Patriarch Daniel of Romania emphasised the vital need for cooperation between spiritual fathers and mental health specialists in addressing the psychological challenges of modern life.
In a message titled “Science and Spirituality in the Service of Mental Health,” occasioned by a national conference on pastoral and psychological care, the Patriarch of Romania called for a dialogue between theology and medical science, highlighting that true healing means restoring harmony between body, mind, and soul.
He noted that priests and psychiatrists serve “complementary vocations” — both dedicated to the healing of the human person — and encouraged clergy to understand the basics of mental health, while urging specialists to appreciate the spiritual dimension of human life.
Please find below the full text of Patriarch Daniel’s message
Science and Spirituality in the Service of Mental Health
With great joy, we extend our greetings to all participants in this important conference, dedicated to a topic of major relevance and profound pastoral significance: the cooperation between spiritual fathers (confessors) and specialists in the field of mental health.
In the times we live in—marked by an unprecedented acceleration of life’s pace, the pressure of digital technologies, and the challenges of an increasingly secularised world—we observe with concern the growing number of people suffering from psychological distress.
Statistical data reveal an alarming reality: anxiety disorders, depression, addictions, and other mental illnesses affect an ever-increasing number of individuals, especially young people. According to recent studies, digital addictions and mental health issues have intensified dramatically, representing a major challenge for contemporary society.
According to the teaching of the Orthodox Church, the human being is a unique and living person composed of body and soul, with a biological, psychological, and spiritual life. The Holy Confessor Priest Dumitru Stăniloae describes the creation and vocation of man in the world as follows:
“According to Christian faith, man consists of a material body and what we call the soul, which cannot be reduced to matter. The soul permeates the material body and is bound to it, yet it transcends its materiality. The human being must be respected as a creature of inestimable value. Through the soul, he is someone, not merely something. What makes man ‘someone’ is that spiritual substratum endowed with consciousness and the capacity for conscious and free responses.”
“The human soul is made in the image of the personal God, both through its consciousness and through its quality as a subject among subjects, possessing a kind of shared human consciousness.”
“The conscious soul is brought into being by the special creative act and the initiating dialogue of the Logos with it (cf. Genesis 1:26–27). The purpose of creation is thus fulfilled through the bringing into existence of the conscious person, for the Creator Himself is a Person, and creation’s goal is the realisation of dialogue between the supreme Person and the created persons.”
“Therefore, in Christian teaching, spirit is not a distinct entity apart from the soul, but rather the higher functions of the soul — those less concerned with the care of the body and more with thought that can rise to contemplation of its Creator.”
“The Holy Fathers speak of the higher, intelligible part of the soul — the nous (mind) — in such a way as to show that it knows God directly and intuitively, after being freed from all worldly representations and images. (…) This direct knowledge of God is not understood in the East as the knowledge of a mind separated from the body and the world, but rather as the knowledge of a mind still aware of its embodied existence and worldly experience. It is the direct knowledge of the mind of a purified body. It is the direct knowledge of a mind that feels the effect of its purification in relation to the world — a direct knowledge through a world made transparent.”
“The human soul is created by God in a special way, being endowed with divine-like attributes: consciousness, rational understanding, and freedom. The human soul is called to a free dialogue with God through knowledge and action — to use the world freely, as God’s gift, responding through it to His love and extending that loving dialogue toward one’s fellow human beings.”
“Man, as a special creature, is created simultaneously in his entirety. Man is made up of two components: body and soul. The body is formed from the general matter, while the soul bears a special kinship with God. ‘Man is akin to God,’ says Saint Gregory of Nyssa. And Saint Macarius the Egyptian declares, ‘Between man and God there exists the greatest kinship.’”
“Indeed, the ‘living soul’ breathed into man is seen by Saint Gregory Palamas as eternally alive, immortal, and endowed with divine grace. ‘What did God breathe into him? The breath of life. Thus, the first man became a living soul. But what does “living” mean? Eternally living, immortal — that is, rational. For the immortal is rational, and not only that, but is also endowed with divine grace. For in truth, such a soul is truly alive. This is what it means to be made “in the image” — and, if you will, also “in the likeness.”
