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The concept of Mind in Christianity

The concept of Mind spans various spiritual and philosophical perspectives, indicating its importance in understanding human existence and divine connection. In Christianity, Mind represents one's thoughts, emotions, and intellect, stressing clarity, concentration, and submission to God's truth for spiritual growth. It serves as the center of will and perception, aiding in emotional stability during uncertainty. Similarly, other traditions emphasize the need to control or purify the mind to attain higher understanding and enlightenment, highlighting its complex nature and role in shaping human experience.1
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Synonyms: Brain, Intellect, Psyche, Consciousness, Awareness, Reasoning, Cognition, Understanding, Mentality, Perception, Intelligence.

In Spanish: Memte; In Swedish: Sinne; In Dutch: Verstand; In Finnish: Mieli; In German: Geist; In Malay: Fikiran; In French: Esprit

The below excerpts are indicatory and do represent direct quotations or translations. It is your responsibility to fact check each reference.

Christian concept of 'Mind'

Christianity Books

Significance in Early Christian church and writers:
Early Christianity Books

From: Ante-nicene Fathers

(1) The mind is the focus of special exercise, which is necessary for perceiving things that can only be understood by the mind, particularly concerning quantity, magnitude, and predication.[1] (2) The text states that in those who are truly believers, and in whom the Spirit of Christ dwells, the mind of the flesh cannot be.[2] (3) This is where God may be seen by those who are worthy, and the term heart is repeatedly used in scriptures instead of the mind.[3] (4) A reference to the capacity for thought, feeling, and consciousness, particularly of wretched men, which are troubled by fear.[4] (5) The mind allows itself to relax into licentious extravagances of attire, just in accordance with Gentile perversity, in craving after that of which it carefully shuns the effect.[5]

From: Gospel of Thomas Commentary

(1) This is described as the lamp of the body, with the internal order and the state of one's heart determining the presence or absence of light.[6] (2) This is a reference to a person's thoughts, and it is where the matter can become malleable.[7] (3) This transcends the mortality of the body and is where the body becomes a continuation of, and where things around you become a part of.[8] (4) This represents the inner self or intelligence, which can be obscured or enlightened by external appearances and pondering about the world.[9]

Early Christianity (also known as Early Church) refers to the period starting roughly in the 6th century BC up until 325 A.D. during which year the first council of Nicaea was convened. Popular literature includes the writings by the early Church Fathers which forms the basis of later Christian theology.

Significance in Global Christian community:
Catholic Church Books

From: Summa Theologica (English translation)

(1) The grace of prophecy consists in God enlightening this, on the part of which there is no difference of sex among men, according to Colossians.[10] (2) The gift of understanding renders the mind apt to grasp the things that are proposed, and to penetrate into their very heart.[11] (3) This is the faculty of thinking, reasoning, and feeling, and the text discusses how it responds to different types of evil.[12] (4) This is what experiences the spiritual joy, which is the effect of devotion.[13] (5) The mind is the seat of the intellect, and it is necessary for a person to withdraw the mind's attention from phantasms to see God's essence.[14]

From: The city of God

(1) This is the intellectual soul.[15] (2) The text explores the role of the mind in relation to emotions and passions, specifically examining whether the mind of the wise man is subject to them, as opposed to the foolish.[16] (3) The mind is mentioned, and the text indicates that no infirmity shall remain in the mind nor in the body itself. The text also refers to the renewing of the mind.[17] (4) This refers to the subject of no emotion, and if the mind is the subject of no emotion, then who would not consider this insensibility to be worse than all vices?[18]

From: Works of St. Anselm

(1) This is where the picture exists before it is made, according to the example of the painter, and it attempts to image the word's meaning.[19] (2) The mind is the mirror and image of that Being, capable of remembering, conceiving of, and loving that Being, showcasing a reflective quality and a profound relationship.[20] (3) This is where the general view and vision of conception occurs, where objects are considered, and where expressions of the things themselves take place, whether they are destined to be or already exist.[21]

From: The Little Flowers of St. Francis

(1) The text suggests that if one would walk well, they should stand still and walk with thy mind, which means focusing on internal progress.[22] (2) This term refers to the part of the soul that can wander, and is stricken by temptations when one goes to pray to God.[23]

The Catholic Church is a global Christian community with over a billion members, rooted in the teachings of Jesus Christ. It is led by the Pope and emphasizes the sacraments, particularly the Eucharist. Catholicism is a denomination centered on the teachings thereof. It has a rich theological and cultural heritage.

