Introduction to a Symposium: the God Representation in the Psychoanalytic Relationship: When is Three a Crowd?

An introduction is presented to a symposium discussing the way in which the representation of the image of God can affect the analytic dialogue and process, focusing on the beliefs and images of the analyst as well as the analysand. If, as theorized, an image or a concept identified as "God" is an ineluctable element of the development of the human mind (whatever else this image may or may not mean theologically), then it would seem that the dynamic roots and potential of this kind of representation would find some expression in the countertransference dimension of analytic work. Contributors to the symposium were asked to offer detailed clinical material, paying special attention to their countertransference experiences in order to focus on the impact of religious imagery on their own "religiously oriented" internal experiences. Three questions were posed in order to conceptualize the clinical transaction in ways that could elucidate our research interests. It was not assumed that the symposium authors, or analysts in general, are formally religious, nor was this necessary to the task. The majority of the 14 authors identified themselves as currently religious; 4 were circumspect to one degree or another. Interestingly, the intensity of countertransference involvement on the level of personal religious experience varied throughout the group.