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Blessed Are the Crazy: Breaking the Silence about Mental Illness, Family and Church
When do you learn that "normal" doesn't include lots of yelling, lots of sleeping, lots of beating? In Blessed Are the Crazy: Breaking the Silence about Mental Illness, Family, and Church, Sarah Griffith Lund looks back at her father's battle with bipolar disorder, and the helpless sense of deja vu as her brother and cousin endure mental illness, as well. With a small group study guide and "Ten Steps for Developing a Mental Health Ministry in Your Congregation," Blessed Are the Crazy is more than memoir--it's a resource for churches and other faith-based groups to provide healing and comfort. Part of The Young Clergy Women Project.
116 pages, Paperback
First published September 30, 2014
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September 21, 2015I saw this book mentioned a lot (UCC + mental illness), but I really didn't wanna read it. I wasn't a fan of the title (I don't think we've reclaimed "crazy" enough that people who don't personally identity with that tern get to throw it around), and I'm not that interested in people talking about their experience as someone who KNOWS someone in a marginalized position (whether that's trans people, mentally ill people, whatever) -- can we please center the stories of marginalized people themselves?
But the author was gonna be at a small conference I was going to, so I got a copy.
I was prepared to have a lot of negative feelings, but honestly I was mostly "meh."
In the Foreword, Donald Capps quotes Sarah saying, "Telling the stories about my crazy father, bipolar brother, executed cousin, and my own spiritual visions makes room for light and air, the things of God's Spirit, to enter in" (p. vi) and the book does consist of her telling each of those stories, in that order. I agree that sharing one's story is important, but the mental health struggles of Sarah's family members are so severe as to feel somewhat distancing -- like we're watching terrible things that we hope we never have to deal with and have no idea how to deal with if they showed up in our midst. (And she really doesn't offer much in the way of suggestions for how church communities could/should handle these sorts of situations, other than occasional mentions of opening up space where people can be honest, and the obvious that you shouldn't teach people that if they're depressed it's a sign that their faith isn't strong enough etc.) And I don't feel like her own mystical visions mean she gets to throw around the word "crazy," though I was somewhat convinced by her talk about how having mental illness in her family meant she was hyper-attentive to possible manifestations thereof in herself -- I'm not necessarily going to police her use of the term "crazy (in the blood)," but I really wish she had unpacked it some, talked about care around usage, rather than just opening with "I acknowledge that the language we use to talk about mental illness can be controversial because of various ways it is understood. I use the language that most closely reflects my experiences" (p. v) and leaving it at that.
Rev. Molly commented to me that this book is helping to start an important conversation. I am glad that people who weren't previously engaging with this issue are doing so, but I don't feel like this book does much to get the conversation beyond "sharing your story." And I also wish that it was stories of people who themselves lived daily with mental illness whose stories got to be centered in this conversation, who got the book tours and speaking engagements...
But the author was gonna be at a small conference I was going to, so I got a copy.
I was prepared to have a lot of negative feelings, but honestly I was mostly "meh."
In the Foreword, Donald Capps quotes Sarah saying, "Telling the stories about my crazy father, bipolar brother, executed cousin, and my own spiritual visions makes room for light and air, the things of God's Spirit, to enter in" (p. vi) and the book does consist of her telling each of those stories, in that order. I agree that sharing one's story is important, but the mental health struggles of Sarah's family members are so severe as to feel somewhat distancing -- like we're watching terrible things that we hope we never have to deal with and have no idea how to deal with if they showed up in our midst. (And she really doesn't offer much in the way of suggestions for how church communities could/should handle these sorts of situations, other than occasional mentions of opening up space where people can be honest, and the obvious that you shouldn't teach people that if they're depressed it's a sign that their faith isn't strong enough etc.) And I don't feel like her own mystical visions mean she gets to throw around the word "crazy," though I was somewhat convinced by her talk about how having mental illness in her family meant she was hyper-attentive to possible manifestations thereof in herself -- I'm not necessarily going to police her use of the term "crazy (in the blood)," but I really wish she had unpacked it some, talked about care around usage, rather than just opening with "I acknowledge that the language we use to talk about mental illness can be controversial because of various ways it is understood. I use the language that most closely reflects my experiences" (p. v) and leaving it at that.
