A long time ago, when I acted as a Diocesan adviser to a Bishop on the paranormal, I sometimes met up with individuals who were convinced that they were oppressed by Satan or some demonic entity. The picture that unfolded, almost inevitably after some gentle probing, was that they had been part of a fundamentalist Christian group. There they were taught that they should always feel victorious and triumphant following their Christian conversion. The only interpretation that was being offered to them when they succumbed to a depressive episode was to suggest they were under demonic attack. This sort of attack was something all saved Christians might have to endure as a kind of test of their faith. I would tactfully suggest to them that their depression was nothing to do with evil or demons. In several of the psalms we see people feeling abandoned and depressed but never blaming evil entities. There is never a suggestion in the psalms that sadness, lament or a sense of defeat are somehow a sign of being attacked by supernatural evil forces.
In my writing about the musical culture of charismatic Christian worship, I have noted that there is in the worship songs a great deal about triumph, joy and victory that the Christian is supposed constantly to experience. The reality for any group of Christians is that there will always be a number who suffer from clinical depression. It may be that a depressed person finds his/her way to being in church precisely because they sense there may be there a promise of healing. For a few of these the constant cheerfulness and jollity of charismatic worship may help. I suspect that in fact for most depressed people in church, a sense of alienation from the dominant culture becomes acutely felt. There is little comfort in being told that you should be feeling one thing when you in fact feel the opposite. This may also be the message that is being delivered by so called ‘Christian Counselling.’
I have frequently spoken about the simple dualistic universe in which most conservative Christians live. On the one side there is God, angels, spiritual beings and the company of saved Christians that meet in their church and others like it. On the other side there are unsaved people, heretics and those who do not believe the doctrines of conservative Christianity. These are lumped together with demons and all the manifestations of evil in the world, alongside false beliefs and ideologies. The Christian who attends one of these ‘victorious’ churches knows which side of the divide he/she is on. They are on ‘the Lord’s side’ and this fact will eventually carry them through into the life of bliss of the world beyond. The depressed individuals will live in the same dualistic environment but there will be no certainty that victory belongs to them. Their sense of doubt about their salvation will be aggravated by a feeling that their lives have become a battleground between good and evil. This burden of uncertainty over their state of grace is one that will constantly prey on their minds. The thought is that because of their depression they are being oppressed by demonic forces. Because they are not sure which side is winning they fear for a loss of their salvation. This thought is one that can easily send a depressed Christian into a spiral of self-loathing and despair.
The text that seems to suggest that the world which Christians inhabit is a battleground between good and evil is Ephesians chapter 6.12. Here the Christian is to see his or her role as that of a soldier fighting a battle against ‘the rulers, the powers of this world and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms’. This verse is quoted constantly as a means of presenting Christianity as involving a struggle against supernatural evil. This military metaphor of Ephesians 6 is of course an important one. However, if it is overemphasised, we end up with a lopsided expression of the faith, one that is authoritarian, intolerant and potentially violent. The whole passage, taken out of the context of the whole of New Testament, could easily be a proposal for a Christian Jihad. The ‘powers of this dark world’ might be said to refer to members of whichever political party that you oppose. In an American context this might justify a declaration of war against liberals and Democrats. Certainly, one feels that American society has become far more polarised than we are in the UK. It could be claimed that dualistic Christianity has contributed to the vast increase of intolerance and lack of civility in political life that we see in that society. However we interpret and understand Ephesians 6, it is clear that this text can be and often is misused by groups of Christians.
To return to our Christian individual who suffers from severe depression. She/he feels incapable of fulfilling the role of being part of a triumphant joyful army fighting for God. We need a better metaphor if we are to help him/her. In the first place it needs to be explained that the militaristic language of Ephesians is just a metaphor. If this language is unhelpful, it is because this dualism it depicts is, to say the least, an incomplete picture of the faith. I will admit that the language of Ephesians 6 was extremely useful when composing spontaneous prayers in my role of Diocesan adviser. It is a simple declaration that God is greater and more powerful than anything that is in the mysterious world of the unknown. It was important then to express a strong sense of the reality of God’s armour in the face of strange happenings. The metaphor of battle has its place in Christian discourse but it should never be made a dominant one.
Depression and grief of various kinds are never to be regarded as signs of demonic oppression. The depressed person, and there are many of these, needs to feel that the church never abandons them or makes them in some way unclean. The church for its part needs to rediscover the Psalms of Lament. We need liturgies that explore creatively how the psalmist sometimes felt the full agony of abandonment and betrayal and other mental states similar to the state of depression. For the psalmist these were never part of demonic activity. Rather they were simply human experiences which can coexist with belief in God. The depressed person is never meant to carry extra burdens of a teaching that says that their illness has created some openness to evil spirits. That is completely unbiblical and immensely cruel to a sufferer. When we read a Psalm such as 143 we can join in with the writer as the words are spoken: Answer me quickly, O Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit…. Show me the way that I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. Rescue me from my enemies, O Lord, for I hide myself in you.
Oh, yes. Spot on, Stephen. Trevor Park gave a talk on violence in the liturgy. He meant in the language. Also of course, hymns. “In Christ alone” being a notable example. It is an act of violence to blame someone for their own depression.
It’s pretty shocking to hear of swathes of depressed people being made worse by abusive handling in church. In the very place they thought they might find help or even healing, instead they get proof texts and happy clappy.
It leaves me wondering where they should turn? You mentioned ‘Christian counselling’ but sounded dubious. What do you recommend for these poor souls?
