As society becomes progressively dominated by an ideology of healthy living, Matt Edmonds makes a vital critique of contemporary efforts to remove 'disability' from the world around us. Surveying the logic and language of both secular and religious health movements, Edmonds highlights the misplaced generalisations and dubious values that cumulatively serve to undermine individual inclusion and well-being on a day-to-day basis. 'A Theological Diagnosis' seeks a new direction. From the resources of Christian theology it finds a paradigm with which to examine the infections of genetic theory, faith healing and the meaning of 'disability' so as to prescribe a way forward for both believer and non-believer alike. Combining history, theology and thoughtful analysis, this is a prescription that none of us can afford to ignore. Quite simply, there is little time left.

Based on the author's thesis (M.Phil.: Cambridge University).

Decades of use and refinement have solidified the place of How to Think Theologically as the indispensable guide to helping students of theology realize their call to be theologians. By focusing not on thinkers or thoughts, but on thinking, Stone and Duke induct readers into those habits of mind that lead to understanding all things--social, cultural, and personal--in relation to God. The new edition includes: Expansions of existing chapters An annotated bibliography of recommended reading An appendix of theological labels An expanded glossary Key points highlighted in call-outs throughout Updated case studies Discussion questions Both experienced teachers and beginning students will benefit from Stone and Duke's latest revision of their classic text.

Pastoral Diagnosis is the first book-length analysis of pastoral assessment of parishioners' presenting problems to be published in the last two decades. This pioneering book retrieves the theological and ethical foundations of the Judeo-Christian tradition for pastoral care, opens up lines of communication between pastoral theology and the other theological disciplines, and helps clergy and other pastoral care and counseling professionals move beyond the current preoccupation with secular psychotherapy and the other social sciences.

A mini-book written to help people (and their friends and family) who have been diagnosed with a mental disorder. If you’ve just been diagnosed with a mental disorder, you may be feeling overwhelmed and have all kinds of questions. In this mini-book, Christine Chappell writes out of her own experience of diagnosis and offers readers a redemptive perspective from which to begin processing their nuanced problems. Cautioning against a “fix it” mentality, she shows how the Scriptures provide stabilizing truths about our personhood, purpose, and potential for making God-glorifying progress during the challenging post-diagnosis journey.

How do Christians in the twenty-first century understand psychological disorders? What does Scripture have to teach us about these conditions? Marcia Webb examines attitudes about psychological disorder in the church today, and compares them to the scriptural testimony. She offers theological and psychological insights to help contemporary Christians integrate biblical perspectives with current scientific knowledge about mental illness.

Schizophrenia is often considered one of the most destructive forms of mental illness. Elahe Hessamfar's personal experience with her daughter's illness has led her to ask some pressing and significant questions about the cause and nature of schizophrenia and the Church's role in its treatment. With a candid and revealing look at the history of mental illness, In the Fellowship of His Suffering describes schizophrenia as a variation of human expression. Hessamfar uses a deeply theological rather than pathological approach to interpret the schizophrenic experience and the effect it has on both the patients and their families. Effectively drawing on the Bible as a source of knowledge for understanding mental illness, she offers a reflective yet innovative view of whether the Church could or should intervene in such encounters and what such an intervention might look like. Hessamfar's comprehensive work will provoke powerful responses from anyone interested in the prominent social issue of mental illness. Her portrayal of the raging debate between treating 'insanity' either pastorally or medically will enthral readers, be they Christians, medical students or those in the field of psychiatry and social sciences.