In this article,  Metropalitan Hierotheos S. Vlachos speaks of how Christianity is a type of psychotherapy; how certain liturgical aspects of the faith heal the soul and conform us into the image of Christ!

If liturgy is a type of psychotherapy, then what type of psychotherapy would one want to embrace? Would one really want to embrace a psychotherapy that involves modern concepts brought about by hippies and overzealous and undereducated converts? Or, would one want to embrace a psychotherapy that involves ancient concepts from “canonical times,” brought about by those who were the very inventors of biblical theology?

The Greek word for soul is psyche, so do not let the word psychotherapy or even psychology scare you. My intentions of using this  paradigm are not for modern reasons - to delve into the modern industry and academia of psychology, but in order to properly embrace the study and formation of the soul we must actually refer to it and the very need for a categorical study of its usage (Christianity has actually shied away from this arena, when we should be dominating it).

The psyche is the inner, non-material part of humankind. It demands cultivation and renewal through liturgical actions. When we give to God in our worship, we should anticipate the cultivation and renewal of our soul. When we worship in the proper sense, we are to worship in a cultivating manner; one that includes the ancient psychologies of the early fathers rather than the modern gurus of our day.

Anglican worship is designed to put our souls at rest, not to excite our souls and pump us up. Believe it or not, we do not need to be pumped up. If you desire to escape dreariness, then give your “life” to Christ. Go out and serve your church and community rather than involving yourself and family in the latest sport or leisure. Give your very time to Christ in a servants manner rather than trying to justify your leisure to be God-glorifying.

Anglican worship puts us in contact with the living God and the history of this God. God’s plan pans throughout all time and we should include ourselves into this history. Remember, the New Covenant did not stop at the Church of Acts, it continued throughout the first century on, and we need to have succession from this time, not separation!

Ancient liturgy places us in ancient communion. Modern liturgy places us in modern communion. Christ’s power is in the ancient. You can be assured of this by simply opening the Bible. It is an ancient work, and liturgy is inseparable from this work. Modern liturgy (pop music and historically standardless utterance) is grown from a modern culture that is not at all theocratic or even prophetic. It is from Hollywood and other secular avenues. Why would one want to offer praise through secularism? And why would one want to be cultivated through secularism?