Christianity and Psychiatry

This book aims to help readers appreciate the many-faceted relationship between Christianity, one of the world’s major faith traditions, and the practice of psychiatry. Chapter authors in this book first consider challenges posed by historical antagonisms, church-based mental health stigma, and controversy over phenomena such as hearing voices. Next, others explore both how Christians often experience conditions such as mood and psychotic disorders, disorders in children and adolescents, moral injury and PTSD, and ways that their faith can serve as a resource in their healing. Twelve Step spirituality, originally informed by Christianity, is the subject of a chapter, as are issues raised for Christians by disability, death and dying. A set of chapters then focuses on the state of integration of Christian beliefs and practices into psychotherapy, treatment delivery, educational programming, clergy/clinician collaboration, and treatment by a non-Christian psychiatrist. Finally, thereare chapters by a mental health professional who has been a patient, a Jewish psychiatrist, a Muslim psychiatrist knowledgeable about Christianity and psychiatry in the Muslim majority world, and a Christian psychiatrist.  These chapters provide context, diversity and personal perspectives. 

Christianity and Psychiatry is a valuable resource for mental health professionals seeking to understand and address the particular challenges that arise when caring for Christian patients. 

John R. Peteet, M.D.

Department of Psychiatry

Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Boston, MA

USA

H. Steven Moffic, M.D.

Private Practice of Pro Bono Community Psychiatry

Milwaukee, WI

USA

Ahmed Hankir MBChB MRCPsych

Academic Clinical Fellow in General Adult Psychiatry 

Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience 

King’s College, London

UK

Harold G. Koenig, M.D.

Professor of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences

Associate Professor of Medicine

Duke University Medical Center

Durham, NC

USA