Prisoner of Belief: One Man's Odyssey to Reclaim His Soul - From Evangelical Minister to Searching Psychologist

Prisoner of Belief by John Van Dixhorn is the tale of a man who fights for his soul against the crushing power of religious orthodoxy and evangelical zealotry to become a modern man in the modern world. Raised by rigid Calvinists, Van Dixhorn became an evangelical minister, a successful pastor with prosperous churches. But intellectual honesty and emotional longing led him to challenge his faith, his church, his family, his friends and his vocation...and to eventually leave the ministry and become a secular psychologist. To live this life and write this book takes courage. Prisoner of Belief, then, is a memoir of a courageous man. Through the numerous sharp and painful (and sometimes very funny) anecdotes we begin to realize what it means to confront all the significant figures and forces in one's life, from self to mom, to brother, church, faith, ideology, Jesus, and finally to God...and the world-view that holds all this together in one neat theological package. Van Dixhorn provides enough historical background so that otherwise obscure theology may be understood. As a psychologist, Van Dixhorn takes us deeper to see how doctrine affects emotional life, how belief affects our psyche, our sexuality, and our sense of self. As Van Dixhorn leads us through his life, we learn so much from this honest and courageous story. Geoffrey Sarkissian, Graduate of Fuller Seminary

Author: John Van Dixhorn
Publisher: Outskirts Press
Published: 10/30/2014
Pages: 212
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.70lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.48d
ISBN: 9781478736318

About the Author
John Van Dixhorn started his professional life as Basketball Coach and Athletic Director at Trinity College in Deerfield, IL. He did his theological training at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and was ordained with the Evangelical Free Church of America. He became a pastor to churches in New City, NY, Naperville, IL, and Orange, CA. He went on to get a master's degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. He did post-doctorate work in psychoanalysis and became a Certified Psychoanalyst in California. He was an award winning faculty member and Training and Supervising Analyst for the Newport Psychoanalytic Institute in Tustin, CA and for five years served as the director. He lives with his wife, Jana, in Palm Springs, CA where he has a private practice.

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