The Psychology of Salvation

Using IFS & Jungian Theory to Honour Christ's Commandments

Written by Hannah Athanasiadis for KNP3521H: Psychotherapeutic Theories for Spiritual Care at Emmanuel College, April 12, 2024, Toronto ON.

Basic Abstract: This is a pretty detailed, technical research paper that explores the inner ‘parts’ of the psyche according to two prominent theories or ‘models of the mind’ (Internal Family Systems primarily with support from Jungian Theory) - and how understanding and working with these parts of ourselves can aid us along our spiritual journey. There are a lot of technical psychotherapeutic terms in this essay - all of which may interest some of you, but be-warned it may put others of you to sleep! Final Caveat: I use ‘Christ’s Commandments’ to frame the spiritual journey - but this idea applies to all spiritual pathways.

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Arguably, one of the most well-known Christian biblical teachings can be found in Matthew 22:34-39. In this passage, a Jewish Pharisee asks Jesus which of the Ten Commandments is the greatest. Jesus replies; “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” He follows this primary commandment with another, to “love your neighbour as yourself.” (Matthew 22:34-39, NRSV). These two commandments are still considered to be primary for Christians today. Yet, while they seem simple in theory, many struggle to live up to them. Thus, we are left with the following question: “How?”

In the twenty-first century, where mental illness is the leading cause of disability in Canada, another question must be considered: “How can I love my neighbour as myself if I don’t love myself?” Can we truly love God and love our neighbours, if we do not, at our deepest core, love ourselves? And further, how can we begin to love ourselves if we do not know who we really are?

Some spiritual seekers have sought to answer these questions by turning to Eastern traditions and practices such as mindfulness meditation techniques from various Buddhist schools and yogic Hindu schools, all of which focus inwardly. Others who are drawn to the teachings of Jesus Christ have attempted to dive deeper into Christianity, discovering the richness of Christian mysticism that focuses inwardly on God’s immanence within the human soul. Writings from medieval mystical theologians such as Meister Eckhart, Julian of Norwich and Teresa of Avila offer profound insights into the nature of the soul, delineating paths to transcending sin and suffering, and experiencing inner union with God. Yet, translating these mystical teachings into changed behaviours and patterns of behaviour in the twenty-first century can be challenging, particularly when individuals are contending with dysregulated nervous systems and repressed trauma. Additionally, systemic issues compound these challenges, leaving many spiritual seekers feeling demoralized when they fall short of living up to the values they expect of themselves. Where does that leave us?

The following essay posits that the ‘missing piece’ for spiritual seekers who aspire to live by Jesus’ teachings can be found in psychotherapeutic work. This paper will draw specifically on the contemporary psychotherapeutic theory of Internal Family Systems, with references to other related theories such as Jungian psychoanalytic theory, demonstrating how when put into practice, these theories can propel spiritual seekers towards a greater love of God and neighbour - the ultimate goal of salvation from a Christian perspective.

Internal Family Systems: A Contemporary Theory with Spiritual Roots

Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy is a contemporary psychotherapeutic theory, developed by Richard Schwartz in the 1980s. It integrates elements of family systems theory, psychodynamic theory, mindfulness-based modalities, and is rooted in spiritual concepts of human nature. The goal of IFS is to help patients “begin to relate to themselves differently - to love themselves.”

At its core, IFS posits that the psyche consists of multiple ‘subpersonalities’, each with their respective thoughts, feelings, and motivations. These subpersonalities, which Schwartz refers to as ‘parts’, can be thought of as members of an internal family, with either functional or dysfunctional ‘polarizing’ dynamics playing out between one another. These parts can be categorized into universal groups (much like Jung’s notion of universal archetypes), that incorporate ‘protector’ parts (what Schwartz calls ‘Managers and ‘Firefighters’), and ‘exiled’ parts (what Schwartz calls ‘Exiles’).

