Revista Romn de Bioetic, Vol. 12, Nr.

2, aprilie - iunie 2014

THE ORIGIN OF SOME CONFLICTS:

DOGMA AND EVOLUTION WITHIN THE
EASTERN CHRISTIAN SPACE
Tudor-tefan Rotaru*, Robert Mler, *, Andrei Donda* *

Abstract
A psycho-social phenomenon, religion cannot turn aside from conflict generation. On the intrapsychic level, Christian orthodoxy can stir within the individua, a feeling of inadequacy towards
what is commonly perceived as right and holy. This includes aspects such as pre- and
extramarital sex, the issue of divorce, gender equity, sexual orientation, as well as religious
beliefs motivated by cognitive dissonance. At interpersonal level, the absolutist nature of dogmas
renders negotiation impossible, leading to conflicts among the various religious groups.
Keywords: conflict, religion, sexuality.

Coresponding author : Robert Mler - robert1muller@yahoo.com

*Gr. T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iai, Romania

** Institute of cardiovascular disease, Iasi, Romania

17

It may seem contradictory to speak

about conflict in a religion of love.
However, beyond the refinement of the
doctrine and the yearning for the ideal,
a ceaseless analysis of its concrete
effects is required. The 21st century
gives us the opportunity to carry out
this unique critical study, within the
broader context of experiencing the
secular and ecclesiastical life, in novel
and interesting combinations. In
everyday life we notice not just the
regular
religious
practices
and
customs, but also the Christian
philosophic substratum, as an integral
part of our current society. We are part
of an environment undergoing a
modernisation process. It is precisely
within this analysis that the sciences,
set free from the censorship imposed
on the sin of knowledge, aim to
liberate the modern individual both
from
naivet
and
uncertainty.
Disappointed by the impersonal
coldness of some dogmas that are
likely to lose rational support on the
one hand, and, on the other, their
practical applicability, the modern
individual is tempted to defect from
the belief that life has a meaning that
transcends the material universe.
Psychology becomes thus a
devils
advocate.
Continuously
seeking an experimental basis for its
various theoretical speculations, this
emerging science does not spare even
the
most
popular
inter- and
intrapersonal psychological process.
On the other hand, the Church
sometimes tries to recover lost ground
by turning ideas into feeling and
thought into obedience. Within this
whole theatre of war, where lack of
consensus is historical, it is necessary
to carry out an analysis on the various
types of conflicts. Besides its
scientifically demonstrated benefits

[18], religion can also generate

political and ideological conflicts,
conflicts between people, ideas, etc.
Perhaps more than ever, religion is
often a source of internal, intrapersonal
conflicts, struggles for self-acceptance
and the integration of a moral and, at
the same time, secular philosophy. One
of the best syntheses was provided by
McCullough & Willoughby: Religion
is a powerful social force. History
confirms the ability of religion to guide
and coordinate human efforts, create
awe and terror, cultivate war and
peace, unite social groups and raise
them against each other. [16]
1. Intrapersonal conflicts
Fundamental
intrapersonal
conflict: internal impulsion versus
Christian religion
The intrapsychic conflict is perhaps
one of the most commonly met effects
religion can have on the individual.
Freudian psychoanalysis opposes these
impulsions the censorship imposed by
a Superego, including here the
religious interdictions that define the
morality of a religion and which are
internalised,
acquired
by
the
individual. In the second Freudian
concept, the Superego represents the
sum of social and moral imperatives,
consisting in an internalisation of
parental images. Most often than not,
parental images represent the moral
imperatives that are widely accepted
within the social environment. These
imperatives precisely should originate,
to an overwhelming extent, in the
religious
prescriptions
and
interdictions
from
a
particular
environment, and be internalised by
each particular generation. In fact,
religious values can serve as a basis for
either
introjections
(partial
internalisation of beliefs due to the
18

