Diagnosing and connecting to those with paranoid schizophrenia

In the throes of meetings and class prep (childhood disorders, personality disorders) for 6 hrs of teaching so I’m not going to do a review of literature. Planning tomorrow to hit the issues of parenting books again. But today I’m going to make mention of a letter that every faculty member got here at Biblical this past week. This letter advised us of the connections between a minor prophetic book, celestial military engagements, sinful patterns, and the earth’s rotations (or imminent stoppage thereof).  

On a frequent basis I get letters from well meaning individuals who want to help me understand some hidden truths that many Christians have missed down through the millenia. These letters have differing content but several similarities worth mentioning. I do so here NOT to make fun of them but to recognize the world they live in and offer a possible way to connect with someone in your life with similar issues. Far too frequently, we run from those we deem are “crazy” without looking at the deeper connections we might have with them:

Here are common threads of these kinds of letters:

1. Connections between very dispirit areas of content not otherwise known by mankind prior to their discovery of the connection. (biblical word studies, physics, astronomy, geography, historical events, a particular sin pattern)
2. Neologisms (made up words)
3. Sentences that you read many times but can’t tell what is being said because the words together don’t really make any sense.  (e.g., mandatory multi-disciplinary approach via certain corrective transactions)
4. Seeing meaning behind number systems (probably the issue with the new movie, 23, though I have only seen the trailors).
5. Persecution of the writer.

So, what can we glean from these writings.

1. This person is overwhelmed with data. We think we know that the frontal lobes (where we organize incoming info.) of folks struggling with these symptoms are overactive thus making the likelihood of feeling overwhelmed with the possible connections of all things. They are trying to make sense of their world. Imagine a world where every piece of data that came your way was so important that you had to pay attention to it. The sound of the computer hum, the number of rings of the telephone before you picked it up, the possible thoughts in the heads of those you encountered…
2. Oftentimes, they are trying to make sense of the rejection and hurt they have suffered and an explanation for why their life has gone the way it has. Thinking that you are special is certainly better than just thinking you are trash. We all want to make sense of the world and discern our place in it. What if we couldn’t explain our plight? What if every time we tried to talk with someone about our ideas, they ran from us? What assumptions might we attempt to make? What better way to explain it than seeing ourselves as prophets, not accepted in our own hometown?
3. Core concerns exposed. Fears of calamity, struggle with sin, explanation for failures, fear of loss of salvation, etc. These are things we can all relate with. 

So, the next time you get one of “these” letters, look for the humanity and the connectivity you have with this person’s concerns. If you meet them on the street, move beyond their specific fixation and logic problems to the heart of the matter. With that you can relate. If the person fears persecution, you can relate. If they desire to be special, you can relate. If they feel confused, you can relate.