“The breath of God instils in man not merely biological life (for animals have that too, without receiving the divine breath), but rather the life of understanding and communion with God — spiritual life itself.”
“Through the divine breath, there appears within man a ‘Thou’ addressed to God — the image of God — for this ‘Thou’ can say ‘I’ and can call God ‘Thou.’ God grants from nothing a partner for dialogue, yet within a biological organism.”
This anthropological vision, founded on the Holy Scripture, the teaching of the Holy Fathers, and the Church’s two-thousand-year pastoral experience, shows that true human health cannot be understood merely as the absence of physical or psychological pain, but as a state of harmony among all dimensions of human existence.
The spiritual father, the “physician of souls” according to the tradition of our Church, has the sacred mission to guide believers on the path of salvation — through spiritual healing from selfish passions and through reconciliation with God, with one’s neighbour, and with oneself. The Mystery of Confession grants forgiveness of sins, but also brings spiritual growth through the grace of the Most Holy Trinity, which enlightens the human being in the depths of its existence.
At the same time, we recognise that many forms of psychological suffering today require the competent care of mental health professionals — psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, and psychotherapists.
Pastoral experience demonstrates that the spiritual father and the mental health specialist do not work in opposing or competing directions, but rather in complementary ones. Both serve the healing of the human person, each according to his calling and expertise.
The spiritual father offers spiritual guidance and healing through the Mysteries of Confession, Holy Unction, and the Eucharist, through personal and communal prayer, and by encouraging life in communion with Christ, “Who heals every disease and every infirmity among the people” (cf. Matthew 4:23). The mental health professional, on the other hand, provides scientific diagnosis, appropriate treatment, and specialized therapeutic support in accordance with contemporary medical knowledge.
A believer suffering from clinical depression can receive both medical treatment and spiritual support from the priest. A young person facing severe anxiety can be helped through psychological therapy as well as through inner peace attained in prayer and participation in the Holy Mysteries of the Church, which communicate to humankind the merciful and peace-giving love of Christ, Who said: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
This conference offers both a scientific and spiritual framework for a better understanding of how confessors and mental health specialists can collaborate, cultivating mutual respect for each other’s roles and competencies, while keeping the healing of the suffering person at the centre.
It is essential that priests understand the fundamental aspects of mental health, recognise the signs of severe psychological distress, and refer believers to the appropriate specialist when needed. At the same time, mental health professionals working with religious patients are encouraged to respect their patients’ spiritual lives and appreciate the beneficial role that spiritual care can play in the healing process.
Likewise, spiritual fathers are encouraged to become familiar with the positive achievements of cognitive sciences — psychology, neuroscience, and psychiatry — when practised responsibly, as they can provide real help to those suffering. Mental health specialists, in turn, should remain open to the spiritual values of human life, recognising that prayer and the Church’s liturgical life can be profound sources of healing and meaning for believers, their families, and their communities.
We hope that the proceedings of this conference will contribute to developing an integrated vision of caring for those who suffer, through an honest dialogue between modern medical science and the Church’s bimillennial experience in the spiritual healing of the sick. Such collaboration can bring about the person’s holistic healing — mental and spiritual — not merely as the absence of symptoms, but as the restoration of inner harmony and communion with God, with one’s neighbour, and with oneself: a state of peace, joy, and hope.
Finally, we express our sincere appreciation to the organisers of this important scientific and spiritual event, and to all participants — priests, mental health professionals, researchers, and students — who, through their presence and dedication, deepen the necessary dialogue between medical science and the liturgical and spiritual life of the Church.
We pray to our Lord Jesus Christ, the Physician of our souls and bodies, to bless the work of this conference and to pour out His rich gifts upon all those who serve the healing and salvation of the sick, for the good of contemporary Romanian society.
With patriarchal blessing,
† DANIEL
Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church
Photo: Lumina Newspaper / Luigi Ivanciu
Source: basilica.ro