Rev. Molly commented to me that this book is helping to start an important conversation. I am glad that people who weren't previously engaging with this issue are doing so, but I don't feel like this book does much to get the conversation beyond "sharing your story." And I also wish that it was stories of people who themselves lived daily with mental illness whose stories got to be centered in this conversation, who got the book tours and speaking engagements...
December 18, 2015
As someone with a mental illness who has fathered four children (often faltering), I found "Blessed Are the Crazy" to be both soul-searching and inspiring for my own mental and spiritual health. Lund's narrative is told in life stages -- from a child confused and fearful about her earthly father's bizarre behavior, to a teen turning her back on a deaf God, to a college student discovering the joy of a family of faith, to a young woman embracing compassion in spite of the circumstances of her life.
Lund's story deeply affected me and at first I was only able to read it in small segments, deeply pondering what my own family might say about me in the story of their lives. I can only pray it would be so honest and full of grace. As the book progressed, however, I became fully engrossed in the glimpses of light in darkness, joy in sorrow, delight in disorder that I savored the last 100 pages in one sitting.
I highly recommend "Blessed Are the Crazy" particularly to loved ones of those with mental illness along with those who have troubled minds. It would also be a great benefit to Christians and others seeking to show compassion and share hope with those who are too often shunned and neglected.
Lund's story deeply affected me and at first I was only able to read it in small segments, deeply pondering what my own family might say about me in the story of their lives. I can only pray it would be so honest and full of grace. As the book progressed, however, I became fully engrossed in the glimpses of light in darkness, joy in sorrow, delight in disorder that I savored the last 100 pages in one sitting.
I highly recommend "Blessed Are the Crazy" particularly to loved ones of those with mental illness along with those who have troubled minds. It would also be a great benefit to Christians and others seeking to show compassion and share hope with those who are too often shunned and neglected.
July 31, 2024
This book included powerful personal narrative and theological reflection that opened the door for the deeply important conversation about mental health and faith. As I read the narrative components, I thought of friends and family members and church members. I remembered what they’ve shared with me about living with or loving someone with a mental illness.
Much of the theological heavy lifting happens in the concluding chapter and I would have appreciated more theological work throughout the book. However, the author chose to include some theological ideas that fit with the chronology of the narrative as the story progressed, which makes sense.
I appreciate this book for what it is and gladly recommend it to others.
Much of the theological heavy lifting happens in the concluding chapter and I would have appreciated more theological work throughout the book. However, the author chose to include some theological ideas that fit with the chronology of the narrative as the story progressed, which makes sense.
I appreciate this book for what it is and gladly recommend it to others.
April 16, 2019
This book is mentioned by most all of the other books I’ve read recently about mental illness in the church. This led me to believe it’s a must-read. After due consideration, I put it more in the “additional titles on the subject” category.
I’ve given it a three star rating, not so much for the mental health stories, but because of the chapter about capital punishment as it relates to Christian Faith. There is a mental health component to the story (the author’s mentally ill cousin was executed), but the part that will stick with me is how our faith informs death row decisions. Who benefits from an execution? Where is God? The author’s answers are no one and no where. That chapter is the best in the book. I really can’t stop thinking about it.
There’s also a very straightforward checklist at the end for starting a mental health ministry in your church. It’s a handy outline and seems to be a solid resource.
The downside to this work is the title and the overuse of the word “crazy” throughout. The author notes up front that she uses this term and knows that a lot of people won’t like it. I was quite surprised how off putting I found each instance of “crazy father” in the book. It came across as dismissive and widened the gulf between this author’s second hand experience of mental illness and real lived experiences. Especially disturbing was the author’s concept of “crazy in the blood” by which she means a genetic predisposition to mental illness. Every time I read those words I felt like my own blood was boiling. This is a case where language really makes a difference and this story would be better without the word “crazy” even if the author feels that is what she’s describing.
I’ve given it a three star rating, not so much for the mental health stories, but because of the chapter about capital punishment as it relates to Christian Faith. There is a mental health component to the story (the author’s mentally ill cousin was executed), but the part that will stick with me is how our faith informs death row decisions. Who benefits from an execution? Where is God? The author’s answers are no one and no where. That chapter is the best in the book. I really can’t stop thinking about it.
