Cynthia Eriksson’s installation address, delivered at her installation as the dean of the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy in 2023, edited for publication.
“What Is Your Theology of Hope?”
Twenty-one years ago, in my theology exam to become a core faculty member, I was sitting in a conference room with eight or nine theologians, and I was asked to answer a question: “What is your theology of hope?”
I had come to the clinical psychology program at Fuller in 1990, planning to use my psychology training in overseas missions. I studied trauma for my master’s project in Liberia during the Civil War and in my dissertation research with humanitarian aid workers. Then, God redirected me to this unexpected place in academia. Now I was being asked, “What is your theology of hope?”
I will be honest. What I remember of my first thoughts to that question was something akin to, “Oh no, I didn’t study anything like that.”
Then, when I regained my grounding, I realized that the question was asking, how I, as a Christian, approach the places of pain in clients and in the world that do not seem redeemable. I remember answering that I believe that God is working towards the health and well-being of anyone I come in contact with. That God’s desire is for healing for the child who experienced sexual abuse or the trauma of war, as well as for the person who perpetrated the abuse or committed atrocities in combat. That, one day, all things will be on earth as they are in heaven.
My theology of hope—my trust that God desires truth and justice, my faith that God can redeem anything—allows me to bring that hope into any situation. Depending upon my work context, I may or may not be able to explicitly speak out my confidence in Christ’s hope and healing. But I have embodied that hope in my relationship with those I serve. And this hope
is what propels me to walk toward those in pain.
I thought that I would be a missionary in other countries or cultural spaces, but instead, the mission God invited me into became broader: to be present in the pain of others and to embody Christ’s hope and healing, and to teach others to do the same. This is the mission of mental health.
Now, God’s good purposes have brought me to another unexpected place, as the new dean of the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy. Again, God broadens the mission for such a time as this.
“For Such a Time as This”
What is this time? We hear the phrases “mental health crisis,” “youth mental health crisis,” “global trauma,” “war and political violence,” “pandemic stress,” “racial trauma,” “climate change stress,” “polarization,” and so many more.
Every generation has had challenges, changes, and crises. While I do not want to start our reflections with an “alarmist” mentality, I do want to unpack these phrases and calls to action. What are the crises we are facing related to mental health? What are the ways that we need hope and healing in our world?
Recent global reports and research provide stark data. The surgeon general of the United Stated recently put out an advisory on youth mental health. He notes that in the decade between 2009 and 2019 (even prior to COVID-19), the number of US high school students reporting feeling
persistently anxious or depressed increased by 40%, the number stating that they seriously considered suicide increased by 36%, and the number saying that they had a plan to commit suicide increased by 44%.1 Research reported by the Trevor Project also notes that LGBTQ youth are more than four times as likely as their peers to attempt suicide.2
Epidemiological research notes that between 1999 and 2020, the number of adult deaths in the US related to “deaths of despair” (suicide, drug overdose, and alcoholic liver disease) increased by 227% for Native American and Alaskan Native adults, by 164% for White Americans, by 121% for Black Americans, by 100% for Asian American and Pacific Islanders, and by 49% for Hispanic Americans.
The World Health Organization World Mental Health Report from 2022 notes that since 2000, severe weather events (tropical storms, heat waves, wildfires, floods, and mudslides) have increased by 46%, and these events lead to emergency mental health challenges like posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and other stress-related issues.4
The World Health Organization report also states that in 2021, 84 million people were displaced from their homes due to conflict or threats of violence. Every one of these people will experience some type of emotional distress in that displacement. But, on average, one in five people in these settings of displacement will develop a mental disorder (that is over 16 million people).5
The experience of racial violence, threats of racial violence, and even hearing media reports of race-based violence and legal proceedings are all significantly related to poorer mental health in communities of color.6 Experiencing racial discrimination is also associated with anxiety, depressive symptoms, and sleep difficulties.7
Experiencing sociopolitical polarization is also related to emotions like anger, fear, and frustration—which are significantly related to poorer physical health.8 In addition, those reporting a sense of increasing polarization in their own social circles are more likely to report depression, anxiety, and sleep problems.9
There are so many needs and so much pain, it can almost feel like too much to take it in. How do we embody hope and healing in the midst of these needs?
