LovingGodwithallyourmind:Brainlateraliza7on,religion,and

psychopathology

CatholicPsychotherapyAssocia7onGregKolodziejczak,PsyD,PhD

April27,2018

Lightbearers.org

Chris7anJarreK,PsychologyToday

TheDividedBrain

CorpusCallosum•over200millionaxons

•bothexcitatoryandinhibitory

AlienHandSyndrome(IntermanualConflict)

KarenByrne

RightBrain/LeWBrain

EverythingwehaveseensofarindicatesthatthesurgeryhasleWthesepeoplewithtwoseparateminds,thatis,twoseparatespheresofconsciousness.Thismentaldivisionhasbeendemonstratedinregardtopercep7on,cogni7on,voli7on,learningandmemory.

RogerSperry,1981NobelPrizeinPhysiologyandMedicine

Gazzaniga’sInterpreter

LH=Gazzaniga’s“Interpreter”

Experimentsonsplit-brainpa7entsrevealhowreadilytheleWbraininterpretercanmakeupstoriesandbeliefs.

(MichaelGazzaniga,2005)

LHInterpreter

“Idon’treallyknowwhy,butI’mkindofscared.Ifeeljumpy,IthinkmaybeIdon’tlikethisroom,ormaybeit’syou,you’regecngmenervous.”“IknowIlikeDr.Gazzaniga,butrightnowI’mscaredofhimforsomereason.”

(Gazzaniga,2011)

• Hemisphericdifferences

•  Implica7onsforreligion

•  Implica7onsforpsychology

Hemisphericdifferences

•  Grossanatomy

•  GraytowhitemaKerra7o

•  Cytoarchitecture

•  NeurotransmiKerprofile

•  Sensi7vitytohormonesandpharmacologicalagents

•  Developmentalprofile

LeWHemisphere(LH)dominance

•  Verballanguage•  Analy7calthinking/parts•  Linear7mesequencing•  Abstractthought•  NarrowfocusedaKen7on•  Seman7cmemory•  Consciousapproachemo7ons•  Ra7onality•  Rightsideofthebody

RightHemisphere(RH)dominance

•  Visuospa7alpercep7on•  Nonverbalcommunica7on•  Holis7cthinking/gestalt•  Experien7al(vslogical)•  BroadvigilantaKen7on•  Autobiographicalmemory•  Withdrawalemo7onsandallunconsciousemo7ons•  Intui7on•  LeWsideofthebody

RHdominance

•  Connec7ontoone’sownbody•  Senseofselfandiden7ty•  Empathy•  Mostaspectsofsocial-emo7onalfunc7oning•  Metaphors,humor•  REMdreams•  Facialrecogni7on

OurFocus

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

“Tan”

LouisLeborgne,died1861atage51

LHcontrolsthemedia

SilvioBerlusconi

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo/ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

Emo7ons

Agrowingbodyofresearch...demonstratesthegeneralsuperiorityoftherighthemispherefortheexpressionandrecep7onofbothposi7veandnega7veemo7ons.Furthermore,thishemisphereisdominantfortheimplicitcogni7veprocessingoffacial,prosodic,andbodilyinforma7onembeddedinemo7onalcommunica7ons.

(Schore,2003)

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden/ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

Self/Iden7ty

TherighthemisphereistherepositoryofBowlby’sunconsciousinternalworkingmodelsoftheaKachmentrela7onship.

Therighthemisphere...andnotthelaterformingverbal-linguis7cleW,isthesubstrateofaffec7velyladenautobiographicalmemory. (Schore,2003)

Self/Iden7ty

Convergingneuropsychologicandneurobiologicaldatastronglysuggestthattherighthemisphereiscri7callyinvolvedinthemaintenanceofacoherent,con7nuous,andunifiedimplicitsenseofself. (Schore,2003)

FrontotemporalDemen7a(FTD)

A53-year-oldright-handedmanhadbeenanhonest,dynamicleaderwhoranasuccessfuladver7singagencyfromtheagesof29to35.Hethendecidedtowriteapoli7calnovelandspentseveralyearsinGuatemalabutwrotenothing.

