier to entry that may be ameliorated if more materials on the subject, designed for a broader audience, existed. Although maybe that is what Fr. Ripperger had in mind with this book, building up people with this knowledge so that they could influence the general body of therapeutic culture and material, as he hinted at in the conclusion.
The book is not a therapeutic methodology (nor does it claim to be), but an overview of important philosophical principles within the domain of psychology. Most of it draws heavily from St. Thomas Aquinas. It is divided into three parts: one that overviews epistemological and metaphysical considerations of what psychology is and what human nature (particularly in reference to the mind) is; one that looks at moral and spiritual factors important to mental health; and one that thinks through additional relevant topics to mental health and describes important factors in the counseling process itself.
I have a master's degree in mental health counseling and a basic-intermediate familiarity with Aquinas, and this was a challenging read. It is very foundational, and I do recommend it for any mental health counselor, but be forewarned that it is a tough one unless you have a robust philosophical background. When I completed my master's degree, I took a month off in order to read this book, and got through the first two volumes by reading for at least two hours each day, and then worked through the third volume much more slowly while I was working. In a lot of ways, the book also felt like a prerequisite to itself, as many parts referenced later parts, and I gained more understanding of what I had already read by pressing on. I imagine I will get even more out of it if I get around to reading it through a second time.
I also do recommend purchasing the hardcover edition - you're more likely to keep coming back to an aesthetically pleasing book.
What I Liked
I very much appreciated that this book was able to define things such as "mental health" and "mind" in concrete, philosophical terms. It was also not afraid to call out areas of negligence in the current field of psychology, such as, for example, the lack of a clear definition of those exact terms in many therapist educational programs.
After reading this book, I feel I have a much more robust understanding of what the mind actually is, which is such an important foundation for the practice of helping people bring health into it. Sometimes, when reading on the ontological structure of man, or on the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or the virtues, I felt myself wondering, "why is this the first time I am learning this, as a lifelong Catholic?" At the same time, although the material is foundational for a robust understanding of the human person, it is quite complex, and most of what is in there is certainly at a graduate level.
I also feel from this book that I have a better sense of what counseling is in general, and am better able to examine my own conscience and practice as a therapist based on the principles he has outlined.
Areas For Improvement
Several areas of improvement could be highly beneficial in future editions. The most immediate is more careful typological and format editing. Particularly towards the end of the second volume, there were a number of typographical errors that distracted from the text. If there was more dynamic layout editing as well (e.g. clearer delineation of section headings, subheadings, etc.), it may lend the book to become a more pleasant read. Included in this would also be greater consistency in citations - citations from Aquinas are very detailed, but at other times footnotes citing other sources have had details of book title and publication whereas others were just a URL, or even a footnote directing the reader to Google something (I believe this was in the inattentional blindness chapter). Internal citations of the book itself, such as when chapters referenced each other, could be improved in consistency - for example, usually when a future chapter is cited it just says "there will be a chapter about this later" whereas when a previous chapter is cited, it gives the specific chapter number and name. Updating these all to a consistent format, in my opinion would be a small detail but it would enhance the project. There is also the point that some claims go uncited, for example the reader just has to take at face value the claim that most psychologists can't satisfactorily define the term "mental illness" - I don't doubt the claim, but some follow-up demonstrating the claim would be beneficial.
This ties into my next point, but one thing that could be really helpful is both the inclusion of more examples, as well as more diagrams within the text. While there were a large number of examples used to explicate concepts, there were quite a few times in the first and second volumes in which I found myself saying "gosh I would really understand that better if I had an example." Diagrams, too, could be very useful - while in the appendix there is a diagram of the ontological structure of man, the first volume could benefit highly from many diagrams as a visual aid for learners. For example, a diagram of the relationship between the four interior senses, or a diagram of the process by which sensory information is translated into a phantasm and then into a form, would be extremely helpful.
