Ancient Christian Wisdom and Aaron Beck's Cognitive Therapy—A Meeting of Minds

Ancient Christian Wisdom and Aaron Beck’s Cognitive Therapy details a colorful journey deep into two seemingly disparate worlds united by a common insight into the way our thinking influences our emotions, behaviors, and ultimately our lives. In this innovative study about mental and spiritual health, readers are not only provided with a thorough introduction to the elegant theory and practical techniques of cognitive therapy, they are also initiated into the perennial teachings of ascetics and monks in the Greek-speaking East and Latin-speaking West whose powerful writings not only anticipated many contemporary findings, but also suggest unexplored pathways and breathtaking vistas for human growth and development. This groundbreaking interdisciplinary volume in the art of pastoral counseling, patristic studies, and the interface between psychology and theology will be a coveted addition to the working libraries of pastors and psychologists alike. In addition, it is ideal as a textbook for seminary classes in pastoral theology and pastoral counseling, as well as for graduate courses in psychology dealing with the relationship between psychological models and religious worldviews.

Father Alexis Trader is an Orthodox Christian father confessor who has had the opportunity not only to investigate ascetic literature for a period of over twenty years, but also to observe and test how those teachings can be put into practice today by those living in monasteries as well as by individuals struggling in contemporary society. His considerable monastic experience in the ancient monastic republic of Mount Athos and elsewhere has furnished him with a psychologically and existentially relevant hermeneutical context for a fresh approach to patristic texts. Father Alexis received his PhD summa cum laude in theology from the University of Thessalonica in Greece and his MA in divinity from the University of Chicago. He is the author of books in Greek and English as well as a translator of a number of Greek theological and pastoral works.