| Surveys show that religion and
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| | potential dangers of receptivity to be
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| spirituality play a central role in the
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| | identified in order to realize the real
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| lives of most of the population in human
| |
| | value of true religious presence and the
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| experience. Gallup (1989) found that 53%
| |
| | shame of its counterfeit, addiction" (p.
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| of the U.S. population considers religion
| |
| | 243). McKenzie (1991) discusses
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| to be very important in their life, and
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| | addiction as an unauthentic form of
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| another 31% considered it fairly
| |
| | spiritual existence. He says that,
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| important (p. 176). The religious and
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| | "addiction is born of the human desire
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| spiritual dimensions of culture were
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| | for transcendence which is often
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| found to be among the most important
| |
| | perverted or misplaced by societies that
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| factors that structure human experience,
| |
| | encourage their members to seek ultimate
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| beliefs, values, behavior, and illness
| |
| | meaning in dimensions that have no regard
|
| (Browning et al., 1990; James, 1961;
| |
| | for the transcendent" (p. 325). Heise
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| Krippner and Welch, 1992).Researchers
| |
| | (1991, p. 11) explores the fundamentalist
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| however, report that some individuals
| |
| | Christian's focus on perfectionism, and
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| have problems that concern their
| |
| | it's possible contribution to an increase
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| religion. Members of the American
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| | in dysfunctional individuals, family
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| Psychological Association reported that
| |
| | systems, and addictions.Until recently,
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| at least one in six of their clients
| |
| | research in this area has primarily
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| presented issues that involve religion or
| |
| | focused on religious cults. Estimates of
|
| spirituality (Shafranske and Maloney,
| |
| | the number of cults range from several
|
| 1990). In another study, 29% of
| |
| | hundred to several thousand, with a total
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| psychologists agreed that religious
| |
| | membership up to three million (Allen and
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| issues are important in the treatment of
| |
| | Metoyer, 1988, p. 38; Melton, 1986).
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| all or many of their clients (Bergin and
| |
| | According to Margaret Singer, Ph.D., a
|
| Jensen, 1990, p. 3). Psychotherapy can
| |
| | psychologist specializing in cult
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| sometimes be effective in treating
| |
| | phenomena, "the word cult describes a
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| religious problems. Robinson (1986)
| |
| | power structure,...what really sets a
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| noted, "Some patients have troublesome
| |
| | cult apart is that one person has
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| conflicts about religion that could
| |
| | proclaimed himself to have some special
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| probably be resolved through the process
| |
| | knowledge, and if he can convince others
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| of psychotherapy" (p.22).Religious
| |
| | to let him be in charge, he will share
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| problems can be as various and complex as
| |
| | that knowledge" (Collins & Frantz, 1994,
|
| mental health problems. One type of
| |
| | p. 30). The Jim Jones People's Temple
|
| psychoreligious problem involves patients
| |
| | mass suicide has been documented in the
|
| who intensify their adherence to
| |
| | news, and more recently David Koresh's
|
| religious practices and orthodoxy
| |
| | Branch Davidian Christian cult. Cults,
|
| (Lukoff, Lu, and Turner 1992, p. 677).
| |
| | both destructive and benign, have been
|
| Generally when people speak of addictive
| |
| | with us in various guises since time
|
| diseases they imply a medical problem.
