Was Jesus Mentally Ill?

Does the title of this post bother you? What's your first reaction? Mad...incredulous...inspired?

When I first saw the article entitled Jesus Christ 'May Have Suffered From Mental Health Problems,' Claims Church of England online I was skeptical and a little annoyed. Maybe even a little bit offended. I was worried that this could be another group of people stigmatizing mental illness or something written to sensationalize mental illness. However, the article talks about a mental health campaign created in England to help end the stigma against mental illness.

The article highlights the Church of England's support through the Archbishops’ Council for the Time to Change program which is "the biggest attempt yet in England to end the discrimination that surrounds mental health." The Rev. Eva McIntyre and other Church of England leaders created a packet for congregations about how to raise awareness about mental illness and it includes the text of a sermon she wrote addressing the issue. In Rev. McIntyre's sermon she says: "Even Jesus was not immune to accusations about his mental health: there is a story in the gospel that tells of his mother and siblings attempting to take him home because they are afraid that he has lost his mind."

Photo by Kevin.J Flickr Creative Commo

 

Rev. McIntyre's argument is: Should we see Jesus as any different even if he did have a mental illness? Does that make him any less of a great spiritual leader? No.

The article goes on to talk about how different religions have all stigmtized mental illness. Many Christian faiths say people with mental illness are posessed by the devil. Famous atheist Richard Dawkins said belief in a religion was a form of mental illness. Dr. Kamran Ahmed, of the Muslim Council of Britain, says stigma is a particular issue for Muslims "due to 'cultural and traditional beliefs', which can include people mistakenly believing they are possessed by the 'Evil Eye' when in fact they are mentally ill."

I am just really glad to see faith traditions of all kinds speaking up about mental illness in order to held end these negative messages. In my experience, many religions have harmed people with mental illness far more than we have helped them. This happened to me in my Catholic upbringing, but also in my current faith where I was asked by leaders of our faith if I was sure I wanted to become a minister or could it just be "religious ideation due to your bipolar disorder?" Fortunately, going against this stigma in our faith, is the Unitarian Universalist Mental Health Ministry with Rev. Barbara Myers. They have created The Caring Congregation Program which is a curriculum designed to help churches be more supportive and welcoming to people with mental illness and their families.

I would encourage everyone, no matter what faith you are, to ask your congregation to at least have a discussion about how your religious institution handles the issue of mental illness. You may think it is not an issue in your church, but with one in four people suffering from mental illness at some point in their lives, you have a large group of people in your church that are dealing with mental illness. Even if you think your church does not have a stance on mental illness, that is not true. Our congregations send messages out about mental illness all the time, from the kids in Sunday school who comment that the child running all over the room is "crazy" to the adult who calls another adult "schizo" in a joking manner. Messages are being sent all the time, whether we like it or not. Often the negative messages are unintentional but profoundly hurtful. We all need to be intentional about discovering what message our congregation is sending and if it is not one we think is appropriate, work to change it.

Go forth and start a conversation and help end the stigma. Spread the message that people with mental illness are loved just as they are and let them know they are welcome in your place of worship.

Blessings,

Rev. Katie

What Does Your Faith Tell You?

I have struggled with faith and mental illness my whole life. I grew up Christian, but in my Christianity and denomination, I was taught mental illness was a punishment. (Remember, this is personal experience of a specific time and place, not a statement of what any denomination of Christianity actually believes.)

There were also a lot of stories in the news at that time about people doing bad things, like killing someone, or smashing their car into a brick wall, and saying the devil made them do it. Many people in my church believed that the devil could take people over. The news and church also said these people were mentally ill.

I started to notice something was wrong with my brain when I was six, and I grew up believing that people who had something wrong with their mind were evil and being punished by God. Yet at the same time I could not figure out what a child could have ever done to deserve such punishment. It only made sense then that I was an inherently evil person. This was scary and devastating to me, especially since I really wanted to be a good person. I was scared that maybe the devil really did take people over and if I was not careful it might happen to me.

Eventually I realized late in middle school and in high school my church could not possibly be right. I knew that technically I was not a bad person, but it had been ingrained in me so much that I still always worried I was bad and just did not know it yet. The only positive in my faith was the Virgin Mary. I saw her as an accepting and loving figure who loved me as I was, so she would always protect me. When I would have panic attacks, I would pray to her.

During college and afterwards I grew even farther away from my faith. We went to church periodically, but the beliefs never felt right to me. In my opinion, far too many people were judged as being bad because they were "different" in any number of ways.

UU Chalice

As happens with many of us, we started to look for a new church when I got pregnant. I knew faith was important and wanted a religion in which to raise our son. Our friends invited us to their Unitarian Universalist church and when we visited and heard the first principle, which says everyone has inherent worth and dignity, I knew this was our religion.

My current religion now tells me we are all perfect and loved just as we are. Mental illness is not a punishment and there is no devil involved. It is an illness like any other illness.

Unitarian Universalism is also a covenantal church which means we make intentional promises of how we will treat each other with respect and care. This added a new component to my understanding of my illness.

It meant other people respected me and trusted that I would treat them well. No one assumed that just because I was bipolar I was going to be disruptive or hurt myself or others.

I also learned about accountability and love. I am loved just as I am, but the church was clear that they know all of us, mentally ill or not, may not always act kindly or appropriately. Were this to ever happen, the church would not ignore such behavior. They would support my treatment and believe in me, so much so that they would hold me accountable for bad behavior if I had any. What this showed me is that I had a choice in life. I had always previously been worried that I was inherently bad and just didn't know it. This faith told me I was inherently good, and needed to know it so I could be the happiest and healthiest person possible.

What a difference. I was free to be myself and if I struggled, I had loving support with appropriate boundaries.

I feel that my spirit and self worth were crushed by the way the church community of my childhood saw mental illness. As an adult, when I entered into a religion that was accepting and loving, my spirit was renewed. I could regain my self worth. I finally started to see myself as I saw other people, as an important and valuable person in the world worthy of love.

Each one of us will have a different relationship with the divine, or that which is greater than us. We need to find the spiritual path that works for us to be healthy and whole. For me, I believe God is Love and EVERYONE is loved. It is our responsibility to bring that love into the world because if everyone knew they were valuable and loved, I feel there would be much less violence and hatred in the world. I also think people like me would see hope and a reason to work for maintenance of our illness. When I felt unloved, I didn't care if I got better. When I knew I was loved, I knew I could get better.

Blessings,

Rev. Katie