Talking not too long ago at a church convention, in style creator and pastor-teacher John MacArthur informed attendees that psychological sickness doesn’t exist. He additionally implied that kids who take medicines on account of psychological well being diagnoses are was “a potential drug addict” or “potential criminal.”
“The major noble lie is that there’s such a thing as mental illness,” stated MacArthur throughout a Q&A session at a convention on April 20 at Grace Church of the Valley in Kingsburg, California. “Now this isn’t new. You have Thomas Szasz back in the 1950s, who was a psychiatrist, writing a book on ‘The Myth of Mental Illness.’” (Szasz’s guide was first revealed in 1961.)
MacArthur continued: “There’s no such thing as PTSD. There’s no such thing as OCD. There’s no such thing as ADHD. Those are noble lies to basically give the excuse, in the end of the day, to medicate people. And Big Pharma is in charge of a lot of that.”
MacArthur’s feedback got here after Grace Church of the Valley Pastor Scott Ardavanis requested MacArthur why he wrote “The War on Children.”
“The War on Children” was initially slated to be revealed by Thomas Nelson. Nonetheless, after The Roys Report (TRR) revealed exposés, revealing that MacArthur failed to guard baby abuse victims, and excommunicated a mom for refusing to permit her abusive husband again into her dwelling, that settlement apparently fell by way of. Different Christian publishers additionally refused the guide, so in March, MacArthur self-published the guide by way of his ministry.
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The 84-year-old pastor spoke briefly in regards to the “sin nature” of youngsters and the way the leisure business has “targeted children.” Then he referenced a guide, “A Profession Without Reason” by Bruce Levine. “It’s a book that shows basically – this is pretty shocking to some of you – that psychology and psychiatry are finally admitting the noble lies that they’ve been telling for the last hundred years.”
MacArthur, whose doctorate is in theology, mentioned post-traumatic stress dysfunction, or PTSD, which public well being officers report is extra widespread in army veterans than the final inhabitants.
“Take PTSD, for example,” stated MacArthur. “What that really is, is grief. You are fighting a war. You lost your buddies. You have a certain amount of survival guilt because you made it back (and) they didn’t. How do you deal with grief? Grief is a real thing. But grief is part of life.”
In an announcement to TRR, medical psychologist Philip Monroe, challenged MacArthur’s statements.
“This is an old argument that says since you cannot see PTSD on a slide, then it doesn’t exist,” Monroe said. “And yet he wants to call PTSD grief. Well, show me grief on a slide? You can’t. In both cases, you can show clusters of symptoms.”
MacArthur added: “If you can’t navigate grief, you can’t live life. But if you clinically define that you can give them a pill, a series of medications, and they end up in L.A., homeless on the sidewalk.”
Dr. Monroe countered these assertions. “(MacArthur) suggests the only reason to get the diagnosis is to take a medication,” Monroe informed TRR. “Yes, sometimes a medication can help. But the vast majority of people with these diagnoses do not take medications in great amounts.”
‘Alarming’ recommendation to oldsters, says psychologist
MacArthur circled again to kids, the topic of his guide. He stated:
“Probably the most lethal factor that’s been unleashed on kids (is) treatment. We’re attempting to clarify to oldsters that conduct is basically the results of decisions that youngsters make. And should you mum or dad them correctly, they’ll make proper decisions.
However should you blame it on some one thing apart from their decisions, and also you establish them as having one thing they’ll’t do something about however medicate it – you actually are turning your baby into a possible properly, not solely a possible drug addict, however possibly a possible legal as a result of they by no means discovered navigate life in a socially acceptable means.”
After watching MacArthur’s remarks, Dr. Monroe known as the pastor’s evaluation “alarming.”
“It’s nearly criminal that he says children taking meds turns them into criminals or drug addicts,” stated Monroe. “Surely, he can back that up with evidence, right? Or that taking meds makes you homeless. The lack of logic and statistics is alarming.”
X person Shaun Jones stated that MacArthur’s parenting perspective most involved him. In the identical clip that included MacArthur’s assertion about psychological sickness, he additionally claimed, “If you parent (children) properly they’ll make right choices.”
Jones likened MacArthur’s declare to the prosperity gospel. “Obviously parents should strive to train their children well, but this guarantee of ‘do A+B to get C’ is bs.”
As reported earlier by TRR, MacArthur has disqualified elders from ministry on account of wayward kids.
But, final 12 months, when MacArthur’s son, Mark MacArthur, was charged with defrauding shoppers in a $16 million funding scheme and agreed to pay greater than $367,000 to the SEC, MacArthur didn’t disqualify himself.
‘Zero understanding’
Christian leaders and authors have extensively condemned John MacArthur’s remarks.
Reformed pastor Steve Camp posted on X, “I love my brother John MacArthur . . . but his conclusions here are stunningly unwise, misinformed and lacking biblical footing.”
