According to research conducted by Barna across 25 countries, 40% of adults ages 18-35 struggle with anxiety, loneliness, and isolation. Many of these young people who are plagued by mental health concerns sit in our pews at church every weekend.
Nevertheless, many Christians, including some influential pastors, are not only suspicious of mental health interventions such as medication and therapy, but actively campaign against them.
“If your pastor attends therapy regularly, he’s unfit for the pulpit,” one pastor recently tweeted. “If your pastor tells you to seek the world’s advice over Scripture, he’s unfit for the pulpit. If your pastor tells you God’s Word is sufficient—you stay at that church and invite everyone you know!”
Similarly, when another pastor publicly advocated for pastors regularly going to therapy, another pastor questioned, “What planet are you from and who sent you to destroy churches?”
Arguments against the benefits of therapy and other mental health interventions are often rooted in the theological doctrine of “the sufficiency of Scripture.” Some see the study and practice of psychology as fundamentally at odds with the wisdom of Scripture or as a godless form of “human wisdom.”
In this case, the sufficiency of Scripture is so narrowly defined that it excludes and denies the benefits of research-driven therapy methodologies and medications aimed at decreasing the symptoms of common mental illnesses.
As an alternative, a number of these anti-therapy theologians advocate for “biblical counseling.”
Biblical counseling is defined as “the process where the Bible…is related individually to a person or persons who are struggling under the weight of personal sin and/or the difficulties with suffering, so that he or she might genuinely change in the inner person to be pleasing to God.”
Looking at this definition, biblical counseling sounds a lot like good, old-fashioned Christian discipleship, which could offer benefits not only in terms of personal sanctification but good mental hygiene as well.
However, in practice, biblical counseling is often offered in lieu of psychological treatment, is conducted by individuals who are not trained mental health professionals, and often falls into the trap of framing mental health concerns such as anxiety or depression in terms of sin and obedience rather than as a complex cross section of neurological, social, and emotional factors.
While Christians may benefit from engaging in biblical counseling, in my view, to present it as the only option for faithful Christians struggling with mental health concerns is not only unwise, but unsafe.
Here are three dangers present when a pastor espouses anti-therapy rhetoric.
A Danger to Themselves
When pastors cut themselves off from the wisdom provided by mental health professionals, many of whom are Christians and practice psychology in a way that is congruent with biblical convictions, they reject resources that could keep them from mental health crises of their own, which could result in burnout, moral failure, or worse.
Being a pastor is a stressful job. This has always been true, but it has increasingly become the case as a result of the pandemic, social unrest, and other pressures that weigh on the hearts and minds of ministers. Therapy can help.
Pastors who wish to do ministry in a way that is healthy, sustainable, and ensures that they stay in it for the long haul should heed the reality that while mental health has a spiritual component, seminary training does not sufficiently equip someone to rise to every mental health challenge that may come their way.
Pastors and ministry leaders who are unable to remain open to mental health treatments, including therapy, will become a danger to themselves.
They will also become a danger to others.
A Danger to Those in Their Flock Struggling With Mental Health
Social stigma has long surrounded issues of mental health, preventing myriad people from getting the help they need. Thankfully, much of this stigma has begun to melt away in recent years, as many organizations and individuals have worked tirelessly to normalize mental health practices such as going to therapy.
However, in the midst of that progress, some pastors and church leaders have sought to reintroduce stigma, heaping shame on those who struggle with their mental health and accusing them of having weak faith or unconfessed sin.
This kind of rhetoric binds the consciences of everyday Christians and keeps them from taking steps to get healthy. For some, this causes them to reach a point where their mental illness can quite literally become life-threatening.
According to data from 2020, one person in America dies by suicide every 11.5 minutes. There were 45,979 suicide deaths in America in 2020 alone.
As foundational as the Bible is to the faith and life of every Christian, merely quoting Bible verses to people in the midst of a mental health crisis is not enough to address this epidemic. If it were, Instagram would have solved it years ago.
People need help from trained mental health professionals. Many of them need ongoing therapy. Shaming Christians for seeking potentially life-saving treatment is fundamentally at odds with the responsibilities of a pastor.
A Danger to Our Witness
Jesus once said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).
Through the millennia, Christians have taken deep solace in these words. Jesus presents himself as the ultimate place of comfort and safety to people walking through the darkest moments of their lives.
Conversely, some pastors, by their embittered rejection and ridicule of basic mental health practices like therapy, present themselves and their churches as fundamentally unsafe and unkind.
Yes, Jesus is the answer. Yes, Scripture offers wisdom and comfort to people who are struggling with mental health. But God has also given us common grace. As a result, we have available to us trained mental health professionals who are passionate about helping people become and stay healthy.
To reject this grace is itself ungracious. And it does not model the heart of Jesus to our churches or to the world.
*This article was written by Dale Chamberlain and was posted on <a href="https://churchleaders.com/wellness/440823-3-dangers-present-when-pastors-espouse-anti-therapy-rhetoric.html" target="_blank">churchleaders.com</a>.