There’s also a very straightforward checklist at the end for starting a mental health ministry in your church. It’s a handy outline and seems to be a solid resource.
The downside to this work is the title and the overuse of the word “crazy” throughout. The author notes up front that she uses this term and knows that a lot of people won’t like it. I was quite surprised how off putting I found each instance of “crazy father” in the book. It came across as dismissive and widened the gulf between this author’s second hand experience of mental illness and real lived experiences. Especially disturbing was the author’s concept of “crazy in the blood” by which she means a genetic predisposition to mental illness. Every time I read those words I felt like my own blood was boiling. This is a case where language really makes a difference and this story would be better without the word “crazy” even if the author feels that is what she’s describing.
July 27, 2018
This was written by our much beloved pastor at First Congregational Church of Christ in Indy. Her realistic honesty and hopefulness about the topic of "crazy in the blood" (familial mental illness) was much appreciated. I'd recommend it to anyone who has dealt with or currently deals with mental illnesses in their family (isn't this all of us?)
March 5, 2018
This book was terrible. She "otherizes" her family members to make it clear they are sick and she is healthy and fine. Worse than that, she twists it subtly into a spiritual difference. I could write an entire paper on various paragraphs. Everyone is entitled to speak of their own experiences - but from her position as a pastor and someone who claims to want to help the mentally ill, this book was gross. My mouth dropped every other page at some new way she either hijacked other's stories, ignored the pain of those who suffered, used stereotypes and spiritually loaded language to describe people, or simply jumped so quickly to twisting all of these things into some grander spiritual meaning. The end took on a more educational tone with proper information, but it did very little to make up for the rest of the book. It doesn't seem like she's absorbed all that her education has tried to counter about her experience. She's just made it into fodder for a spiritual narrative that makes her feel better and gets her a paycheck.
I was especially horrified at how she hijacked her cousin's story after blatantly admitting she forgot about him. I'm against the death penalty, but her tirade about restorative justice cruised right over the fact that a woman was murdered, or what the victim's family may have wanted - even if they wouldn't have wanted the death penalty. She made herself into a martyr and successfully made that story about herself and her crusade.
This book is everything I hate about how the church is completely fumbling this issue. I appreciate the attempts to try, but it still leaves those who are actually suffering mentally illness on the outside and simply blames them more subtly than in the past.
I was especially horrified at how she hijacked her cousin's story after blatantly admitting she forgot about him. I'm against the death penalty, but her tirade about restorative justice cruised right over the fact that a woman was murdered, or what the victim's family may have wanted - even if they wouldn't have wanted the death penalty. She made herself into a martyr and successfully made that story about herself and her crusade.
This book is everything I hate about how the church is completely fumbling this issue. I appreciate the attempts to try, but it still leaves those who are actually suffering mentally illness on the outside and simply blames them more subtly than in the past.
February 16, 2022
Lund's description of her early life was very compassionate, powerful, and nonjudgmental. Later in the book, her examination of her adult life and her marriage was inspirational. Throughout, her unconditional love for her parents and siblings was unwavering. She never needed to say how frightened she felt at times, how worried she was about her mother, or how discouraged and fearful she felt about her brother. She owned her family's story as her story and allowed the reader to take whatever themes or lessons they chose.
For me, reading about Lund's life was both painful and joyful. She wrote with such love and faith about herself and her family; it was like being in very still water and suddenly catching a clear glimpse of oneself.
For me, reading about Lund's life was both painful and joyful. She wrote with such love and faith about herself and her family; it was like being in very still water and suddenly catching a clear glimpse of oneself.
April 25, 2020
I don’t want to discount anyone’s experience, but I think there is a lot of misguided language used in this book. It was extremely difficult to read because of the terms and descriptors which were used.
She paints people with mental illness in a light that makes them unstable, unsafe, and unwelcome while simultaneously claiming to try to help and support them. Stay away from this book if you personally live with mental illness, love some one with mental illness, or support those with mental illness.