Alan Noble, a Christian creator and professor at Oklahoma Baptist College, stated: “This is a denial of reality, dangerous, arrogant, and destructive. And shameful. Christians who believe in Truth shouldn’t be spreading falsehood.”
It is a denial of actuality, harmful, conceited, and harmful. And shameful. Christians who consider in Reality shouldn’t be spreading falsehood.
— 𝐎. 𝐀𝐥𝐚𝐧 𝐍𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞 (@TheAlanNoble) May 1, 2024
Abby Johnson, a pro-life conservative activist who famously left her previous function at Deliberate Parenthood, spoke from her expertise not too long ago incomes a doctorate. “John MacArthur just publicly proclaimed that he has zero understanding of PTSD or any other mental health disorder.”
She added: “I have my doctorate in Christian counseling and anyone reading this who is struggling, this is NOT truth. This is NOT what Jesus wants for you. He wants health and wholeness for your mind, body and spirit. That often includes therapy and sometimes medication. And that’s OKAY . . . Seeking help is the courageous thing to do.”
Finest-selling creator Beth Moore referenced “aging” in replying to a video clip shared on-line.
“I’ve had several very serious conversations with my daughters and my board concerning my public voice in my aging when filters naturally thin and we’re at greater risk of saying more than we should,” she stated. “Please love and respect him enough to sift what should and shouldn’t be publicized.”
She famous her household’s expertise with these points: “There is simply no way he could know, for example, what my husband has endured over being in a fire with his brother when he was a toddler and watching him burn and not acknowledge the reality of PTSD.”
MacArthur affiliate defends MacArthur
Nonetheless, Phil Johnson, govt director of MacArthur’s Grace To You Ministries and an elder at MacArthur’s Grace Group Church, defended his boss.
“John MacArthur has a long, Long, LONG history of ultimately being vindicated when he has taken positions contrary to the popular narrative,” stated Johnson.
He continued: “MacArthur’s positition (sic) is NOT that angst, mental distress, confusion, grief, etc. don’t exist, but that it is not helping anything by acronym-labeling these as ‘illnesses’ and pretending they are curable by drugs or psychotherapy.”
Johnson concluded: “MacArthur doesn’t hold this view alone or without reason. JM’s opinion is not materially different from the view psychiatrist Thomas Szasz laid out in detail in his 60-year-old classic, ‘The Myth of Mental Illness.’”
A number of replies known as out Johnson’s protection as insufficient.
Mark West, a minister in Batesville, Arkansas, said: “As a Christian, SBC pastor who also serves the Mental Health community I can say factually that this teaching is neither Scriptural nor helpful to the body.”
“It’s the equivalent of an eye saying it doesn’t need hands. It’s ill-informed and divisive.”
Sample of harming the susceptible
Within the early Nineteen Eighties, GCC was sued by the mother and father of somebody who dedicated suicide after receiving biblical counseling at GCC. The case was finally dismissed. However on the time, GCC leaders stated the church would change its counseling coaching packages.
But, simply final 12 months, the Affiliation of Licensed Biblical Counselors (ACBC) eliminated a pastor at MacArthur’s Grace Group Church (GCC) as an permitted ACBC counselor.
The pastor, Invoice Shannon, oversees the biblical counseling ministry at GCC. And the transfer by ACBC got here after quite a few victims of abuse stated GCC had a harmful sample of defending abusers and harming victims.
It additionally got here after TRR reported that MacArthur had publicly excommunicated a former member, Eileen Grey, for refusing to take again her child-abusing husband, David Grey.
A follow-up story by TRR revealed that even after David Grey was convicted in 2005 of sexually molesting his kids, MacArthur and GCC continued to shun Eileen and assist David.
TRR additionally revealed an unique story about Paul Guay, a former pastor at GCC. In accordance with an eyewitness, Guay confessed to MacArthur in 1979 that he had molested his daughter, Wendy Guay. But MacArthur retained Paul Guay at GCC, calling him “a faithful part of our staff” in a letter obtained by TRR.
Many years later, Wendy Guay wrote to MacArthur, pleading with him to assist her expose her father, who was nonetheless pastoring, as a serial pedophile. MacArthur refused and replied in an e-mail, “I’m not sure why all this has become an obsession for you after so many years.”
MacArthur has not responded to repeated requests for remark by TRR about his dealing with of the Paul Guay or David Grey circumstances.
As well as, MacArthur’s The Grasp’s College and Seminary (TMUS) has movies posted on its YouTube channel wherein John Road, chair of the graduate program of biblical counseling at TMUS, teaches {that a} partner ought to endure abuse like a missionary endures persecution.
“The abused victim is the key player in reaching and changing the abuser,” stated Road within the lecture.
Josh Shepherd is a reporter and manufacturing editor. Julie Roys is the founder and editor of The Roys Report.
“Well bless their hearts.”
