The announcement that the government has appointed Life – opposed to abortion – to their new sexual health forum, replacing BPAS – abortion provider – is really positive news folks.
Peter has all the details, including the controversy this has kicked up.
UPDATE: The Christian Medical Fellowship have also picked up on this.
This is the seventh installment of my posts based on the book: Spirituality and Psychiatry, which was kindly sent to me by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
The first part can be found here, the second here, the third here, the fourth here, the fifth here and the sixth here.
This chapter rightly begins with emphasising that spirituality is not dependent on intellectual acumen.
This has played out in my own experience. I have an uncle who is severely intellectually disabled and I still remember vividly the humbling experience of talking to him about faith in Jesus. He surprised me by stating quite emphatically that he believed in Jesus and was a Christian. The fact this surprised me tells us more about my prejudice than anything else. He has a faith like a child, pure and certain, and in many respects puts my intellectualised faith to shame.
My wife and I spent a little time talking with him about faith issues and he absorbed the information like a sponge.
We encouraged him to attend church and he now goes and loves it. He is very fortunate to have a found a very welcoming and non-judgemental church. I thank God for them and for him.
The Scriptures make it clear that we are ALL fearfully and wonderfully made.
Those with intellectual disability may have major problems communicating their ideas, however, spirituality is not dependent on how it is expressed. Although, this can impede the ability to assess their spiritual needs and experiences.
This chapter touches on an issue I hadn’t given much consideration to, and that is the spiritual needs of the family. The author sounds this warning:
Pages 126 + 127
Families of people with intellectual disabilities often find that their own faith, beliefs and practices play an important role in coping with their relative’s impairment while dealing with social stigma and indifference.
[.....]
Persons with physical and mental disabilities, and their families, often turn to religious institutions for comfort and belonging. However, they are not always made welcome. Lack of knowledge and understanding leads to insensitivity, and congregations can be focused on the disability rather than relating to the person. Indeed, religious institutions sometimes fail to create the necessary accommodation for people with disabilities and even show covert signs of hostility to them. Possible reasons for this exclusion stem from the most ancient beliefs about the nature of disability.
The view of disability varies according to the social construct of disability within the prevailing culture. For us, what is important is to tease out the view of disability within the Christian culture. Scripture can be confusing on this subject and seems a little inconsistent. For example, we have Jesus forgiving a persons sin which cures their disability, and yet Jesus challenges the prevailing assumption that disability is the result of sin.
However, the Scriptures are clear, we are to love and care for the weak and the vulnerable and this overrides any other considerations. This IS our duty and the very outworking of our faith.
This should be what motivates us toward the individual and – just as importantly – towards the carers and families.
This chapter emphasises that psychiatrists are becoming increasingly interested in the area of spirituality as it is recognised that this has a positive link to health and well-being. It is becoming clear that science alone is not enough to provide a basis for understanding and caring for another human being.
The author laments the lack of research, training and funding in this area, as well as the time restraints for care givers, which is a shame given the benefits:
Page 133
….Evidence suggests that responding to the spirituality of people with intellectual disabilities can be rewarding for clients, their families and professional carers. Research has shown that although staff experienced initial difficulty in identifying with their role and doubted their own abilities to deliver, they discovered a sense of achievement and satisfaction when meeting client’s spiritual needs. It also gave staff a greater sense of cohesiveness and improved morale.
Bob Dylan is 70 and folks are paying tribute.
The first words from my sociology lecturer were a warning that in exams, quoting Bob Dylan lyrics no longer guaranteed you a high mark.
Huh?
Who’s Bob Dylan were our thoughts. I knew well who this Dylan was:
And now every single time I happen upon Bob Dylan, I think of the lecturer’s remarks.
Isn’t it strange the things we can’t forget…..or is just me…..uh-oh.
That was my once in a blue moon, random, obscure and pointless post. It won’t happen again for some time, I just needed to get it out of my system.
Headlines are abounding today such as this one from the Guardian:
Church of Scotland votes to allow gay and lesbian ministers
As usual things are a little more nuanced and complicated than first appearances.
For a comprehensive analysis on what took place yesterday at the Kirk, I suggest reading Peter Ould’s post.
And for more general commentary, hop over to the Grain of Sand blog.
I’ll let you know if I come across anything else of interest.
UPDATE: Peter Ould has just blogged on Changing Attitude misrepresenting the Kirk Sexuality Report.