You are so right, Stephen. Some churches want to live in ‘Great is thy faithfulness, morning by morning new mercies I see’ (based on Lam. 3:22-23) without ever going through ‘I am one who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath; he has driven and brought me into darkness without any light…’ (Lam. 3:1ff). That isn’t human nature, and not healthy. 2 Corinthians doesn’t get preached often, either: ‘we were so utterly, unbearably crushed that we despaired of life itself…’ (1:8).
When I was studying for my English degree we looked at the poet William Cowper, whose poem ‘The Castaway’ is a very powerful depiction of depression. Cowper was often completely disabled by this depression, and had episodes for the whole of his life. His hymn ‘O for a closer walk with God’ depicts the spiritual effects of his depression, but is not often sung now – especially in triumphalist churches. One of my tutors remarked that Cowper’s depressive nature would hardly have been helped by his close friendship with former slave ship captain John Newton (author of ‘Amazing Grace’), who was not a sensitive soul. I often bear this in mind when singing either hymn: neither tells the whole story.
I have learned to live with the fact that I’m capable of great highs and deep lows. I’m one of the lucky ones – some people don’t get the highs. It’s a shame that the Psalms have fallen out of regular use, and we are select about the ones we do use. They give a picture of the while range of human emotion which can be brought before God in worship.
Steve. the answer to your question is that depressed folk should be extremely wary of evangelical churches. The record of these according to a book by John Weaver, The failure of Evangelical Mental Health Care, varies from lamentable to destructive. There may be healthy churches in this tradition but until traditions like Jay Adams are thoroughly repented these churches represent Health and Safety hazards. ‘Christian Counselling’ is of concern to many professionals because of the insistence of placing guilt and sin on vulnerable people. ‘Nouthetic counselling’ which many follow is a dangerous travesty of care. I have written about miasma of ideas that are found in some churches in posts of 3+ years ago. Weaver’s book is expensive but is a must for anyone seriously interested in this topic.
Janet. Thank you for your comments. Like you I want to celebrate the Psalms as they allow one to affirm the existence of depression in a church culture that wants to be cheerful all the time. We need church and ministry to commemorate grief, failure and disaster as much as the positive emotions
Here here!
There was once a man named Chorister. He had been badly beaten and lay by the side of the road. All he had for companionship was a big black dog. The dog was so big and clumsy it had actually sat on Chorister and all you could see was his lily-white arms and a few tufts of hair sticking out.
Along came a worship leader who was wearing shades. So he didn’t notice the big black dog, but he did see the lily-white arms and wondered what this could mean. But as he looked closer, he realised the man had no “tats”. His suspicions were confirmed when he spotted strands of hair, some of which were grey. This dude was OVER THIRTY. Fortunately the dog shifted position, completely obliterated the man, and the disturbing images disappeared from sight. Hey man, it must have been a bad dream, he thought, and was on his way.
Next along the road came a vicar. He saw the huge black dog sitting on the man, and wondered why owners were not more responsible for their pets and he blamed the man for choosing such a big ugly pet. Reflecting that he himself was allergic to dogs, and had an important sermon to write, which must be of post-doctorate standard and grammatically perfect, he was quickly on his way.
Finally along the road came a third man. He was a Personal Injury Lawyer. He held the dog by its collar gently lifting him away from Chorister. The lawyer saw how hurt Chorister was and offered him a helping hand. “Tell me everything that happened to you, and I will listen and do everything in my power to ensure that whoever did this to you is brought to justice. And then I will try to get you some compensation to help pay for your wounds to be treated and your dog to be tamed and lose some weight. Then you may be able to handle him better. I’ll put my reputation on the line for you.” Chorister stood for the first time in ages, and staggered to a place of safety.
And He said: “Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man?”
Steve, I really like your parable. Well written.
I hope the big black dog has indeed been tamed and is being a bit nicer to its owner.
Thanks Janet
When I was a card carrying Evangelical, the evangelical machine used selective use of scripture to pin one against the wall. Now these days’ musical chairs and turning tables make me dizzy.
Today, it is hard to know what the Anglican Church stands for?
Just think for a minute, you believe that homosexuality and lesbianism are against the will of God, where is the toleration for that view today? I would suggest that it is increasingly becoming dangerous to hold that belief, I personally, wish I could ignore the scripture and tradition around that belief, but I cannot. David Starkey has made some very interesting comments on this recently; take a look at him on, “Question Time” (YouTube).
The whole concept of ‘Satanic oppression’ is equally becoming marginalized and seen as just another form of mental illness. Babies and bathwater litter the stage.
That is why (For me at least) the idea of ‘Magisterium’ is attractive. Without that authority (I hope I use that word sensitively) where is the evidence that Christ has “Built His church,” not man?
I have found Christian Counselling extremely dangerous. I once had 4 sessions with a Christian counselor, only to find out on my last appointment that she was a, Calvinist.
The problem with saying that a mental illness is Satan comes partly when people are refused treatment, or encouraged to stop what they have been prescribed. Keeping folk away from something that might help them can’t be God’s will. Likewise, having a problem with people being gay, shouldn’t lead to violence or prejudice. And if you buy in to what one individual instructs you to do, what if they are mistaken? God is love. We mustn’t stray from that. Some people who are ill are treated in a very unloving way. Probably because other people are afraid of it. Nice to hear from you again, Chris. And how is David Pennant?
Thanks English Athena,
Thank you for enquiring about David. There has been some improvement he has taken a few steps but, remains very weak.
I remain confused and very concerned about the amount of personal interpretation that many modern church leaders exhibit.It is the skipping down the primrose path to worshiping ones own conclusions that I find deeply troubling. From my perspective the fact that a church can ordain Don Cupitt who was an atheist, is terminally mad!
The lower working class from whose ranks I am proud to have come, would rightly see that as the, “Old Boy, network!”?