FEAR by Dr. Charles L. Feinberg
I T IS TREMENDOUSLY SIGNIFICANT to observe the rapid increase in men tal illness during these latter days. In the E n c y c lo p ed ia Britannica Yearbook for 1966 we read, “Psychi atric disorders of later life are a ma jor growing problem and are respon sible for overcrowding in psychiatric hospitals.” Dr. S. I. McMillan, a Christian doctor, writes in his book, None of These Diseases: “About nine billion Americans suffer from emotional and mental illness. As many hospi tal beds are filled by the mentally de ranged as are occupied by all medi cal and surgical patients combined. In fact, one out of every twenty Americans will have a psychotic dis turbance severe enough to confine him to a hospital for the insane.” (Some predictions forecast that rate to be as high as one out of every ten.) Dr. McMillan continues, “Men tal disease is the nation’s number one health problem.” A closer look at this fact reveals what it costs annually to care for these disturbed people. This figure is about one billion dollars. Of course, outside of the asylums, there are vast numbers who are incapable of supporting themselves. This is an added burden on the taxpayer. The noted psychologist, Dr. Carl Jung, is quoted as saying, “Among all of my
patients in the second half of life [over thirty-five], there has not been one whose problem, in the last resort, was that of not finding a religious outlook on life. It seems to me that side by side with the decline of re ligious life the neurosis grows no ticeably more frequent.” There is no possible denial of the growth in mental illness in recent years. We can readily see that it will increase in the days ahead. What is seen in the last days of the church age will be intensified during the Great Tribulation. There are drives for many chari table causes today; however, one of the most pressing is that for mental health research. It seems such a popular thing to see one’s psychia trist. Yet all of this is an indication of a growing and serious sickness in society. The Bible gives us a great deal of light through the prophetic Scrip tures on this subject. Mental illness can be traced to at least three fun damental basic causes. The first, sim ply stated, is “fear.” Of course, some fears help to preserve life. One may not jump from a building because he fears injury or death. Most fears, however, are detrimental. “Fear not” is found scores of times in the Word of God. The unbe lieving have many fears. The Scrip-
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