| |
| | immemorial. Many psychologists and
|
| In the past few years the term addiction
| |
| | psychiatrists have become knowledgeable
|
| has been used to characterize behaviors
| |
| | about destructive cults in the course of
|
| that go beyond chemicals. Dr. Robert
| |
| | their work with patients affected by the
|
| Lefever (1988) views addiction as a
| |
| | problem.Within the past few years,
|
| "family disease" involving self-denial
| |
| | however, traditional Church members have
|
| and caretaking, domination, and
| |
| | faced their compulsive behavior and
|
| submission (p. ix). Gerald May (1988)
| |
| | harmful beliefs. Doucette (1992) reports
|
| states that addiction is a "state of
| |
| | that "many people are waking up because
|
| compulsion, obsession, or preoccupation
| |
| | they have seen their religious leaders
|
| that enslaves a person's will and desire"
| |
| | fall. Some researchers believe that the
|
| (p.14). Shaef (1987) defines addiction
| |
| | magnitude of the tragedy of religious
|
| as "any process over which we are
| |
| | addiction and abuse was revealed by the
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| powerless" (p. 18). She divides
| |
| | TV evangelist scandals documented in the
|
| addictions into two categories: substance
| |
| | news media which involved: Jim and Tammy
|
| addictions -alcohol, drugs, nicotine,
| |
| | Bakker; Jimmy Swaggart; and Oral Roberts
|
| food) and process addictions
| |
| | (Brand 1987, p. 82; Woodward 1987, p. 68;
|
| -money-accumulation, gambling, sex, work,
| |
| | and Kaufman 1988, p. 37). These personal
|
| worry, and religion.Research in the area
| |
| | confessions have exposed not only how
|
| of religious addiction is deficient,
| |
| | these supposed men of God had betrayed
|
| however there were a few older related
| |
| | people's trust, but how many of those who
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| studies found in the literature.
| |
| | had been abused, betrayed, and bankrupted
|
| Simmonds (1977) reports that there is
| |
| | never seemed to question what was
|
| some evidence to indicate that "religious
| |
| | happening and continued to support these
|
| people in general tend to exhibit
| |
| | individuals.Booth (1991) states that "the
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| dependency on some external source of
| |
| | Bakker, Swaggart, and Roberts scandals
|
| gratification" (p. 114). Black and
| |
| | created a national intervention that
|
| London (1966) found a high positive
| |
| | served to interrupt the progress of this
|
| correlation between the variables of
| |
| | unhealthy phenomenon" (p. 38). What had
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| obedience to parents and country and
| |
| | previously been viewed as fanaticism or
|
| indices of religious belief such as
| |
| | zealotry increasingly began to be called
|
| church attendance, belief in God and
| |
| | religious addiction and religious abuse.
|
| prayer (p. 39). Goldsen, et al. (1960)
| |
| | Booth (1991) defines religious addiction
|
| showed that people who were more
| |
| | as "using God, a church, or a belief
|
| religious consistently showed tendencies
| |
| | system as an escape from reality, or as a
|
| toward greater social conformity than did
| |
| | weapon against ourselves or others in an
|
| the nonreligious, a finding consistent
| |
| | attempt to find or elevate a sense of
|
| with the notion that religious people
| |
| | self-worth or well-being" (p. 38).Other
|
| seek external approval. These results
| |
| | researchers use the terms spiritual and
|
| are supported by Fisher (1964 p. 784),
| |
| | psychological abuse to describe the
|
| who reported that a measure of social
| |
| | characteristics of religious addiction.
