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Letters to the editor
Mennonite Brethren Herald welcomes your letters on issues relevant to the Mennonite Brethren Church, especially in response to material published in the Herald. Please keep your letters courteous, brief and about one subject only. We will edit letters for length and clarity. We will not publish letters sent anonymously, although we may withhold names from publication at the request of the letter writer and at our discretion. Publication is also subject to space limitations. Because the Letters column is a free forum for discussion, it should be understood that letters represent the position of the letter writer, not necessarily the position of the Herald or the Mennonite Brethren Church. Send letters to:
Letters, MB Herald
3-169 Riverton Ave.
Winnipeg, Man. R2L 2E5
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or by e-mail to mbherald@mbconf.ca. (Please ensure that your postal address is included in your e-mail correspondence.) |
Needs vary
Thank you for the articles on mental illness and mental health (Mar. 2 and Mar. 16). Thanks to the editors for the idea and the writers for their insight. Thanks on behalf of people who live with a mental illness and those who struggle with emotional needs. Your varied articles show varied needs and varied ways in which they can be helped. The different perspectives are so important because people’s needs are different and there is no single or simple formula that works for everyone.
Irma Janzen,
Mennonite Central Committee Mental Health and Disabilities Program,
Winnipeg, Man.
Personal stories important
Thank you for your courage in addressing the topic of mental health/illness. While this has been, and continues to be, a taboo subject in our society and in our church community, it is most encouraging and helpful that you included personal stories (including the editor’s), shared professional insights and essentially opened the doors and gave light to this topic. This willingness to talk openly will help us be more Christlike and humane in our response to those among us who live with this reality in their lives.
I also encourage anyone interested in learning more about this subject to attend the Celebrate Life retreat June 1-3, 2001 at Columbia Bible College in Abbotsford, B.C. For information, call MCC Supportive Care Services at (604) 850-6608.
Steve Thiessen,
MCC Supportive Care Services,
Abbotsford, B.C.
Misunderstandings combatted
As someone who suffers from bipolar disorder, I thank you for devoting two full issues to the topic of mental health. I am fortunate to have a wife and a care group in my church that are understanding of my struggles and support me with prayer and encouragement. However, I know that many people are forced to suffer in silence. I maintain a site on the Internet where I tell my story of living with a mental illness, and regularly get e-mail from other Christians who feel alone and unsupported by their church and family. I have heard of people being told that they are ill because of sin in their lives, that they are possessed by demons or that they simply have to pray and read their Bibles more and they will get better. Your articles have done a lot to combat these and other common (and very cruel) misunderstandings. It is my hope that these two issues of the Herald will be read far and wide and will help to raise the consciousness of Christians towards mental health issues not only in the church, but in society as a whole. Thank you again for two great issues.
Bruce Anderson,
Saskatoon, Sask.
Changes are not easy
Thank you for the March 2 issue and for Jim Coggins’s honesty in the editorial about his own bouts of depression. The articles on mental health really spoke to me.
I, too, suffer from depression. It’s difficult to admit to others that you have this problem. I, too, know the problem of being on a roller coaster. It’s a difficult ride. While people are generally more accepting of emotional health problems today than in years gone by, there are still many who think that it’s as easy as just deciding to make the necessary changes. Having the Lord in my life certainly makes going through the hard times easier to survive, but there’s still a lot of hard work to be done to get over the causes of some of these problems. It’s not always as easy as taking a lithium pill regularly and growing deeper in the Lord.
Thanks for your sensitivity in choosing submissions for the Herald and for your hard work.
Helen Schampier,
Abbotsford, B.C.
But how should we respond?
In “Anti-Christian prejudice” (Feb. 2), John Redekop makes some very good points about how our society encourages intolerance towards Christians as a sign of tolerance. One line bothered me, however: “It raised my blood pressure; maybe it will do the same for you.” This article did raise my blood pressure, but for a different reason than I believe Redekop proposes. The article bothered me not because of the issues Redekop mentions, but because his treatment of these issues almost seems intended to motivate Christians – specifically, the Mennonite Brethren readers of the Herald – to stand up for ourselves and not accept the ridicule our society displays towards us. This is the way our society would deal with the same afflictions. Is that the way we should deal with them?
Redekop elsewhere has written of the traits which distinguish Anabaptists: “As a united fellowship of believers, every Anabaptist congregation models an alternate community. Such a covenant community functions as an authentic counterculture. . . . Anabaptists differ from many other Christians. Anabaptists believe that the peace position is not optional, not marginal, and not related mainly to the military. On the basis of Scripture, Anabaptists renounce violence in human relationships. We see peace and reconciliation – the way of love – as being at the heart of the Christian gospel. God gave His followers this ethic not as a point to ponder, but as a command to obey. It was costly for Jesus and it may also be costly for His followers. The way of peace is a way of life” (Faith & Life pamphlet: “Anabaptism: The Basic Beliefs”, 1993).
This suggests a very different approach, as does Scripture: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:11-12). “If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you” (1 Peter 4:14). “For even Christ did not please Himself but, as it is written: ‘The insults of those who insult You have fallen on Me’” (Romans 15:3). When Herod plied Jesus with many questions, “Jesus gave him no answer. The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing Him. Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked Him. . . . That day Herod and Pilate became friends – before this they had been enemies” (Luke 23:9-12). These verses force me to look at my infuriated knee-jerk response and then consider something just as drastic, but the extreme opposite – prayer. Like Herod and Pilate, many who oppose the Christian faith are finding that that opposition unites them. Like Christ, we are called to pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44) and to show them the love of God, with the hope of making disciples out of them.
Modern psychology has shown that children are prone to repeat the mistakes their parents have made, to do what they see done. This means that children whose parents smoke are more likely to smoke themselves. The same has been shown of the Christian influence on modern society. Our society wants to know what makes us different. As hard as it may be to believe, our responses to infuriating situations are being watched more closely than our politicians. To follow the way of our Lord is to allow people to persecute us, insult us and inflict hardship upon us, yet rejoice, for when we are weak, then we are strong (2 Corinthians 12:10). Saint Francis is quoted as saying, “Preach the gospel to all the world and, if necessary, use words.” Our society says it this way: “Actions speak louder than words.” Is what you’re saying in conflict with what you’re doing? They are watching you. What do you want them to see? What does Jesus want them to see?
Kris Benson,
Prince, George, B.C.
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© 2001 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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