Being all-inclusive IS being Christ-like
In any given year, more than 25% of Americans are diagnosed with some form of mental illness. And of that number, 25% seek help from their church before anyone else, including psychiatrists or other medical/mental health professionals. Yet despite the clergy members' role to provide guidance for the
"members of their flock", research shows that they refer less than 10% of those with serious mental illness to a professional that can help them. Unfortunately, this issue is only one symptom of a larger "sickness" affecting organized religion.
I have written at length about the history of the Christian church, specifically that it is an institution
created by man, rather than by Christ. Indeed, much of The Two Agreements discusses Christ's true
intention when he called people together to reconnect with Source. As always, I qualify this by saying that, regardless of their origins, churches have done much good for the world. On the other hand, they do discriminate and show prejudice toward the less fortunate, including the mentally ill. As they believe
in separation between humanity and the Creator, they also believe in such a hierarchy among humans.
And like many other organizations seeking to maintain a positive public image, they want only the
beautiful, contributing, and successful people in their congregations. This is not a new story. These same
churches proclaim that imitating Christ is a person's most important pursuit; yet, just as those in Christ's
day criticized Him for healing lepers and "consorting" with prostitutes, modern churches seek to exclude
and/or marginalize those suffering from mental illness. In fact, many people are afraid to even let their
clergy or fellow congregants know about their mental illness because of the church's view on such
matter. "Christianity puts us at war with our own body and mind, and teaches us not to question church
doctrine for fear of losing favor with God. To question church authority as it presently exists brings up
fear of heresy."
The only way to change this is for each of us to truly follow Christ's teachings; namely by adopting a personal faith system that is all-inclusive, regardless of one's physical, mental, or societal "shortcomings". Nothing less will work for us individually, or for society at large.
the two agree fb pg http://bit.ly/the2agree S.L. Brannon on DBSA Life Unlimited web site
http://bot.ly/1kEBzlZ
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