Religion
In reply to the discussion: Simple Question about Culpability.. [View all]Act_of_Reparation
(9,116 posts)No one criteria is significant enough to diagnose a mental illness. The DSM includes multiple criteria per disorder, of which a few (dependent upon the condition) must be observed in order to satisfy a diagnosis. A person who is delusional is not necessarily a Schizophrenic. They must exhibit other positive or negative symptoms (neologisms; disordered thought, behavior or speech; depression, etc.)
I also happen to believe religious belief, generally speaking, does not satisfactorily meet the definition of "delusion".
That said, I don't think the OP is saying religious people are mentally ill, but asking whether or not religious belief may leave one predisposed towards mental illness. I'm not a clinical psychologist, but when last I sat through a course on abnormal psychology, the Stress-Diathesis theory of explaining mental disorders was very much in vogue. For those unaware, Stress-Diathesis posits, quite simply, that some people are genetically predisposed towards mental illnesses, which are "triggered" by physiological or social factors.
I don't have any--nor have I seen any--data to suggest religious belief may be a trigger for those predisposed towards mental illness, but at the same time, I don't think it an absurd question to ask. It'd be worth exploring.