and invisible enemies that is, the

various passions and desires of the
flesh, the sin and demons which do not
cease to fight against you. [1].
Regarded as enemies of the person
and his spiritual salvation, all impulses
are condemned to repression. They are
an expression of the material body,
often influenced by the expression of
evil, the Devil. On the other hand,
there is the image of the victorious
spirit, not only capable, but also
responsible in the fight against all
impulses within the self.
The
Superego in Freuds psychoanalysis
can be identified with the law of the
Holy Bible, internalized, responsible
for preventing the individual from
committing sin. Apostle Paul says
about himself: I myself serve the law
of God with my mind, but with my flesh
I serve the law of sin.. (Romans, 7:
25); The mind governed by the flesh is
death, but the mind governed by the
Spirit is life and peace. (Romans, 8:
6). Thus, the intrapersonal conflict is
not a merely accidental phenomenon in
Christian Orthodoxy. It becomes an
imperative, a norm, a sine qua non
condition of spiritual salvation. No
Christian can avoid salvation: [...] the
soldiers who will throw themselves in
this struggle are all Christians. [...].
The battlefield of this war is our heart
and the entire inner nature of man.
[1].

pressure to obtain the approval of

others), or for identification (adoption
of beliefs as personal values) [19].
The psychoanalytical theory is,
among others, a theory of conflict
between the two forces, between
desires and prohibitions. According to
this theory, the human behaviour
reflects the compromise between the
individuals desires and fears, being
thus able to explain, better than other
personality theories, the possible
contradictions that arise within this
behaviour [2].
The Christian religion does not
ignore this internal opposition. The
two
conflicting
forces
that
psychoanalysis
postulates
are
frequently recalled in the religious
literature. The system of impulsions
asking
to
be
fulfilled
are
metaphorically illustrated by Apostle
Paul in his Letter: For in my inner
being I delight in Gods law; but I see
another law at work in the members of
my body, waging war against the law
of my mind and making me a prisoner
of the law of sin at work within my
members. What a wretched man I am!
Who will rescue me from this body of
death? (Romans, 7: 22-24). In fact,
the
scriptural
foundations
of
Christianity assign all conflicts
unilaterally: What causes fights and
quarrels among you? Dont they come
from your desires that battle within
you? You desire but do not have, so
you kill. You covet but you cannot get
what you want, so you quarrel and
fight. You do not have because you do
not ask God. (James, 4: 1-2). In the
patristic literature, this point of view is
brought even further. For instance,
discussing about his own work,
Rzboiul Nevzut (The Invisible War),
Nicodim Aghioritul draws attention
that: The book deals with incorporeal

Sexuality and the Christian

norms
Religious prohibitions regarding
sexuality can thus play an important
role in the dilemmas many young
people are faced with at the beginning
of their sexual life. The difficulty of
this decision is only natural in the
context in which the church canons,
based on a somewhat vague biblical
19

definition of premarital sex, prohibit

any physical relationship outside the
communion established by the Church.
Moreover,
practices
such
as
masturbation or oral sex are severely
condemned. The one who practices
masturbation, 40 days of fasting and
100 genuflexions a day; and shall (s)he
not fast, one year (s)he will not receive
communion and 50 genuflexions a
day. [17]. This canon (punishment
n/a)
further
emphasizes
the
discrepancy, considering the fact that
over 90% of the (young) men and over
60% of the (young) women practice
masturbation [15]. On the whole, the
Christian religion sees sexuality as a
sin in itself, even imaginatively. For
instance,
in
the
Euchologion
[Molitfelnicul] of the Romanian
Orthodox Church we can even find a
Ritual for the priest who falls into
temptation in the dream. After having
an erotic dream, the priest is compelled
to pray and ask for forgiveness for this
sin: I have sinned, Saviour, as a
lecherous son; receive me, Father, for
I repent, and have mercy for me, my
Lord. [...] I think about the scary day
and cry for my evil deeds. How do I
answer the immortal King? And in
what boldness can I seek the Judge, I,
the adulterer? [17]. In the Christian
religion, exemption for sexual activity
is granted solely for procreation
purposes. This point of view was
formulated not just by the Church, but
its effects were also studied by
sociologists: Although various sects
and denominations have supported
different views on the proper place of
sexuality in life, the dominant position
of the Christian Church posits that any
sexual behaviour is suspect, except for
that necessary for reproduction [11].
Sexuality itself is a sin, an unclean
thing, for which the exception of the

