The course is actually Psychology 1504, described in the catalogue as “Personal Psychology.” But when the enrollment reached upwards of a thousand, the largest on campus, it attracted the attention of the press at home and abroad and was soon dubbed “Happiness 101,” for that is what it is about -- learning how to be happy!

Positive Psychology is the new kid on the block in the world of academe, less than a decade old. For most of its history psychology has been concerned with the failures and troubles of the human spirit, and -- beginning with Freud -- has been pessimistic about human nature. Any therapy began with the assumption that the patient was driven by deep, dark drives that had to be recognized and dealt with.

But positive psychologists reject this approach. While they do not deny the negatives in human nature, they believe in identifying what

is right and good in a person and working from there. Every troubled person has his strengths. These are to be identified and marshaled in healing what is damaged. The approach is to be positive and optimistic. One leader in this field is referred to as “a scholar on optimism,” which would sound strange in most academic circles.

If, for example, a positive psychologist is treating an alcoholic he would not dwell on the pathology of that disease, but look to such instances of recovery often seen in Alcoholics Anonymous. The AA in a personal, caring approach looks for the good angels in a person, and starts the healing from there. As one of these teachers put it, “Psychotherapy never got anyone sober, while the AA does.“

Rather than seeing religion as a delusion and a crutch, as did Freud, the positive psychologist would recognize the healing effects of prayer and meditation and use them as part of the therapy. Rather than dwelling on what causes anxiety and depression, he looks for what induces generosity, courage, creativity, and especially laughter. It is far better for a patient to enjoy a hearty laugh than to dwell upon his problems! Laughter fosters mental health. You will find little or no laughter in mental hospitals. And is it likely in nursing homes?

The Harvard course has caught on. While it was “one of a kind” for a time, in the last few years there are more than 200 classes on the subject in universities at home and abroad. Chinese educators have found that the principles of positive psychology are useful in teaching business leaders how to relate to clients.

The likes of “Happiness 101” may be part of the answer to some disturbing findings recently released. There is presently an epidemic of depression in every industrialized nation, especially among the youth. It is a paradox that the wealthier a nation becomes the more marked depression is among the youth. A survey conducted by Harvard University Health Services found that of 13,500 college students surveyed 45% said they felt depressed deep enough to affect their studies. And 94% reported they were stressed out by all that they have to do.

Findings indicate that young people are in search of ideas that will bring them peace and happiness. While positive psychologists are aware of this, they are not sure what those ideas are. “Happiness 101” is in part a search for the meaning of happiness, and as to how one becomes happy. They agree that to be happy one must be free of mental illness -- but what from there? They are also aware that no one can be happy all the time. As one of them puts it, perhaps overcautiously, “Happiness is a place to visit, not to live.”

They have found that married people are happier and healthier than single people, but having children does not necessarily contribute to being happy. And, surprisingly, people are often happy amidst tragic circumstances. Christopher Reeves was not an exception, their studies indicate, for paraplegics are generally happy people. Even blindness is not necessarily an obstacle to happiness, except at the outset. People are remarkably resilient and can adjust to the tragic events of life.

The bottom line for all this might be that while the positive psychologists are not sure what happiness is they recognize it when they see it in people. That conforms to my own experience, but in a different way. The people I know that I would describe as happy are not all that conscious of being happy. They are busy doing their thing in generous and unselfish ways. If asked if they are happy, they might answer, “Yes, I suppose so. I hadn’t given it all that much thought.”

Henry Ward Beecher, the eminent 19th century preacher who was brother to Harriet Beecher Stowe of Uncle Tom’s Cabin fame, was a social reformer who had a special interest in the subject of human happiness. If the likes of him could serve as a guest lecturer in Psychology 1504 at Harvard, the course might take a different direction. One of Beecher’s observations is classic: The end of life is not happiness. Character is.

Beecher would say the positive psychologists have it wrong. The purpose of education -- or of counseling -- is not to make people happy but to make them good. The good life is the life of the mind and heart, a life of virtue -- learning to be humble, generous, honest, brave, forgiving. Life is about duty and honor more than about pleasure and possessions. It is not about feeling good, but of being good. Character says it! Happiness is not about what you have, but about what you are

They might then dub the course “Character 101,” and I would say right on. And I am persuaded that “educating the heart” would do wonders in relieving the problems of stress, anxiety, and depression. People are maxed out because they are pursuing the wrong goals in life -- things that bring “happiness” rather than character that brings goodness.

Notes

Recently in our part of Texas the weather was frightful. Ouida and I watched the bylines on TV early Sunday a.m. announcing “church closings” in the Dallas area. Church after church -- “No services,” and many of them were Churches of Christ. I thought this odd. As I’ve always seen it a church never closes its doors. A few will be there, even if they have to walk or crawl or slide. The saints -- especially Campbellite saints -- always keep house for the Lord on Lord’s day, no exceptions. Our congregation, which has two assemblies, put out the word that there would be but one. We had a goodly number.

A story out of our history shows that interesting things can happen in bad weather. Only a few were present at Edward Scribner Ames’ University Christian Church in Chicago on one such Lord’s day back in the 1890s. The ones who brought and prepared Communion were not there. Ames served the Table nonetheless, advising the few people present to do as usual, even if no elements. So they broke bread from empty plates and drank from empty glasses. Ames explained that it is what is in the heart that matters. That is a great bad weather story. Better than closing.

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