from religious addiction. Also, counsel- legal niche, where at least 10 to 15 ors could be certified as "Humanist, percent or more of the population "One can have a degree in Moral, and Ethical Counselors" who can can have an empathic and rational serve a large portion of society that is psychology and still be irrational, ear from a humanistic worldview. I struggling with these issues. Humanist superstitious, and unaware of one's can't think of another place that would counselors would be legally entitled to own conditioning." be safe and sane to which clients can deal with these issues just like any turn when confronted with religious member of the clergy. As Wendell and nonreligious moral dilemmas. Watters points out in Deadly Doctrine, reality, most of the interventions they If we go in this direction, we can "As a result of this cautious attitude make are value-laden." If not most, then expand the humanist movement. toward clinical implications of their certainly many of these mental health theoretical approaches, health clinicians clinicians are religious and are promot- often function like boxers wearing ing the very pathology that is described Newton Joseph is a counselor on the staff straightjackets. They pretend that they in Deadly Doctrine. of the nonprofit San Fernando Valley are concerned only with health and not The Humanist Moral and Ethical Counseling Center in Northridge, Cali- with ethical belief systems, whereas in Counselor would carve out a new fornia. And Now Psychiatric Wards for Born-Again Christians Only Edmund D. Cohen rom 1988 until August 1992, one Fcould—if one took the time to watch—see the tragic consequences of "A specialized, parochial, mental deep indoctrination in fundamentalist health treatment industry for Christianity unfold on Pat Robertson's the twice-born has arisen. It has "The 700 Club." Sheila Walsh Miller, become the most active and a literate, witty, impeccably groomed, fastest developing segment of the and very attractive Scottish woman in contemporary conservative her early thirties, was Robertson's "700 Club" co-hostess and the hostess of her church subculture. Among born- own half-hour talk show, "Heart to agains all over North America, the Heart." These programs aired "back to traditional coping strategies of On November 2, 1992, Miller reap- back" every Monday through Friday denial, secrecy, and keeping up a peared on "The 700 Club"—not as co- hostess but as "special guest." Then the morning on the Family Channel. Miller good front are collapsing." thought herself called to a "ministry of "ministry of transparency" took a transparency," and often disclosed some horrendous turn, as Miller described of the most intimate details of her travails Miller disappeared from "The 700 Club" what had happened: leading the Christian life. "Heart to for several weeks, and her talk show went Miller: It's not quite been R and R. Heart" was an especially fascinating into reruns. On October 21, 1992, It's been kind of more intense than window on the conservative church Robertson took a few minutes to explain that, and probably more serious than subculture, replete with interviews with that Miller had become "physically and that. I—I think for about a year I knew that I was really in trouble. I remember the authors of the latest Christian books emotionally exhausted," that she was last New Year's Eve saying to Norman and performances by the latest Gospel under a physician's care, and that she [her husband, an aggressive Christian rock musicians. Miller, herself, was a would be gone for "a protracted length music promoter], "If I make it through recognized Gospel rock star. Her singing of time." He offered a prayer for Miller this next year, and I'm still standing could easily be mistaken for Enya. Frank to be "healed in body, mind and spirit" at the end of it, Ill be amazed." And I don't think he quite knew what to Zappa once told me that he admired and announced that the following make of that. It was more an internal Miller's fine musicianship very much. Monday "Heart to Heart" would be thing. I felt like I was really struggling. Finally, without an explanation replaced by another show. And in July of this year, it just all Summer 1993 25 fell apart. face—is now being forced out into the process of valuing people and things— Robertson: What were you strug- open. The same psychological effects of making emotional investments in gling [with]—was it the past, was it that made the conservative church the terrible schedule of concerts? them—by laboring to constitute an Miller: I think it was everything. movement strong and cohesive during imaginary and fictitious being as the ... It was things I'd never dealt with the seventies and eighties now so overtax primary recipient of his or her affec- in the past, to do with my father. It those who are caught up in it that a tions—the Bible-believer makes himself was marital issues that I had never breaking point has been reached. or herself depressed. Being constantly at resolved, and it was the ridiculous schedule, so that you never deal with war with one's natural and normal anything. You just keep going, and ntil recent years, only the theolog- emotions wears a person out. you stay busy, and you help everybody Uically least conservative in any given The causes of the generalized emo- else and you never deal with what's church were interested in mental health. tional distress, however, are obvious, and going on in your own life. But it all Church-related mental health materials just what people commonly suppose they came to a head ... and I didn't know consisted merely of repackaged secular where to go for help.... I did some are. That distress is grounded in salva- really bizarre things ... and in July, psychology (usually a few years out of tion doubt and nagging fears about what I left my home. I left my husband. date), with no more than lip-service paid will happen after death.5 And the pressure and strain of that— to Christian theology.2 Variations of biblical counseling of the guilt, of feeling like I'd let the In the seventies, approaches to mental pervaded the born-again movement in Christian community down. You health treatment embodying fundamen- the seventies and early eighties. All but know ... when you've talked about marriage, and then your own crum- talist theology came to the fore. Calvinist the smallest conservative church bodies bles—how can you deal with the purists who believed their own rhetoric and parachurch ministries developed shame of that? too well began the biblical or "nou- their own materials to teach biblical So, I had a breakdown, and I ended thetic"3 counseling movement, rigor- counseling. up in a Christian clinic—for a month. ously applying the Bible's devotional And it was kind of crazy, to go from Alternative approaches that syncretis- one day being on "The 700 Club," instructions to personal counseling.4 tically mix contemporary mental health where they do your hair nice, and your Since such purists regard science as lore with born-again theology also make-up and clothes, to checking into ultimately irrelevant to the Bible's view developed and progressed in the seven- what effectively was a psychiatric of humankind, the biblical counseling ties and eighties. These have surged ward, where they took my hair dryer movement rejected everything about the ahead in the last ten years, largely dis- and my make-up away—you know— in case I hurt myself—where I wan- secular mental health professions, and placing biblical counseling. They now dered around in a bathrobe—where never sought rapproachment with psy- constitute the born-again movement's I was reduced to nothing. And yet, chiatrists or psychologists. So far as leading edge. in the midst of my darkness—I biblical counselors are concerned, One of the born-agains' brightest discovered God loved me! .. psychological problems are spiritual rising stars—indeed, the only up-and- And I remember one of the doc- tors—it was a Christian place—and problems, and if a troubled individual coming high profile born-again leader he said to me, "Isn't it like God, that can only be led to a closer, more obedient who does not project an outrightly he would bring you to prison to set relationship with Jesus, everything else disreputable or bumpkinish image— you free?" will come right. Christian psychologist James C. Dob- In my own research on the born- son, Jr., Ph.D., is a practitioner of such This was the last live appearance of agains, I found out that behind their a mixed approach.6 Dobson's "Focus on Sheila Walsh Miller on "The 700 Club," facade of euphoric calm, people mari- the Family" ministry disseminates his where problems like her own and worse nated in the Bible and surrounded by books on child-rearing and other mental are purportedly healed—instantly and the born-again church subculture tend hygiene topics, as well as his syndicated permanently—by supernatural interven- to be depressed, and suffer from a sort radio programs, broadcast on hundreds tion every day. of generalized emotional distress par- of Christian radio stations. Dobson and Stories like Miller's have become so taking of anxiety, worry, and fear. The the Reagan-era White House domestic commonplace that a specialized, paroch- way that Bible indoctrination brings advisor Gary L. Bauer have built Family ial, mental health treatment industry for about depression is complex. To put it Research Council, once an obscure the twice-born has arisen.