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“i want to know if you smile when you see me happy again and if a tear runs down your face when you realize that your people are the reason i’ve never quite healed, that chemistry and not christianity has been my cure.”

~ Lydia Childress, “They’ve Thrown Us Out of the Church Like Lepers”

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Last Friday I had the opportunity to watch the live broadcasts from the 2014 Gathering on Mental Health and the Church. Inspired by the suicide of Matthew Warren, son of evangelical celebrity Rick Warren and his wife Kay, the Gathering was a one-day event “designed to encourage individuals living with mental illness, educate family members, and equip church leaders to provide effective and compassionate care to any faced with the challenges of mental illness.”

The event, held at Rick and Kay Warren’s Saddleback Church in Southern California, was hosted by the Warrens…