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Amid what experts call a global mental health crisis, a new article series has been released highlighting the Bible’s role in promoting mental wellness.
“Mental Health — Help From the Bible,” available free of charge both in print and on Jehovah’s Witnesses’ official website, jw.org, encourages readers to seek assistance with mental health concerns and outlines how guidance found in Scripture can help in practical ways. The lead article in the series, “A Worldwide Mental Health Crisis,” not only documents contributing factors but also defines what a mental disorder is and what it is not.
“The Bible is not a medical guidebook, but its enduring principles are as powerful today as they ever were,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesperson for the organization. “This special series provides comfort and strategies based on those principles. We are thrilled to provide such a powerful resource to the world” Houstonian Chelsea Hart, 29, recalls giving little thought to her mental health during the pandemic. It wasn’t until COVID-19 restrictions had lifted in her area that she began to realize something was wrong.
“Everything around me was getting back to normal, but I wasn’t,” said Hart. “I had always been a really outgoing person, but I didn’t want to go anywhere or see anyone. I hardly recognized myself — I felt so numb.”
Hart’s experience is echoed by millions worldwide. The World Health Organization’s 2022 report on global mental health — the largest report of its kind since the turn of the century — found that during the first year of the pandemic alone, anxiety and depression rates rose 25%. The same report called the global response to mental health needs “insufficient and inadequate,” noting that many people who have a mental disorder have no access to care – numbering into the hundreds of millions worldwide
Since her diagnosis with depression last year, Hart has sought medical treatment, but she says tips from “Mental Health — Help From the Bible” are making a difference, too.
“When I experience intrusive thoughts and feelings of worthlessness, I fight negative thoughts with positive ones,” she said. “I remind myself that God loves and values me.”
Hart’s husband, Jonah, 30, found the article’s “How to Help Those With Mental Health Challenges” section especially useful.
“When Chelsea first began having issues with her mental health, I didn’t know how to help her,” he said. “I was impatient at times, and I even blamed myself for not being able to do more. The article has helped me be the patient, supportive partner she needs.”
“Mental Health — Help From the Bible” is available free of charge and without a subscription on jw.org.
