Pope Francis admitted to seeking psychoanalysis for six months during his time as a Jesuit leader during Argentina’s military dictatorship, The Guardian reported Friday.
Francis revealed his experience with psychotherapy during a series of 12 interviews with Dominique Wolton, a French sociologist who will publish a book featuring the interviews next week, according to The Guardian. So far, neither Francis nor Wolton have released any details about why Francis sought psychotherapy, other than “to clarify some things,” according to the Associated Press.
“For six months, I went to her home once a week to clarify a few things. She was a doctor and psychoanalyst. She was always there,” Francis told Wolton. “Then one day, before she died, she called me. Not to receive the sacraments – because she was Jewish – but for a spiritual dialogue. She was a good person.”
Jesuits have a positive view of psychotherapy and social sciences in general, and Robert Mickens, editor of the English-language edition of La Croix, said Francis has implied as much.
“There has been a gradual shift in attitudes within the Catholic church towards psychotherapy since the 1970s,” Mickens told The Guardian. “It’s very common in priest formation programs, especially in the western world, for them to undergo a psychological evaluation before admission to a seminary or diocese. There’s a recognition that social sciences can help unearth issues that need to be dealt with.”
“It’s hard to know exactly what took him to seek psychotherapy – perhaps issues which had come to the fore as leader of the Jesuits,” said Austen Ivereigh, author of “The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical Pope.”
Francis’ leadership of the Jesuits in Argentina from 1973 to 1979 sparked criticism over his efforts to institute reform. The troubled leadership evidently caused Francis, then known as Jorge Bergoglio, an immense amount of stress.
“It was certainly a tense time both nationally and internationally (for Jesuits), adding to what had been a difficult, although very successful, period for Bergoglio. He had gallstones soon after, which suggests a level of stress. But maybe he just wanted to take the time to take stock. Jesuits are not afraid of seeking professional help when they need it and see psychotherapy as complementary to spirituality. I think this revelation only adds to our already very human picture of a remarkable man,” Ivereigh said.
Mickens said the Pope’s admission to seeking psychotherapy might help change the stigma that those who seek or are in need of such treatment are weak.
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