On Mental Illness, Leadership and Christian Theology

At the heart of the Christian faith we find this declaration:

Christ is risen from the dead!
He is risen indeed; He's alive today!

So some of us believe.
Why then, one wonders, does mental illness, and even suicide, afflict Christian
families?

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, one in five of us suffers

mild forms of mental distress. One in ten will suffer a major crisis in their
lifetime. One in a hundred will suffer from schizophrenia.

Just as cancer was once a taboo subject, not discussed and certainly not admitted
to, schizophrenia, psychosis and major depression have until recently been
unworthy of serious public attention, even in our churches. In spite of the
prevalence of mental illness in the general population, somehow it has not been
given the necessary attention. We talk more about distant terrorist acts and
threats of economic disaster. Yet we are finally starting to address this epidemic.

It is, however, but a window on the much deeper crisis: our spiritual health, or
lack thereof. Some of us, even some of our leaders, exhibit questionable
symptoms and appear somewhat disconnected from God, His people and the
world. We function in our own virtual worlds, even using our own unintelligible
language.

Scripture says, "Clap your hands all you peoples, Shout to the Lord, all
the earth, with loud songs of joy", yet from childhood we're taught to be
quiet in church. We're called to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to one
another, yet few churches really allow this to take place. Everything is 'pre-
scripted' and the Holy Spirit is made redundant. We're expected to be able to talk
about our faith to our neighbours, however most of the time ordinary
believers are not even allowed to address the regular assemblies of
God to share what the Lord is doing in their own lives!

Are our leaders acting as servants of the Living God? Or are they exhibiting a
form of spiritual schizophrenia, hearing the Voice of God and seeing visions, but
then doing things contrary to their own words and beliefs?

Here in Canada, as in other places, there has been a tendency among some
officials in the more liberal Christian churches to foster unrest and legally push
toward denominational division, out of desire to preserve faulty church systems
for political purposes. This is both unbiblical and anti-Christian. Anglican Church
leaders have brought legal arguments against godly ministers and their
congregations before the secular courts. This has happened despite the clear
injunction against such action found in Holy Scripture. In the U.S.
denominational officials have even tried to install as church leaders people who
believe in and practice non-Christian faiths. Their abuse of position and pseudo-
spiritual authority is being seen for what it is: hypocrisy, arrogance and willful
deceit.

Those who insist on pharisaic disobedience, which often comes with top-down
leadership, will eventually discover the bankruptcy of their position. They show
by their actions that they deny or ignore the reality that both our global society
and the ecclesial family have changed and can no longer be held within the
denominational boundaries outlined since the Reformation. Such a break
between thought and action, or lack of appropriate engagement with
reality, is one of the ways that schizophrenia has been described.

Why do some church leaders, and those who follow them, act in spite of reality,
sometimes even against biblical values? Why are so many church meetings
devoted exclusively to budgeting and servicing money? Why is church growth
considered so important? Why do we rarely speak in our churches about ministry
to and by Christians outside of traditional church settings?

Have deficiencies in theological study and application contributed to

the prevalence of mental illness among Canadians?

For those of us whose churches are more formal, we have an "inherited attitude
toward the liturgical act (which) reflects a kind of schizoid state. We hear but do
not really hear. The liturgy is an encapsulated experience, entered into in
isolation from real human experiences. It does not connect with the real world
because it has been shaped by a piety which is often consciously an escape from
the pressures of the real world. Liturgical time is seen as ‘holy time’ working
according to its own laws, and feeding our hunger and thirst for God. But it does
not connect for the great majority of our people with the real choices of daily life."
- from 'Sacraments and Liturgy: The Outward Signs', by Louis Weil.

Perhaps there might be redemptive value to some degree of dissociative thinking

and behaviour. The prophets of Israel often showed schizoid tendencies. The
difference between clinical illness and prophetic insight can be razor thin.
Madness is after all a matter of judgment. A measure of openness to the Holy
Spirit has often been seen as eccentric. Just look at the record in chapter two of
the Book of Acts!

Anton T. Boison discussed his own psychotic breaks and suggested that they
represented efforts to reintegrate his personality. He developed an empirical
theology which sought to study the patient, his symptoms and the healing
process. He became one of the founders of clinical pastoral education. This field
has largely been taken over by secular psychologies which allow the patient to
become a subject for experimental testing of theory. Pastoral theology has thus
been transformed from the divine cure of souls into the pseudo-Christian effort to
correct human flaws by human techniques.
Arno Gruen describes the folly of so-called normal behaviour when it is shown
to be counter-productive. (see his book, 'The Insanity of Normality') Benoit
Mandelbrot, the father of fractal geometry, has been pointing out, for several
years, inaccuracies in the financial formulae used to predict market behaviour.
Could there be similar errors in the spiritual formulae which our churches
develop to meet their 'objectives'?