Church is granted solely within

marriage. Having multiple sexual
partners is excluded: Now for the
matters you wrote about: It is good
for a man not to have sexual relations
with a woman. But since sexual
immorality is occurring, each man
should have sexual relations with his
own wife, and each woman with her
own husband (I Corinthians, 7: 1-2).
The spiritual ideal is abstinence, and
the exemption from abstinence is
marriage, the only form through which
sexuality is allowed. Despite this
prohibition clearly formulated by the
Church, premarital sex has become a
common aspect of modern society.
Since the famous research carried out
by Kinsey in 1948 and 1953, the
American population has discovered
the enormous distance between what
was believed and the actual state of
affairs regarding sexuality. Giddens
resumed Kinsey's investigations in a
chapter dedicated to Sex and sexuality
in his monumental Sociology [11]. The
mentioned survey reported that 84% of
men had premarital sex, and 70% of
them had appealed to prostitutes.
Among the women included in the
survey, 50% had engaged in premarital
sex, especially with their future
spouses.
Many current statistics
confirm and update these figures. For
instance, a study carried out by the
Association of Public Health Schools
in the U.S. shows that, between 1982
and 2002, up to age of 20 years, 75%
of the respondents had already had
premarital sex. By the age of 44, their
percentage has risen to 95%. Even
among those who had been abstinent
until at least the age of 20, 81% had
engaged in premarital sex by the age of
44 years [9].
Around 35% of the world
population is considered Christian.
20

the separation of the spouses. But for

those who are married, I have a
command that comes not from me, but
from the Lord: a wife must not leave
her husband! (I Corinthians, 7: 10). A
new marriage is not blessed: But if
she does, she must remain unmarried
or else be reconciled to her husband.
And a husband must not divorce his
wife (I Corinthians, 7: 11). The
divorce is not desirable not even if one
of the spouses does not share true faith:
And if a woman has a husband who is
not a believer and he is willing to live
with her, she must not divorce him. (I
Corinthians, 7: 12-13). This topic is
also touched upon in the Gospels: I
tell you that anyone who divorces his
wife, except for her sexual immorality,
and marries another woman commits
adultery: and whoso married her
which is put away doth commit
adultery. (Matthew, 19: 9). The
benefit of lasting relationships was
recalled in several studies. However,
we are drawn attention to the fact that
marriage confers health benefits to
women only when marital satisfaction
is increased. For instance, the risk of
cardiovascular diseases in single
women is lower compared to the risk
of cardiovascular diseases in unhappily
married women [10]. Despite this, the
number of divorces has grown steadily
from year to year. In the UK, between
1960 and 1970, the divorce rate
increased steadily with 9% per year,
doubling at the end of the interval.
During this time, a law was introduced
allowing divorces in the absence of
charges of one spouse against the
other [11].

From this state of affairs it clearly

results that there can be a conflict
between the motivation behind the
affiliation to religious norms and
sexual desire. The roots of this conflict
are historical: However, in the 19th
century [...] most of the doctors
writings on sexual behaviour were just
as harsh as the position taken by the
Church. Some researchers argued that
any type of sexual activity that was not
related to reproduction was physically
harmful. Masturbation was said to
lead to blindness, heart disease and
other disorders, while oral sex was
believed to cause cancer. [11]. Not
just statistics such as those presented
above, but also knowledge on the
psycho-biological human development,
correlated
with
a
series
of
characteristics
of
the
Western
environment, could point to the
presence of incompatibilities. In the
case of most young people, a gap is
revealed between sexual motivation
which is fundamental and the
spiritual motivation, in agreement with
the classical Christian ideal.
Between the need to divorce and the
need to respect the religious
prohibitions
There is another situation where
interpersonal conflict is doubled by
intrapersonal conflict.
In case of
divorce, the dispute does not occur
only between one person and another,
between the spouses motivations. The
weight of the decision to divorce can
be enhanced not only by the concern
for the children, but also by the
religious prohibition of divorce. This
is one of the classic points of
divergence between the Church and the
secular life. Not only the Bible, but
also the official position of the Church,
expressed through canons, prohibits

