Khlyst

[Olga Meerson]

Dear Will,
 The psychoanalytic approach may classify all religious practices, especially those of Christians, as masochist. The Christian approach to the psychoanalytic approach may in turn  classify the latter as rather limited in its notions of people's motivations in religious practices. We Christian intellectuals are not objects but rather fallible human beings, and therefore we may at times stoop so low as to also label our labeler. Only, let us bear in mind that we are thereby hitting below the belt, or else, and more likely, will never be heard. Psychoanalysis simply has no vocabulary to understand the motivations of abstinence of any sort, let alone Lenten practices, as ANYTHING BUT masochism. Having spent a great deal of time and effort on developing its own professional jargon, psychoanalysis simply can no longer relate to terms outside of its scope. Abstinence, fasting, depriving yourself of any physical comfort, for ANY purpose, registers in their language as "masochism". A!
 ll!
 other terms are indistinguishable from "masochism", in their linguistic system. Talk about abstinence in language! Behold the true ascetics! They have cut out all the "finer" notions besides masochism, and now they triumph over these notions' disappearance. The psychoanalytic approach has developed into a form of aphasia, a linguistic disease of sorts. It is self-inflicted but so are many other diseases one can diagnose. Let us abstain from judgment and labeling diagnostics, during this, Lenten season -- if at all possible.
o.m.

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