(Milleretal,Neurology,2001)

Axialsec7onofSPECTperfusionimageshowsmostsevereperfusiondeficitinrightfrontalregion.

RH LH

Self/Iden7ty

Itappearsthatanondominantfrontallobeprocess,onethatconnectstheindividualtoemo7onallysalientexperiencesandmemoriesunderlyingself-schema,istheglueholdingtogetherasenseofself.

(Milleretal,Neurology2001)

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  Broadvsnarrowa<en/on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

AKen7on

ThemostfundamentaldifferencebetweenthehemispheresliesinthetypeofaKen7ontheygivetotheworld.

McGilchrist(2009)

AKen7on

TherighthemisphereunderwritesbreadthandflexibilityofaKen7on,wheretheleWhemispherebringstobearfocusedaKen7on.Thishastherelatedconsequencesthattherighthemisphereseesthingswhole,andintheircontext,wheretheleWhemisphereseesthingsabstractedfromcontext,andbrokenintoparts,fromwhichitthenreconstructsa‘whole’.

McGilchrist(2009)

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

Drawingsoftargets7mulusfrommemorybypa7entswithRHandLHdamage.

(RobertsonandLamb,Cogni4vePsychology,1991)

WholevsParts(GestaltvsDetails)

Embarka4onofUlysses,ClaudeLorrain,1646

Le=ers,RichardTuKle,1966,MOMAinNYC

ScienceandCharity,PabloPicasso,1897

FiguresattheSeaside,PabloPicasso,1931

TheSongofLove,1914GiorgiodeChirico

FirstLandingJump,1961RobertRauschenberg

www.centuryhearingaids.com

Intherighthemisphere,theworldispresent:weexperiencethelive,complex,embodied,worldofindividual,uniquebeings,foreverinflux,aworldwithwhichwearedeeplyconnected.IntheleWhemispheretheworldis“re-presented”:we“experience”ourexperienceinaspecialway,ratherlikereadingamap.Aswithamap,lesscanbemore.

(McGilchrist,TheLancet,2011)

PresentvsRe-presented

Herethereare...sta7c,separable,bounded,butessen7allyfragmenteden77es,groupedintoclasses,onwhichpredic7onscanbebased.ThiskindofaKen7onisolates,fixes,andmakeseachthingexplicitbybringingitunderthespotlightofaKen7on.Indoingsoitrendersthingsinert,mechanical,lifeless:itdenaturesthem.Butitalsoenablesustolearnmoreeasily,andtoseehowtomakethingsbypucngthemtogether. (McGilchrist,TheLancet,2011)

LeWHemisphere’sWorld

WholevsParts

Corollary:

Intui7vevsLogical/Analy7cal

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

MetaphoricalvsLiteral

“Hehadaheavyheart.”

MetaphoricalvsLiteral

“Hehadaheavyheart.”

“Rightbraindamagepa7entsfrequentlytendtobeveryconcreteandliteral.” (Joseph,1988)

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

FalseSyllogism

•  Allmonkeysclimbtrees

•  Theporcupineisamonkey

•  Doestheporcupineclimbtrees,ornot?

(DeglinandKinsbourne,BrainandCogni4on,1996)

ControlCondi7on

—“Itdoesnotclimb,theporcupinerunsontheground.”

—Andhowdoesitlook?

—“Itisprickly.”

—Itislikeamonkey?

—“No,itisnot.”

RHonlyLHSuppression

–“Porcupine?Howcanitclimbtrees?Itisnotamonkey.Itispricklylikeahedgehog.It’swronghere!”(Sheisspeakingwithindigna7on.)

LHonlyRHSuppression

–“Theporcupineclimbstreessinceitisamonkey.”

