S3 - E1: A Theology of Mental Health
S3: A Theology of Mental Health
E1: An Introduction
“Andrew, you need to tread carefully in the arena of mental health and theology because there is much opportunity for stepping on academic and spiritual landmines!”[1] This was the advice of one of my colleagues after making preliminary inquiries about the subject of mental health and theology. It was good advice!
So, let me be clear, in this third season of blogs I will be exploring a theology of mental health using three broad definitions: (1) theology seeks to explain and describe God in relation to the world; (2) the world refers to all that God has created and His design for people in tension with the ideologies people create; and (3) mental health refers to our emotional, social, and psychological well-being affecting how we think, act, and feel; thereby, determining how we make choices, relate to others, and handle stress. Mental illness, by default, is emotional, social, and psychological distress seen in its affects.
Therefore, a theology of mental health must recognize God as the Creator of human beings; and human beings continually need God to live according to His design in the world.
I am not a qualified psychologist, psychiatrist, nutritionist, psychotherapist, physiotherapist, or counselor. All these professions, and more, must be congratulated and celebrated for their ongoing work towards our human emotional, social, and psychological well-being. So, taking the sound advice of my former professor, I will avoid certain landmines by not making any attempt to write about mental health within disciplines where I have no qualification.
I am a pastor and academic. This is the context of my experience and qualification. Within this context, I want to begin by setting a theological tone by quoting one of the Catholic pastors, and a reputable group of thinkers who strive to understand faith and enrich society. Each quote is summarized in a singular thought as an introduction to a theology of mental health.
First, Pope John Paul II writes, “Whoever suffers from mental illness always bears God's image and likeness in himself, as does every human being. In addition, he ‘always’ has the inalienable right not only to be considered as an image of God and therefore as a person, but also to be treated as such.”[2] Here is the summarizing thought: the image and likeness of God in every human being is seen in the personhood of every individual.
Second, introducing the research of Theos, Ben Ryan writes, “The evidence that religion is good for mental wellbeing is now incontrovertible. Last year, Theos published a meta-study of over 140 academic papers, disambiguating the various concepts and then examining the relationships between them. The weight of evidence was clear: religion – belief, but even more so personal and corporate religious practice – is good for people’s mental (and physical) wellbeing.”[3] Here is the summarizing thought: collectively remembering religious belief on a regular basis is emotionally, socially, and psychologically healthy.
If both summarizing thoughts are read together, the image and likeness of God is best seen when individuals gather together to collectively remember beliefs about God and His relationship to the world that sustain each individual in a world that can, at times, be oppressive to well-being. Three questions emerge from this statement: (1) what beliefs are commonly understood about God; (2) in what ways are those common beliefs about God remembered; and (3) in what way is the world oppressive.
The first question about beliefs that are commonly understood about God is easily answered by referring to the Apostles Creed from the English Language Liturgical Consultation (1988).
“I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic[4] Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.”
The second question must avoid ambiguity if it is to be answered in a way that resonates with commonly held beliefs about God: in what ways are those beliefs about God remembered? Though Christmas and Easter are traditional seasons of remembering commonly held beliefs, they represent a partial remembrance of belief seen in the Apostles Creed, namely, the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ. Christmas and Easter do not focus on God as Creator or the role of Christ by the right hand of His Father. Neither do these traditional times focus on the Holy Spirit, the Church, the communion of saints, or everlasting life. Furthermore, commonly held beliefs remembered at Christmas and Easter represent only two seasons in the calendar year.
Remembering Christian beliefs is best represented in Holy Communion. Celebrating Christ through the bread and wine of Communion is not only a frequent occurrence throughout the year, its practice retells the whole story of God seen in the Apostles Creed. Therefore, the celebration of Holy Communion best answers the second question because it helps people remember commonly held beliefs about God.
The third question is undoubtedly where the landmines are hidden, as my colleague advised me: in what way is the world oppressive? Remember, I defined the world as all that God has created and His design for people in tension with the ideologies people create. The creative narrative in Genesis 1-2 explains that God created people on the sixth day after He created the environment for them to live in. He gave them a way to live that would serve their well-being. In short, the Designer gave human beings a design for well-being.
I must add a caveat here. I am persuaded that psychologists, psychiatrists, nutritionists, psychotherapists, physiotherapists, and counselors that do not deviate from the Designer or His design exceptionally serve the mental health of people. Any abuse of Designer or design does not. Abuse can be seen in two extremes. On one hand, the idea of ignoring or dismissing God is to deny there is a design for human well-being. On the other hand, threatening people to believe in God is contrary to the Apostles Creed that reveals a loving Father reconciling people to Himself at His own cost.
