EPISODE 2 – In The Beginning
Disclaimer – this podcast does not contain any advice for mental health concerns. If you have mental health concerns contact your GP and seek their advice. Know that I am praying for your healing.
You’re listening to Episode 2 of the podcast, The Chaise Lounge Theologian in which I’m exploring a systematic theology of mental health. Having set up exactly what’s happening in this podcast in previous episodes, I’m now finally hitting the Bible. I’ll be starting right at the start of the Bible in the book of Genesis and exploring chapters 1 and 2 in this episode.
If you go to Google Scholar and type in something along the lines of individual identity and its links to mental health, you get a load of articles to read. There seems to be a pretty clear consensus among researchers that identity formation or identity clarity or identity stability is a pretty strong indicator of how mentally well one might be.
Samoulis et al. 2015 in their study of 168 American college students found that “Average identity distress scores were significantly higher for students who had been diagnosed with or treated for a mental health issue[1].” Similarly, Chen et al. in 2007 conducted a study of 203 college students in Taiwan and explored their levels of identity importance, identity firmness and identity discrepancy along with any psychosomatic symptoms. Their study suggested that a “larger discrepancy between personal identity importance and firmness may be particularly harmful for adolescent mental health and/or personal growth[2]”. They also found that “college students in the healthy-control group scored significantly lower in personal and social identity discrepancy than those in the psychosomatic group[3].”
Well, you might say, that’s all well and good, and potentially something you already assumed, but what has that got to do with Genesis chapters 1 and 2? Well, the answer to that question is – everything.
Genesis chapters 1 and 2 is where God lays down his blueprint for humanity. We see who we are according to God’s design. So, this episode is going to operate on the premise that through a better understanding of God’s creative design of humanity – identity firmness – we gain a greater awareness of our value – identity importance – and become clearer about our role in the world. Or in other words, lessen our identity discrepancy. If the research is right, Genesis 1 and 2 should be an excellent help for our mental health.
But before we jump into the passage, a quick skim through our systematic theology toolkit is needed to help us get our bearings.
First, context. What is the context of Genesis chapters 1 and 2?
Well, this is the very beginning of the Bible and the very beginning of creation. There is no world yet, but as the opening verse makes clear, God is previously in existence. So the context is that we start with the eternal God.
The genre of the text is that it’s a Creation Account.
In the text’s structure we’ll notice there are some repeated refrains, which I think show that the God of the Bible is a God or order not disorder. There’s a careful plan to what he is doing which he will follow as he creates. Rinse and repeat, so to speak.
Throughout chapter one, we also see a general, linear narrative structure. Then in chapter two there’s a bit of a repeat and the text fills in the gaps with additional information.
As for the Biblical Theology of Genesis 1 and 2, I’ll save that for the end.
The first chapter of Genesis begins famously with the lines:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
Even before we get to the repeated refrain of chapter one, the Bible opens with a clear declaration of who is the centre of the universe. Or as Professor John Lennox delivered it once “In the beginning, God”. To treat the sentence as though there is a full stop at that point, gives a clear message.
In all seriousness, even in those opening four words of the bible there is something to glean in relation to mental health. For if God is the centre of the universe that says a lot about his identity and our identity as human beings. We are not the centre of the universe. We are not gods.
So even before we read of the world being created, the Bible suggests that we are to be aware that God is God and that we are not. And, I think, there’s probably enough research out there to suggest that such a degree of humility is actually a good thing for our wellbeing.
Following this in chapter one of Genesis, the famous refrain begins:
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Loosely following this structure, the chapter leads us through six ‘days’ (either literal or metaphorical) in which God creates the light, the sky, land and sea, vegetation, sun, moon and stars. Following this God makes the living creatures: the ones in the sea, the birds of the air and those that crawl along the ground.
Then God comes to the pinnacle of his creation in v26:
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
There is an awful lot in those couple of verses that relate to wellbeing; again due to the clear statement of human identity and purpose that is found there. It has often been said that a person can get through just about anything if they know ‘the why’. And here in the opening chapter of Genesis there is a fair bit of ‘why’ given.
Humanity is given a purpose: to rule over the fish, birds, livestock and wild animals.
Now, that might sound harsh or overbearing at first, but as Derek and Diane Tidball wrote: “Ruling over creation gives humanity no permission to exploit it, treat it abusively or become distant authoritarian overlords over it, since this is not how God rules over creation. The objective of ruling is to bring peace, provide welfare and encourage prosperity, just as God does.” Quoting V.P. Hamilton, they add: “Rule ‘reflects royal language. But this rule is to be compassionate not exploitative[4].’”
This is not a licence for animal cruelty here in Genesis. Far from it. In fact I would suggest that those who engage in animal cruelty are stepping outside of God’s design for humanity and therefore, stepping outside mental wellness as the Bible would define it; because how we behave is influenced by how we think about ourselves and our identity. There isn’t any hard and fast research on it, but I do recall from my studies that when in adulthood, when someone has turned out to be a serial killer or sociopath, people track back to their childhood to see what they were like, were there any indicators that should have been picked up on earlier. And the poor treatment of animals is sometimes found in such backstories.
