Some people interpret the story of Jesus Christ as a spiritual metaphor for the inner psychological journey toward wholeness, which aligns with key concepts of Richard Schwartz’s Internal Family Systems (IFS) model. In this metaphorical view, Jesus can be seen as the Self, while his disciples and other figures represent the psyche’s various parts. The IFS framework Developed by Richard Schwartz, IFS posits that the mind is made up of multiple “parts” (sub-personalities). A core concept is the compassionate, wise, and undamaged “Self” that exists at the core of every individual. The goal of IFS therapy is to help a person become “Self-led,” so the Self can heal the individual’s wounded and protective parts. Parallels between the Jesus story and IFS

• • Jesus as the Self: In the IFS framework, the Self is a compassionate, wise, and healing presence. Some interpretations view Jesus in a similar way:
    • He is the center of the system. Like the IFS Self, Jesus is the leader and compassionate core around which the other figures (parts) revolve.
    • He is a source of healing. Jesus’s miracles can be seen as a metaphor for the Self’s ability to heal and unburden the traumatized parts of the psyche.
    • He exemplifies wholeness. The death of Jesus and his resurrection can be interpreted as the death of the ego (the false self) and the subsequent resurrection of the true, whole Self.
  • The Disciples as Protective Parts: The twelve disciples can be seen as an inner “family” of parts, each with its own role, strengths, and fears.
    • Peter as the Manager: Peter is often impulsive, outspoken, and attempts to protect Jesus, even to the point of denial and resistance. This mirrors a “manager” part in IFS, which uses controlling behavior to preemptively prevent pain and maintain a sense of order.
    • Judas as the Exile: Judas’s betrayal and subsequent despair can be viewed as a deeply wounded and exiled part that feels unlovable and acts out its pain.
    • The other disciples: The varying strengths, jealousies, and weaknesses of the other disciples represent the full range of human experience contained within an internal system.
  • The Path of Healing and Integration: The larger narrative of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection parallels the IFS process of healing and integration:
    • Calling the parts: Jesus calls his disciples to follow him, much like the Self in IFS “calls” the different parts to engage in the healing process.
    • Witnessing the wounded parts: Just as Jesus models radical compassion for all people, the Self in IFS must witness its wounded parts with gentleness, curiosity, and non-judgment.
    • Unburdening the pain: The suffering and sacrifice of the cross can be seen as a metaphorical unburdening of all the pain and sin (the burdens in IFS) that the internal parts are carrying.
    • Achieving Self-Leadership: The story’s ultimate goal is for the disciples to become like Jesus, just as the IFS goal is for the parts to learn to trust the Self to lead the system, leading to greater inner peace and wholeness.
      Source:
      Link 1)
      Link 2)
      Link 3)

      Understanding this could greatly reduce human suffering.

      https://empathymatters.org/now/ifs-spirit/
      https://empathymatters.org/now/how-evil-triumphs
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      “In summary, (see link below)… I, (Gord Alton)… have attempted to help you see how the evidence-based framework of the Internal Family System brings new understandings to how Christians can understand the inner conflict found within our soul.   IFS helps us sees our Divine nature differently.  Seen through the IFS lens, our Divine nature is not the Mind part of us that seeks to manage our fallen or sinful nature.  Rather, our Divine nature is the dynamic of the indwelling Christ that resides within us right from the day we are born.   Within IFS, the dynamic of the Self echoes of the Indwelling Christ dynamic and follows many of the ways we, as Christians, understand the Spirit of Christ interacting with our lives.   Much more can be said about this connection between IFS and Christianity.   What excites me as a Christian psychotherapist is that through IFS we now have a contemporary evidence-based psycho-spiritual model that can help us, as Christians, along with the Bible, Christian history, and various Christian theologies, to understand how prayer and spiritual healing and transformation actually happen through the dynamics of the Indwelling Christ.
      Gord Alton MDiv RP CASC Supervisor-Educator  
      Link 4)

      IFS-Spirit