Having laid a foundation that defines my terms and an appreciation of professional fields beyond the scope of this blog, into the fields of academic and spiritual landmines I must go by asking the third question: in what way is the world oppressive?
The gospel of Luke records that Jesus was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah in order to read it publicly to those who had gathered.[5] In one line, he read “to set the oppressed free” (Luke 4:18). The Greek word that Luke uses for oppression is tethrausmenous. The primary verb means “to crush” supported by “to break” and “to shatter”.[6] It is important to investigate what Isaiah originally meant, and what the people in the synagogue understood by the word oppression when Jesus read it.
Deeply rooted in the history of Israel was the remarkable story of the exodus from under the oppression of Pharaoh in the 13th century BC. Much like the reenactment of the story of God retold in Holy Communion, the Jewish Passover reenacted a retelling of the exodus story so future generations would remember the saving power of God. Centuries after the exodus, Isaiah drew on the imagery of the story prior to Israel[7] being exiled from their own country between 598-538 BC. What Isaiah prophesied was not only a pending exile, but also the hope of being set free from an oppressor that would come over a hundred years after his own death. Remember, deeply entrenched in the history of Israel was the idea that God sets the oppressed free. The Passover served as a means to remember.
Fast forward to the synagogue where Jesus reads from the scroll of Isaiah. From the depths of Israelite history Jesus interprets the words of Isaiah by announcing He was the one to set them free. Admittedly, there were some that thought Jesus was the one who would set them free from the oppression of the Roman Empire that occupied Judea at the time. What Luke does is quite revealing. The imagery of oppression to the original New Testament audience in that synagogue borrows from Israel’s history recorded in the Old Testament. However, Jesus was using the words of Isaiah – “to set the oppressed free” – referring to something more universal than those who had gathered in the synagogue that day.
Like Israel, many nations have experienced oppression in one form or another. However, common to all people throughout human history is a particular oppressor. Scripture calls this oppressor the Devil or the Satan who accuses (Revelation 12:10), devours (1 Peter 5:8), schemes (Ephesians 6:11), lies and murders (John 8:44), steals and destroys (John 10:10), as the prince of this world (John 14:30).
In response to this universal oppressor of all human beings, the gospel of John states, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17).
This biblical passage does not dismiss the excellent work of psychologists, psychiatrists, nutritionists, psychotherapists, physiotherapists, or counselors in their work towards mental health. Neither does the passage create a special category of spiritual oppression distinct from all other forms of oppression. Spiritual or otherwise, the effect on human beings includes emotional, social, and psychological.
What the passage in John does is present Christ as the means for design to understand the Designer “…who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven; he is seated at the right hand of the Father…” (Apostles Creed).
If there is a universal oppressor that affects all human beings (and I do believe there is), mental health needs far more than the approach of self-improvement. If so, a Sunday morning pulpit and Christian conferences needs to move away from a rhetoric of self-improvement. By default, commonly held beliefs about God need expository teaching in order to “know whom I have believed” (2 Timothy 1:12) especially during seasons of human crisis.
In summary, this introductory blog about a theology of mental health appreciates, celebrates, and congratulates academic practitioners in their ongoing work towards human well-being. All human beings are equally image bearers of God whether they suffer with mental illness or not. When individuals gather together to collectively remember beliefs about God and His relationship to the world, it positively contributes to mental health. Commonly held beliefs about God are seen in the Apostles Creed. Those beliefs are best remembered through practicing Holy Communion. Regularly participating in Holy Communion helps individuals in the collective gathering remember that Christ is the one who sets the oppressed free.
In the next blog, I will explore characters in the narrative of Scripture that deeply suffered with mental illness and what we can learn from their lives towards well-being.
[1] January 28, 2020 via email.
[2] Pope John Paul II. Mentally Ill Are Also Made in God’s Image. 1997.
[3] Ben Ryan. Christianity and Mental Health: Theology, Activities, Potential (Theos, 2007).
[4] In its original use, the word “catholic” means general or universal, not the Roman Catholic Church. The first mention of the Apostles Creed was by Ambrose in 390 AD. Though the Roman Catholic Church claims to date back to Peter (the apostles of Christ), before the Protestant Reformation in 1517 there were just Christians (Gary Macy, The Banquet’s Wisdom: A Short History of the Theologies of the Lord’s Supper. Akron, OH: OSL Publications, 2000). So, the time lapse between 390AD and 1517 allows for the general use of the word ‘catholic.’
[5] Isaiah 61:1-2/Luke 4:14-30.
[6] Strong’s Greek 2352.
[7] I am using “Israel” to describe the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel.