Yes, There’s Mental Illness in the Church: And It's Ok to Talk About It
by Melody Worsham
Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash
I finished facilitating a recovery group one evening at my church, a group for women who have experienced trauma and addiction. I felt uplifted, as I did every week, seeing hope suddenly light up faces of despair, praying together for wisdom and healing. I felt needed and useful. But this night became something quite different as the group leaders cleaned up.
The leader of the recovery ministries asked me if I was OK. As a person with mental illness, I have learned that when someone asks me that, it means I am exhibiting behavior that I may not be aware of, so I responded,
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"
"You just seem off," she said.
"Well, sometimes I am off, so thanks for letting me know."
She quickly turned back to me and said, "What do you mean you're sometimes off?"
"I have a mental illness. Sometimes I do and say things I am not aware of," I replied.
She became very quiet. We continued to clean up the meeting areas. When we were done, she stared at me intensely, then dropped a bomb on my psyche I wasn't expecting.
"You can't lead a support group with a mental illness."
I chuckled at first, thinking she was joking, but then I realized she wasn't.
"What do you mean I can't? I've been doing it for two years now," I said.
"Well, I didn't know you were psychotic."
"I HAVE a psychosis," I snapped. "I am NOT 'psychotic,' and I have already been doing it for two years, so yes, I CAN do it."
I became very defensive. I've experienced stigma before, but never really expected it from my church family. It saddened and angered me at the same time. Then, I began to wonder, how often does this happen to people with mental illness in the church? After leaving that night, promising to bring this up to the pastor, I began searching to see how pervasive this attitude might be, or is it just this one person, this one church, who does not understand the impact of those words?
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The Journey
I was diagnosed with schizophrenia in the first church I ever attended. Pam, the wife of an elder, was a psychologist, and she invited several other ladies and me to join a group she was forming to help people with mental health issues. I know the church supported what she was doing, but I now realize why they insisted the meetings occur on a night when no other activities were going on. We were isolated "for our protection," I was told. We were also not allowed to tell other congregants that we attended the group "for our confidentiality."
At other churches I later attended, I asked for prayer for God to heal me. Some went immediately to casting out demons. Others told me that I needed to repent from my sins, while others kept asking me if I was on my meds, watching my every move. Eventually, I stopped telling anyone about my mental illness, and I chose not to attend church if I was having a difficult time.
I became the "invisible churchgoer" - that person who is so afraid of being shunned that I could not lay myself bare to the very people who were supposed to love me and lift me up in my darkest hours. I sat quietly, not calling any attention to myself.
Mental Health and the Church Throughout History
In my research, I discovered the way some churches were handling the issue of mental illness was a uniquely cultural problem - not based on biblical principles. It was a legacy of the Puritan movement. In the 17th century, it was believed that all illnesses derived from sin and demons. Mental illness was a sign of demonic possession, and only harsh treatment and isolation would release the soul. By the early 19th century, a more compassionate view of mental illness was introduced by physicians who determined it was a medical condition - a defect of the brain - but still the result of immoral behavior that would need to be punished out of the affected person.
Then came a Unitarian named Dorothea Dix, who advocated for the more humane treatment of people with mental illness. She and fellow advocates petitioned the government to make funds available to set up asylums for people with mental illness where they can live their lives without exposure to public ridicule and scorn. Once you were placed in an asylum, you died there. By the early 20th century, many mainstream Christian denominations began their ow compassion campaigns by opening private asylums to address spiritual deficiencies that they believed were the cause of mental illness.
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The Bible and Mental Illness
I found mental illness everywhere in the Scriptures once I began looking for signs of it instead of a mention of the condition. Mighty servants of God like Elijah slaughtered an entire army with his bare hands, then hid in a cave asking God why He had abandoned him. My clients and friends with Bipolar Disorder would recognize Elijah's experience as similar to their own.
A person on the Autism Spectrum might understand Samson's need for repetitive activities, his limited interests, and social skills. A person with Substance Use Disorder might be able to explain how Noah's daughters knew they could get him drunk enough to have relations with him. Then there is Jeremiah, who said his pain was unending and wrote an entire book called Lamentations.
The Bible is full of examples of extreme grief, anxiety, depression, and many other mental health conditions that many of us experience today. Yet, in these examples, God never once said they were not capable of serving Him, nor did he say the source of their pain was sin. On the contrary, they served God well, God never abandoned them, and they were all note-worthy enough to be included in His Holy Word.
Philippians 4:6-7 says,
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
God is just as concerned about our mental health as He is about every other aspect of our lives. And research shows that people consider faith to be an essential tool for recovery from mental illness or emotional pain and trauma.
According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), one in four church members lives with a mental health condition. They rely on church members for encouragement and emotional support and rely on their ministers to help them understand how God can use them just the way they are. From pastors, elders, and choir members to deacons and prayer warriors, the church is full of people living with mental illness. The good news is that it is slowly becoming less taboo to talk about it.
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Preachers are beginning to talk about their own struggles, which makes it easier for church members to overcome their fears of rejection and reach out for help. Many churches are forming recovery groups to help veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, widows overcome with grief, wives who abuse cocaine, sons considering suicide. They are using the promises of God in Scripture to give hope and strength to those suffering and struggling with their own minds.
I spoke to my pastor about the recovery leader who told me, "psychotics can't lead groups." I was ready to fight this battle against stigma, even if I had to make a scene. It was too important, not just for me, but all the people I served in the groups and sat within the pews.
The pastor looked at me, dumbfounded. Then, he leaned toward me from his chair and looked me in the eye.
"We have no such policy here, Melody."
I smiled slightly.
"If we did, I think we would lose half of our ministry leaders. And everyone has a job in the Kingdom of God!"
I smiled a lot.
Photo by Toimetaja tõlkebüroo on Unsplash
How Can I Help?
Here are a few things to help you and your church to be more welcoming and encouraging to people with mental illness:
Support your pastor and church staff in taking a Mental Health First Aid course. Like medical first aid, this training teaches people how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders (www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org).
Volunteer to form or help Christ-centered support groups.
Encourage people to share their experiences, and how God has helped them, during testimonial times.
Include mental health in sermons and teachings about healing and prayer.
Be prepared to stand up for someone in your church who is being treated differently for being different. Just remember to speak the truth in LOVE.
If you live with mental illness, let people know that you are willing to answer their questions or share your experience with them- including ways they can support you when you’re having a bad day (at your comfort level). #EndStigma.
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Resources
We’ve created a free downloadable PDF to explore the article deeper. It contains discussion questions about the topic in general terms that will give you a jumping-off point for beginning a conversation.
The second page contains a way to see the topic from a biblical perspective.
And finally, to go deeper into the subject, we have chosen a few curated resources to explore from other authors’ and thinkers’ research or perspectives.
Read. Engage. Enjoy!
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
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