One in 4 Americans suffers from some kind of mental illness in any given year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Many look to their church for spiritual guidance in times of distress. But they’re unlikely to find much help on Sunday mornings.
Most Protestant senior pastors (66 percent) seldom speak to their congregation about mental illness.
That includes almost half (49 percent) who rarely (39 percent) or never (10 percent) speak about mental illness. About 1 in 6 pastors (16 percent) speak about mental illness once a year. And about a quarter of pastors (22 percent) are reluctant to help those who suffer from acute mental illness because it takes too much time.
Assisting those affected
Those are among the findings of a recent study of faith and mental illness by Nashville-based LifeWay Research. The study, co-sponsored by Focus on the Family, was designed to help churches better assist those affected by mental illness.
Researchers surveyed 1,000 Protestant pastors about how their churches approach mental illness. Researchers then surveyed 355 Protestant Americans diagnosed with an acute mental illness — either moderate or severe depression, bipolar or schizophrenia. Among them were 200 church-goers. A third survey polled 207 Protestant family members of people with acute mental illness.
The study found pastors and churches want to help those who experience mental illness. But those good intentions don’t always lead to action.
“Our research found people who suffer from mental illness often turn to pastors for help,” said Ed Stetzer, executive director of LifeWay Research.
“But pastors need more guidance and preparation for dealing with mental health crises. They often don’t have a plan to help individuals or families affected by mental illness and miss opportunities to be the Church.”
Only a quarter of churches (27 percent) have a plan to assist families affected by mental illness, according to pastors. And only 21 percent of family members are aware of a plan in their church.
Few churches (14 percent) have a counselor skilled in mental illness on staff or train leaders how to recognize mental illness (13 percent), according to pastors.
Two-thirds of pastors (68 percent) say their church maintains a list of local mental health resources for church members. But few families (28 percent) are aware those resources exist.
Family members (65 percent) and those with mental illness, (59 percent) want their church to talk openly about mental illness so the topic will not be a taboo. But 66 percent of pastors speak to their church once a year or less on the subject.
That silence can leave people feeling ashamed about mental illness, said Jared Pingleton, director of counseling services at Focus on the Family. They can experience feelings of alienation from others or failure for not being able to overcome it.
“We can talk about diabetes and Aunt Mable’s lumbago in church — those are seen as medical conditions,” he said. “But mental illness — that’s somehow seen as a lack of faith.”
Most pastors say they know people who have been diagnosed with mental illness. Nearly 6 in 10 (59 percent) have counseled people who were later diagnosed.
And pastors themselves aren’t immune from mental illness. About a quarter of pastors (23 percent) say they’ve experienced some kind of mental illness while 12 percent say they received a diagnosis for a mental health condition.
But those pastors often are reluctant to share their struggles, said Chuck Hannaford, a clinical psychologist and president of HeartLife Professional Soul-Care in Germantown, Tenn.
Hannaford counsels pastors in his practice and said many — if they have a mental illness like depression or anxiety — won’t share that information with the congregation.
Those with mental illness also can be hesitant to share their diagnosis at church. Michael Lyles, an Atlanta-based psychiatrist, said more than half his patients come from an evangelical Christian background.
“The vast majority of them have not told anybody in their church what they were going through, including their pastors, including small group leaders, everybody,” Lyle said.
Stetzer said what appears to be missing in most church responses is “an open forum for discussion and intervention that could help remove the stigma associated with mental illness.”
Researchers asked those with mental illness about their experience in church.
A few — 10 percent — say they’ve changed churches because of how a particular church responded to their mental illness. Another 13 percent ether stopped attending church (8 percent) or could not find a church (5 percent). Among regular churchgoers with mental illness, about half (52 percent) say they have stayed at the same church. Fifteen percent changed churches while 8 percent stopped going to church and 26 percent said, “Don’t know.” More than half (53 percent) say their church has been supportive.
Biblical examples
Pingleton pointed out that many biblical characters suffered from emotional struggles. And some, were they alive today, would likely be diagnosed with mental illness.
“The Bible is filled with people who struggled with suicide or were majorly depressed or bipolar,” he said. “David was totally bipolar. Elijah probably was as well. They are not remembered for those things. They are remembered for their faith.”
(LifeWay)
The study, along with a guide for pastors on how to assist those with mental illness and other downloadable resources, is posted at ThrivingPastor.com/MentalHealth.
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