She paints people with mental illness in a light that makes them unstable, unsafe, and unwelcome while simultaneously claiming to try to help and support them. Stay away from this book if you personally live with mental illness, love some one with mental illness, or support those with mental illness.
July 9, 2020
this book is so important to read if you have a mental illness, love someone with it, or want to know how to support people in your church with mental illness. I laughed, I cried, I pondered Sarah's profound perspective. This book really made you re-think how we treat mental illness in this country and in our churches. What we have done to our people struggling, all in the name of christianity is appalling. Excellent review of how to start a mental health ministry in your church. She is so real.
November 16, 2024
4.25 stars
It is helpful to think of this book as a testimony - as it's described in the introduction and the book. A testimony of both this author's experiences with her mentally ill family members and her experience of God in the midst of that.
The end of the book focuses on resources and practical steps to offering support and education in churches.
I didn't love the use of the word "crazy" and "crazy in the blood" but since it's the author's experiences, I think she has the perogative to use whatever terms she wants.
It is helpful to think of this book as a testimony - as it's described in the introduction and the book. A testimony of both this author's experiences with her mentally ill family members and her experience of God in the midst of that.
The end of the book focuses on resources and practical steps to offering support and education in churches.
I didn't love the use of the word "crazy" and "crazy in the blood" but since it's the author's experiences, I think she has the perogative to use whatever terms she wants.
March 10, 2018
This book breezes through details sometimes, and takes its audience’s faith for granted - I imagine this book falling flat at the feet of a lot of people, especially the unchurched or those who have rejected the church. But her personal story of family encounters and personal faith struggles is real and valuable, and I appreciate her attempt to bridge the gap between spiritual and scientific approaches to mental health.
June 25, 2018
Memoir of the author's family: a bipolar father and older brother, a sex addict cousin who died by the death penalty for murder. Her discussions about how we ignore and hide mental illness, even in the church are poignant and pointed. Yet even the mentally ill are blessed by God. How? She shows how in this revealing book.
Recommend for people interested in the intersection of religion and mental illness.
Recommend for people interested in the intersection of religion and mental illness.
October 1, 2020
This book was perfect for our small group discussion as we are beginning to wade into the waters of starting a mental health ministry. The study guide that was available on Chalice Press gave us great starting points for beautiful and heartachingly real discussion about how each of us has experienced mental illness in the context of the church.
September 12, 2022
I just read this book for the second time. While it was good the first time, it really sparked some new conversations around my church this time. I love the ideas of some of our parables not being as simple and clear cut as we once thought. But they are more layered and woven into our own learnings of mental illness and the church.
October 11, 2023
This is a very powerful and wonderful book. Sarah exposes herself and her "crazy blood" to all and in so doing allows us to see and understand the importance of recognizing mental health issues. Today, there are far more reasons to not judge people until we understand where they are and where they came from. This is a book that everyone should read.
June 17, 2024
Even giving a little leeway to the fact that some of the terminology feels a bit outdated ten years after publication, it's hard to write a book like this. I appreciated the theology and the candor and the vulnerability that the author shares, but there was also something about it that felt a little bit off to me.
May 23, 2019
Faith & Hope stand with those who struggle
Through her own painful story of family members facing mental illness, the author teaches us how to bring hope, create safe spaces, and create community support for families grappling with mental health issues.
Through her own painful story of family members facing mental illness, the author teaches us how to bring hope, create safe spaces, and create community support for families grappling with mental health issues.
July 22, 2019
A heartbreaking and encouraging account of living in a family with mental illness. Sarah Griffith Lund shares her story in a readable way that encourages the reader to become an informed advocate for understanding and ministering with persons with mental illness and their families.
January 13, 2020
I really liked this book. It does not shy away from easy answers and challenges our theological assumptions. She also speaks in a way that is profoundly direct and open about her story and the truth of mental illness and its impact on a family.
July 19, 2017
Very powerful testimony. Affirms the need for Church to become WISE to those with mental illness.
May 5, 2018
This book was a great read! I saw her speak right after I finished the book and she truly has a powerful story to tell.
July 4, 2019
A 3.5 for me. Honest and unashamed look at family mental illness. The chapter on "Feeling Pain in God's Presence" was worth the price of the book for me.
