In reading over the thread on "Psychology" I could not help but notice the extreme anxiety of influence with respect to modern psychology, which is basically just eccentric footnotes to classical ideas. (A quick isolated proof of this might be that Siggy Freud, the father of modern psychology, represents the human soul as more or less a bottomless chasm of desire. This same idea was put forth in a significantly more sober and balanced scheme by Plato in the Symposium [which was, with no ironic intent believe it or not, a drinking party!]. )Now anthropologists have another take on it, which is interesting in its own way, and the materialists see the psyche as just a bunch of chemicals and tissues, which can sometimes be useful I suppose.
Father Michael Pomazansky in his magnum opus "Dogmatic Theology of the Orthodox Church" describes the human soul as having three fundamental faculties: will, reason, and love. But what guides the will to the good? Would this be another, fourth faculty or primary pre-faculty? Here we begin to approach a scholasticism i.e. the doctrine of "Synderesis," a discussion which would be a little stilted by nature. So, the best course is to simply focus on what we, as mere humans, CAN know.
Will can be directed by love for the good. Love can be directed by will to The Good, which is the Holy Trinity.
Reason, which is the rational center between excess and defect, can be refined both from within and by teaching from without and works to inform love and guard the will.
Love guides us in the way of truth and justice.
Thus, the psychology afforded us by our religion keeps us in good spirit, while our Christian ethics (moral practices) keep us clear of vice.
In my humble and unlearned opinion, to focus on the self-direction of one's own:
will,
reason,
and love
is to guide one's own psychological progress to the way of health and happiness.
Sincerely,
Joseph