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The Pew Versus the Couch: Relationship Between Mental Health and Faith Communities and Lessons Learned from a VA/Clergy Partnership Project

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Abstract

The history of the relationship between religion and mental health is one of commonality, conflict, controversy, and distrust. An awareness of this complex relationship is essential to clinicians and clergy seeking to holistically meet the needs of people in our clinics, our churches, and our communities. Understanding this relationship may be particularly important in rural communities. This paper briefly discusses the history of this relationship and important areas of disagreement and contention. The paper moves beyond theory to present some current practical tensions identified in a brief case study of VA/Clergy partnerships in rural Arkansas. The paper concludes with a framework of three models for understanding how most faith communities perceive mental health and suggests opportunities to overcome the tensions between “the pew” and “the couch.”

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge VA South Central Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) and the VA Office of Rural Health for support and funding for this project. We also recognize Elise Allee and Carrie Edlund for editorial and research contributions, as well as the Chaplains of the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System. Finally, we recognize the many community clergy and mental health providers who came together at places like Western Sizzlin of Russellville to begin the process of honest dialogue and collaboration between "the pew and the couch."

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. South Central Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center, Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, 2200 Fort Roots Drive (152/NLR), Building 58, North Little Rock, AR, 72114, USA

    Steve Sullivan, Jeffrey M. Pyne, Ann M. Cheney, Justin Hunt, Tiffany F. Haynes & Greer Sullivan

  2. Center for Mental Health Outcomes Research, Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, North Little Rock, AR, USA

    Steve Sullivan, Jeffrey M. Pyne, Ann M. Cheney, Justin Hunt, Tiffany F. Haynes & Greer Sullivan

  3. Division of Health Services Research, UAMS Psychiatric Research Institute, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA

    Jeffrey M. Pyne, Ann M. Cheney, Tiffany F. Haynes & Greer Sullivan

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  1. Steve Sullivan
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Sullivan, S., Pyne, J.M., Cheney, A.M. et al. The Pew Versus the Couch: Relationship Between Mental Health and Faith Communities and Lessons Learned from a VA/Clergy Partnership Project. J Relig Health 53, 1267–1282 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-013-9731-0

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