Called to Freedom: Healing One Day at a Time

Everyone suffers. For many Catholics, however, deep psychological and emotional pain persists despite our frequent encounter with the sacraments. We're rightfully confused when we do not receive any healing from the touch of our Lord that we find in the Church. Healing seems to evade us. In this talk, we will explore the nature of our emotional and psychological pain, practical steps to address our pain and increase our healing, and daily practices that will allow us to live in the freedom to which Christ has called us. About Our Scholar Matthew Breuninger is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Franciscan University of Steubenville. He received his Psy.D. in clinical psychology from Baylor University as well as an M.A. in Theology from Ave Maria University. His research interests lie generally in psychology of religion. In particular he is interested in how churches perceive and address mental illness, God attachment, religious and spiritual struggles, clinical disorders, and implicit and explicit attitudes toward God. His current research includes looking at the relationship between religious/spiritual struggles and well-being in adolescents, the effects of perceived parenting style on religious/spiritual struggles, and comparing the predictive validity of implicit and explicit attitudes toward God on various outcome variables. When not teaching or researching, he enjoys fishing and hiking in the mountains of Pennsylvania with his family.