|
| approval and religion were strongly
| |
| | Enroth (1992) says that his book
|
| associated. Religious people show
| |
| | "Churches That Abuse is about people who
|
| dependence not only on social values, but
| |
| | have been abused psychologically and
|
| also on other external agents. Duke
| |
| | spiritually in churches and other
|
| (1964, p. 227) found that church
| |
| | Christian organizations" (p. 29). He
|
| attendance indicated more responsiveness
| |
| | reports that "unlike physical abuse that
|
| to the effects of a placebo. In a study
| |
| | often results in bruised bodies,
|
| of 50 alcoholics, it was found that those
| |
| | spiritual and pastoral abuse leaves scars
|
| who were dependent on alcohol were more
| |
| | on the psyche and soul...the perversion
|
| likely to have had a religious background
| |
| | of power that we see in abusive churches
|
| (Walters, 1957, p. 405).The few research
| |
| | disrupts and divides families, fosters
|
| studies aforementioned seem to suggest
| |
| | unhealthy dependence of members on the
|
| that religious people develop a
| |
| | leadership, and creates, ultimately,
|
| dependency on religious practices for
| |
| | spiritual confusion in the lives of
|
| social approval. Since religious people
| |
| | victims" (p. 29). The scandals involving
|
| seem to be describable in terms of
| |
| | TV evangelists created a national
|
| relatively high levels of dependence, it
| |
| | intervention by bringing religious
|
| seems useful to borrow a concept
| |
| | addiction and abuse too close to home to
|
| suggested by Peele and Brodsky (1975)-
| |
| | be ignored. Those scandals spurred
|
| that of "addiction." According to these
| |
| | people to act and call for change.During
|
| writers addiction is "a person's
| |
| | this period, I had the unique opportunity
|
| attachment to a sensation, an object, or
| |
| | to conduct a literature review and survey
|
| another person... such as to lessen his
| |
| | on the relatively newly recognized
|
| appreciation of and ability to deal with
| |
| | phenomenon of religious addiction within
|
| other things in his environment, or in
| |
| | Christianity in the State of Hawaii for
|
| himself, so that he has become
| |
| | my dissertation while pursuing my doctor
|
| increasingly dependent on that experience
| |
| | of psychology degree (Psy.D) in clinical
|
| as his only source of gratification" (p.
| |
| | psychology. After studying the symptoms,
|
| 168).There are a variety of definitions
| |
| | beliefs, and stages of religious
|
| for the concept of religious addiction.
| |
| | addiction along with the characteristics
|
| Arterburn and Felton (1992) state that
| |
| | of religiously addictive organizations, I
|
| "when a person is excessively devoted to
| |
| | came to believe that having an intense
|
| something or surrenders compulsively and
| |
| | faith or religious ferver is not equal to
|
| habitually to something, that
| |
| | having a religious addiction. Most
|
| pathological and physiological dependency
| |
| | people experience healthy religion and a
|
| on a substance, relationship, or behavior
| |
| | spiritual life in which obedience to God
|
| results in addiction" (p. 104). They
| |
| | is balanced with a freedom to serve
|
| indicate that, "like any other addiction,
| |
| | others in ways of individual
|
| the practice of religion becomes central
| |
| | experession.I also discovered however,
|
| to every other aspect of life...all
| |
| | that church leaders in Hawaii that were
|
| relationships evolve from the religion,
| |
| | self-appointed (not elected/ appointed by
|
| and the dependency on the religious
| |
| | their church) significantly identified
|
| practice and its members removes the need
| |
| | more with religious addictive beliefs,
|
| for a dependency on God...the religion
| |
| | symptoms and practices compared to their
|
| and those who practice it then become the
| |
| | counterparts.For more info see: Hawaii
|
| central power for the addict who no
| |
| | and Christian Religious Addiction
|
| longer is in touch with God" (p.
| |
| | Recovery Management Services
|
| 117).Spirituality can also have
| |
| | Slobodzien, Psy.D., CSAC, is a Hawaii
|
| pathological aspects to it. Vaughan
| |
| | licensed psychologist and certified
|
| (1991) reports that "the shadow side to a
| |
| | substance abuse counselor who earned his
|
| healthy search for wholeness can be
| |
| | doctorate in Clinical Psychology. He is
|
| called addiction to spirituality" (p.
| |
| | credentialed by the National Registry of
|
| 105). He indicates that this can be
| |
| | Health Service Providers in Psychology.
|
| found among people who use spirituality
| |
| | He has over 20-years of mental health
|
| as a solution to problems they are
| |
| | experience primarily working in the
|
| unwilling to face. Van-Kaam (1987)
| |
| | fields of alcohol/ substance abuse and
|
| presents a viewpoint of addiction as a
| |
| | behavioral addictions in hospital,
|
| quasi religious or falsified religious
| |
| | prison, and court settings. He is an
|
| presence. He reports that "an
| |
| | adjunct professor of Psychology and also
|
| understanding of the relationship between
| |
| | maintains a private practice as a mental
|
| religious presence and addiction allows
| |
| | health consultant.
|
