Judith Van Herik (born August 18, 1947) is an academic who studied Psychology and Religion. Van Herik worked at

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

for 24 years, from September 1977 to her retirement in June of 2001, and is most well-known for her publication ''Freud on Femininity and Faith.''

Early life and education

Judith Van Herik was born in

Rochester, Minnesota Rochester is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Olmsted County. Located on rolling bluffs on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota, the city is the home and birthplace of the renowned Mayo Clinic. Acco ...

on August 18, 1947 to Martin and Jeanette Van Herik. She received her Bachelor's in Arts from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the be ...

in 1968, then remained at the University of Chicago for her Master of Arts in Teaching in 1971, her Master of Arts in Divinity in 1973, and her Doctor of Philosophy in Divinity in 1978. Her dissertation was entitled "Religion as Renunciation and Fulfillment: Freud's Theories of Religion and Gender"

Career

After her work at the University of Chicago, Van Herik went on to work at

as an instructor from 1977-1978. She became an assistant professor in 1978 and became an associate professor in 1985. Van Herik retired from Pennsylvania State in 2001 and received emeritus rank for her work in religious studies and Jewish studies. While at Pennsylvania State University, Van Herik worked on the intersection of psychology and religion, especially exploring

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies explained as originating in conflicts in ...

in relation to the female experience. From 1989 to 1990, Van Herik worked with

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

as a Women's Studies in Religion Program Associate on a project called "The Influence of 'Fluss' (Flux): The Reflection of Women's Body-Experience in Freud's Early Work."

Publication

In 1982, Van Herik published her first edition of ''Freud on Femininity and Faith'' through

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

Press. In 1985, it was reissued with soft covers. This publication worked to connect two different aspects of Freud's work - his conversation on gender and the

Oedipus complex The Oedipus complex (also spelled Œdipus complex) is an idea in psychoanalytic theory. The complex is an ostensibly universal phase in the life of a young boy in which, to try to immediately satisfy basic desires, he unconsciously wishes to have ...

combined with his analyses of religion. Van Herik claims that Freud's concepts of gender are indivisible from his analysis of organized religion. She argues that gender differences evolved from the emphasis on patriarchal authority, but also that Freud's own analysis of gender criticizes femininity far more than masculinity, creating an asymmetrical analysis. Van Herik also discusses Freud's work on the topic of

wish fulfillment A wish is a hope or desire for something. In fiction, wishes can be used as plot devices. In folklore, opportunities for "making a wish" or for wishes to "come true" or "be granted" are themes that are sometimes used. In fiction In fiction a ...

, where he paired inferiority and femininity with weak wish fulfillment and Christianity. Freud also associated a rejection of wish fulfillment and illusion with masculinity and Judaism. Masculinity is associated with the "scientific attitude" and

renunciation Renunciation (or renouncing) is the act of rejecting something, especially if it is something that the renunciant has previously enjoyed or endorsed. In religion, renunciation often indicates an abandonment of pursuit of material comforts, in t ...

, or a rejection of pursuing material comforts and goods in order to achieve spiritual enlightenment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Herik, Judith 1947 births Living people Pennsylvania State University faculty University of Chicago alumni

Early life and education

Career

Publication

See also

References