Beyond these parts lies the essence of the human being or ‘the seat of consciousness’, what Schwartz refers to as “The Self”, which is inherently peaceful and accepting in nature. Due to the dominance of the other parts, however, the Self is often unreachable by the individual in waking life. Schwartz proposes that by working with various polarized parts of the psyche, one begins to ‘integrate’ them, allowing the Self to guide the individual towards self-love and acceptance. By restoring the Self to its rightful role in the system as leader, the various parts that were previously dominant take a back seat, creating a supportive internal environment conducive to healing and spiritual growth.

Whilst many of the concepts in IFS, particularly that of the “Self” have spiritual roots, IFS therapy is ideal for any patient who is “in various states of judgement about themselves and others.” Schwartz describes many of his clients as being overly critical of themselves and frustrated that they cannot control symptoms such as depression, anxiety, or addictive patterns. Others find themselves highly reactive or easily triggered by the people they interact with on a day-to-day basis. The fact that they feel powerless in being able to curb these internal responses compounds their frustration, adding to a sense of being “at war” within themselves.

IFS therapy is designed “to reverse these binds of inner and outer polarization and judgement” through inner focus and dialogue between parts - what Schwartz calls ‘parts work’. Clients learn that the parts of themselves “they have hated or feared actually have been trying to protect them and are often frozen in time during earlier traumas or attachment injuries.” By viewing these parts of themselves with acceptance and compassion, clients are able to achieve an inner sense of peace, and are less likely to project ‘exiled’ parts onto others.

This brings up another important emphasis of IFS in contrast to other psychotherapeutic theories like CBT: that of focusing primarily on the goal of acceptance over the goal of ‘change’. Schwartz points to the large body of research from Jon Kabat-Zinn’s mindfulness-based stress reduction (MSBR), Marsha Linehan’s dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT), and Steven Hayes’ acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) as evidence for how an emphasis on acceptance rather than change can enhance the effectiveness of therapy. Put simply, by removing the psychological barriers to change (ie. non-acceptance which creates resistance), one is able to paradoxically create change more rapidly, by accepting what was previously unacceptable, and thus making space for transformation to occur.

Multiplicity of the Mind - Understanding the ‘parts’ of psyche

There is a large body of evidence that supports the idea of ‘subpersonalities’ within the mind, beginning in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The unity (or non-unity) of the personality, however, had already been considered centuries earlier by the patristic father St. Augustine in his Confessions, a highly influential work within Christian literature. In this work, St. Augustine compares his “old pagan personality” which would show up in his dreams, to that of his ‘post-conversion personality’ in waking life.

In the nineteenth century, the case for multiplicity became evident through the documentation of multiple personality disorder (now referred to as dissociative identity disorder) in patients. These initial cases often portrayed dual personalities that had taken control of the conscious mind, with the assumption that the mind contained dual parts. It was discovered by the French hypnotists, however, that the mind could split itself into three or more personalities. The human mind was hence described as “a matrix from which whole sets of subpersonalities could emerge and differentiate themselves”. This phenomenon later came to be known as “Polypsychism”, a term attributed to hypnotist Durand de Gros. De Gros claimed that “the human organism consisted of anatomical segments, each of which had a psychic ego of its own, and all of them subjected to a general ego, the Ego-in-Chief, which was our usual consciousness.” The Ego-in-Chief was considered to be the conscious mind, while each of the subpersonalities “constituted our unconscious life”. Each part of the psyche was understood to be playing a role within “a complex system of interpersonal relationships”, much like an internal family.

Carl Jung took this notion further, expanding his theory of the unconscious mind to incorporate what he first referred to as ‘complexes’, and later: ‘archetypes’. Archetypes are considered to be universal symbols stemming from the collective unconscious. Jung saw the conscious ego as being at a junction between the external and interior worlds. Surrounding the ego are the archetypal subpersonalities: whose relationship to the ego shifts throughout one’s life. These subpersonalities include the archetypes of the persona, the shadow, the anima or animus, the spirit, and the self. The goal of Jung’s analytic psychology is to support patients in the process of ‘Individuation’; the unification of the personality. According to Jung, when individuation is achieved, “the ego is no longer the center of the personality but is like a planet revolving around an invisible sun, the Self.”