Psychosis is too real. Suicide is too real. Does it matter what label is used?
Whether mental or spiritual illness, it cannot be denied but it is often avoided,
and is shuffled back into the pack of issues for society to deal with. The
presenting problems are dealt with in sullen isolation by individuals, families,
close friends and clinical support teams.

The pain of exposing these wounds is intense. But it must be so. Just as physical
disease demands treatment, the 'cure of souls' is essential, not optional.

Is your church comfortable with discussing poverty and mental illness? How do
we address such difficult issues? Do we really believe in the power of prayer? If
so, how should we pray in particlar circumstances? Why are we so willing to leave
it to other professionals to tackle these problems with sociological or medical
techniques? Do we doubt the promises to heal which God has given to us? Why
do some clergy deny the reality of mental illness? (See the study done by
researchers at Baylor University at http://www.baylormag.com/story.php?
story=006239 )

True leaders cultivate the ability to foresee events and potential circumstances.
Robert Greenleaf claimed that it was actually "necessary (for a good leader) to
live a sort of schizoid life, always at two levels of consciousness, both in the real
world -- concerned, responsible, effective, value oriented and also above it, seeing
the actual reality, being deeply involved in daily events, but having the
perspective of a long sweep of history and looking to, and planning for, the
indefinite future".

The schizophrenic features of our churches, and of our various denominational

divisions, are hardly conducive to good mental health in a society in which many
families are split among different, often antagonistic, churches. We have been
expected to accept as unchangeable these intrusions into our communities. We
know that Jesus prayed for unity among His followers yet we are reluctant to
question our leaders about building links with other Christians. We're sometimes
told not to bother even with other churches within our own denominations:
there's too much inertia against change! Is it possible any longer to believe Holy
Scripture and at the same time tolerate and support the unbiblical systems which
separate us from one another?

We must recover the model for servant leadership given to us by the

Lord Jesus. Some are called as overseers, some as pastors, some as evangelists,
some teachers, and some healers. These are identified by the body of Christ and
not by secular non-believing institutions. What then is the purpose of theological
education and how is it related to Christian leadership?

Too often, “emotional pressures (have been) adapted to the use of those who wish
to impose what to think without regard to how to think...Teaching the young
those aspects of religious doctrine which are beyond their intellectual capacity
and relevant experience to understand and to assimilate often lays the
groundwork for emotional collapse and serious mental disorder of which guilt
complexes and disabling fear are the symptoms.” So wrote Donald G. Stewart
in 'Christian Education and Evangelism'.

Students must pay large fees to participate in theological reflection, study and
discussion. Until recently Christians lacking financial resources were denied a
part in theological discussion. The internet has changed matters somewhat. Our
leaders have been trained by many who gained their credentials either by
manipulating and using the educational system or by tolerating and surviving it.
In some circles the value of theological education has long been suspect.
Academic study tends by its nature to reinforce a certain detachment from
reality. It promotes the analysis of concepts and the search for historical context,
usually with adherence to a denominational worldview. It reinforces an artificial
gap between church and seminary, between life and study. In some cases we have
even allowed non-Christians the exercise of authority in these institutions. Is it
wise, some ask, to entrust students, and their questions, solely to professional
theologians?

Lee Smolin writes in his book, 'The Trouble with Physics', about the way that
academic studies can be diverted from experimentally verifiable truth towards
highly speculative theory. Christianity is often formally taught as a set of
propositions to be believed, or else! This approach can negate the practice of
faithfully developing a lifelong relationship with the Living God.

Education involves much more than filling students with facts and theories. It is
an attempt to lead out of darkness and ignorance into light and wisdom, an
attempt to develop competence and ability in the area of study. In short, good
leaders show the way as well as talk about it. That's good education!

Isn’t it interesting that young people and new believers are quite perceptive in
pointing out inconsistencies in church life? Secular processes that assume the
ignorance of the student tend to undermine the beliefs and experiences of
candidates for ministry. Yet, isn’t the experience and wisdom of even the
biblically grounded student usually ignored by the seminary? This is a tragedy.
Lives have been ruined as a consequence of constantly shifting approaches to
developing potential leaders.

For some years, "seminary and divinity school students (have) complained that
practical courses lack intellectual rigor and that scholarly courses seem irrelevant
to their vocational and professional goals. The classical fourfold curriculum
(church history, biblical, systematic and practical theology) creates an enormous
gap between the academic and practical aspects of a ministerial curriculum. Just
as important, this standard curriculum eliminates theology from the core of both
practical and academic studies. Theology as a theoretical discipline appears
disconnected from the skills needed to be a successful parish pastor. Theology as
an inquiry emerging from faith and piety appears to lack the marks of an
impartial and critical discipline." - Dr. Ronald F. Thiemann, 1987, Harvard
Divinity School, Cambridge, Mass.