The main area for improvement, however, is the book's accessibility. At the end of the day, this might be a call for a separate project rather than an improvement of this one. But most of the Catholic therapists with whom I have spoken are aware of this book, and most of them own a copy, but I am the only person I know who has read through the whole thing. Most of the people with whom I have spoken about it have tried to get into it, but struggled to do so. Perhaps some kind of more basic and bite-sized introduction, or one that people could read in order to prepare for reading this one so that the concepts and terminology are familiar, could be a huge help. An introduction to the Introduction to the Science of Mental Health, as it were. Perhaps such a thing already exists and I am not aware of it. The material presented in this book is such an important foundation for psychotherapeutic practice, and there is a desire to know it, but a barrier to entry that may be ameliorated if more materials on the subject, designed for a broader audience, existed. Although maybe that is what Fr. Ripperger had in mind with this book, building up people with this knowledge so that they could influence the general body of therapeutic culture and material, as he hinted at in the conclusion.
June 8, 2024
The first thing to get out of the way in reviewing this book is its clear bias. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but this is a book with a perspective. It’s not a text on psychology. It’s a text on CATHOLIC psychology, and while there is substantial overlap between those disciplines, there are points of contention between the author’s Thomistic perspective and what one might call a more mainline secular perspective.
But while I don’t think that makes for a bad book, I do somewhat question the book’s title. Because though the author does discuss psychological science to a certain degree, it’s also clear that he’s not particularly interested in modern advances in psychological science. Some of them he simply ignores because they’re not part of the more theological approach to psychology he’s describing. Others he treats with some disdain. And while some of those criticisms are absolutely valid—the medicalization of psychology, for all the wonders it has produced, has also left many psychological patients bereft of the kinds of more philosophical (or, to the religious individual, theological) meaning that could support mental health in a way that overreliance on pharmaceuticals seems to be failing to do. On that note, read Viktor Frankl or Jordan Peterson for a more nuanced and secular (yet still friendly to religion) perspective on the matter.
But where the book fails a bit along those lines is that Ripperger simply hasn’t kept up with the literature he’s trying to describe. He does an EXCELLENT job of presenting the Thomistic perspective on psychology, but he dismisses (or at best pays lip service to) more than 750 years of subsequent thought. Freud and Jung are rightly dismissed for their worst ideas, but the author fails to realize that much of Jung’s thought is surprisingly close to the author’s own, albeit expressed in different language. Similarly, the author conflates mainstream psychology with fringe parapsychology on numerous occasions.
That’s not to say it’s a bad book. It is dry, overwritten, and badly in need of an editor, but it also makes some remarkably astute points and contains a reasonably well-rounded summary of Thomas Aquinas� thought on psychology and mental health. It’s just not a good introduction to the SCIENCE of mental health.
But while I don’t think that makes for a bad book, I do somewhat question the book’s title. Because though the author does discuss psychological science to a certain degree, it’s also clear that he’s not particularly interested in modern advances in psychological science. Some of them he simply ignores because they’re not part of the more theological approach to psychology he’s describing. Others he treats with some disdain. And while some of those criticisms are absolutely valid—the medicalization of psychology, for all the wonders it has produced, has also left many psychological patients bereft of the kinds of more philosophical (or, to the religious individual, theological) meaning that could support mental health in a way that overreliance on pharmaceuticals seems to be failing to do. On that note, read Viktor Frankl or Jordan Peterson for a more nuanced and secular (yet still friendly to religion) perspective on the matter.
But where the book fails a bit along those lines is that Ripperger simply hasn’t kept up with the literature he’s trying to describe. He does an EXCELLENT job of presenting the Thomistic perspective on psychology, but he dismisses (or at best pays lip service to) more than 750 years of subsequent thought. Freud and Jung are rightly dismissed for their worst ideas, but the author fails to realize that much of Jung’s thought is surprisingly close to the author’s own, albeit expressed in different language. Similarly, the author conflates mainstream psychology with fringe parapsychology on numerous occasions.
That’s not to say it’s a bad book. It is dry, overwritten, and badly in need of an editor, but it also makes some remarkably astute points and contains a reasonably well-rounded summary of Thomas Aquinas� thought on psychology and mental health. It’s just not a good introduction to the SCIENCE of mental health.
August 11, 2023
Excellent book. 2007 edition hardcover
December 21, 2023
Excellent! A very good reference manual for all interested in mental/spiritual health.
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