As a Christian, I hold all of these statistics, challenges, and crises with a posture of prayer and lament: crying out to God in the truth of the pain, naming what is happening, and then also naming what I want from God. I want hope. I want healing. I want justice. And I hold a theology of hope, that one day, all things will be as
in heaven.
Psalm 103 promises that God heals our diseases and rescues us from the pit, that God works righteousness and justice for the oppressed, that God has compassion on us and is gracious. That promise holds “hope” for things yet to come and an expectation of “healing.” I lament these mental health crises, and I trust God’s desire for healing. We exist in the reality of God’s love and God’s kingdom purposes. We are in the overall story of the people of God, and God’s intention—his telos—for the planet. So, we are grounded in the purposes of God and the love of God. And we are called to be disciples—to act in faithfulness.
Healing is at the very core of Jesus’ ministry. When he enters a village, he teaches and he heals. When Jesus sends out his disciples in Luke 9, he does not just commission them to “tell everyone about the kingdom of God,” but he also gives them the “authority to heal all
the diseases.”
How are we healing these diseases? In this time of crisis, we come to “such a time as this” with a mission to use the skills and knowledge of mental health as a way to bring Christ’s healing and hope to a desperate world.
The book Esther and the fifth chapter of Luke are two very different stories—one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament—two very different times in the life of the people of Israel. What is something they have in common? We could say that their characters are desperate.
Esther is desperate to save her people from genocide, desperate for a hope that there is a future for her people. The friends in Luke are desperate for healing for their friend, desperate to get to the source of that healing. Desperate for a hope; desperate for healing.
The story of Esther challenges us to think about the privilege that she stewards to try to stop the deaths of her family and community, even as she is honest about her own identity at the risk of her own life. The story in Luke of the friends lowering the paralyzed man through the roof to Jesus invites us to consider the ways that desperation can lead to creativity. What are we capable of when we “think outside of the box”?
Let’s consider these, and the desperation of our own time, to think about how we are engaging in this mission of hope and healing for mental health.
Privilege in Esther and in Mental Health
A brief reminder of the story of Esther in the Persian Empire: The Jewish people are under threat of genocide. A narcissistic political leader, Haman, has plotted to destroy his Jewish nemesis, Moredecai, and Mordecai’s people, the Jews. Haman has wheedled his way into the influence of King Xerxes and has convinced the king to make a decree allowing for the slaughter of the Jewish people on a certain day. But disinterested and self-absorbed King Xerxes had chosen Mordecai’s cousin, Esther, to be his queen not knowing of her Jewish identity.
Mordecai is in mourning about the decree, and Esther sees him at the palace gate in his mourning clothes. She sends a messenger to find out what is wrong, and she hears that her people are under threat. While earlier, Mordecai had told Esther to hide her Jewish ancestry, now he says that this is the time to hold her privileged position as queen and her Jewish identity together.
Esther is in a privileged and unique position to influence the king, but she also has to be honest about who she is. She needs to own her identity as a Jew in order to have the influence she needs to save her people. She also knows that if she goes to the king without being summoned, she may be put to death.
“For such a time as this.” This is the time when Esther needs to act. She sends the message for her people to fast for her—and with her—and then she takes the risk of death. In the end, Esther saves her people, through her courage and God’s justice. Esther used her privileged position, her wits, and her identity, and she took a big risk.
Privilege Today
Today, having an advanced degree in a mental health field is a significant privilege. It provides a set of competencies that can be used to contribute to the healing of others—and it can also be used to increase our own wealth or status.
According to the American Psychological Association, there were approximately 130,000 psychologists in the US in 2021. 10 And in that same year, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics estimates that there were approximately 65,000 marriage and family therapists. 11 For a US population of nearly 332 million people, that is one psychologist or MFT for every 1,702 people.