As another side point, there were a few Christians involved in the initial establishment of the RSPCA, the most famous one being William Wilberforce. They evidently viewed humanity’s ‘rule’ as one of compassion. It is also interesting to note that the first humans do appear to have been vegans, eating only ‘seed-bearing plants’ that God gave them in v29 of the first chapter of the Bible. It’s not until chapter 9 of Genesis that humanity starts eating meat. However, before we start thinking that veganism is more holy or more morally upright, I think we do well to remember that eating a seed-bearing plant is what caused the world to turn into a mess in the first place. Veganism isn’t more holy from the Bible’s perspective, following God’s commands is – that is the take home point.
But why am I talking so much about animals?
Because humanity is not on the same level as the animals. In modern society and even in science, there is a lot said that would suggest that humans are just animals. However, if we want to formulate our identities and therefore our mentality in line with the Bible, then we cannot think like that. You and I are not just animals. We are more.
Because whilst there are similarities between humans and animals in Genesis 1, there are enough large differences between the animal kingdom and humanity established that make it clear that we are not to consider ourselves the same if we are thinking as the Bible thinks. For example:
God blesses the animals when he makes them. It says – God blessed them and said, Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”
And God blesses humanity – God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Both are blessed but there was a clear difference in those passages. God blessed the animals, but he didn’t give them licence to rule in the same way that he gave humanity a licence to rule, and that over the animals.
So this is why, in chapter 2 of Genesis we see the first man, Adam in a position of authority over the animals. There it reads:
Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
As John Lennox once pointed out, Adam was a scientist, a taxonomist to be precise. In this fresh and new creation God had made, Adam had work to do.
Adam had a job. It doesn’t sound like it was a 9-5 or paid employment, but he had something to do. And this is a worthwhile point to pause at because the workplace can be a significant location when it comes to talking about mental health or lack thereof.
However, here in this fresh new creation, everything seems pretty good. In fact that is the word God keeps using as he makes every new thing in this creation of His. Along with the structural refrain of ‘And God said, “Let there be…” at the start of each day of creating, there is an evaluative piece of repetition that is heard whenever God makes something:
“God saw that the light was good” (v4). God makes the land and water: “And God saw that it was good” (v10). God kickstarts vegetation “And God saw that it was good” (v12) Sun, moon and stars “And God saw that it was good” (v18). Living creatures of the sea and birds of the sky “And God saw that it was good” (v21) Living creatures of the land “And God saw that it was good” (v25)
It’s a good creation. So we can extrapolate that work, too, is good. God has created humanity, placed them onto the earth and given them something to do. Having something to do with our hands or our minds, or both is good in accordance with our created design. This is biblical thinking.
Therefore, if we don’t have something to do, or we don’t enjoy what we do, then this is an attack on our identity in accordance with biblical thinking. And if wellbeing and identity are so intricately linked then any attack on our identity, is surely going to impact our mental health. God has given us something to do. If we can’t do it – or we don’t do it – this has ramifications for our wellbeing.
This means there’s actually a biblical reason why the workplace has such an impact on our wellbeing. Humanity was designed to work. That work will not look the same for everybody; in fact it will look quite different. And for us as individuals, our relationship with work will change across our life time. Sometimes work will be paid, other times not. Sometimes work will be study. But the general concept of ‘employment’ that is, having something to do, is part of our identity as humas. And therefore, strongly linked to our mental health.
So in Genesis, what is humanity given to do at this point in time? Make babies. Creation has just started. There needs to be a population. Both animals and humans are given a creation mandate, to “be fruitful and increase in number”.
No 1.8 children per family, God says. The command is to ‘increase’. Because there’s an earth that needs people. Now, of course, looking at a command such as that can very quickly lead to discussions of infertility and the ways in which that can impact mental health. However, I’m going to leave that topic for other passages that explore it much more directly and give it the time and attention that it deserves then.
For now, just sticking with the mandate.
Because within that mandate there is a whole plethora of elements that further flesh out – pun intended – the human identity.
I’m going to read out Adam’s job description again, but with a little more context either side to give a clearer picture of humanity. Starting at Genesis 2:8:
Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through theentire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found.
That draws out a bit of a wider lens for us. Adam’s current location is the Garden of Eden. He’s got work to do – that’s a good thing. And he’s got some restrictions also, trees from which he can and cannot eat. We can therefore extrapolate, from the fact the opposite is not mentioned, that these restrictions are also, good. Whilst we often think of restrictions as bad, and some of them are, here in this good creation, we see that restriction in and of itself is not a bad thing. However, it’s worth acknowledging that restrictions can be mentally healthy or mentally detrimental, even downright oppressive and barbaric when they are excessive or completely lacking.
