There is a good faith debate and discussion to be had around mental health, medication, and therapy. It is a complex issue that is unique to each individual and his past experiences.
However, there is no place -- especially not in Christianity -- for denying the existence of things like obsessive-compulsive disorder, ADHD, or PTSD.
It not only shames those who live with mental illness or challenges, it is not reflective of the 'love thy neighbor' attitude commanded in the Bible.
So watch pastor Jon MacArthur blow up any credibility he had by saying those conditions don't exist:
“There’s no such thing as PTSD. There’s no such thing as OCD. There’s no such thing as ADHD.”
— Dean Defuria (@_DeanAnthony) May 1, 2024
— John MacArthur pic.twitter.com/PzZTijKl5x
Wow.
Just wow.
So incredibly disappointing.
X users -- many who have mental health concerns -- were quick to point out the error of the MacArthur's statements:
It's always amazing when people who have never experienced something tell you "exactly" what that's like, and get it wrong every time.
— Ran Harpaz (@RanHarpaz) May 1, 2024
This person isn't a serious person on these issues, and you can tell that even simply on his getting the symptoms of PTSD wrong so obviously.
It's always amazing.
This is just the reformed equivalent of Pentecostal faith healing nonsense, except for the mind.
— Dr. Malcolm Cornelius (@DctrCornelius) May 1, 2024
Yes it is.
I served with Marines who screamed in their sleep years after seeing their friends burn to death in combat.
— Robert Sterling (@RobertMSterling) May 1, 2024
I’m not a fan of overmedicating anyone, if MacArthur doesn’t know what PTSD is.
No, he doesn't. He doesn't have a clue.
I love my brother John MacArthur… but his conclusions here are stunningly unwise, misinformed and lacking biblical footing.
— PastorSteveCamp (@PastorSJCamp) May 1, 2024
I’m very surprised this is John’s diagnosis esp regarding PTSD.
All of this.
Thanks for the slap in the face for every veteran, law enforcement and fire personnel, dealing with the life long effects of PTSD. There is the body, mind and soul. Know your area of training, knowledge and expertise. I've had five years of therapy and professional assistance.…
— Sharon Kroger (@sjkroger) May 1, 2024
It really is a slap in the face to all of these people, many of whom are probably Christians, too.
What a stunningly ignorant and cruel thing to say.
— Beau Geste (@BeauGeste11) May 1, 2024
It is ignorant and cruel.
As a fellow pastor committed to the authority and sufficiency of Scripture, please don't follow this PTSD isn't just grief--the body responds to trauma, it's why it used to be called "shell shock" in war. Its not just grief. OCD and ADHD isn't just "bad behavior choices."
— Tim 'The Beez' Bertolet (@tim_bertolet) May 1, 2024
Exactly.
Few things deserve to be ratioed more than this
— Scott Barber (@thescottbarber) May 1, 2024
And it's getting the ratio it deserves.
I love pastors. I respect pastors. I’m a pastor’s kid. But sometimes pastors really need to hear: “Stay in your lane.” This is dangeous and irresponsible rhetoric that will actually harm people in a very real way.
— Ron Stauffer (@ronstauffer) May 1, 2024
It is very harmful.
There is such a thing as over-prescription and over-diagnosis in the current moment, but this is an extraordinarily irresponsible thing for a pastor to say regarding real, mental health conditions and neurological divergences. https://t.co/rHAQXvMpTz
— Derek Rishmawy (@DZRishmawy) May 1, 2024
And it's why Christians get smeared as anti-science, too.
I had PTSD from child abuse. When I was about 10, I began having recurring nightmares of my dad raping or murdering me. They lasted into my early 30s. In my 20’s I suffered panic attacks, flashbacks, depression, anxiety, constant fear of abandonment, and suicidal ideation. If you… https://t.co/Nda1PUPWCn
— Jennifer Greenberg 🕊️ (@JennMGreenberg) May 1, 2024
So to say it's not real is insulting and wrong.
When men his age were fighting in Vietnam he was hanging out at Bible colleges in California and the Carolinas and singing hymns on the radio, living off his Daddy’s congregants’ donations.
— Strahan Cadell (@Sartor1836) May 1, 2024
What would he know about PTSD? https://t.co/edYJwBYyDx
Not a damn thing.
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