November 14, 2019
Thank you for this book! I have recommended it to multiple church book groups, to break the silence about mental illness.
November 6, 2023
Tough boom to read but very, very good.
December 24, 2025
This book was so helpful. This testimony was amazing to read, and relatable. I am so thankful that this book exists.
September 26, 2021
I have crazy in the blood, too.
Sarah Griffith Lund gives us a great book in her testimony of the truth of the impact of mental illness running in her family and her experience of survival and redemption in her family. As a clergy person, I know it to be an I imperative that we tell our stories of how mental illness and recovery have impacted our lives, out loud. As Griffith Lund says. It is in our making our story known will we continue to heal and inspire others to tell their stories so they can heal too.
Sarah Griffith Lund gives us a great book in her testimony of the truth of the impact of mental illness running in her family and her experience of survival and redemption in her family. As a clergy person, I know it to be an I imperative that we tell our stories of how mental illness and recovery have impacted our lives, out loud. As Griffith Lund says. It is in our making our story known will we continue to heal and inspire others to tell their stories so they can heal too.
December 15, 2014
Sarah tells her story of the intersections of illness, family, shame, grace, darkness, and light as a window into the kind of life our culture has taught us to shut away. Her openness is a gift to society and to the church--I hope we can learn to be as honest and vulnerable with one another as she is, so the stigma of mental illness might be replaced instead with compassionate community of the type we see when someone has cancer or other long-term disease.
This is not an easy book to read. The story of Sarah's family is painful. To not only imagine but see her experience (which she paints vividly) of being part of a family so deeply affected by mental illness is a difficult thing--and it should be. Only when we open our eyes to this kind of experience--which far more people are having than we realize--can we ever hope to be the kind of community we need to be, and offer a safe, sacred, healing space to those in the midst of this life.
My only complaint is that I find the use of the phrase "crazy in the blood" to be excessive and therefore distracting. Look past that, and you will find a memoir that really matters. Please read. And then please keep your eyes open for the opportunity to support those who are suffering.
This is not an easy book to read. The story of Sarah's family is painful. To not only imagine but see her experience (which she paints vividly) of being part of a family so deeply affected by mental illness is a difficult thing--and it should be. Only when we open our eyes to this kind of experience--which far more people are having than we realize--can we ever hope to be the kind of community we need to be, and offer a safe, sacred, healing space to those in the midst of this life.
My only complaint is that I find the use of the phrase "crazy in the blood" to be excessive and therefore distracting. Look past that, and you will find a memoir that really matters. Please read. And then please keep your eyes open for the opportunity to support those who are suffering.
August 29, 2014
I just read "Blessed Are the Crazy" in one sitting. I cannot count the number of times the words on the page gave me goosebumps. And I will not tell you the number of pages I marked by folding over a corner so that I could remember the parts I wanted to share with other people. She seamlessly weaves the stories if her life and the ones she loves with the ever developing and changing of her faith and understanding of God. Tracking the course that so many have gone through, asking the questions that most won't say aloud, She offers a safe space to look at our own stories, our own crazy, and our own faith. Thank you for your testimony, for your witness to what it means to be in ministry with those who suffer. Thank you for all of the words in this book!
September 23, 2015
A deeply moving memoir about growing up in a family marked by mental illness, or as Lund calls it, "crazy in the blood." That term really grew on me, although it confused me at first. She is so vulnerable and honest about her experiences growing up, first with a father and then a brother deeply disabled by bipolar disorder. Her storytelling is profound and her writing is deeply moving without being sentimental or dramatic. She shares her faith story along the way, from conversion in the Texas desert with an evangelical campus group to a call to ministry and seminary, moving into a more progressive church culture. Her theological way of writing was easy to follow, but substantive. A great book about mental illness, stigma, and faith.
January 9, 2015
I was given this for a Christmas present and once I started I raced through the first few chapters. The author writes initially about her experience of living with people with severe mental health problems in her family. She then makes further points and recommendations about how churches should deal with the issue. This latter section I found harder work than the first, and it was not so gripping as the autobiographical chapters. However, overall this is a well-written book, and a welcome look at a subject that the church often struggles to deal with.
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