Talk:Catholic guilt

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[edit] Complete revision

Though I think it is not bad in itself to have such an article on WP that is striving to have a NPOV, the article is now stands needs to be completely revised. The concept and ideas, complete with references to specific accusations and understandings especially from lapsed Catholic authors, ex-priests and -nuns etc., need to be clearly laid out. On the other hand, the article also needs substantiated references to criticism of the concept of Catholic guilt, complete with a reference to the self-understanding of Catholicism itself that it helps people deal with real guilt rather than inculcates in them feelings of (unsubstantiated, it is suggested) guilt.

References to OCD would be okay, substantiated scientifically, as it has already been done. (There is a Catholic ministry called Scrupulous Anonymous which deals specifically with scrupulous people, many of them suffering from OCD or on the brink of it.)

References to specific actions and activities that are seen as sins by Catholicism (and most of Christianity), but not by mainstream Western culture, like abortion or homosexual activities, are completely unnecessary in such an article however. They are too narrowly culture-specific (80 years ago, most people in the Western world would have felt guilt about homosexual sex as well - not to speak of abortion) and are not really linked to Catholicism (what about the Evangelical Ted Haggard and his trysts?).

Overall, I think the idea of "Catholic guilt" needs to be linked specifically to the practice of Confession (and the scrutiny of conscience that goes with it), otherwise the whole article does not really make sense. Lumendelumine 12:42, 29 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Anti-Catholicism?

I have changed the references back to include the category 'Roman Catholic Church' in place of 'Anti-Catholicism'. I take exception to the implication that this article has the kind of negative connotations suggested by the link to the 'anti' category. This article must be impartial to allow the collection of knowledge about a state of mind that is often spoken of, but little studied or discussed without the subject being subverted by those with strong beliefs in one direction or the other. Very few unbiased sources of information have been published on this subject so lets try and make a difference here.

How would that category exclude unbiased sources from this article, or make this article "impartial"? Gimmetrow 22:17, 18 June 2006 (UTC)


I have incorporated more of the original article from the bbc as only posting two sentences of it was useless. I am sure that someone is going to scream NPOV no matter what I had put here but I have honestly tried to present equal parts of studies related to the initial information that was listed. I'm not a Catholic so really I don't care if this article goes in the complete wrong direction. The people who voted to keep this have opened a huge can of worms. The fact that 16 people could vote to keep this article and for over a month, one person put anything up is pitiful. Why do you vote, and why should anyone care how you vote? 16 people saying how important it is but none can even hit a comma?

I'm not disputing the NPOVness of it. I am catholic and I think an article on Catholic guilt is as valid as an article on any other psychological issue. However, I'd like to call into question the relevance of the section on "benefits of catholic guilt", which essentially digresses into the health benefits of attending church. Yes, some people attend church out of guilt, but overall this section seems to have little to do with the main point. I am therefore moving it to the discussion page for now. It should really be a separate article, on the controversy of whether or not religious experience can affect health. There is some evidence that religious experience and the immune system are handled by the same part of the brain, which could explain some so-called miraculous cures, but the jury is still out as far as mainstream science, and myself, are concerned. --Bluejay Young 13:19, 24 March 2006 (UTC)

Here is the section on religious experience as it pertains to possible health benefits:

[edit] Benefits of Catholic Guilt?

At the same time studies have been made to attempt to show a link between Catholic religious practices and mental health benefits.

A large US study found that regular church attendees had lower blood pressure, less depression and anxiety, stronger immune systems and generally cost the health-care system less than people who were less involved in religion.

The study looked at 4,000 older individuals from North Carolina, and found that of the 1,177 who died during a six-year period, 22.9% were frequent church attendees, compared with 37.4% who attended infrequently. Similar results were produced by the University of California at Berkeley in a study of some 5,000 people aged 21 to 65. Those who attended religious services at least once a week had a 23% lower risk of dying over the 28 years on which the research was based. Dr Harold Koenig, of Duke University Medical Center, said:

<blockquotew> "Participating in religious services is associated with significant health benefits in elderly people, even when you take into account the fact the religious people tend to start out with better health practices and more social support. In addition, lower levels of depression are known to have a wider health benefit. Such positive feelings may counteract stress and convey health effects, like enhanced immune function, that go far beyond the prevention of depression and other negative emotions. [1]

Well, since Catholocism is nothing more than institutionalized insanity I hardly think they're qualified to discuss "mental health" --Kelt65 20:43, 26 March 2007 (UTC)

Since you can't seem to make an civil remark I hardly think you're qualified to be on this site. You couldn't even spell Catholicism correctly. -DCR —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.14.148.206 (talk) 22:03, 27 March 2007 (UTC).

[edit] No link at all.

Popular claims that religious activity provides health benefits have virtually no grounding in the medical literature, according to an article in the 2002 March issue of the Annals of Behavioral Medicine. This conclusion sharply contradicts assertions that a large body of evidence indicates that religious people enjoy better physical and mental health. Belief in the health benefits of religious and spiritual activities is so widespread that many think these activities should be incorporated into clinical practice. "Nearly 30 U.S. medical schools now include courses on religion, spirituality and health for medical students," notes lead author Richard P. Sloan, Ph.D., professor of behavioral medicine at Columbia University. "One Denver-based HMO offers spiritual counseling,"

Sloan and Bagiella first tested the claim that hundreds of articles address the possible impact of religion on health. They evaluated every article listed in a medical database that was written in English, published in the year 2000 and responsive to the search term "religion." The authors found that 83 percent of the 266 articles that they found were "irrelevant to claims of a health advantage associated with religious involvement," Sloan reports, because these studies, while about religion, had nothing to do with an effect of religion on health.[2]

"Much of the scientific data for claims about religion and health is highly questionable," the authors said. "It provides no empirical justification for the introduction of religious activities into clinical medicine."

