0:02 we need to recognize that
0:04 first and foremost disability is not
0:07 unchristian mental disability or
0:08 physical disability is not unchristian
0:10 it's not evidence that god
0:13 does not love us disability is not a sin
0:15 and it's not a consequence of sin we
0:17 need to find ways
0:19 to welcome people with mental health
0:22 issues into our churches people with
0:24 physical disabilities as well obviously
0:25 into our churches
0:28 not only so that we can serve people
0:30 with those issues but also so that we
0:32 can be served by them they have very
0:34 specific and particular perspectives on
0:35 the world that are valuable to us as
0:37 christians that we can attend to listen
0:39 to and that can help us to grow in our
0:41 relationship with god so i think we
0:43 should be very welcoming in our
0:45 communities as much as possible and you
0:46 know you make such a good point as i was
0:48 doing research you know someone pointed
0:50 out mental health is something all of us
0:52 have we have we have mental capacity and
0:54 we have to maintain our health when it
0:56 comes to you know how we think how we
0:59 process and so obviously there are
1:00 illnesses and there's depression and
1:03 anxiety and obviously those are things
1:04 that we need to focus on i'm going to
1:06 stay with you colin
1:08 is there pressure for christians to
1:10 always be happy that maybe we're not
1:13 having a conversation just about mental
1:15 health and mental well-being
1:17 i think that that is true i think that
1:18 there are
1:20 uh certain versions of theology that
1:21 lend themselves to that way of thinking
1:23 that if uh if everything isn't perfect
1:25 in my life that somehow i've done
1:26 something wrong
1:29 or i'm i'm letting god down and so these
1:30 are the things that are happening to me
1:32 that's a an unfortunate form of theology
1:34 that sort of leaks into our churches
1:37 sometimes um sometimes we also over
1:39 spiritualize mental health many of these
1:41 things that we're talking about are are
1:43 physical issues often in our brains uh
1:46 they aren't necessarily a responsive
1:47 uh to faithfulness or unfaithfulness
1:49 they're things that are happening to us
1:51 um and so i think that some of the path
1:53 one of the paths forward i hope for us
1:55 as churches is to take very seriously
1:56 the advice of mental health
1:58 professionals to talk to people who have
2:01 actual education training capacity and
2:02 these issues to help maybe correct some
2:05 of these um these faulty presuppositions
2:08 uh that that have maybe leaked into our
2:10 theology over the years yeah
2:12 children's hospitals in canada have seen
2:13 a 100
2:15 increase in mental health related
2:18 emissions julia do you think there's
2:20 still a stigma around mental health in
2:22 the church
2:24 yeah yeah i just want to applaud what
2:27 colin said i think it is so true there's
2:29 a group i follow on facebook and they
2:31 posted a t-shirt that said it's okay to
2:33 have jesus and a therapist too
2:36 which is meant to be cute but at the
2:38 same time send such an important message
2:39 to the church because i know when i was
2:42 growing up as a teenager finding my way
2:44 in the church those messages that colin
2:46 talked about were so prevalent and i
2:49 think that has done a lot of harm
2:50 i think we've also come a really long
2:52 way though so we're now at the place
2:54 where we can talk more openly about
2:56 these things and our you know our
2:59 churches should be places um
3:00 um
3:02 where we can be safe where they are
3:04 authentic vulnerable spaces we can be
3:06 real about our struggles where people
3:09 look out for us support us encourage us
3:11 to talk and seek professional help when
3:14 that's needed these things are such uh
3:16 important elements of this early warning
3:18 and detection system
3:20 um when something might be amiss in our
3:22 lives so i think it's just so important
3:25 everything that colin just said is so
3:27 important and we are starting to see
3:29 that i think but we have a ways to go
3:32 yet yeah julia's sticking with you while
3:33 the church can support someone
3:35 struggling with mental health sometimes
3:37 professional help as we've talked about
3:39 is needed are the resources available
3:41 for people seeking help and i say this
3:43 because we just had a really fascinating
3:46 conversation with daniel whitehead from
3:49 sanctuary uh which is a ministry for
3:51 churches when it comes to mental health
3:53 and he said i hope 10 years from now
3:55 that we're not saying that was a fad
3:56 that we're no longer talking about
3:59 mental health that we've moved forward
4:01 so do you feel that there are the right
4:03 resources and i'm talking again to the
4:05 church that we're we're really accessing
4:07 the right resources to make sure that
4:10 this is a constant conversation
4:12 oh boy
4:16 um i think the work has started yeah i'm
4:19 i'm not sure that i think it's just a
4:22 fact that the population generally often
4:24 struggles to get timely
4:27 um access to supports when it comes to
4:28 mental health
4:30 and so i think that's also true in the
4:32 church and we're also if we're starting
4:34 behind in terms of being able to really
4:36 talk about it openly um
4:37 um
4:39 in that way in the church we probably
4:41 have those hurdles to overcome also but i
4:42 i
4:44 you know i hope that
4:47 it is an ongoing focus
4:50 for us in the church and as a society
4:52 i i feel like i always come back to this
4:54 topic maggie but it is so important
4:57 right now um every year canadians come
4:59 together in this really deliberate way
5:01 to say to those who are struggling with
5:04 their mental health hey you matter you
5:06 are loved you're valued you're seen and
5:09 our families our communities are better
5:11 off with you in them so if you are
5:13 struggling please reach out there is
5:14 hope and there is help
5:16 help and that is such an important and
5:18 life-giving message but
5:21 what we saw last bill let's talk day was
5:23 at the very same time this was happening
5:26 there was a conversation going on in the
5:28 government about
5:30 um that in a few years time we would
5:32 expand access to medical assistance and
5:34 dying to people who are struggling for
5:36 mental illness alone and that sends a
5:39 really different message so instead of
5:41 there is help and hope and we want to
5:43 need you in our lives and communities it
5:45 offers an off-ramp so
5:48 i think in light of that and in light of
5:50 what we have seen with the pandemic just
5:53 sort of surfacing or exacerbating mental
5:56 health issues in so many people we have
5:58 to be so alive to this conversation
5:59 right now
6:01 such a great point
6:04 so many nuances when it comes to mental
6:06 health and you're right i mean may play
