A picture of one of the Jesus Camp kids, courtesy of Rottentomatoes.comI just got back from a really wonderful Alumni/ae Day at my dear old Harvard Divinity School where I was fortunate enough to study theology, pastoral care and religious education. One of the cool things that happened was a screening of the documentary film Jesus Camp that profiles an evangelical youth minister in Missouri and some of the children who she is seeking to transform into spiritual warriors for Christ. I highly recommend that every one, particularly every Baha'i who reads this post, should go out and rent this film and get some friends together and watch it. I don't want to spoil it so will just provide a really brief summary to wet your appetite. The film is bookended by the political struggle over the appointment of Judge Samuel Alieto to the Supreme Court and its implications for the future of abortion. Within this context we are introduced to a variety of key figures in the drama that unfolds, the charismatic female youth minister who runs the "camp", a radio host who thunders about the dangers represented by the "religious right" and a boy and a girl who both embody what the camp is intended to create, children who are devoted and righteous disciples of Christ who will hopefully win their generation for the Lord. There are several really interesting moments where these two children offer personal testimony of their faith and how it shapes their view of the world. You get to see these children at home, in social settings (the girl at one point asks Jesus to help her with her bowling) and of course at the camp. The camp is an intense example of children's education and has almost a boot camp feel to it. You get to see children preaching, which if you haven't seen is pretty powerful and involved in ecstatic, highly emotional prayer. It is riveting to watch if a bit disturbing at some moments.
Watching this film made me reflect on some of the previous writing I've done on what constitutes mature religious faith. You can read some of that here and here. It also got me thinking about how that may relate mental health, which is my other passion in life. As I've said before, mature religious faith involves a balance between integrity and flexibility, the maintenance of which is actually written into the very constitution of the Universal House of Justice. It occurred to me that what I refer to as integrity and flexibility in a spiritual sense is what some psychologists refer to as ego strength and adaptability. Ego strength as I understand it involves the capacity of the ego to maintain its "shape" if you will in the face of internal and external stressors, as well as its ability to perform functions essential to a healthy mind. One of these functions is adaptability, namely the capacity to make changes according to the diverse needs the dynamic reality of between self, others, and the world. Both mature faith and mental health demand balance and it is the absence of such balance which is manifest as both spiritual and psychological pathology. Certain forms of religious fundamentalism could be understood as a psychological defense against the perceived threat of disintegration of the ego by hostile internal and external stressors. As such it is an attempt at adaptation, that is spiritually immature and should evoke compassion rather than contempt. It would not surprise me if both the children and adults featured in this film would exhibit signs of mental health difficulties if I met them in person. Understand that I am making a psychospiritual assessment and not a moral judgment as to them being "good" or "bad" people because of their beliefs, attitudes or behavior. As someone about to work on his doctorate, I will hopefully have a chance to explore these ideas further, but I'll stop for now.
So all you people interested in religion and/or psychology, what do you think?
Phillipe, you say: "Certain forms of religious fundamentalism could be understood as a psychological defense against the perceived threat of disintegration of the ego by hostile internal and external stressors." I believe I have seen this exact principle in action and it is a scary, chilling thing to behold. It does evoke compassion, and also a sincere desire to further understand how we can improve our ability to be the instrument through which the healing message of Baha'u'llah is applied to all ailments, in whatever measure is appropriate for the situation.
ReplyDeleteI am also fascinated by the examination of the relationship(s) that exist between our various "healths" (mental, spiritual, physical, emotional, etc.) I believe that our very concept of what is and is not "healthy" is clouded by the challenges of achieving, let alone maintaining ANY kind of health in these trying times.
In the Hidden Words, Baha'u'llah says, "The healer of all thine ills is remembrance of Me, forget it not." When I look at this assertion, my eye is drawn like a magnet to the word "all"...
Mad props to both of you, Phillipe and Liz! I admire both of you for demonstrating compassion and detachment in this highly emotionally charged subject. I heard about this documentary when it first came out, and my oldest daughter went to see it when it showing in San Francisco. Her assessment was that the children and the camp director were "really, really scary, as in out-of-control trancemedium crazy".
