The Religious and Psychology

I've done some research various people's views on psychology and psychologists, and ironically, the people that I agree with are deeply religious. This is very bizarre because I am deeply atheist!

Nonetheless, it seems the deeply religious and I have taken a very different path to the same conclusion. Religious Folk believe that (and I'll quote someone here)

I suppose I'm talking about those who choose to be religious, not those that are raised within a sect, and remain within the same religious philosophy they were raised with, simply because they were raised in it. No, I'm not talking about those folk. I'm talking about the folk that can think; not accept any old smuck that wears a robe, a funny looking hat, and has a bible in hand, to be an authority figure. I'm talking about those that believe that god is the only and ultimate authority figure, and that they need to have a 'personal relationship with god'. Or to translate that to atheist language: *Know Thy Self*.

(when the conversation is between you and the imaginary friend that's always *got your back*, well that's just you assessing your own situation with feelings of security and self assurance. Yes, those secure feelings come form your imaginary friend, if those feelings are there, doesn't really matter where its coming from)

*Quoting some religious guy here*
no matter how good and advance methodology and human knowledge, when it has something to do with a person mental and inner self mechanisms, others are always outsiders who may or may not able to understand it. Only God can understand a person completely, therefore the solution must first of all comes from Him.

Maybe I'll take a turn and say that any intelligent/thinking person will ultimately come to the same conclusion about psychology. It is the art of applying human principles to your own life, as a means of evaluation. Not a means of measuring normality, but simply having the knowledge of the theories that are out there, some of which may apply to you. Psychology is not a science! Its not an "behavior x is caused be deisres y'. Its much more abstract than that, more like 'behaviours are caused by desires'. Which behaviours? Which desires? For each person the answer is different.