(Thesyllogismispresentedagain):

–“Sincetheporcupineisamonkey,itclimbstrees.”–Butyoudoknow,thataporcupineisnotamonkey.–“ItiswriKensoonthecard.”

ConcretevsAbstract

WepostulatealeW-hemispheremechanismcapableofdecontextualizedmentalopera7onsandaright-hemispheremechanism,theopera7onofwhichiscontext-boundandincapableofabstrac7on.

(DeglinandKinsbourne,BrainandCogni4on,1996)

Narra7vevsProposi7onalThought

Proposi7onalthoughtconsistsoflogicalargumenta7onaimedatconvincingoneofsomeabstract,context-independenttruth....Bycontrast,narra7vethoughtpresentsconcretehumanandinterpersonalsitua7onsinordertodemonstratetheirpar7cularvalidity.Itisadescrip7onofreality.

(Vitz,1990)

Narra7vevsProposi7onalThought

Narra7vethoughtislanguageintheserviceofrighthemispherecogni7on,andproposi7onalthoughtislanguageintheserviceofleWhemispherecogni7on.

(Vitz,1990)

Corollary:PersonalvsImpersonal

Knowvs

Knowabout

HemisphericDifferences

•  NonverbalvsVerbal•  Emo7ons•  Self/Iden7ty•  BroadvsnarrowaKen7on•  Wholevsparts•  Metaphoricalvsliteral•  Concretevsabstract•  Ambiguityvscertainty

AmbiguityvsCertainty

SotheleWhemisphereneedscertaintyandneedstoberight.

Therighthemisphereisabletomaintainambiguousmentalrepresenta7onsinthefaceofatendencytoprematureover-interpreta7onbytheleWhemisphere.

(IainMcGilchrist,2009)

AmbiguityvsCertainty

Whatwasinteres7ngwasthattheleWhemispheredidnotsay,“Idon’tknow,”whichtrulywasthecorrectanswer.[Rather],Itconfabulated.

Gazzaniga(2011)

Tolera7ngUncertainty

Therighthemisphere’stoleranceofuncertaintyisimpliedeverywhereinitssubtleabilitytousemetaphor,ironyandhumour,allofwhichdependonnotprematurelyresolvingambigui7es.

(McGilchrist,2009)

Tolera7ngUncertainty

Asfarasthelawsofmathema7csrefertoreality,theyarenotcertain;andasfarastheyarecertain,theydonotrefertoreality.

AlbertEinstein

Tolera7ngUncertainty

IfyouunderstoodHim,itwouldnotbeGodyouhaveunderstood.

(St.Augus7ne)

BothHemispheres

Thesetwowaysofseeingtheworldareeachvitaltooursurvival....ThedivisionofaKen7onworkstoouradvantagewhenweuseboth.However,itisahandicap,infactitisacatastrophe,whenweuseonlyone.

(McGilchrist,2016)

McGilchrist’sperspec7veonthehemispheresworkingtogether

Right!LeW!Right

NewvsFamiliar

Inawidenumberofspecies,includingfish,amphibians,birds,andmammals,thereisevidencethattheleWhemisphereisspecializedtocategorizeobjectsandothers7muliandtotakechargeofrou7nebehavior,whereastherighthemisphereisspecializedtorespondtonovels7muliandpredatorsandtoexpressintenseemo7ons.

(ProfMarcBekoff,2013)

RHMediatesNewExperiences

PhenomenologicallyitistherighthemispherethatisaKunedtotheapprehensionofanythingnew.Thisdifferenceispervasiveacrossdomains.

(McGilchrist,DialoguesinClinicalNeuroscience,2010)

Right!LeW!Right

Sowitheverything,itseems:groundedintheright,“unpacked”forprac7calpurposesintheleW,thenreintegratedintothewholepicturebytherightagain.