Significance in Christianity (general):

From: Hymns for Christian Devotion

(1) The text implies that this is an aspect of a person that can be restored.[24] (2) This term represents the capacity to feel grateful for the blessings of life.[25] (3) This is a body part.[26] (4) The uncreated and everlasting aspect represents a concept that beings cannot fully comprehend or discover through their capacity to think or understand.[27] (5) This is intellect.[28]

From: Expositions of Holy Scripture

(1) This is where the individual must keep the focus on the truth and the person who is the object of their faith, and it can help maintain trust.[29] (2) This should be filled with joyful submission to God's truth, occupying thoughts with His Name and revelation, carrying Him in consciousness.[30] (3) The loins of this should be girded up, and it should be sober to cultivate the perfect hope which corresponds to the gift of God.[31] (4) This is to be kept detached from the transiency of this present, and the eye and heart are to be going out to things 'unseen and eternal', and we are to be familiarising ourselves with the thought.[32] (5) This is where thoughts are concentrated, and if thoughts are not concentrated, then there is a reason why there may be faith without joy.[33]

From: A Dictionary of the Bible (Hastings)

(1) The text refers to this of the flesh, which emerges in connection with the function of law and the consciousness of sin.[34] (2) A concept that is not explicable by the brain, yet the will directs the movements of the body, and relates to the theory of evolution and miracles.[35]

From: A Cyclopedia of Biblical literature

(1) This refers to someone's thoughts.[36]

Significance in Eastern Orthodoxy (or the Eastern Orthodox Church):
Eastern Orthodoxy Books

From: The Works of Dionysius the Areopagite

(1) This refers to the human capacity for understanding, which is not enough to understand God, as He is beyond it.[37]

Eastern Orthodoxy, or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Christianity. It consists of independently governed churches with strong cultural ties to Eastern and Southeastern Europe. Eastern Orthodox theology focuses on the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Believers strive for theosis, or becoming closer to God, through grace and spiritual practices.  

Significance in Protestantism (Christian movement emphasizing faith and scripture):
Protestantism Books

From: The Existence and Attributes of God

(1) The part of man which is described as corrupt, as the cause, and the other faculties as the effect, in the text.[38]

Protestantism (or simply the protestant church) is a major branch of Christianity originating from the Reformation in the 16th century, led by figures like Martin Luther. It emphasizes salvation by faith alone and the Bible as the ultimate authority. Variants of Protestantism include Lutheranism, Calvinism, Anglicanism, Methodism and Presbyterianism, each with unique practices but generally united by these core principles.

Gnostic concept of 'Mind'

Gnosticism Books

Significance in Gnosticism (Mystical or Esoteric Christianity):

From: Fragments of a Faith Forgotten

(1) The mind desired to follow its Father into the height, and the spirit or mind is committed to the hands of his Father, according to the provided text.[39] (2) The mind is the Race of the Mind, which the disciples must become, and which is the opposite of the flesh of unrighteousness and ignorance, and also the true Mind.[40] (3) The mind is discussed in relation to the divine beginning, and the text explains its relation to the Logos.[41] (4) The serpent-formed, which is the first product of Ialdabaoth, and which brought forth six sons, the daemonial powers.[42] (5) The mind, breathed into the plasm by Deity, elevates man above the rest of creation and its powers, yet the nature-powers fear the mind within, also called the name.[43]

The concept of Mind in local and regional sources

History Books

The keyphrase "Mind" signifies the source of thought, reason, and will, playing a vital role in moral decision-making and spiritual understanding, as highlighted by regional sources.

Significance in India history and geography:

From: The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda

(1) The mind is the tool that takes concrete exercise through various forms to eventually lead to abstract understanding and abstract realization.[44] (2) The mind is the instrument that allows the soul to engage with the external world, which is constantly changing and vacillating, and it can be perfected with practice.[45] (3) This is in nature and is bound by law, which influences its actions, demonstrating that the mind is subject to the rules of the natural world, and highlighting its connection to the environment.[46] (4) The mind is what can lose all its strength, activity, and power of thought, and just tries to go round and round the smallest curve it can find.[47] (5) This is where the will resides, according to the author, and it is the location of the reaction that follows perception.[48]

From: Triveni Journal

(1) The element that must become an instrument of the supermind, particularly when buddhi is invited to be its charioteer, in order to secure triumph.[49] (2) This is a faculty that asserts knowledge, but simultaneously experiences uncertainty, which causes it to question even the most certain beliefs or understandings.[50] (3) Refers to the capacity for thought, understanding, and perception that is noble and magnanimous.[51] (4) The complex and powerful human capacity for thought and imagination, which influences emotions and overall well-being, controlled by will and concentration.[52] (5) A reference to the profound intellectual capacity and insight of the author, suggesting he can engage with the greatest thinkers of history.[53]

From: History of Science in South Asia

(1) Mind is one of the ten criteria used for dividing age, which disappears one by one every ten years.[54]

From: Bede's Ecclesiastical History of England

(1) This term is used to refer to the seat of thought, reason, and will, and is the central element in the process of moral decision-making and spiritual understanding.[55]

Plural form: Minds.