Sex discrimination, a prerequisite

for interpersonal conflict
If the conflicts caused by divorce
constitute an issue of context, the
21

discussion becomes more complex

when related to the double standard
religion induces between the two
sexes.
Thus, a religious idea of
separating the rights and duties of men
from those of women is frequently
turned into a prerequisite for
interpersonal conflict.
Baumeister
shows that religion has higher impact
on the female sexuality than on the
male sexuality. Some people see in
religion a tool of male oppression,
which entails suppression of female
sexuality while education enables
women to discover and follow their
own desires [3]. The struggle for
womens emancipation from the
limitation of domestic life and
motherhood, and the feminist discourse
in the 70s - 80s, denouncing power
inequalities within the family are well
known. It is interesting to study the
extent to which this difference is
caused within a culture by the
religious and doctrinal foundations of
that respective space. In the Bible, the
way in which the two sexes relate to
one another is also mentioned in the
New Testament: Wives, submit
yourselves to your own husbands as
you do to the Lord. For the husband is
the head of the wife as Christ is the
head of the church, his body, of which
he is the Saviour. Now as the church
submits to Christ, so also wives should
submit to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives, just as
Christ loved the church and gave
himself up for her [...] In this same
way, husbands ought to love their
wives as their own bodies. He who
loves his wife loves himself
(Ephesians 5: 22-25, 28). Moreover,
this verse is read during the wedding
mass, in the part called the Apostle,
which precedes the reading of the
Gospel, strengthening mans position

of authority within the family. The

marriage relationship in Orthodox
Christian religion is enshrined in the
solemn covenant between women and
men to assume pre-established power
positions within the family Thy
handmaiden to be in all things subject
unto her husband, and unto this thy
servant, to be at the head of his wife,
that they may live according to thy
will [17]. The solemn prayers during
the wedding mass are an occasion to
recall the status of women, part of the
couple created from Adams rib.
All the positions of the Church
come to add a set of prejudices related
to the differences in skills and
competences between the two sexes.
Luckily, meta-analytical studies, such
as those carried out by Janet Hyde,
show
that
the
psychological
differences between men and women
exist, but they are exaggerated in the
media and the social representations on
this subject. It is time to consider the
costs incurred by the exaggerated
claims concerning gender differences.
It is argued they harm in many areas,
including womens opportunities in
workplace, couple and communication
conflicts, as well as analyses of selfesteem issues in adolescents. Most
importantly, these claims are not
consistent with the scientific data.
[14] Thus, the different positions
expressed by the Church and the
scientific community may exacerbate
interpersonal conflict between men and
women
in
marital
or
work
relationships. On the other hand, the
representation of male superiority is
fuelled by religious beliefs on its
primacy, doubled by the constant
structure of the clergy, in which only
men are allowed. However, religion
may also have positive effects on intramarital conflicts. The study carried out
22

by Fiese and Tomcho shows that

women
report
higher
marital
satisfaction when their husbands
participate frequently in religious
services.
These
researchers
hypothesize that men experience,
through religion, a reaffirmation of the
traditional values and beliefs regarding
the couple relationship [8].

own persons the due penalty for their

error (Romans, 1: 18:26-27). The
homosexuals are excluded from the
Kingdom of Heaven: Do you not
know that the unrighteous will not
inherit the Kingdom of God? Do not be
deceived:
Neither the sexually
immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers
nor sodomites... (I Corinthians 6: 9).
Moreover, in Church they are declined
the communion with the body and
blood
of
Christ
Sodomy
(homosexuality
a/n),
15
years
(prohibition on the Holy Communion
a/n): the 2nd cannon of Great Basil
[17].
Various surveys and studies have
estimated
the
percentage
of
homosexuals in the population of
Western countries.
In 2002, the
number of homosexual couples living
together in the United States exceeded
300,000 for men and reached almost
the same figure for women. Another
U.S. government census estimated the
percentage of men with ages between
15 and 44 years who had sexual
intercourse with a person of the same
sex in the last 12 months until the 2002
census to 2.6% of all men in this age
group. Of these, 61% were exclusively
homosexual, accounting for 1.6% of
the total male population for the given
age segment. For women, the figures
are comparable [23].
This sample of information can
give us an idea of the spread of
homosexuality in Western countries
and beyond. Given that the cultural
background of a country is largely
influenced by the religion/ religions in
that space, we can expect an
intrapersonal conflict of acceptance of
their own homosexual orientation and
interpersonal conflicts. This is
mentioned in the APA (American
Psychological Association) Resolution