(McGilchrist,TheLancet,2011)

Implica7onsforReligion

IntegratedReligion:

Right!LeW!Right

IntegratedReligion

Wedonotbelieveinformulas,butinthosereali7estheyexpress,whichfaithallowsustotouch.

(CCC170)

EngagingtheLH

[Somepeople]cannotconceivethatareligiousdoctrinemaybeclothedinaclear,definiteandauthorita7vestatementwithoutatoncebecomingsta7c,rigidandinertandlosingallitsvitality.Intheirfran7canxietytoescapefromanysuchconcep7ontheytakerefugeinasystemofbeliefsthatisvagueandfluid,asysteminwhichtruthspasslikemistsandwaverandvarylikeshadows.

(Merton,1961)

RisingabovetheLH

Itisnotthedryformulaofadogma7cdefini7onbyitselfthatpourslightintothemindofaCatholiccontempla7ve,buttheassenttothecontentofthatdefini7ondeepensandbroadensintoavital,personalandincommunicablepenetra7onofthesupernaturaltruthwhichitexpresses.

(Merton,1961)

RisingabovetheLH

BeyondthelaborofargumentitfindsrestinfaithandbeneaththenoiseofdiscourseitapprehendstheTruth,notindis7nctandclear-cutdefini7onsbutinthelimpidobscurityofasingleintui7onthatunitesalldogmasinonesimpleLight.

(Merton,1961)

Un-integratedReligion

•  FallingbelowtheLH(vague,basedlargelyinemo7ons,lackingintellectualrigor)

•  Gecngstuckandtermina7ngintheLH(excessivelydogma7c,rigid,impersonal,oWenfundamentalist)

FallingbelowtheLH

“Spiritualbutnotreligious”

“Mykarmaranovermydogma.”

Pseudo-mys7cism

NewAgeMovement

TheNewAgeseeksashiWfrommodernity’sexalta7onofreasontoanapprecia7onoffeeling,emo7onandexperience(oWendescribedasaswitchfrom‘leWbrain’ra4onalthinkingto‘rightbrain’intui4vethinking).

(JesusChristtheBeareroftheWaterofLife)

LHReligion

Therehavebeenmen...whogotsointerestedinprovingtheexistenceofGodthattheycametocarenothingforGodHimself....Everypoetandmusicianandar7st,butforGrace,isdrawnawayfromloveofthethinghetells,toloveofthetelling7ll,downindeepHell,theycannotbeinterestedinGodatallbutonlyinwhattheysayaboutHim.

(C.S.Lewis,TheGreatDivorce)

AbstractLove

Acertaindoctoroncetoldme,“Ilovemankind,butImarvelatmyself:themoreIlovemankindingeneral,thelessIlovehumanbeingsinpar7cular,asindividualpersons.”

(Dostoyevsky,TheBrothersKaramazov)

AbstractLove

Hewholovescommunitydestroyscommunity.Hewholovesthebrethrenbuildscommunity.

(DietrichBonhoeffer)

AbstractLove

Itisnodoubteasyenoughtolovethefellow-creaturelessandtoimaginethisishappeningbecausewearelearningtoloveGodmore,whentherealreasonmaybequitedifferent.Wemaybeonly“mistakingthedecaysofnaturefortheincreaseofGrace.”

(C.S.Lewis,TheFourLoves)

Fundamentalism

•  Literalism•  Proof-tex7ng•  UKercer7tude•  Absenceofparadox

ThismanwasnotaCatholic,muchlessasaint!...TheonlywayitispossiblefortheVa7canins7tu7ontodeclareJohnPaulIItobeamodeltoallCatholicswhoisnowinHeaven,isiftheVa7canins7tu7onisnotprotectedbythecharismofinfallibility;andtheonlywaythisispossibleisifitisnotinfacttheCatholicChurchanditsheadisnotinfactatruePope. (NovusOrdoWatch)

CatholicFundamentalism

CatholicFundamentalism

ItisnotpossiblethatMotherTeresa,whowasapublicapostate,couldbeasaintintheCatholicChurch....ShewasnotaCatholicandnotholy,andthereforecouldnotpossiblybeaCatholicsaint.

