The Unconscious God: Psychotherapy and Theology

“Man in Search of Meaning” is one of the most important books by Viktor Frankl, the well-known psychiatrist and psychologist of the 20th century, who developed logotherapy. In this book he presents his theory about the structure of a human being and various levels of its essence, including the spiritual dimension. Frankl calls conscience “the subconscious god,” an irrational and intuitive aspect. He argues that conscience and responsibility belong to both religious and non-religious people, but their attitude to the question of whom they are responsible for in their life differs. For a religious person, this final authority is God—the interlocutor in the inner dialogue and a personalized conscience. However, you don’t necessarily have to belong to any specific religion to have your own personal conscience and faith.