As I’m out all day I thought I’d leave you with a couple of bits to keep you out of trouble.
Yesterday Marc Cortez linked to a piece in the Guardian by Jon Ronson, entitled: How to spot a psychopath. I thought this was enthralling and you might also if you’re weird like me.
Whilst on the subject of psychopaths – which seems to be everywhere at the moment – Talking Philosophy has an article comparing psychopaths with ethical egoists.
As I’m pilfering ideas from Marc, you might like to take a gander at the top ten myths about the brain.
Oh by the way, Fr. Tim Finigan of the Hermeneutic of Continuity blog, hit 3 million visitors yesterday. WOW!
This is the sixth installment of my posts based on the book: Spirituality and Psychiatry, which was kindly sent to me by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
The first part can be found here, the second here, the third here, the fourth here, and the fifth here.
Psychotherapy is a thorny issue within some spheres of the Christian community. I used to run a website and forum dedicated to Christians and mental illness, and as part of this service I featured many psychological articles, some of which majored on psychotherapy.
It was a constant source of surprise to me to be continually assailed by some Christian bloggers and websites vehemently opposed to all things psychotherapeutic. There are entire Christian websites dedicated to opposing psychology and psychiatry and they have no qualms in labelling the same as ‘satanic’. But psychotherapy came in for special derision.
Perhaps this is not so surprising when one considers the anti-Christian worldview of some psychotherapeutic pioneers, such as Freud and Jung.
(Caveat – I’m not suggesting that all modern Freudian or Jungian psychotherapies are antagonistic to Christianity. Of the analytical therapies, the Jungian approach has traditionally valued spiritual experience).
I’m going to sidestep the overview of psychotherapeutic approaches surveyed in this chapter, such as the Transpersonal Psychology approach, as I see little merit in reproducing them here, when they are so easily researched online.
In this chapter I particularly enjoyed the exploration of the relationship between spirituality and mental anguish, through the work of the poet John Clare (1793 – 1864). I’m not normally one for poems, but I think in the realm of mental illness they can be powerfully expressive.
Here is the poem entitled simply: I Am, written whilst Clare was confined to St Andrew’s County Lunatic Asylum:
I am—yet what I am none cares or knows;
My friends forsake me like a memory lost:
I am the self-consumer of my woes—
They rise and vanish in oblivious host,
Like shadows in love’s frenzied stifled throes
And yet I am, and live—like vapours tossedInto the nothingness of scorn and noise,
Into the living sea of waking dreams,
Where there is neither sense of life or joys,
But the vast shipwreck of my life’s esteems;
Even the dearest that I loved the best
Are strange—nay, rather, stranger than the rest.I long for scenes where man hath never trod
A place where woman never smiled or wept
There to abide with my Creator, God,
And sleep as I in childhood sweetly slept,
Untroubling and untroubled where I lie
The grass below—above the vaulted sky.
I going to leave it there for this chapter. I’m not going to reproduce any of the commentary on this poem, as I’d love to hear your thoughts, if this inspires any.
To tell you the truth, I’m quite getting into this poetry lark, but don’t tell anyone.
It never ceases to amaze His Grace: for every post he writes on just about any matter, there is usually reasoned consensus or intelligent criticism from diverse individuals who appreciate intelligent and erudite comment on matters religio-political. Yet when he writes about Israel, he receives insults and hate-mail (“Zionist Nazi”); his faith is called into doubt (“No Christian would…”); and otherwise silent communicants become rather assertive and dogmatic about the Lord’s perspective (“Jesus would never…”).
A few links I found interesting for one reason or another:
Messianic Jewish Musings – FAQ: The Sabbath and Gentiles
HomeBrewed Theology – Iranian Court Acquits 11 Christians
PsychCentral – The Link Between Creativity and Eccentricity
Lisa Graas – Netanyahu, New Leader of the Free World, Tells Obama it Ain’t Gonna Happen
Fr. Z – “It seemed like a good idea at the time….” – the new John Paul II “statue” in Rome
Michael Barber – The Sacred Page – has posted his second article in response to Dr Jim West’s questions for Catholics.
Michael tackles the Catholic understanding of the Saints and the common objections from Protestants, which can be found here.
The first article on ‘grace vs works’ can be found linked from here.
A forensic analysis of Friends of Sabeel UK (FOSUK) by Israelinurse over at CIFWatch, majoring on the influence they are exerting over some elements of the UK church. I commend this to your attention.
