"How Do You Distinguish between Religious Fervor and Mental Illness?

It's not meant as insult to believers; the two states of mind can share many similar characteristics ....

It’s not just the ambiguities of mental health diagnoses that create this problem—the vague nature of how we define religion further complicates matters. For example, the Church of Scientology argued with the Internal Revenue Service for years to be classified as a charitable religious organization and to qualify for tax-exempt status. The Church eventually won this battle in 1993, a major step towards becoming a mainstream American religion.

According to Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Lawrence Wright, Scientologists believe in alien spirits inhabiting human bodies. Many believe they have special powers, like telekinesis and telepathy.

This puts mental health professionals in a tricky, cultural bind. Before 1993, should mental health professionals have treated patients expressing these beliefs as psychotic? After 1993, as faithful adherents?

These distinctions carry profound medical and legal implications. In his book Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith, journalist Jon Krakauer chronicled the case of Utah v. Lafferty, which addressed the 1984 killings of a woman and a child by two Mormon fundamentalists, Ron and Dan Lafferty. Over the last several decades, the question of Ron Lafferty’s mental health has played a key role in the case, as both sides have battled over his competency to stand trial.

The defense has argued that Ron is mentally ill and therefore should not be put to death. In interviews, Ron has claimed to be a prophet, endorsed hearing the voice of Christ, and expressed fears about “an evil homosexual spirit trying to invade his body through his anus.” Psychiatric experts have testified that Ron appeared to suffer from a psychotic illness, such as schizoaffective disorder.

The prosecution has sought to uphold his competency to stand trial, relating his bizarre ideas to religious practices worldwide. In the words of Dr. Noel Gardner, a psychiatrist who testified for the prosecution, “the majority of people in our country believe in God. Most people in our country say they pray to God. It’s a common experience. And while the labels that Mr. Lafferty uses are certainly unusual, the thought forms themselves are really very common…to all of us.”

A local news column from 2013 summed up the complexities of this ongoing case—“Where is the line between faith and delusion? Between malice and mental illness?”

These are tough questions. The practices of Scientology and Mormon fundamentalism are far from the only examples of this oft-blurred line between religion and mental health care. Virtually every religion has unusual beliefs and rituals, from consuming the flesh and blood of Christ in Catholicism to fasting as a way of atoning for sins in Judaism."

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/mind-guest-blog/how-do-you-distinguish-between-religious-fervor-and-mental-illness/

Ah, Amy, criminal defense when there is 100,% that their client did it will always if not most times say my client is not guilty due to mental illness because they know that people only know depression and not bi polar, schizo,psychotic etc.
When you know mental illness, you know when they are or not. Part of it, a major part of it is if theyare not homeless and they are dirty. Another part is if they :-(ave been arrested by the cops and show up 2 months later with a big bag of drugs. These religious pedophilesknow exactly what they are doing. Exactly. Bastards.

Mental illness is what those with religious fervor claim others have in order to take the focus off of themselves. It is also what your lawyer claims when you have no other defense and clearly did the deed, precisely because distinguishing between mental illness and religious fervor is like shooting at a moving target at best or trying to nail jello to the wall at worst.

Believing the unbelievable with fervor is the very definition of the largest part of our society, so, if everyone is doing it then it is the norm and how can the norm be mental illness? Oh,yeah . . .Utah.

The short version:

People in a religious ferver talk shit.

People in a mental ferver eat shit.

Hyper religiosity is a sign of mental illness. It has a crazy manic nature and is usually not the person's normal behavior. Having seen it often enough, it is very far removed from what one generally sees from very religious people (even radicalized religious people).

That was one of the major turnoffs for my children and me when we were church shopping.

Some of the evangelical churches were the worst for the hyper fervent type worshipers that gravitated to them.

Some were most irrational. I didn't feel safe worshiping in such places with my family.

"He was so common-sensed and down to earth that he had to be committed, for his own good," said no one, ever.

Mentally ill people claim visitations from hovering personages.

Religious fervor is the effect upon others who learn about such events, and desire to swallow a hook, line and sinker. Membership has its perks, if you are ever brought before a Judge who shares the same belief.

https://www.sltrib.com/news/2018/03/05/former-director-of-salt-lake-citys-911-call-center-sentenced-to-3-days-in-jail-for-driving-under-the-influence/

Okay, that 911 call center director looks like a quasi Mormon dude. Which begs the question, what was he doing with an open container and driving under the influence while on duty driving his car during the workday? He was cut a good deal, but also lost his position which he cannot recoup.

Was it the stress of his job that led to his drinking? His life? Was he a closet drinker? All the above? It happens. Thank God that was all he was charged with ie, before he caused a drunk driving accident and more mayhem.

One of my never Mo aunts met this standard. She was a born again Christian/Baptist that was diagnosed bi-polar in her 30's.

Grew up in Utah. The Mormons you might say drove her crazy to begin with. Then she just went crazy from there.

Once while I was still a TBM and visiting our Grandmother's house at Christmas, she was visiting from Texas. She slammed mine and my brother's Mormon convictions by saying we could have our "Mormon Bible," she had her Bible, and that was the only one that mattered.

Some years later she was found by police driving around in circles in downtown SLC at night in an industrial district talking to herself. They were going to have her committed until my scientist/con artist/atheist uncle came to her rescue by testifying to the local authorities of her religious convictions and her being an upstanding citizen of the community. He really bamboozled them, I swear to god. Uncle the expert witness, computer consultant, satellite and microchip inventor. And fugitive felon from the law. I'm still undecided what his psychiatric diagnosis would be other than antisocial psychopath.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/06/2018 10:27AM by Amyjo.