Sexual orientation under religious

constraints
Another issue generating intra-and
interpersonal
conflicts
is
homosexuality. Much debated upon
both by scientists and by the various
religious cults, the homosexual
orientation seems to have become a
thorny issue in some cultures. In the
Judeo-Christian
tradition,
the
condemnation of homosexuality is to
be found as early as in the Old
Testament. Do not have sexual
relations with a man as one does with
a woman; that is abomination
(Leviticus, 18: 22). The prohibition is
clear and made under death threat: If
a man also lie with mankind, as he
lieth with a woman, both of them have
committed an abomination: they shall
surely be put to death; their blood
shall be upon them (Leviticus, 20:
13). The prohibition is repeated in the
New Testament. Apostle Paul recalls
this topic twice: For the wrath of God
is revealed from heaven against all
ungodliness and wickedness of those
who by their wickedness suppress the
truth. [...] For this reason God gave
them up to degrading passions. Their
women exchanged natural intercourse
for unnatural; and in the same way
also the men, giving up natural
intercourse
with
women,
were
consumed with passion for one
another. Men committed shameless
acts with men and received in their
23

concerning sexual orientation and

marriage:
Taken together, the
evidence clearly points to the position
according to which social stigma,
prejudice, discrimination and violence
associated with the homosexual
orientation, as well as the underlying
hostile
and
stressful
social
environments affect the psychological,
physical and economic well-being of
the lesbian, the gay and the bisexual
[22]. The study carried out by the
American researchers Hegarty, Pratto
and Lemieux demonstrates that
heterosexual people are ambivalent
regarding the other individuals with
alternative orientations.
While
supporting the equity on the interaction
rules between the heterosexual and the
homosexual, they are influenced by
negative feelings regarding the latter,
through the unconscious association
with heterocentric rules [13]. For
instance, at work, this ambivalence is
reflected in the attitudes in which
heterosexual
norms
alone
are
considered valid, with consequences
on the health of homosexuals. [20]
APAs position on homosexuality,
especially in recent years, is a very
direct one. We can say that the view of
the most prestigious association of
psychology is clearly stated in a 2009
report on the adequate therapeutic
approach in the case of the
homosexuals. Discussing upon the
danger of the so-called conversion
therapies, the report emphasises that:
homosexual attraction, behaviours
and orientations themselves are
normal and positive variations of
human sexuality in other words, they
are not indicators of mental or
developmental disorders. [...] gay,
lesbian and bisexual people can live
fulfilling lives and form stable
relationships and solid families,

equivalent to the heterosexual ones, as

regards the key issues [12].
Interdiction
and
cognitive
dissonance
A process of cognitive dissonance
preserves many peoples adherence to
the direction indicated by the Church,
even in the face of increasingly
frequent
counterarguments
and
evidence. Since they are very small,
children are taught to adopt a set of
restrictions as a sign of piety and faith.
For example, the abstention from
animal foods, fasting, is a common
practice enjoying a long tradition.
Although many prohibitions cannot
and are not met (for instance, sexual
abstinence), fasting has become
common practice. Moreover, a large
part of the Romanian youth, especially
girls, also try to (re-)join the view
according to which premarital sex is
undesirable. After a long period of
time in which fasting was not
practised, (the total of all Orthodox
fasting days amounts to about one third
of a year), changing the point of view
that all the precepts of the Church are
necessarily true and good becomes
very difficult. Doise, Dechamp and
Mugny recall that the fact of suffering
in order to access something is
incompatible with the recognition of
the fact that this particular something
is not worth much [5]. In fact, the
theory of cognitive dissonance has
succeeded in demonstrating that the
persons attitude towards a certain
thing changes to be consistent with
previous works already completed by
the person him(her)self. The princeps
experiment in this direction was
carried out by Festinger and Carlsmith
in 1959. They asked subjects to
perform a long and boring task,
involving filling a panel of bobbins,
24