ReplyDelete(That's new age talk for people who leave their bodies on an energy and allow some other entity to temporarily take over physical functioning.)
I haven't seen the movie yet. And I'm hesitant to see it because I grew up in mostly Baptist churches, and I witnessed a lot of what my daughter saw in the documentary. One youth minister did want to start a similar type of camp when I lived in Tacoma, Washington. I became unbelievably alarmed, and quit attending services at that church.
I don't know how the two of you do it, but I'm following your lead on how to deal with fundamentalists. I have yet to develop the neutrality to their words and actions and the compassion that seems to be required to interact with them. So I'll keep praying for assistance, reading the Writings and hoping that the two of you will share how you deal with the "scary" folks.
Thanks Liz and Angela for jumping right into the water on this one. You are both so articulate and thoughtful, if we ever started a blog together it would be out of this world, actually if Los Angelista and Malik were in the crew, man oh man.
ReplyDeleteIt's important to remember that "they" are "us". I'm describing human tendencies which Baha'is are also highly vulnerable to. Our faith is not some kind of vaccine against fundamentalism, it is a framework that increases the likelihood that we can achieve the balance that distinguishes what I'm calling mature faith, a balance which is consistent with the overall maturation of human consciousness and civilization which is the whole point of the time in which we are living. Everyone is dealing with the challenges of this painful transition for spiritual and social adolescence into adulthood. Think about it this way, people like this may seem scary to you, but you also seem scary to them. It's the power of the love of God that makes unity in diversity truly possible.
Let's keep this going and watch this film. Watch it today.
My question is more about the use of the word "ego" in psychology and in the Writings. I wonder if it is used in fundamentally different ways, or it it is similar, because I think that has implications for the way we might interpret the Writings.
ReplyDeleteWhat a complex and fascinating topic!
ReplyDeleteI am the first Bahá'í in my family and most of them seem to think that religion it a mental illness, a sort of crutch for the weak!
Personally I don't agree with that viewpoint. I have seen mentally ill people who are obsessive with religion but that sort of thing seems different to those who have a religion and a mental illness. The former seem to focus on one area of their religion obsessively and forget much of the rest, giving a total lack of perspective. The latter seem to draw some strength and comfort from their religion while they deal with their illness.
When I was at university I met many born-again Christians. Most seemed joyful people inspired by the love of Jesus but there were a few who seemed to put their fear of the devil before all else and that seemed to be their whole focus. They were anxious and not joyful.
Do you know if the film "Jesus Camp" is available outside the USA?
Pauline
since the topic is religious fundamentalism I thought you'd be interested in this...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050807R.shtml
A Crusade and a Holy War in the US Military
By Jason Leopold
t r u t h o u t | Report
Tuesday 08 May 2007
An Orthodox Jew and former petty officer in the US Navy said his civil rights were violated after a chaplain and officials at a Veterans Administration hospital in Iowa City, Iowa, tried to convert him to Christianity while he was under the VA's care.
Pauline, sorry that your relatives appear to have a negative attitude toward religion, but that is all too familiar these days. I'm sure that this movie is available outside to US, though I don't know how you would go about see it. If you click on the link I included in the text, it will take you straight to the official website which might have the information you are looking for.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, I am aware of the case that you've mentioned and have read some other things about such allegations. The line between simply sharing the beauty of one's faith in a spirit of generosity, and seeking to impose one's beliefs is sometimes bright and clear and other times invisible as a spider's web. This is why faith has to be a process of dialog based on love and unity among people.
As a Licensed Mental Health Clinician, I find myself more interested in the psychological portion of this piece. I, too, believe that the individual must find balance. How mental health professionals may look at achieiving balance may depend largely on his or her theoretical orientation. These days I tend to take more of a holistic approach (mental/emotional, spiritual, physical) with my patients. I try to maintain a balance across those domains. Balance may have a different meaning for a clinician using a psychodynamic approach. However, I think we all are trying to achieve the same result.
ReplyDeleteI've never given much thought to the topic of religious fundamentalists. As a clinician, I guess I would be most interested in the cognitive distortions they maintain relative to their religious beliefs.
Phil L.
Pauline,
ReplyDeleteThe movie is available for purchase on Amazon's UK site:
amazon . co . uk