Front-line ministers of the gospel are isolated from and can feel abandoned by
ivory tower theologians. Students are caught in the crunch, trapped by desire for
ordination, emerging only to perpetuate a sick system. Yet many Christians have
refused to undergo the theological re-education process imposed by institutional
religion and have chosen lay ministry as being more effective, pursuing self-
directed study, independent counsel and only occasionally partaking of the
standard academic fare.

It seems to escape the notice of some professional academics, and others, that
true followers of Jesus, both young and old, are already primarily theologians,
already leaders. Some lead behind the scenes. Others share reflections and
insights through writing or speaking. Some are pastors. Some are called to the
battlefront in politics and administration, in secular or spiritual realms.

Do you know of any seminary which has these issues on its radar screen? Where
do you find theological work being done to investigate and comprehend the ways
that spirituality informs and supplements medical practice? Given these
questions, and more, how do we identify and engage theologically informed
people who can help put the experience of the average believer in proper context?
Is it acceptable, or even possible, for one or two people to fill this role for a whole
congregation? What means is used to access the combined wisdom of the
community?

I submit that, for our day, the crucial need is for God’s people to pray against our
national and international schizophrenic behaviour and to pray that faithful
Christians quickly regain effective oversight and control of their theological
seminaries. We must protect them from interference from the secular authorities
of the university. The local church must be fully involved in the seminary
teaching and learning experience. Clergy must be prepared to chastise, exhort,
inspire and empower both parishioners and students under their charge.
Anything less falls short of their call as pastors of God's church.

Is your church part of the problem? Do your leaders preach freedom or legalism?
Are you part of God's solution? Do you follow Jesus, no matter what anyone says?
Have your leaders been trained to identify and empower people to use their gifts
and talents in both church and society?
It appears that churches with conservative, biblical agendas are growing.
Christians in Canada, and elsewhere, are showing signs of rising from a deep
slumber. We are beginning to realize that not a few of us are dealing with mental
illness. We are learning again the power of prayer and utter reliance on the blood
of Jesus as the only power effective against certain conditions. God's Word calls
us to pray and to rejoice without ceasing, even in the midst of our personal and
corporate struggles.

Popular opinion and political influence too easily push truth aside, at least until
disasters force belated adjustments. How do we cope with the frantic pace of life,
the constant bombardment by bad news, the instantaneous communication of
ideas on all conceivable subjects?

Only as Christians live and work together can we be of any value to God and His
World. Can we be really be inclusive and evangelistic, catholic and reformed,
orthodox and charismatic, faithful and post-modern? Is it possible to live out
such a convoluted faith? Do we concentrate on details at the expense of grasping
the overall picture?

Several years ago I heard a story of a godly woman who gave a testimony to a
group of believers. She had been paralyzed for years and was brought into the
gathering on a stretcher. Her disease left her with diminished and sometimes
blocked flow of blood through her body. In prophetic utterance, she compared
her physical health to the spiritual state of the Church, the Body of Christ Jesus.
She suggested that the barriers between different denominations actually
restricted the life-giving work of the Holy Spirit in His Church. She illustrated the
way we reinforce the separation of the spiritual from the worldly.

We know there are many valid historical and theological differences between us,
yet if we say we believe in one Lord, one faith and one baptism, we are compelled
by the love of Christ Jesus to find ways to remain in fellowship with all who love
Him.

I've worked for nearly 20 years in an evangelistic ministry setting. When I join
my brothers and sisters through the week I do not leave my church behind. I
represent my tradition and bring my heritage with me to work with and draw
upon as I serve the lost and encourage my co-workers. This includes all that I
have learned, whether from my own tradition, or that of a co-worker. Indeed
whenever Christians work together, God’s Church, both visible and invisible, is
truly present with all its warts and powers. It never has been confined within our
man-made denominations! People come to us on the understanding that we as
individuals have banded together to reach out to them with practical help. Many
come with struggles that go far beyond being resolved through physical or
material assistance. They often recognize their needs before we do. We struggle to
put them in a particular ministry category, and discern how we might proceed.

Considering the woeful state of many of our churches, it's a wonder that we are
able to survive and prosper. It's only by the amazing grace of God that He shows
us the Way. Some of our leaders are standing for God’s kingdom of righteousness
and the sifting is taking place.

Let us all return to speaking plainly about Jesus and the gospel. The
Lord is shaking His Church, moving His people in Spirit, truth and power. Our
God is able to heal even a schizophrenic people; He is mighty to save and the
gates of hell shall not prevail against His Church.

Let us live as Ones who truly believe in the Resurrection. Perhaps then our joy
shall be rekindled and overflow to our neighbours and
... Death shall lose its sting. Amen!