Globally, there are estimated to be approximately 13 mental health workers (of all types) for every 100,000 people. There are regions in the world that have even fewer; for example Southeast Asia has 2.8 mental health workers for every 100,000, and the continent of Africa has 1.6 mental health workers per 100,000 people.12
With this in mind, we need to acknowledge that simply having an advanced degree
in a mental health field is a significant privilege. The next question is, what risks are we taking to use our privilege to address urgent needs around us and around
the world? Each of us is in a particular place—with particular influence and particular barriers. We need to listen to the voices around us, calling for us to step closer to the pain or help tear down places of oppression.
In what ways can we have more influence when we live into our identity? Our Christian faith, and our competence to bring reflection on spirituality and religion into therapy, is also a privilege. 80% of psychologists report that they have not had specific training in how to address religion and spirituality in mental health treatment.13 Yet religion and spirituality are key resources to contribute to mental health in the US and around the globe.
Esther reminds us to be our true selves and to use all of our privileges in this work to address mental health crises. Being people of faith will build opportunities for connection in some sectors, like engaging local faith community leaders or Christian nonprofits. But it may also raise challenges from people and institutions that have been harmed by judgment or polarized perspectives. Yet we are still called to embody God’s hope and work towards healing with all that we have.
Creativity in Luke and in Mental Health
The story in Luke shows desperation in a different way. The friends are desperate for the paralyzed man to be healed. They want to get him to Jesus. The space is crowded with Pharisees and teachers of the law (take a moment to consider the metaphor here), so there is no room to bring in this person they cared about—who needs Jesus’ touch. They try to get him through the door, but it is too crowded.
So, they decide to go “outside the box” and find their own way to get their friend to this healer that they have heard of. They bring their friend up to the roof, remove the tiles, and lower him down to the feet of Jesus. Whenever I hear or read this story, I cannot help but imagine Jesus having a big laugh as this is happening.
Remarkably, Jesus sees the urgent faith of these friends and says to the paralyzed man, “Your sins are forgiven you.” This leads to quite some criticism from the Pharisees and teachers of the law, and Jesus ultimately shows his power to both forgive sins and heal, as he commands the man to “get up, take his bed, and go to his house.” Healing and restoration are intertwined. The desperate faith of the friends and their willingness to do something creative (and perhaps annoying and messy) brought freedom and healing to their friend.
Creativity Today
Fuller’s School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy has always been a place that has stepped outside of the expected. In 1972, we became the first program to integrate psychology and theology accredited by the American Psychological Association. We work to develop competencies in our students to understand the theoretical relationship between the disciplines of theology and psychology. We train our students to bring this understanding into the therapy room, and we emphasize the spiritual formation of the person, developing what the Marriage and Family Therapy faculty recognize as four clinical virtues: compassion, hope, humility, and Sabbath rest.
Our faculty have also led the way in unique scholarship located outside of the therapy room: Cameron Lee’s research on youth faith development that led to the Fuller Youth Institute’s Sticky Faith movement; Pam King’s research on thriving and spiritual health; Siang-Yang Tan’s work on lay counseling that has brought healing to many; Brad Strawn and Warren Brown’s work that has empowered churches to consider how embodied cognition is a component of worship; Archibald Hart’s many books supporting the well-being of pastors; Terry and Sharon Hargrave’s model of relational healing and resilience for couples, faith leaders, and teams all over the country; Alexis Abernethy’s groundbreaking research on the psychology of worship; and Lisseth Rojas-Flores’s partnership with World Vision International to evaluate their parent training models in 14 countries. This is just a taste of what has been happening in the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy.
Perhaps my favorite part of this Luke scripture is the very last verse, when the people are filled with awe and say, “We have seen strange things today.” Yes, that is the work of Christ, but it is also the work of the friends.
Let’s continue to get out of the expected molds of mental health care. We can be rooted in rich scholarship and theory, and we can also bring these ideas to our communities in new ways. Excellent therapy will always be a critical resource, but what other ways can we use our skills to contribute to healing?
