The Church as a Hospital
C. Carl Wilson, DBH, LPCC, CADC
DBH Faculty at Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies
January 9, 2020
There are many scriptures in the Judeo-Christian bible that reference the physical and spiritual body of the church as a place of safety, refuge and healing for the sick, wounded, hurt and lost. The church is supposed to act as a hospital: a place of help, hope and healing for all manner of diseases. Suicidal thoughts and behaviors affect people of every race, ethnicity, age, culture, and faith. (Hedegaard, Curtin & Warner, 2018). This is not a subject we can hide from any longer.
For years, spiritual places of worship have ignored and demonized the person of faith living with mental health issues and disorders. The solution in the past until more recently has been: If we ignore it, maybe it will go away. The problem with this response and thought process is counterintuitive to what the place of worship is supposed to be. As a place of help, hope and healing, we must allow for open, honest and transparent conversations without judgement. There is no way to have one without the other. In the early stages of my training as a behavioral scientist, I was surprised to find Judeo – Christian values threaded throughout theories of counseling. Unconditional positive regard (UPR), a concept developed by renowned American psychologist Carl Rogers, is the basic acceptance and support of a person regardless of what the person says or what they have done in the past. UPR is a principal found in the context of client-centered therapy (Rogers, 2003). Unconditional positive regard is one approach to therapy that always resonated with me. It is an attribute Christ demonstrated throughout his earthly life.
The mental health community has the right idea about providing a safe, non-judgmental environment where patients can drop their guard and discuss hard issues, they face every day. The mental health professionals have it right when it comes to addressing systemic issues that prevent and or impede the patient’s ability to move toward a healthier, well balanced version of who they are. What the mental health professionals leave out of this equation is the spiritual component that make up this whole person. When treating people of faith, mental health professionals should use the patient’s faith as a tool to move the patient forward and get them unstuck. Faith can be a protective factor against suicide.
Mental health professionals and faith leaders working together can bridge the gap between these two communities which are often at odds. The faith and mental health community share this common goal of helping people. As a voice for those who cannot heal, defend, feed, clothe or care for the orphan and widow, the church is responsible for meeting these needs. The church should be a safe place and the first line of defense for addressing the mental health issues within today’s world.
References
Mason, K. (2014). Preventing suicide: a handbook for pastors, chaplains, and pastoral counselors. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
Hedegaard, H., Curtin, S. C., & Warner, M. (2018). Suicide mortality in the United States, 1999–2017. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Surgeon General, & National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention. (2012, September). 2012 national strategy for suicide prevention: Goals and objectives for action. Washington, DC: HHS.
Retrieved from https://www.surgeongeneral.
Mason, K., Geist, M., & Clark, M. (2017). A developmental model of clergy engagement with suicide. Omega – Journal of Death and Dying. doi: 10.1177/003022281771328
Rogers, C., (2003). Client-Centered Therapy: Its Current Practice, Implications, and Theory Constable & Robinson Ltd
World Health Organization (2019) Mental Health, Retrieved September 26, 2019 from
https://www.who.int/mental_
