Ministering To The Depressed
An estimated fifteen million Americans suffer from serious depression. Many are church members.
Enos D. Martin
April 1, 1981
Throughout all the ages depression has plagued mankind. Nebuchadnezzar's tortured nights of sleeplessness, Lincoln's suicidal ruminations, Churchill's "black dog" moods-the dark thread of depression is woven throughout history. It has beset rich and poor, strong and weak, believers and nonbelievers.
Depression undermines the lives of those closest to us: our neighbors, our friends, our families. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that seven to fifteen million Americans suffer from serious depressive symptoms. Only ten percent seek help from mental health professionals; the rest either don't know depression can be treated, or fear that it implies weakness or mental deficiency.
Pastors are an extremely important resource for their depressed parishioners; people who need help with problems turn more often to the clergy than to any other professional.
An understanding of depression is formulated by the way a pastor perceives and responds to a depressed person.
Roots of Depression
Some pastors espouse a spiritual explanation. To many, despair and depression are linked to unbelief and sin. Treatment for this sin is spiritual: one repents, and renews his or her faith in God. But there are those sincere Christians who, though they confess all known sins, remain depressed. Exhortation to return to God only adds to their depression.
Other pastors believe depression is primarily psychological. They feel it most often stems from internalized anger. They see self-expression as the remedy, and tell the person that to feel better he must "get the anger out." Although anger is a prominent part of depression and expressing it can be helpful, openly expressing anger violates certain persons' sense of self-control, sharpens their ...
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