(NovusOrdoWatch)

VirusesintheBodyofChristChristopherFerrara

La4nMass,summer2004

Onecansaythatcertainverbal“viruses”haveinfectedtheMys7calBodyofChrist.Thesevirusesarepseudo-conceptswhich,likeactualviruses,haveminimalinforma7onalcontent.Thesepseudo-conceptsarepar4clesofanideathatdonotamounttoanintelligibleabstractconcept.

VirusesintheBodyofChristChristopherFerrara

La#nMass,summer2004

AstatementofCatholicdoctrineordogmawillfitnicelyintothetemplatephrase“Xmeansthat....”Ecumenism,likeanelephant,cannotbedefinedbutonlydescribed,becauseecumenism,likeanelephant,isnotanabstractconceptbutathing,orratheracollec7onofthingsknownas“ecumenicalac7vi7es.”

VirusesintheBodyofChristChristopherFerrara

La#nMass,summer2004

Wordoccurrenceinthis14-pagear7cle:

Church: ?Christ: ?Jesus: ?Love: ?

VirusesintheBodyofChristChristopherFerrara

La#nMass,summer2004

Wordoccurrenceinthis14-pagear7cle:

Church: 117Christ: 19Jesus: 4Love: 2

HistoricalshiWs

•  Plato ! LeW•  Aristotle ! Right•  Renaissance ! Right•  ProtestantReforma7on ! LeW•  Enlightenment ! LeW•  IndustrialRevolu7on ! LeW•  Roman7cism ! Right•  Modernism ! LeW•  TechnologicalRevolu7on! LeW

ModernCulture

Anincreasinglymechanis7c,fragmented,decontextualizedworld,markedbyunwarrantedop7mismmixedwithparanoiaandafeelingofemp7ness,hascomeabout,reflec7ng,Ibelieve,theunopposedac7onofadysfunc7onalleWhemisphere.

(IainMcGilchrist,2009)

Scien7ficfundamentalism

Inourcentury,adeifiedreasonandamegalomanictechnologyaretherepressivestructurestowhichthereligiousfeelingissacrificed.Thisfactexplainsmuchofthepresentcondi7onofman,whichindeedresemblesa“universalcompulsiveneurosisofmankind,”toquoteFreud.

(ViktorFrankl,MD)

ModernCulture

Ourageisoneinwhichusefulnessisthoughttobethechiefmeritofnature....TheGreekslearnedinordertocomprehend.TheHebrewslearnedinordertorevere.Themodernmanlearnsinordertouse. (AbrahamHeschel)

ModernCulture

Thebiasinfavoroftheconceptualislinkedtoman’sPrometheantempta7ontoalwaysbeincontrol....Manhascreatedtheposi7vistcultureandhasbecomeaprisonerinhisownhouse.

(Fr.AlfredMcBride)

LHHallofMirrors

StateofAffairs

[WeareleWwith]awayoflifethatwehavealreadydeterminedintheWesttobelackinginmeaning,oWenaesthe7callybarren,drivenbycommercialismandmorallybankrupt,devotedtothepursuitofpleasureandhappiness,butdeliveringanxietyandsystemicdissa7sfac7on;

(McGilchrist2012)

StateofAffairs

theerosion,andinsomecasesthetrashing,ofancientar7s7candspiritualtradi7ons;andthelossofthesenseofuniquenessaseverythingbecomesabstracted,generalised,categorised,mechanised,representedandrenderedmerelyvirtual.

