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Since 1987, when Prozac came onto the scene, depression has been openly discussed. Then, when Prozac's cohorts joined it, it has become a topic that has been discussed even more. Now, they have TV commercials for depression meds.
I was once reading a religious perspective on depression. This article said that it is the "work of the devil" and that a person had lost their faith and hope through Christ.
As if Christians aren't already dosed with a lot of guilt. I found this absurd. Mental health is a field of medicine of its own.
Please discuss the link between depression (mental health) and Christianity. Please do so by proffering concepts and arguments, and not quotations.
I think there were many characters in the bible who were quite depressed. One who comes to mind is Jeremiah, the weeping prophet.
I think Jesus was pretty depressed in the garden of Gethsemane. To make the human experience "taboo" just shows how extremely callous and cold religion can cause people to become.
When your dog or your child are run over by a bus, it just doesn't make sense for you to pretend like you are not upset about life's circumstances. There is such a thing as fake joy. You see fake joy on display sometimes in cult like situations.
If you are living in a place that is wiped out by a tsunami or a nuclear disaster such as in Japan, it is unrealistic to expect people who have been in such situations to act as if everything is just as it always was. Jesus himself said to some folks, "Do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and your children....". The scriptures also say to mourn with those who mourn and to rejoice with those who are rejoicing.
If psychology is of the devil, I guess there must not be any people in that field who believe in God or attend church? I get really tired of such lame-brained assertions.
I believe that there is a physical origin for some types of depression and I believe that just as medicine may be needed for other physical conditions, the same applies for some types of depression. This is not to say that it cannot be abused, but some people believe that is just a spiritual weakness. Just the other day a co- worker of mine was in a way belittling (imo) those who may take medication for some types of depression or other related conditions, and adamantly declared that she had once done this but had moved beyond this, trusting in God, yet she takes medication for high blood pressure. So I think that more people need to be educated on this. God bless and peace.
Last edited by ShanaBrown; 05-27-2012 at 05:16 AM..
It is necessary at the onset to differentiate between situational depression (caused by events) and clinical depression which is an affective spectrum disorder caused by a chemical imbalance. It can be genetically inherited.
But to claim that affective spectrum disorders are "the work of the devil" reflects the older belief that all disease is caused by Satan.
I don't think that most people maintain this earlier Christian belief.
YEs, I am sure that there are some kinds of depressions that are organic. Since people have things go wrong with their other organs, there's no reason to reject the idea that brain chemistry can get fouled up and be a cause of depression.
But the OP sounds like they want to deny that depression can be a result of ones beliefs and a lack of faith in God. For example: If a person believes that there is no life after death, or they are damned to hell, would it not be a logical thing to be depressed. If a person has a terminal disease, and it totally unsure of any hope of life after death, would it not make sense that the person would be depressed. If a young person is alone in the world, feeling unloved and unwanted, or even if their married, feeling rejected because the spouse abandoned them, is it not logical for them to be depressed. However, a person that has faith in God in all circumstances, hope in the resurrection, confidence that even if no person loves them, but God is with them and loves them, then that person is probably going to be able to handle the rejections of others and not be depressed. So yes, in many circumstances, faith and religion will help people through life.
Happy pills are no solution to most peoples problems. It just papers over the problem and gives them an artificial boost, like alcohol.
YEs, I am sure that there are some kinds of depressions that are organic. Since people have things go wrong with their other organs, there's no reason to reject the idea that brain chemistry can get fouled up and be a cause of depression.
But the OP sounds like they want to deny that depression can be a result of ones beliefs and a lack of faith in God. For example: If a person believes that there is no life after death, or they are damned to hell, would it not be a logical thing to be depressed. If a person has a terminal disease, and it totally unsure of any hope of life after death, would it not make sense that the person would be depressed. If a young person is alone in the world, feeling unloved and unwanted, or even if their married, feeling rejected because the spouse abandoned them, is it not logical for them to be depressed. However, a person that has faith in God in all circumstances, hope in the resurrection, confidence that even if no person loves them, but God is with them and loves them, then that person is probably going to be able to handle the rejections of others and not be depressed. So yes, in many circumstances, faith and religion will help people through life.
