Emotion as an Integrative Topic: An Analysis of Faithful Feelings

Abstract

Emotion is a topic of great interest to both academic disciplines involved in the integration enterprise. Biblical studies and theology address the topic because of its vital role in understanding the nature of God and the nature of human functioning. Psychology addresses the topic of emotion because of the central role emotion plays in psychological development, wellbeing, psychopathology, and clinical interventions. To form an integrative approach to emotion, scholars from both sides of the equation need to bring the best, most up-to-date data to the conversation. A new book, Faithful Feelings, represents a major contribution to the discussion of emotion from the discipline of biblical studies. This article analyzes its potential contribution to scholars in psychology working on the subject of emotion from the standpoint of relevance, scope, and depth.