Thus, we arrive once again at Schwartz’s IFS model and his contemporary notion of ‘parts’, which borrows the archetype of the Self from Jung. Schwartz references several schools of psychotherapeutic theories that discuss the multiplicity of the mind, including Jung’s archetypal theories, as well as trauma theory research surrounding dissociative identity disorder (DID). DID research postulates subpersonalities as fragments of a unitary personality split off from the central personality due to trauma. Thus, from this perspective, multiplicity is seen as a “sign of pathology”, whereas in alignment with Jung’s notion of archetypes, IFS “sees all parts as innately valuable components of a healthy mind.” From the perspective of IFS, trauma does not ‘create’ these parts per se, but rather forces them into ‘extreme’ roles they are not designed to take on through polarization, causing them to lose trust in the leadership of the Self.
Let us now delineate Schwartz’s definition of each of the parts: Exiles, Managers, Firefighters, and the Self in greater detail.

Exiles

Exiles, also called ‘injured parts’, are considered to be the most sensitive and vulnerable parts of the system, generally related to trauma and attachment injuries. When nurtured into their healthy form, these parts of ourselves embody softness, trust, playfulness and openness. They are an important part of the inner system that lends to a sense of wholeness. They are also the parts of ourselves that take on hurt, store traumatic memories and incidents, and embody feelings of worthlessness and loneliness. Because of the painful feelings associated with exiles, they are often buried deep within the unconscious mind by other parts. The protector parts of the system (managers and firefighters) fear them arising in the conscious mind, and thus they will work overtime to keep them buried, protecting a person’s inner system from having to experience any of the exile’s thoughts, beliefs or emotions. While this strategy may work short-term, it almost always causes havoc within the internal system later. Exiles also tend to be the part of the unconscious that is projected onto others (similar to Jung’s ‘Shadow’ archetype).

Managers

Managers, also referred to as ‘protector parts’are the most conscious part of the psyche, and according to Schwartz tend to be the part of ourselves that we know best, similar to Jung’s ‘Persona’ archetype. They are responsible for overseeing the day-to-day aspects of one’s life. In contrast to ‘firefighters’ which are reactive, managers are proactive. They maintain balance and homeostasis within the psyche by exerting control over various aspects of the individual's world. They are highly susceptible to societal conditioning, evaluating self and others in accordance. Because this is the part of the psyche that individuals tend to experience through and project outwardly as a type of ‘mask’, some psychotherapists refer to this part as the ‘false self’. Managers can act out a variety of roles, such as controllers, strivers, caretakers, pleasers, judges, critics, passive pessimists, and planners. When operating in balance, managers assist individuals in navigating their lives effectively, reminding them to fulfill day-to-day responsibilities, strive towards healthy achievement, and maintain connected relationships. When managers become polarized out of a need to keep exiles at bay, they tend to promote fear-based decision-making aimed at mitigating risk. This can lead to a myriad of unhelpful behaviours, such as becoming highly critical of self and others, over-obsessive or controlling. The underlying fear driving these behaviours is the belief that loss of control will lead to negative consequences.

Firefighters

Firefighters, also called ‘reactive parts’, arise when a painful emotion associated with an exiled part threatens homeostasis within the system and is beyond the manager's ability to control. Firefighter actions can tend towards self-soothing or distraction, including addictive behaviours and compulsions. They are often desperate, aimed at ‘fixing’ an uncomfortable inner state and acting impulsively to distract the system through chaotic responses or sensory pleasure. When in their healthy expression, firefighters can bring liveliness, spontaneity and pleasure to the human experience. When polarized, these parts within the self can develop unhelpful habits and behaviours including various levels of addictions, dissociation, rage, violent outbursts, and/or self-harm.

The Self

As previously mentioned, Schwartz’s concept of the Self is borrowed from Jung’s “Self” archetype and rooted in the esoteric schools of the world’s traditions. For Jung, the Self was the most important of all the archetypes. Likened to the Buddhist concept of no self, the Self was seen by Jung to be an ‘unknown’ at the centre of personality: “Intellectually the Self is no more than a psychological concept, a construct that serves to express an unknowable essence which  we cannot grasp as such, since by definition it transcends our powers of comprehension. It might equally well be called the "God within us."