empty it and resuming the task or the

gradual turning of some screw by a
quarter turn. Then, the subjects were
asked to present the task to the next
participant in the experiment, lying it
had been an exhilarating and exciting
activity. Manipulation was carried out
by financial remuneration, offered in
exchange for this lie: one group
received $1, and the other group
received $20. Then, the subjects
attitude towards the task was measured
on a scale from -5 (extremely
monotonous and boring) and +5
(extremely interesting and agreeable).
The results were surprising: the people
paid one dollar rated the tasks
significantly better compared to the
people paid 20 dollars. In fact, the
subjects paid one dollar carried out a
boring task for which they did not
receive
a
substantial
benefit.
Nevertheless, since the task was
already completed, they would have
been incongruous with themselves to
assert the task had been extremely
boring and that they had completed it
for an insignificant remuneration. The
subjects that were well paid could not
acknowledge to themselves that they
had completed the task for money and,
thus, a more negative attitude towards
the task did not contradict the fact they
had already completed it [7].
The explanation of cognitive
dissonance is also applicable in the
case of renunciations for a particular
system of beliefs. Throughout life,
some people struggle to respect the
prohibitions imposed by the Church in
hope of rewards in a future existence
and in order to enjoy the feeling of
peace and conformity to the religious
precepts. We do not dismiss the
relevance of this motivation. It is
however possible, in the light of
Festinges theory, that these people be

at a given point impervious to rationallogical arguments that might confirm

an alternative system of beliefs. It is
hard to acknowledge the possibility
that many of the sacrifices made have
been in vain.
2. Interpersonal conflicts
Old God, New God
At the level of interpersonal
relationships, Christianity has a
paradoxical position: the Christian
dogma advocates against conflict, but
the preservation of the dogma
supremacy itself has already caused
historical conflicts.
A classical
discrepancy is also given by the
description of God in the two parts of
the Bible, the Old, respectively the
New Testament. The God of the Old
Law is, among others, a God of
conflict. In the Old Testament,
Yahweh says for I am a jealous God,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon
the children unto the third and fourth
generation of them that hate me
(Exodus 20:5); this aspect is equally
highlighted in other sections of the
Bible, such as in the following verse of
prophet Nahum: The Lord is a
jealous God and avenging; the Lord
avenges and He is full of wrath. The
Lord takes vengeance on His
adversaries and reserves wrath for His
enemies (Nahum 1: 2). Yahweh
declares to be not only vindictive, but
he also moves on to facts meant to
avenge his wrath against those who
worshipped the golden calf, even if
they are part of the chosen people:
Then he said to them: This is what
the Lord, the God of Israel, says:
Each man strap a sword to his side.
Go back and forth through the camp
from one end to the other, each killing
his
brother
and
friend
and
neighbour. The children of Levi did
25

as Moses commanded, and that day

about three thousand of the people
died (Exodus, 32:27-28). No one who
stands in the way of the plans of the
chosen people is spared the cruelty of
the Jewish God. This is what God
says [...] Now go and smite Amalek
and utterly destroy all they have; and
spare them not; but slay both man and
woman, infant and suckling, ox and
sheep, camel and ass (I Samuel, 15:
3).
In the New Testament, Jesus
establishes a new law, a law of love.
You have heard that it was said, Eye
for eye, and tooth for tooth. But I tell
you, do not resist an evil person. If
anyone slaps you on the right cheek,
turn to them the other cheek also
(Matthew, 5: 38-39). However,
although the new law is a law of love,
Jesus shows that its preaching will
equally involve conflict: Do not
suppose that I have come to bring
peace to the earth. I did not come to
bring peace, but a sword. For I have
come to turn a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother, a
daughter-in-law against her mother-inlaw; a mans enemies will be the
members of his own household
(Matthew, 10: 34-36).

