Mental Illness

[Penguin]

"The article" mentioned below refers to http://www.patheos.com/blogs/rebariley/2014/10/5-lies-christians-tell-about-mental-illness/

 

I can't remember if I or someone else started a thread on mental illness, but I couldn't find anything in the Search feature.

 

As I have mentioned in other threads, I have bipolar and PTSD. Advocacy for the mentally ill is a huge issue with me. When it comes to the religious family and friends of the mentally ill, I am constantly amazed at the medieval thinking involved.

 

"God won't give you any more than you can handle."

According to the article, God doesn't give people mental illnesses. So God will inflict punishment (Genesis 3), wrath (Genesis 6-7), confusion (Genesis 11), plagues (Exodus 7-11), and many other afflictions (including promises upon promises for such in Leviticus and Deuteronomy, and let's not forget Job), but he won't give you a mental illness? Far-fetched. Even in the New Testament, God made a man born blind (John 9).

 

"Daily prayer and Bible reading alone cure mental illness."

James 5:14-15 claims, "Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven." You don't even have to read your Bible. A little prayer and Crisco and you'll be good as new, so long as you have the faith.

 

The rest of the article is hit and miss, but these two points are extremely prevalent within Christian circles, particularly charismatic circles like "Word of Faith." The first is popular with the "purpose-driven fill in the blank" crowd. I have been amazed at the false hope Christians offer to those who out themselves as mentally ill. "Oh, just have faith he will heal you. God will heal you if you just have the faith."

[Storm]

I think the article is a good start. While I certainly don't believe the ultimate premise that christianity is viable, at least the guest author is making a legit attempt to debunk some common misperceptions about mental illness in the church. I dealt with this on a regular basis in church. In case you didn't know, I work professionally as a counselor.

 

It saddens me when people judge and stereotype what they don't know or understand. (I understand that I do it as well, unfortunately, and this saddens me as well) It happens in all cultures and with all people, but for some reason, it seems to get magnified in the Christian church. I wonder if it has to do with the whole distortion of what they think about God: His loving nature, how much he cares about us, etc? I suspect its also affected by how they perceive the nature of the world, as fallen and flawed due to sin. They feel sorry for the person afflicted and they have "faith" that God would heal them or make life altering changes to them because that is what he does. This doesn't just apply to mental illness, but also to those stricken with terminal illnesses like cancer, and it also applies to homosexuality.

 

I find it highly probable that even Jesus didn't understand mental illness in regards to the men from Gadarenes (Matt 8:28-33). These men were most likely epileptic or had some other type of mental illness, not demon possessed as the bible says. How can the "lord of all creation" not recognize mental illness? Its so very sad.

 

When you look through the world with the rose-colored glasses of Christianity, it really distorts the truth and keeps you from understanding life on life's terms.

[amateur]

Excellent article, and excellent comments after it.  

 

Anybody with an illness -- whether physical or mental -- should consult an appropriate doctor and follow their recommendations, NOT a pastor.

 

Likewise, if your car isn't working well, take it to an auto mechanic, NOT a pastor.  Your car is not suffering from demons.  It's mechanical.

 

Likewise, if your pet is sick, go to the vet, NOT a pastor.

 

Last week, my furnace melted down and gave me carbon monoxide poisoning.  I went to the hospital to cure me, and I called an HVAC guy who removed the old and installed the new furnace within two days.  If I had wasted time with a pastor, I'd still be gasping and ill, and my house would still be registering one degree.

 

Why would someone consult and believe a person who has no appropriate knowledge of the particular problem?  I would be as silly to go to the vet to replace my furnace as I would to go to the pastor.

 

I do understand that pastors like to think they know everything about everything, and certainly can sound convincing, up until you need actual real help.  But as an adult, I wouldn't even consider asking a pastor to pray that my cat doesn't get rabies, as opposed to going to the vet to get him (the cat, not the pastor) a rabies shot.

[FreeThinkerNZ]

 

 

going to the vet to get him (the cat, not the pastor) a rabies shot.

 

[moanareina]

As I just got my diagnosis that I thought of as having ADD I am thinking of this matter a lot...hyperfocusing, eeeh...and I have to say, I hate both terms, mental and illness for these kind of things. How can something like bi-polar or ADD that makes your mood swing or attention be on and off etc. be mental? I mean you are not hallucinating or hearing voices. As I have learnt ADD is a lack of dopamine so how can this be mental when it is clear that it is my body that is not producing the amount needed to function like everybody else? Ok, it affects my mind but not in a mental way. And how can something you have since birth and is not increasing nor decreasing an illness? When someone has trisomy he has a disability and not an illness. Now I don't like that term really either but at least it does not indicate to be contagious nor it can be healed.

 

So what christians do is to tell you your physical condition is not supposed to be there because it is either demon induced or sin induced or just not of God (what is BS anyways)...so next time someone tells you so you tell him that in this case the blind or lame or deaf or _______(insert whatever) that attends your church is demon possessed or lives in sin and see how he reacts to it...I would love to see his face...

 

However I am glad I am out of this mindset and finally see the things for what they are. For the first time in my life I feel there is hope to finally get some order into my chaos. Especially with my household but also with my emotions. And this hope is called methylphenidate (Ritalin) and the help of a professional to develop strategies to get structure into my life. I know I am not there yet and it might be that it will all be a disappointment but from what I have read and seen the past few weeks possibilities are, that it will actually be like what I always thought the baptism of the holy spirit would be...like I might feel myself more alive and less like walking around half asleep and dreamy...not really knowing if I was awake or not...

 

As a christian I would never have considered to go to a psychologist and even less to take any meds. I always thought it was something I had to fix with God...and I went to the ends like receiving deliverance prayer and do spiritual warfare in an OCD kinda way. To this day I am stunned no one called a mental ambulance.

 

Thinking about it christianity actually is mental illness. It makes you mental and more ill the more serious you get...

 

I am glad I can see now the patterns that have gone through my whole life and in the light of ADD they ALL make so much sense. I am so amazed I never saw this before...and even more no one ever told me something. Then again my parents with their conservative mindset just blamed me for my inabilities thinking it was a character flaw. It makes me sad but sadly they didn't know better.