The authors acknowledge that "for many people religious and spiritual activities provide comfort in the face of illness," and that codes of religious conduct that prohibit smoking, drinking alcohol, unsafe sexual activity, psychosocial stress and unhealthy dietary habits can reduce sickness and death.

They reviewed hundreds of studies and identified several dozen which illustrated flaws that they said characterize much of the literature. The studies often involved small numbers of subjects and failed to control for other factors that could account for the findings, such as age, health status, and health behaviors. They said that other studies they examined failed to present the findings fully or failed to make appropriate statistical adjustments.

Interest in connecting religion and medicine is widespread today, the authors note. Major American newspapers and television news programs regularly reflect this interest, and a new magazine, Spirituality and Health, has begun publication under the editorship of a former editor of the Harvard Business Review.

The possibility exists of doing harm if a patient infers that illness is a result of insufficient faith. "No one can object to respectful support for those patients who draw upon religious faith in times of illness," write Sloan and colleagues. "However, until these ethical issues are resolved, suggestions, intentional or otherwise, that religious activity will promote health or, conversely, that illness is the result of insufficient faith, are unwarranted."[3]

[edit] Tagged for expert review of article

This I've done because of the sentence in the article that says: "At this time research that has been made into the relationship of Catholicism, guilt, and mental health remains in the realm of the pseudo-scientific due to its inability to establish forms of measurement, control groups, or basic postulates." That's why it seems to me that the article needs some attention. Biblbroks 07:13, 22 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Removed OCD and Health benefits

Although the interplay between health, ocd and catholic guilt is interesting there is no need to do original research on the subject. I've removed references to both and suggest that those excelent contributions be moved to a relevant categories. Please stay focused on studies that claim a link to Catholic Guilt.

I think that there needs to be subsections on abortion since there's quite a few Catholic books on the subject. There should also be something about homosexuality and Catholic guilt, it's the most popular according to my google-fu. Elephx3 20:27, 22 August 2006 (UTC)

Here's the deleted text: The term Catholic guilt may be used in an attempt to somehow show a distinction from guilt. At this time research that has been made into the relationship of Catholicism, guilt, and mental health remains in the realm of the pseudo-scientific due to its inability to establish forms of measurement, control groups, or basic postulates.

[edit] Suspected relationship to obsessive-compulsive disorder

In the spring of 2002, Italian scientists at the University of Parma conducted a study of nuns, priests, committed lay Catholics, and others with minimal religious involvement. Each subject was asked to document any mild Obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms such as intrusive mental images or worries. The more devout Catholics reported more severe symptoms.[4]

The researchers stress that their study does not prove that religious devotion early in life causes OCD. They have stated it is possible that people with a tendency to develop the condition may be attracted to a religious lifestyle.

Dr Lynne Drummond, a psychiatrist at St George's Hospital, said it is likely that people must have a genetic predisposition to develop symptoms of OCD. However, she said many OCD patients have stated that they had a strict upbringing where actions were right or wrong, black or white.

Ian Hancock, an expert on OCD, at Dumfries and Galloway Primary Care NHS Trust, believes that although there is probably a genetic component to the condition, environmental factors, such as parenting, are likely to play an important role in its development.

"As a religion Catholicism tends to emphasize personal responsibility, guilt, and a sense of right and wrong. Any teaching that emphasizes these issues in a very powerful way could be additional pressure for one who is prone to feelings of guilt in the first place. It could well be a factor contributing towards the development of an Obsessive-compulsive coping strategy." [5]

I'm a Catholic and I oppose abortion, contraception, gays, ect.. because I believe they are wrong not because of "guilt." —Preceding unsigned comment added by Joseph Baker (talk • contribs)


Fortunately, the opinion of Catholics has no bearing on this article. Naturally, they will resist criticism. --Kelt65 15:38, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] My personal understanding

My understanding of "Catholic guilt" was that it was tied to specific issues like abortion or homosexuality, but that, like Jewish guilt, it was a sort of generalized spiritual anxiety, like scrupulosity, but perhaps less severe. I think more about that should be covered, if I am right and if anybody has something more knowledgable to say about the subject. —vivacissamamente 07:31, 6 March 2007 (UTC)

The difference between Catholic guilt and Jewish guilt? Whiskey. Cheers... -LTC

Why do you think it's "less severe" ? I do not think this article should be deleted, it's a phenomenon that many ex-catholics discuss. The Catholic Church's lasting contribution to civilization was to pioneer shame as a social control method, and it is very powerful. --192.135.177.248 22:44, 14 March 2007 (UTC)

I guess I would think it is less severe because scrupulosity has its own article and it sounds worse? I hadn't learned that word before a few weeks ago. Anyway, my comment was that I would like to see more information on the generalized anxiety of Catholic guilt, and less on such specific issues as homosexuality and abortion, which I hadn't thought were part of Catholic guilt. I certainly wouldn't want this article deleted. —vivacissamamente 16:48, 16 March 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Um ok

So we need an article that says people who have values feel bad when they do something that goes against them... why is this article neccesary?--E tac 17:38, 11 June 2007 (UTC)