Mental Wellness

Do not approach the Lord with a divided mind. (Wisdom of Sirach 1:28)

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. (Mark 12:30)

It is not a subject that many people are comfortable talking about. Fortunately, thank God, that is changing.  But there is still a stigma, partially due to ignorance and partially due to fear.  If we are willing to confront both of these obstacles with Truth, then we can have a meaningful conversation about mental wellness.

Note that I am starting from a place of health, because that is where God is.  When we start from a place of sickness or abnormality, it literally infects the conversation from the very start and limits our ability to trust that God is in the midst of whatever situation we are facing.  This is not easy, especially for those of us who have dealt with those suffering from illnesses of the mind, like depression, schizophrenia or addiction.  It is impossible to be rational with someone not thinking rationally, which can be extremely frustrating. But we cannot allow ourselves to believe that God is not present, even to those who seem so lost.

When we start with the premises that 1) we are ALL beloved children of God and 2) the Realm of God is marked by complete health and wellness, it follows that it is incumbent upon us to do all we can to offer help and support (while not enabling bad behavior) to those who suffer from mental illnesses.  Yes, it can be strange and awkward to talk with someone who experiences the world very differently from ourselves, but we must always remember to respect their dignity and treat them as worthy of our time and energy.

For a couple of years, we have been invited to offer worship at the Trenton Psychiatric Hospital for their Thursday Evening Worship Service.  While our style of worship does not offer much interaction, it is always a joy to sing with those gathered, especially old favorites like “This little light of mine.”  Yes, the patients present have been referred there due to some mental illness and they are not allowed to leave. Yes, they don’t participate or respond in the same way that a “regular” congregation does, but that only enhances the experience for me.  Yes, it is difficult to engage them in conversation afterward, but the attempt is appreciated by the staff to treat these fragile, broken people with respect.
And it allows us an opportunity to talk more about mental wellness in our own contexts with a bit more authenticity.  We may not have the answers of how to “fix” these individuals, but we are willing to risk loving our neighbor as ourselves rather than relegating them to a corner and forgetting about their existence. 

The situations of many of these individuals goes beyond more people’s experience of mental illness, but most of us will experience depression or grief or disappointment at some point in our lives.  I found it fascinating the Princes William and Harry (yes, Princess Diana’s sons), are now using their position in English society to talk openly about the difficulties they have had of dealing with their mother’s tragic death because no one would talk about it.  If a culture is concerned with mental wellness, we need to be willing to engage in those difficult conversations with those who are grieving (or depressed or dealing with a trauma, etc.) and allow them space to be.  Burying those feelings may work for a time, but eventually they will need to be dealt with in a productive manner, or the situation will get worse. 

Can the Church take her place in this process and allow mental wellness to be a sign of the Realm of God?  I hope and pray we can.  By allowing such space, perhaps it will allow healing to occur before more serious problems can develop.  The need is urgent.  We just need to be willing to listen – not fix – listen to the pain of others and love them through it.

In Christ,

Rev. Valerie+   

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