April 10, 2013

Mental Illness in Church


Over the past 6 years I have been open with the fact that I have struggled with bouts of depression. Last week, Rick Warren, famous author and pastor from Saddleback Church, shared with the world that his son, Matthew, had committed suicide.

 Matthew struggled from birth with mental illness, depression, and even suicidal thoughts. In spite of the best doctors, medication, counselors, and prayers for healing, the pain of mental illness never subsided. 

I believe Rick and his wife Kay did their very best to help their son but in many churches mental illness is not dealt with properly. I have been involved in church work for many years and I have heard so many say that mental illness was just a lack of faith, demonic oppression, or something else. Those can be real issues, but so is mental illness-- and they are just not the same thing.

The truth is there are people in churches every week and even pastors, who struggle with depression or mental illness. Pastors are afraid to admit they are dealing with this issue because some will say they are not fit to lead their churches. However if you read the Bible you will see that lots of great leaders dealt with depression, King David, Job, Moses, Paul, Elijah, and Jeremiah, to name just a few.

Christians need to affirm the importance of medical treatment for this issue. It should be handled like any other struggle, --with love and respect for the person dealing with it.

We  need to stop trying to cover up mental illness because church should be a safe place for those who fight with depression or related things. For far too long the church has propped up the misconception that Christians are immune to issues of mental illness. 

I hope you will feel compassion for those who are hurting this week and perhaps even reach out to those you know who struggle with this battle. 

A little bit of love and compassion can go a long way. 

2 comments:

Aleatha Isaac said...

Thank God a Pastor has the guts to talk about this. For many of us, it has been a hidden secret for fear of what the "Church" will say. I applaud you Phil and hope many hurting people will get this message.

D.M. SOLIS said...

Your post is always a breath of fresh air--and this one is a good example of that. It's important and healthful to talk about this in the way you're talking about it here. It's good for young people and those who suffer at any age to hear it from a leader and mentor, like you. Thanks, peace,

Diane