Spiritual Insanity?

[two1176]

Does anyone know if there is such thing as spiritual insanity? I don’t mean fundamentalist terrorist type crazy. I mean when you are so preoccupied with religion, life after death, the meaning of life, etc. that it starts to effect your day to day living and relationships and hinders you from being a productive member of society. I know someone who is so hung up on all this stuff that he finds it hard to see the point in finding a good job and starting a family, buying a house, because he’s going to die anyway. This is causing me great concern.

 

[survive]

There are disorders in which one of the criteria is excessive preoccupation with religious subjects, but you can’t get him to see a professional unless he agrees he has a problem.

 

[Trishie]

I don’t see his problem as being religious so much as being a psychological preoccupation with death and with avoidance of life. The preoccupation with religion seems unreal, as for Christianity to mean anything, faith needs to be accompanied by action…acts of Christian life and love for others, otherwise it can only be lifeless religiosity. He seems to be consumed and paralysed by a sense of the futility of life. If he doesn’t live in faith, hope, and love he’s fooling himself if he think’s he’s religious…but basically he seems to have a psychological abnormality, and I hope and pray he can be helped to address his problem, so that the wonderful unique gift of life that he has been given for himself and for others’ sakes, can find a way to flourish.

 

[two1176]

I don’t see his problem as being religious so much as being a psychological preoccupation with death and with avoidance of life. The preoccupation with religion seems unreal, as for Christianity to mean anything, faith needs to be accompanied by action…acts of Christian life and love for others, otherwise it can only be lifeless religiosity. He seems to be consumed and paralysed by a sense of the futility of life. If he doesn’t live in faith, hope, and love he’s fooling himself if he think’s he’s religious…but basically he seems to have a psychological abnormality, and I hope and pray he can be helped to address his problem, so that the wonderful unique gift of life that he has been given for himself and for others’ sakes, can find a way to flourish.

That makes a lot of sense Trishie. I think he should get involved with some kind of activity, like the Knights of Columbus or some kind of ministry at Church. I think that if we focus too much on ourselves rather than other people we can make ourselves miserable.