As we bring healing to trauma that has already happened, we may be able to prevent some additional abuse or violence. Perhaps it is extending Siang-Yang’s lay counseling models into trauma-informed resources for international churches. Perhaps it is incorporating knowledge of family systems, human development, or trauma care into all theological education. Perhaps it is using books, podcasts, or blogs; church small groups or Sunday school classes; websites; teletherapy; artificial intelligence models; or some other thing we have not even thought of yet.
Our Mission Today
We are called to have our eyes open for the needs of those around us. Mental health needs are not just in the therapy room, and distress is not just in those who can access insurance or pay for therapy themselves. We need to work together to meet these needs, just as the friends banded together to lower their paralyzed friend. We need each other to respond effectively.
What is our mission now? How might God use the marriage and family therapists, the psychologists, the scholars, the researchers, and the consultants who come out of our programs to contribute to the hope and healing in our world today?
We do not have enough mental health practitioners to respond to all of the world’s needs. But we can use our privileged position and be creative in how we train others, build resilience, increase knowledge, and develop competencies in leaders from many sectors.
At Fuller, we have led the way in planting the cross in the heart of psychology; let’s bring this integrative model of mental health and plant it in the heart of the community and the church.
The mission of mental health is to steward the privilege of our education and live into our unique identity, creatively making the space for others to be at Christ’s feet, confident in Christ’s healing and hope. We do this together, for the sake of the kingdom, for the God who heals all our diseases and rescues our lives from the pit. Amen.
Cynthia Eriksson is dean of the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy, PsyD program chair, and professor of psychology. She has been a member of Fuller’s faculty since 2000 and participates in the Headington Program in International Trauma at the seminary. Dr. Eriksson has done trauma training, research, and consultation in Monrovia, Liberia; Kobe, Japan; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Barcelona, Spain; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Gulu, Uganda, and Amman, Jordan. Her research is particularly focused on the needs of cross-cultural aid or mission workers, as well as the interaction of trauma and spirituality.
Cynthia Eriksson’s installation address, delivered at her installation as the dean of the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy in 2023, edited for publication.
“What Is Your Theology of Hope?”
Twenty-one years ago, in my theology exam to become a core faculty member, I was sitting in a conference room with eight or nine theologians, and I was asked to answer a question: “What is your theology of hope?”
I had come to the clinical psychology program at Fuller in 1990, planning to use my psychology training in overseas missions. I studied trauma for my master’s project in Liberia during the Civil War and in my dissertation research with humanitarian aid workers. Then, God redirected me to this unexpected place in academia. Now I was being asked, “What is your theology of hope?”
I will be honest. What I remember of my first thoughts to that question was something akin to, “Oh no, I didn’t study anything like that.”
Then, when I regained my grounding, I realized that the question was asking, how I, as a Christian, approach the places of pain in clients and in the world that do not seem redeemable. I remember answering that I believe that God is working towards the health and well-being of anyone I come in contact with. That God’s desire is for healing for the child who experienced sexual abuse or the trauma of war, as well as for the person who perpetrated the abuse or committed atrocities in combat. That, one day, all things will be on earth as they are in heaven.
My theology of hope—my trust that God desires truth and justice, my faith that God can redeem anything—allows me to bring that hope into any situation. Depending upon my work context, I may or may not be able to explicitly speak out my confidence in Christ’s hope and healing. But I have embodied that hope in my relationship with those I serve. And this hope
is what propels me to walk toward those in pain.
I thought that I would be a missionary in other countries or cultural spaces, but instead, the mission God invited me into became broader: to be present in the pain of others and to embody Christ’s hope and healing, and to teach others to do the same. This is the mission of mental health.
Now, God’s good purposes have brought me to another unexpected place, as the new dean of the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy. Again, God broadens the mission for such a time as this.
“For Such a Time as This”
What is this time? We hear the phrases “mental health crisis,” “youth mental health crisis,” “global trauma,” “war and political violence,” “pandemic stress,” “racial trauma,” “climate change stress,” “polarization,” and so many more.