alternative opposed to the majority

position and by abolishing the belief
that the majority is the one to define
norms. Through conflict, the minority
acquires visibility, and the information
it conveys becomes salient. Blocking
negotiation
increases
tension,
visibility, but also the risk of rejecting
the minority proposal [5]. Since the
beginning of Christianity, the apostles
warned against the possible positions
that the few (Christians) must have
towards the pagan majority, refusing
any negotiation of the truths of faith;
See to it that no one takes you captive
by philosophy and empty deceit,
according
to human tradition,
according to the elemental spirits[a] of
the world, and not according to
Christ (Colossians, 2: 8). At the same
time, the minority position means
conformism to the in-group of
believers. Apostle Paul warns the first
Christians that the new teaching cannot
be the subject of discussion with the
other religions: ...some people are
throwing you into confusion and are
trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.
But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach a gospel other than the
one we preached to you, let them be
under Gods curse!
As we have
already said, so now I say again: If
anybody is preaching to you a gospel
other than what you accepted, let them
be under Gods curse! (Galatians, 1:
7-9).
In
the
popular
Little
Apocalypse, a sermon found in
Matthew, Jesus himself warns about
the consequences of this position:
Then you will be handed over to be
persecuted and put to death, and you
will be hated by all nations because of
me [...] but the one who stands firm to
the end will be saved (Matthew, 24: 9,
13). Undoubtedly, Christianity is
considered the only true religion. This

Religious conversion
The impact that sectarian groups
have on the classical Christian
religions becomes an interesting topic
for discussion from the perspective of
the theory on minority influence.
Social psychology shows that the only
way through which the minority can
exert a significant influence is by being
consistent in the position it states.
Consistent both synchronically and
diachronically, the minority operates a
blocking of negotiation. It creates
imbalance both by presenting an
26

belief is expected to generate conflict.

In their study of the ideas underlying
conflict, researchers Roy and Judy
Edelson found that one of the five
ideas underlying great conflicts
between groups is the belief in their
own superiority, together with
injustice, vulnerability, distrust and
helplessness [6].

sensitive ground. This step is a critical

and necessary one.
Religion reassures us. It provides
comfort and great sense and even
better physical and mental health. But
religion also implies conflict, an
internal struggle between the sexual
and the spiritual being, a unilateral
position to those of other faiths, an
unequal distribution of power between
the sexes. In the cost-benefit
orthodoxy, the doctor, the psychologist
and the teacher will have to find an
optimal way to serve the interests of
those in their care.
During the tumultuous transition
from the 30s and 50s, a broad
intellectual and spiritual movement
arose within the Western Christian
community in response to the
challenges of a newly secularized
society. What brought together this
relatively heterogeneous group of
thinking was the conviction that
theology must speak about the present
state of the Church. The key to the
relevance of theology now lies in the
creative recovery of its past. They
noticed that the first step toward what
would later be called aggiornamento
should be reflected in a rediscovery of
the richness of the two thousand years
old treasures of the Church, a return to
the springs of its tradition [4].

***
We conclude our work returning to
the idea of the lust for power that some
philosophers suspect to be inherent in
the human being. The whole history of
Christianity is replete with episodes of
conflict on this subject. Between 325
and 787, each of the seven councils of
the Church resumed, in addition to
doctrinal explanations, the discussions
on the theme of primacy between
Rome and Constantinople. This was
the main cause of the schism in 1054,
which eventually separated the East
from the West. More research should
be conducted to study how religion and
its systems of beliefs impact
individuals and their physical and
mental integrity, the groups and the
states. This trend is all the more
required as we are faced with a series
of crimes against humanity, religiously
motivated acts. Medicine, psychology,
science in general is forced to step on

Aknowledgement
This work was supported by the programme POSDRU/159/1.5/S/133377
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