And if I can take a pause from wearing the psychologist hat for a moment and drop into my usual role of an English teacher… and even the philosophy teacher that I was for about two years… and just have a short discussion of two books: First, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and second, Plato’s The Republic. Because both books have inspired quite strong reactions over the years and I think, this is a reflection of perhaps at times, humanity’s inherent understanding of Genesis 1 and 2.
You see in Huxley’s dystopia, humanity is treated in a barbaric fashion. Socially conditioned and even biologically fiddled with prior to birth, to create a hierarchical society. From a young age children are tampered with mentally and trained – as though they are animals – to either rule or serve. Prior to this they are created in laboratories. Humanity is basically reduced to sexually promiscuous lab rats with no family. It’s quite a disturbing read and unsurprisingly has been banned a number of times in various places around the world. Personally, I’m not into banning books. Even the barbaric ones have something to teach us. But I think the fact that it has been banned a number of times reflects the fact that people know this is not true human identity. Even those without belief in the Bible look at such treatment of people and say, ‘That is evil.’
In a similar vein, Plato’s Republic from memory chugs along reasonably OK until you get to the section on women and children. Then it also turns into a dystopia and gives clear reasons why many people consider Plato’s republic state to be the first dictatorship in print. Basically the family is abolished and spouses are shared for communal ownership with a desire for eugenics. Mating rituals are controlled by the state. Yes, that’s right, mating rituals. Then the resulting children are raised away from their parents in state run nurseries.
This is abhorrent. Genesis 1and 2 says that you and I are not animals. We are not lions at the zoo in a breeding program. Neither are we just science experiments to be pieced together in a vat to be shared around with whomever and wherever. We are human beings made in the image of God our creator…
There is much more about what it means to be human in Genesis chapter one. Chapter Two also rounds out with some very clear ideas about what it means to be human and therefore presents a number of ways for us to think about our identity within a Biblical framework. Genesis chapter 2 also gives us ideas about how to rest well as humans, modelled for us by God himself. And Genesis chapter 2 also paints a picture of what being in perfect relationship with God and others and having perfect mental health looks like. But as you can tell, that’s quite a bit of content so I’m going to leave that all for another episode and draw together now what this Episode Two has provided for us.
In this episode, along with an all-powerful God who created the world, we see a God who sees us. God is the eternal God, the absolute centre of the entire universe and yet he still sees us in all our weakness. Though he is far greater than us he still ascribes us identity importance. He declares us rulers over creation and gives us work to do, which will hopefully bring us satisfaction.
And Genesis chapters 1 and 2 gives a rationale for the ethics that exist in psychological research. I’ll be teaching that lesson to my Year 10s next week as they organise their own small research projects. Regardless of the size of the project, ethics are critical – the absolute basics of ‘do no harm’ and ‘informed consent’ are definitely on the lesson’s learning intentions. Along with that I’ll be taking them back to Nuremberg where these ethical concepts had their Genesis. Bad joke, I know. I’m making the point that these ethical concepts actually began in Genesis, because God declares humans to be made in his image and on a higher plane that the rest of creation. Still, the dystopian behaviours I mentioned earlier were a reality in World War Two and it is no secret that the man Hitler was responsible for a fresh look at ethics and a lot of the psychological research that occurred in the latter half of the 20th century. What Hitler did was so fundamentally against humanity, because what Hitler did was so fundamentally against God’s design for humanity, which we find in Genesis chapters 1 and 2.
I hope that this first foray into the pages of Genesis 1 and 2 has provided you with some identity firmness and helped you to have a healthy understanding of your identity importance. Above the animals, below the eternal and living God. And hopefully as I continue to explore human identity this will lessen any identity discrepancy you are experiencing currently. Because, if the researchers are right, Genesis chapters 1 and 2 are good for our mental health.
So wherever you are today, know that the eternal, creator God sees you. He sees you on your good days and your bad days and the days when you’re not sure who you are. God always knows who you are, because he created you and he loves you and he has a good purpose for you here on this planet. Let the knowledge of that truth boost your mental health.
Until next time, keep looking up – to God.
Podcast Backing Track: “Pure” by Matt Wigdon. Licence purchased from Soundstripe
[1] Samuolis, J., Barcellos, M., LaFlam, J., Belson, D., & Berard, J. (2015). Mental Health Issues and Their Relation to Identity Distress in College Students. Identity, 15(1), 66–73. https://doi.org/10.1080/15283488.2014.989443
[2] Chen, K., Lay, K., Wu, Y., & Yao, G. (2007). Adolescent Self-Identity and Mental Health: The Function of Identity Importance, Identity Firmness, and Identity Discrepancy. Chinese Journal of Psychology, 49(1), 53–72. https://doi.org/10.6129/cjp.2007.4901.04, p68
[3] ibid., p.62
[4] Tidball & Tidball (2012), The Message of Women: Creation, Grace and Gender, p.33. ‘The Bible Speaks Today’ series. IVP.