Every generation has had challenges, changes, and crises. While I do not want to start our reflections with an “alarmist” mentality, I do want to unpack these phrases and calls to action. What are the crises we are facing related to mental health? What are the ways that we need hope and healing in our world?
Recent global reports and research provide stark data. The surgeon general of the United Stated recently put out an advisory on youth mental health. He notes that in the decade between 2009 and 2019 (even prior to COVID-19), the number of US high school students reporting feeling
persistently anxious or depressed increased by 40%, the number stating that they seriously considered suicide increased by 36%, and the number saying that they had a plan to commit suicide increased by 44%.1 Research reported by the Trevor Project also notes that LGBTQ youth are more than four times as likely as their peers to attempt suicide.2
Epidemiological research notes that between 1999 and 2020, the number of adult deaths in the US related to “deaths of despair” (suicide, drug overdose, and alcoholic liver disease) increased by 227% for Native American and Alaskan Native adults, by 164% for White Americans, by 121% for Black Americans, by 100% for Asian American and Pacific Islanders, and by 49% for Hispanic Americans.
The World Health Organization World Mental Health Report from 2022 notes that since 2000, severe weather events (tropical storms, heat waves, wildfires, floods, and mudslides) have increased by 46%, and these events lead to emergency mental health challenges like posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and other stress-related issues.4
The World Health Organization report also states that in 2021, 84 million people were displaced from their homes due to conflict or threats of violence. Every one of these people will experience some type of emotional distress in that displacement. But, on average, one in five people in these settings of displacement will develop a mental disorder (that is over 16 million people).5
The experience of racial violence, threats of racial violence, and even hearing media reports of race-based violence and legal proceedings are all significantly related to poorer mental health in communities of color.6 Experiencing racial discrimination is also associated with anxiety, depressive symptoms, and sleep difficulties.7
Experiencing sociopolitical polarization is also related to emotions like anger, fear, and frustration—which are significantly related to poorer physical health.8 In addition, those reporting a sense of increasing polarization in their own social circles are more likely to report depression, anxiety, and sleep problems.9
There are so many needs and so much pain, it can almost feel like too much to take it in. How do we embody hope and healing in the midst of these needs?
As a Christian, I hold all of these statistics, challenges, and crises with a posture of prayer and lament: crying out to God in the truth of the pain, naming what is happening, and then also naming what I want from God. I want hope. I want healing. I want justice. And I hold a theology of hope, that one day, all things will be as
in heaven.
Psalm 103 promises that God heals our diseases and rescues us from the pit, that God works righteousness and justice for the oppressed, that God has compassion on us and is gracious. That promise holds “hope” for things yet to come and an expectation of “healing.” I lament these mental health crises, and I trust God’s desire for healing. We exist in the reality of God’s love and God’s kingdom purposes. We are in the overall story of the people of God, and God’s intention—his telos—for the planet. So, we are grounded in the purposes of God and the love of God. And we are called to be disciples—to act in faithfulness.
Healing is at the very core of Jesus’ ministry. When he enters a village, he teaches and he heals. When Jesus sends out his disciples in Luke 9, he does not just commission them to “tell everyone about the kingdom of God,” but he also gives them the “authority to heal all
the diseases.”
How are we healing these diseases? In this time of crisis, we come to “such a time as this” with a mission to use the skills and knowledge of mental health as a way to bring Christ’s healing and hope to a desperate world.
The book Esther and the fifth chapter of Luke are two very different stories—one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament—two very different times in the life of the people of Israel. What is something they have in common? We could say that their characters are desperate.
Esther is desperate to save her people from genocide, desperate for a hope that there is a future for her people. The friends in Luke are desperate for healing for their friend, desperate to get to the source of that healing. Desperate for a hope; desperate for healing.
The story of Esther challenges us to think about the privilege that she stewards to try to stop the deaths of her family and community, even as she is honest about her own identity at the risk of her own life. The story in Luke of the friends lowering the paralyzed man through the roof to Jesus invites us to consider the ways that desperation can lead to creativity. What are we capable of when we “think outside of the box”?
