Religion/Spirituality: Good or Bad?

Wrestling with privilege and unmasking the forces of colonialism was a big part of my recent academic work. Part of my privilege includes the fact that I emerged from a very conservative religious upbringing relatively unscathed. I believe I experienced the best of this perspective, likely due to the love and wisdom of my parents, but also because my religious tradition favours those of my social location (straight, white dude). While it has certainly been a painful process to deconstruct many of my beliefs and practices over the years, I have made out better than many who left the evangelical world. I have had many conversations with people who have experienced a tremendous amount of shame, pain, and even trauma based in their religion.

The sad irony is that victims of trauma often turn to their religious/spiritual supports to help them cope. Unfortunately, however, many fall victim to R/S systems and practices that are themselves abusive. One understanding of R/S trauma is that it occurs when a person in need of help is further weakened or disempowered resulting in a “diminishing sense of self.” I have personally seen this at work in the lives of several people I care about, and even to a lesser degree in myself. 

These experiences motivate me to want to work with clients who are survivors of R/S abuse. I have a lot of experience in working on theological deconstruction, which is an important part of the process. Learning about attachment theory, moral injury as trauma, the centrality of an effective therapeutic alliance, and post-traumatic growth has provided me with a greater theoretical framework from which to operate with clients. Narrative therapy, grounded in constructivism, can be used to help survivors re-construct their story, placing it in a larger context, and creating meaning out of the experience that can help with a measure of closure.

While my heart breaks for those who have experienced pain at the hands of their religious tradition, there is also immense healing potential when one embraces the positive aspects of spirituality. Studies have been cited that point out that psychiatrists tend to be the most atheistic of professions but serve clients who are disproportionately religious. This has often meant that clients’ religion or spirituality has generally been avoided in therapy. This is unfortunate as many studies discuss how spirituality can be of immense benefit to clients (and clients generally want to talk about it with their therapist!) 

However, it is crucial to understand what kinds of religious teaching and spiritual practices promote health, and which can be particularly destructive. The consensus would appear to be that positive religious coping beliefs are characterized by an emphasis on trust, hope, and faith in divine goodness. Negative religious coping tends to be based on anger, fear, or doubt.[1] Positive religious coping includes maintaining a secure relationship with God that can lesson psychological stress, improve interactions with others, and cultivate a positive perspective on spiritual and psychological growth.[2]

Spiritual and religious beliefs that promote negative coping include presenting God as an angry, judgmental, punishing deity. It can also include presenting unrealistic examples for emulation (eg, Jesus, Mohammad) that can lead to defeatism or possible victim blaming for painful experiences: Is this trauma an instance of divine judgment or possibly the result of the ‘sin’ of the client? R/S can be incredibly helpful for clients when it emphasizes a loving God, grace and forgiveness, and the pursuit of justice.

There is also a growing group of 'spiritual but not religious' that yearn to explore mindfulness, meditation, and other practices that promote self-transcendence. It is a core value of mine not to judge your beliefs or R/S background, but to help you lean into the strengths and resources available to you from it. My training was in an inter-faith context and learning alongside Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, and Atheist Humanists was a profoundly moving and transformative experience. 

If you do wish to include your spirituality in therapy, you can be assured that you will be respected and valued and never pressured to convert to another tradition. If you have left the tradition of your upbringing with wounds that need attention, you can be sure that we will only approach these matters with your permission and will do so slowly and sensitively. 

[1] Smith, Stacy. “Exploring the Interaction of Trauma and Spirituality.” Traumatology 10, no. 4 (2004). p. 235

[2] Smith, p. 235