Happy pills are no solution to most peoples problems. It just papers over the problem and gives them an artificial boost, like alcohol.
Yet another uninformed and ridiculous assertion that mental illness can be "fixed" with belief. I can't even find the words. Depression or other illnesses ARE NOT nor will they ever have anything to do with "religion" or the lack thereof....two completely unrelated and separate issues.
There is no such thing as a "happy pill" when it comes to anti-depressants. First of all, they all take up to two weeks to get in your system and to have any effect......it's not instantaneous like a lot of people think and they have no "happy" effects. They simply bring you back in balance to a normal and healthy way of thinking and behaving.
As someone who suffers from bi-polar disorder, I am extremely offended by posts like this that suggest that there is something that an imaginary "god" can do and that's the only answer to mental illness. It is an ILLNESS just like any other, which requires medication and therapy. Does your God "heal" your friends or loved ones from cancer, MS, CF, Parkinson's or any of the other myriad of illnesses that are slowly killing people? No, he does not so why would you think that believing in a deity would "magically" heal someone suffering from depression? Absolutely positively insane type of thinking.....when will people educate themselves?
I was once reading a religious perspective on depression. This article said that it is the "work of the devil" and that a person had lost their faith and hope through Christ.
If that were true I should be seriously depressed because I don't understand faith especially blind faith. It's just not something in me.
It sounds like just another religious excuse when people can't accept the facts. Depression is a disease.
YEs, I am sure that there are some kinds of depressions that are organic. Since people have things go wrong with their other organs, there's no reason to reject the idea that brain chemistry can get fouled up and be a cause of depression.
But the OP sounds like they want to deny that depression can be a result of ones beliefs and a lack of faith in God. For example: If a person believes that there is no life after death, or they are damned to hell, would it not be a logical thing to be depressed. If a person has a terminal disease, and it totally unsure of any hope of life after death, would it not make sense that the person would be depressed. If a young person is alone in the world, feeling unloved and unwanted, or even if their married, feeling rejected because the spouse abandoned them, is it not logical for them to be depressed. However, a person that has faith in God in all circumstances, hope in the resurrection, confidence that even if no person loves them, but God is with them and loves them, then that person is probably going to be able to handle the rejections of others and not be depressed. So yes, in many circumstances, faith and religion will help people through life.
Happy pills are no solution to most peoples problems. It just papers over the problem and gives them an artificial boost, like alcohol.
RESPONSE:
But could a person be depressed precisely because some religious leader told him or her that if they didn't believe as they were told or behave as they were told they would burn in hell for all eternity?
In short, how much depression results from religious belief founded on misinformation?
This may be off topic a bit, but it seemed a good place to insert my own thoughts about mental illness, schizophrenia in particular. Because it seems to me that many of those exhibiting the symptoms of schizophrenia might have been "diagnosed" as possessed by demons way back when.
The cynical, the atheists, might consider that should we ever achieve a more complete understanding of the causes of and treatments for mental illness, particularly the severe ones like depression and schizophrenia, that we might find ourselves as humans no longer needing to believe in God.
I personally think they would be wrong, but that is an argument for a different thread.
As someone who suffers from bi-polar disorder, I am extremely offended by posts like this that suggest that there is something that an imaginary "god" can do and that's the only answer to mental illness. It is an ILLNESS just like any other, which requires medication and therapy. Does your God "heal" your friends or loved ones from cancer, MS, CF, Parkinson's or any of the other myriad of illnesses that are slowly killing people? No, he does not so why would you think that believing in a deity would "magically" heal someone suffering from depression? Absolutely positively insane type of thinking.....when will people educate themselves?
Ah ha!! So we finally get to it. You don't believe in God, so one wonders why you are asking this, asking it in a christian forum, and why you are asking for answers when you will obviously dismiss any answer that involves God.
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I found this absurd. Mental health is a field of medicine of its own.
Depression or other illnesses ARE NOT nor will they ever have anything to do with "religion" or the lack thereof....two completely unrelated and separate issues.
because I don't understand faith especially blind faith. It's just not something in me.