Let’s consider these, and the desperation of our own time, to think about how we are engaging in this mission of hope and healing for mental health.
Privilege in Esther and in Mental Health
A brief reminder of the story of Esther in the Persian Empire: The Jewish people are under threat of genocide. A narcissistic political leader, Haman, has plotted to destroy his Jewish nemesis, Moredecai, and Mordecai’s people, the Jews. Haman has wheedled his way into the influence of King Xerxes and has convinced the king to make a decree allowing for the slaughter of the Jewish people on a certain day. But disinterested and self-absorbed King Xerxes had chosen Mordecai’s cousin, Esther, to be his queen not knowing of her Jewish identity.
Mordecai is in mourning about the decree, and Esther sees him at the palace gate in his mourning clothes. She sends a messenger to find out what is wrong, and she hears that her people are under threat. While earlier, Mordecai had told Esther to hide her Jewish ancestry, now he says that this is the time to hold her privileged position as queen and her Jewish identity together.
Esther is in a privileged and unique position to influence the king, but she also has to be honest about who she is. She needs to own her identity as a Jew in order to have the influence she needs to save her people. She also knows that if she goes to the king without being summoned, she may be put to death.
“For such a time as this.” This is the time when Esther needs to act. She sends the message for her people to fast for her—and with her—and then she takes the risk of death. In the end, Esther saves her people, through her courage and God’s justice. Esther used her privileged position, her wits, and her identity, and she took a big risk.
Privilege Today
Today, having an advanced degree in a mental health field is a significant privilege. It provides a set of competencies that can be used to contribute to the healing of others—and it can also be used to increase our own wealth or status.
According to the American Psychological Association, there were approximately 130,000 psychologists in the US in 2021. 10 And in that same year, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics estimates that there were approximately 65,000 marriage and family therapists. 11 For a US population of nearly 332 million people, that is one psychologist or MFT for every 1,702 people.
Globally, there are estimated to be approximately 13 mental health workers (of all types) for every 100,000 people. There are regions in the world that have even fewer; for example Southeast Asia has 2.8 mental health workers for every 100,000, and the continent of Africa has 1.6 mental health workers per 100,000 people.12
With this in mind, we need to acknowledge that simply having an advanced degree
in a mental health field is a significant privilege. The next question is, what risks are we taking to use our privilege to address urgent needs around us and around
the world? Each of us is in a particular place—with particular influence and particular barriers. We need to listen to the voices around us, calling for us to step closer to the pain or help tear down places of oppression.
In what ways can we have more influence when we live into our identity? Our Christian faith, and our competence to bring reflection on spirituality and religion into therapy, is also a privilege. 80% of psychologists report that they have not had specific training in how to address religion and spirituality in mental health treatment.13 Yet religion and spirituality are key resources to contribute to mental health in the US and around the globe.
Esther reminds us to be our true selves and to use all of our privileges in this work to address mental health crises. Being people of faith will build opportunities for connection in some sectors, like engaging local faith community leaders or Christian nonprofits. But it may also raise challenges from people and institutions that have been harmed by judgment or polarized perspectives. Yet we are still called to embody God’s hope and work towards healing with all that we have.
Creativity in Luke and in Mental Health
The story in Luke shows desperation in a different way. The friends are desperate for the paralyzed man to be healed. They want to get him to Jesus. The space is crowded with Pharisees and teachers of the law (take a moment to consider the metaphor here), so there is no room to bring in this person they cared about—who needs Jesus’ touch. They try to get him through the door, but it is too crowded.
So, they decide to go “outside the box” and find their own way to get their friend to this healer that they have heard of. They bring their friend up to the roof, remove the tiles, and lower him down to the feet of Jesus. Whenever I hear or read this story, I cannot help but imagine Jesus having a big laugh as this is happening.