(McGilchrist2012)

Implica7onsforPsychology

•  Intrapsychicconflict•  Rigidityanddenial•  Au7smspectrum•  Psychosis

Func7onallySplitBrains

Thesethreecondi7ons—lateralizedspecializa7on,frontallobeinhibitoryac7vity,andincompletemyelina7onofcallosumaxons—canreducetheabilityofthetwohemispherestocommunicateamongnormal,intactindividuals.Hence,inmanywaysthebrainofevenanormaladultisfunc7onallysplitanddisconnected.

(Joseph,1988)

Intra-PsychicConflict

Itisfascina7ngtoconsiderthelaterramifica7onsofearlyemo7onallearningoccurringintherighthemisphereunbeknownsttotheleW;learningandassociatedemo7onalrespondingthatlatermaybecompletelyinaccessibletothelanguagecentersoftheleWhalfofthebrain.

(Joseph,1988)

Intra-PsychicConflict

Considerayoungdivorcedmotherwithambivalentfeelingstowardheryoungson,who,althoughshedoesnotexpressthesefeelingsverbally,conveysthemthroughhertoneofvoice,facialexpression,andinthemannerinwhichshetouchesherson.

(Joseph,1992)

Intra-PsychicConflict

Later,asanadult,thissameyoungmanhasonefailedrela7onshipaWeranother.Hefeelsthathecan'ttrustwomen,oWenfeelsrejected,andwhenagirlorwomansays"Iloveyou,"itmakeshimwanttocringe,runaway,orstrikeout.Asanadult,hisleQbrainhears"Love,"andhisrightbrainfeelspainandrejec7on.

(Joseph,1992)

Unconscious

Thestructuraldevelopmentoftherighthemispheremediatesthefunc7onaldevelopmentoftheunconsciousmind.

(Schore,2003)

Conscious/Unconscious

Theso-calledunconsciousmindisinfactamanifesta7onofright-brainandlimbicsystemmentalac7vity.Conversely,whatweregardastheconsciousmindappearstobelocalizedwithinandtobemaintainedandsupportedviathefunc7onalintegrityoftheleWhalfofthebraininmostpeople.

(R.Joseph,1992)

LHRigidity

TheleW-hemisphereinterpreterisnotonlyamasterofbeliefcrea7on,butitwills7cktoitsbeliefsystemnomaKerwhat.

(MichaelGazzaniga,2005)

LHDenial

DenialisaleW-hemispherespecialty:instatesofrela7veright-hemisphereinac7va7on...subjectstendtoevaluatethemselvesop7mis7cally,viewpicturesmoreposi7vely,andaremoreapttos7cktotheirexis7ngpointofview. (McGilchrist,2009)

LHGrandiosity

Childrenwithright-braindeficitdisorderignoretaskobstacles,acceptimpossiblechallenges,makegrosslyinadequateefforts,andarestunnedbythepooroutcomes.

(Schutz,NeuropsychReview,2005)

Au7s7cSpectrumDisorder

[Aspergersyndrome]canbeexplainedasadeficitthatprimarily,butnotexclusively,affectsright-hemisphereperformance.

(EllisandGunter,TrendsinCogni4veSciences,1999)

Psychosis

SchizophreniaisnotcharacterisedbyaRoman7cdisregardforra7onalthinkingandaregressionintoamoreprimi7ve,unself-conscious,emo7verealm...butbyanexcessivelydetached,hyper-ra7onal,reflexivelyself-aware,disembodiedandalienatedcondi7on.

(McGilchrist,2009)

Madness

Themadmanisnotthemanwhohaslosthisreason.Heisthemanwhohaslosteverythingexcepthisreason.

(G.K.Chesterton,Orthodoxy)

HumanForma7on

Italsoturnsoutthatthecapaci7esthathelpus,ashumans,formbondswithothers––empathy,emo7onalunderstanding,andsoon––whichinvolveaquitedifferentkindofaKen7onpaidtotheworld,arelargelyright-hemispherefunc7ons.

(McGilchrist,2009)

WaysOutoftheHallofMirrors

•  Connec7ontonature•  Connec7ontothebody•  Art•  Religion