When Appropriate The Effects of Pandemic Brain Fog on

Sharing the Christian Label, When Appropriate

By Stephen Price, LGPC

While I believe that Lisa Wardle and I agree on much that she points out in her article, particularly about the ways the name “Christian” has been used and abused, there are some significant places where I disagree. The first is her description of the early Christians. I don’t think that we can say as a blanket statement that they “loved the leper,” etc.

The early church was a wild and wooly place. It took years, as we have taken centuries, to get the teachings of Jesus through its head. JESUS loved and touched the leper and called the early church, and calls us today, to do so as well. Therapy is one of the ways we do that. I have spent most of my career working with marginalized persons and our culture’s “lepers.” I think that we, as Christians who do therapy, have too often joined the culture in denying such people care.

I don’t totally blame us. We spend a small fortune going to grad school, getting licensed and being supervised. We deserve to make a living. But how many single mothers who may have two jobs and three children can afford what we normally charge for therapy? There are many good nonprofits that provide care, but it is usually done by therapists in training. The poor become guinea pigs for those in training who may go on to charge $150+ per session when they become fully licensed. We’ve let the system seduce us (and I count myself among the seduced).

While on my soapbox, let me hold forth on another subject. Many of the theories we study and how we are taught to do diagnosis are antithetical to my faith. Diagnoses tend to saddle people with a label they’re stuck with forever. Theories of personality, taught all too often, work from a similar premise. My faith teaches me that change is possible and that people can truly “have life in all its fullness.” I’m not naïve about this, as I spent more than 30 years treating sex offenders and working with trauma victims of child abuse and war. However, real change is possible.

I also am done allowing the religious right and others to steal my Bible and the name Christian. I don’t advertise it to my clients, but if they ask, my first question is “Why do you want to know?” Then, if appropriate, I acknowledge my faith. Sometimes it gives us a way to speak a common language.

To all my brothers and sisters in Christ doing the work in the trenches…Peace Be with You.

Stephen Price, LGPC is Pastor of First Baptist Church of Hyattsville, Maryland.

August/September 2022 | Capital Baptist Newsletter 12

October 24-25 in Falls Church, VA ANNUAL MEETING

THEME: SEEKING HOPE

Please join us for this year’s Annual Meeting as we gather again in person, with a virtual option. We will discover what it means to embrace Hope in Church Revitalization, Creation Care, and Mental Health.

WHEN: Oct 24-25th, starting at 10am EST

WHERE: 405 North Washington Street,

Falls Church, Virginia

BWA headquarters (Both virtually and in person)

COST: This event is free, but you must register to participate.

Presentations will begin at 11:00 EST on Monday, followed by the business meeting. Breakout networking sessions will take place on Tuesday.

Sincerely,

Rev. Samuel Tolbert

President: NABF, National Baptists of America, Inc

Rev. Jeremy Bell

General Secretary

Dr. Katharine Hayhoe — Creation Care

Paul Whitfield Horn Distinguished Professor, Texas Tech University

Katharine Hayhoe is a climate scientist who is the Chief Scientist for The Nature Conservancy and a distinguished professor and endowed chair at Texas Tech University. She is author of Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World, and can often be found talking with fellow Christians about why climate change matters and what we can do to fix it.

Rev. Daniel Whitehead — Mental Health CEO, Sanctuary Mental Health Ministries

Rev. Daniel Whitehead leads Sanctuary Ministries, which resources communities of faith around the world to raise awareness, reduce stigma, support mental health, and promote mental wellbeing. Daniel has over ten years of full-time vocational church ministry experience.

Rev. Jevon Billups — Mental Health

Mental Health Coordinator, District of Columbia Baptist Convention

Jevon is a highly respected instructor of Mental Health First Aid throughout the Mid-Atlantic United States, from within the Roman Catholic Church to local school systems and fire companies. As a local church pastor, Jevon has a deep love for God and God’s people which deepens commitment to mental and the holistic health of people.

Rev. Dr. Jonathan L. Smith — Church Revitalization

Director of Church Health Strategy, Texas Baptists

Jonathan Smith’s role with the Texas Baptists is to encourage, equip, and coach pastors and congregations within their denomination in all aspects of church health, growth, and leadership development. He also hosts “Re:Vision” a podcast about church health and growth.

Rev. Dr. Daynette Snead Perez — Church Revitalization

CEO/President, DIASPRA Domestic Disaster Response Manager, CBF

Dr. Snead Perez leads DIASPRA, an intercultural focused ministry equipping churches in building new relationships in their own communities. She is the author of CHURCH: What To Do When Everyone is Like You, and serves as the Domestic Disaster Response Manager for Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF). Dr. Snead Perez engages in disaster response and intercultural ministry as opportunities for transformational change within the body of Christ.