Remarkably, Jesus sees the urgent faith of these friends and says to the paralyzed man, “Your sins are forgiven you.” This leads to quite some criticism from the Pharisees and teachers of the law, and Jesus ultimately shows his power to both forgive sins and heal, as he commands the man to “get up, take his bed, and go to his house.” Healing and restoration are intertwined. The desperate faith of the friends and their willingness to do something creative (and perhaps annoying and messy) brought freedom and healing to their friend.
Creativity Today
Fuller’s School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy has always been a place that has stepped outside of the expected. In 1972, we became the first program to integrate psychology and theology accredited by the American Psychological Association. We work to develop competencies in our students to understand the theoretical relationship between the disciplines of theology and psychology. We train our students to bring this understanding into the therapy room, and we emphasize the spiritual formation of the person, developing what the Marriage and Family Therapy faculty recognize as four clinical virtues: compassion, hope, humility, and Sabbath rest.
Our faculty have also led the way in unique scholarship located outside of the therapy room: Cameron Lee’s research on youth faith development that led to the Fuller Youth Institute’s Sticky Faith movement; Pam King’s research on thriving and spiritual health; Siang-Yang Tan’s work on lay counseling that has brought healing to many; Brad Strawn and Warren Brown’s work that has empowered churches to consider how embodied cognition is a component of worship; Archibald Hart’s many books supporting the well-being of pastors; Terry and Sharon Hargrave’s model of relational healing and resilience for couples, faith leaders, and teams all over the country; Alexis Abernethy’s groundbreaking research on the psychology of worship; and Lisseth Rojas-Flores’s partnership with World Vision International to evaluate their parent training models in 14 countries. This is just a taste of what has been happening in the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy.
Perhaps my favorite part of this Luke scripture is the very last verse, when the people are filled with awe and say, “We have seen strange things today.” Yes, that is the work of Christ, but it is also the work of the friends.
Let’s continue to get out of the expected molds of mental health care. We can be rooted in rich scholarship and theory, and we can also bring these ideas to our communities in new ways. Excellent therapy will always be a critical resource, but what other ways can we use our skills to contribute to healing?
As we bring healing to trauma that has already happened, we may be able to prevent some additional abuse or violence. Perhaps it is extending Siang-Yang’s lay counseling models into trauma-informed resources for international churches. Perhaps it is incorporating knowledge of family systems, human development, or trauma care into all theological education. Perhaps it is using books, podcasts, or blogs; church small groups or Sunday school classes; websites; teletherapy; artificial intelligence models; or some other thing we have not even thought of yet.
Our Mission Today
We are called to have our eyes open for the needs of those around us. Mental health needs are not just in the therapy room, and distress is not just in those who can access insurance or pay for therapy themselves. We need to work together to meet these needs, just as the friends banded together to lower their paralyzed friend. We need each other to respond effectively.
What is our mission now? How might God use the marriage and family therapists, the psychologists, the scholars, the researchers, and the consultants who come out of our programs to contribute to the hope and healing in our world today?
We do not have enough mental health practitioners to respond to all of the world’s needs. But we can use our privileged position and be creative in how we train others, build resilience, increase knowledge, and develop competencies in leaders from many sectors.
At Fuller, we have led the way in planting the cross in the heart of psychology; let’s bring this integrative model of mental health and plant it in the heart of the community and the church.
The mission of mental health is to steward the privilege of our education and live into our unique identity, creatively making the space for others to be at Christ’s feet, confident in Christ’s healing and hope. We do this together, for the sake of the kingdom, for the God who heals all our diseases and rescues our lives from the pit. Amen.
Cynthia Eriksson is dean of the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy, PsyD program chair, and professor of psychology. She has been a member of Fuller’s faculty since 2000 and participates in the Headington Program in International Trauma at the seminary. Dr. Eriksson has done trauma training, research, and consultation in Monrovia, Liberia; Kobe, Japan; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Barcelona, Spain; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Gulu, Uganda, and Amman, Jordan. Her research is particularly focused on the needs of cross-cultural aid or mission workers, as well as the interaction of trauma and spirituality.
Amos Yong, professor of theology and mission, talks about sustaining and sharing hope in and through ministry leadership in today’s world.
