Issue 315
Erik Erikson was a psychologist and psychoanalyst who pioneered an understanding of personal development. He is famous for coining the phrase ‘Identity crisis’. He was originally named Erik Homburger but, as he never knew his father, and was ill at ease with that relationship he changed his name to Erik Erikson (son of Erik) thus proclaiming himself to be a self-made man.
Sigmund Freud is often called the father of psychoanalysis. Freud himself carried a perpetual disappointment with his own father (Jacob) in his soul. Sometime in the 1940s, Erikson claims to have heard Freud answer the question “what should a normal person be able to do well?” Freud’s answer was “lieben und arbeiten” – to love and to work.
This theme has passed into the folklore and thinking of psychology and mental health so powerfully that whole books are now written under the title ‘love and work’.
Over the next few weeks we are going to look at solving the puzzle of love and work from a Christian perspective. We will explore the identity crises which come our way as Christians attempting to live out our faith in the real world of work; we will look at ways in which strategies of attempting to become self-made people or carrying disappointment leave us dissatisfied; we will examine how our relationship with our heavenly Father revolutionises everything and we will go on a journey together to explore solving the puzzle of love and work.
You will be invited to have your say and join in the discussion. In the meantime here is one specific thought for you; it is a major theme of WORKTALK and it is linked to the very last words of Christ on the cross:
When Jesus prayed his last words he quoted Psalm 31:5 which says “into your hands I commit my spirit”. It was and is a well known Jewish prayer often prayed before closing eyes in sleep.
But Jesus added one word; his prayer was “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit”. Rather than ignoring Father, being disappointed, or attempting to replace, Jesus adds him. In fact he added Father to everything. We will explore what that means for our puzzle-solving over the next few weeks. In the meantime you might like to consider what it means to add ‘Father’ to every task, project, and activity this week.
In preparation for the next GEOFFSHATTOCKweekly, do feel free to email us your thoughts to wtw@worktalk.gs or leave a comment on our Facebook or Twitter profile. You can also visit our YouTube channel - get inspired and share Worktalk's vision with others.
Work well
Geoff Shattock
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