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SAMHSA Radio News Line

Addiction in the Church Often Goes Unaddressed

Posted: September 3rd, 2006, 5:00pm PDT

Enclosure: [download]

(BEARD OPEN):
Few conditions impact the family as deeply as when a member has a substance-use disorder. Studies show that the majority of clergy recognize that addiction is an important issue facing families in their congregations. Doctor Thomas Johnson, associate director of the Center for the Study of Health, Religion, and Spirituality, at Indiana State University, says, even though most clergy think addiction is a serious issue, few ever address it.

(JOHNSON):
"Even though a lot of pastors think it's important--for example, maybe 74 percent or more, relatively few actually preach a sermon on the topic, or letting people know that it's OK to talk about those sorts of conditions inside the walls of the church. So, it's kind of like the old story of the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about: It's there; we all, kind of, tip-toe around it."

(BEARD CLOSE):
Experts say increased addiction-treatment training for clergy would help to more pointedly address substance-use disorders, and related issues, within congregations. Currently, few clergy receive formal training on addiction treatment as a majority of seminaries don't require it. For more information on how faith-based organizations can help others with substance-use disorders get help, visit www.samhsa.gov. For the "SAMHSA Newsline", I'm Bill Beard.

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