Similarly, Schwartz describes the Self as the ‘seat of consciousness’, and the “magnificent essence” of the human person. The markers of Self according to IFS are what is termed ‘the eight C’s’: “curiosity, calm, clarity, connectedness, confidence, courage, creativity, and compassion”. In Schwartz’s Introduction to Internal Family Systems, the Self is described in mystical terms, referencing the idea of “Buddha nature”, the Hindu “Atman of the Self”, and German mystic Meister Eckhart’s “Godseed”.

To expand this concept further from a Christian perspective, the Self might be likened to the spiritual Soul, as defined by mystics such as Julian of Norwich and Teresa of Avila. (Note that this differs from classical theologians' definition of the rational soul, which incorporates the intellect). In Revelations of Divine Love, Julian of Norwich describes the soul as “God’s dwelling-place”. Twentieth-century Christian scholar Thomas Merton, who is quoted in Schwartz’s Introduction to Internal Family Systems said:

“If we enter into ourselves, finding our true self, and then passing “beyond” the inner “I,” we sail forth into the immense darkness in which we confront the “I am” of the Almighty. Our inmost “I” exists in God and God swells in it. Hence the Christian mystical experience is not only an awareness of the inner self, but also it is an experiential grasp of God as present within our inner self.”

Empirical Evidence for IFS

The effectiveness of Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy is supported by empirical evidence from various studies and sources. Based on studies conducted thus far, IFS therapy has been proven to effectively reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and trauma-related disorders, with particular efficacy noted in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to traditional talk therapy. A pilot study conducted at the Trauma Center, Justice Research Institute in Brookline, MA, USA in particular, showed significantly positive effects of IFS therapy on adults with PTSD and histories of childhood trauma. There was a notable reduction in symptoms and improved functioning observed. Moreover, IFS therapy was recognized in 2015 as an evidence-based practice by the National Registry for Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) - a repository maintained by the U.S. government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This recognition is based on rigorous evaluation criteria, including randomized clinical trials (RCTs).

Spiritually-Integrated Psychotherapeutic Interventions

As previously mentioned, the primary intervention in IFS is that of ‘parts-work’. The role of the therapist is to empower the client to identify the various parts within their psyche and assist them in “establishing the Self as the leader in the client’s inner system.” IFS maintains that the therapist must themselves be aware of their inner parts, moving ‘out of the way’ and leading from the Self to “facilitate internally the kinds of compassionate dialogue between family members that Family Systems theory works toward externally.” This is done by re-directing the client’s attention to inner thoughts, feelings and physical sensations.

Differing from Jung’s approach, the therapist does not project “readymade archetypal selves” onto the client, nor do they attempt to forcibly “integrate the self into a unified state”.  A foundational assumption in IFS is that clients possess their own inner resources for healing. Thus, the therapist allows the client to lead the process, deciding for themselves what the ‘Self’ at the helm of the internal system looks and feels like.

IFS maintains that by working with each of these parts with acceptance and compassion, polarization between parts will be neutralized, and trust in the Self’s leadership will be restored. Thus, managers, firefighters and exiles return to a healthy state of functioning.

Fictional Case Study

We will now use a fictional example to illustrate how psychotherapeutic intervention rooted in IFS and utilizing a spiritually-integrated approach might occur. For this example, we will consider the client to be a woman named Anya. Anya is in her mid-30s and is married with a young child. She is a practicing Christian who is open and tolerant of other religious views and spiritual practices. She is ambitious and driven and keeps herself busy with motherhood, work, and a variety of activities. Lately, however, she finds herself experiencing mood swings, oscillating from depression to irritation. She finds herself easily triggered by her husband, her child, and close family members, manifesting as reactive outbursts. She feels constantly drained of energy. She feels overly responsible and constantly giving of herself. At the same time, she feels frustrated with her inability to curb her reactions. She is judging her abilities as a mother and feels judged and disconnected from God.

