Was Mother Teresa Depressed? A Look at Catholic Configurations of Depression and Holiness in View of Mental Health Stigma
When the 2007 publication of Mother Teresa’s private papers revealed her struggles with sadness, despair, and the absence of God, some asked: Was Mother Teressa depressed? This essay analyzes some Catholic responses to this question and argues that they reflect and perpetuate mental health stigma. F...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Taylor & Francis
2023
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| In: |
Journal of disability & religion
Year: 2023, Volume: 27, Issue: 2, Pages: 223-246 |
| Further subjects: | B
Mother Teresa
B mental health stigma B Pope Francis B Catholic B Holiness B Depression |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | When the 2007 publication of Mother Teresa’s private papers revealed her struggles with sadness, despair, and the absence of God, some asked: Was Mother Teressa depressed? This essay analyzes some Catholic responses to this question and argues that they reflect and perpetuate mental health stigma. Furthermore, these commentaries contribute to mental health stigma in a distinctly Christian fashion by casting depression and holiness as mutually exclusive. In response, the essay draws on Pope Francis’s Gaudete et exsultate to correct the impoverished notion of holiness that underpins this expression of mental health stigma in Catholic and other Christian communities. |
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| ISSN: | 2331-253X |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of disability & religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/23312521.2022.2036296 |