In this example already, several ‘parts’ within Anya’s internal family system have been illustrated. There is a ‘part’ of Anya that is ambitious and driven and likes to keep busy, which represents her manager part. There is another manager part that tends to over-give until her cup is empty. There are exiled parts of her that are characterized by depressive feelings, which her managers and firefighters attempt to keep at bay. The firefighter parts manifest as reactive outbursts. Her desire to connect with God can be likened to the desire to connect to the Self, but it is buried underneath the other parts.

An IFS therapist will begin therapy by first asking questions that guide Anya to focus on her internal experience of the various parts within her. Through this process, Anya might explore the ambitious parts, the depressed parts, the overly-giving parts, and the irritated parts of her psyche. The IFS therapist might explore how Anya is judging these various parts, working towards compassion and acceptance.

In further sessions, the IFS therapist might then guide Anya towards exploring how her managers (ie. the ambitious and overly responsible parts), and the firefighters (irritable parts) are protecting her from exiles (the depressed parts). While Anya might be tempted to think that this makes the firefighters and managers ‘bad parts’, the IFS therapist will reinforce that they are helpful and necessary parts of the psyche, particularly when in their healthy expression. The fact that they are polarized and ‘acting out’ simply means they are trying to protect Anya. Through continued acceptance, these parts might back down enough for Anya to explore the exiles, allowing these aspects to arise from the unconscious to the conscious mind through continued questioning and meditative exploration guided by the therapist.

The IFS therapist may also give Anya specific meditation practices and exercises to try on her own between sessions. These practices, created by IFS founder Richard Schwartz, will help Anya become more aware of the parts within her. As a spiritually-integrated practitioner, the therapist will help Anya connect with implicit and explicit spiritual resources, and also help her align IFS exercises with her own spiritual practices. She may ask Anya what helps her feel most connected to God (which the practitioner uses in place of the Self-concept to align with the client’s religious beliefs). Based on Anya’s response, the therapist will then encourage Anya to engage in these activities. Anya may choose to make space in her daily life for a solo practice of prayer and contemplation, take regular walks outside, or meet with friends more often, as an example. Anya might integrate IFS-specific meditative techniques with her personal spiritual practices.

Over time, the IFS therapist will facilitate Anya’s uncovering of exiles and the release of attachment injuries and traumas. By looking at these parts gently, and with compassion, Anya begins to integrate them in her psyche. Her managers and firefighters, while still there, can now take a back seat to the Self. Through this work, along with a re-emphasis on the integration of her spiritual practices, Anya begins to feel a connection with God once again. With this growing sense of love for herself and connection to God, she becomes less irritable and more tolerant and loving of those around her.

As we can see with the fictional example of Anya, Internal Family Systems can significantly help Christians grow spiritually in their love of self, God and others. The relationships we maintain between various aspects of our internal family often dictate the relationships we are able to maintain externally. Thus, when we harmonize the parts within ourselves and neutralize ‘polarization’ between parts, the Self takes charge once again, offering the individual a stable base from which spiritual values can be lived and practiced effectively.

Final Thoughts

In The Interior Castle, the famous mystical work by sixteenth-century Carmelite nun St. Teresa of Avila, the soul is described as a brilliant diamond-like castle that contains many rooms. At its core resides the immanent God, who produces a brilliant light that shines outwardly. The further inside the structure of the soul one travels, the closer one gets to a mystical spiritual marriage between the human soul and God. When the soul is submerged in ‘sin’, however, the soul is encrusted with mud, so that light cannot get through.

This image offers a visual for how one might consider our polarized parts in comparison to the Self. The polarized parts can be likened to the mud that encrusts our magnificent soul essence with “calcified emotions and beliefs”. As we begin to examine our parts with acceptance and integrate them within the psyche, the mud washes away, and the Godself buried deep within the soul gains a foothold in our consciousness. With God’s love now felt, we begin to embody the commandments of Christ, paving the way towards salvation.

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