Approaches to Mental Health by US Catholic Dioceses: A Narrative Review and Commentary

Mental health is an increasing area of concern for the Catholic Church in the United States, as evidenced by the 2023 launch of a National Mental Health Campaign by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. Through an analysis of Catholic diocesan websites, this paper reviews how mental health is approached at the diocesan level in the US and then offers a commentary. Most diocesan websites display minimal information about mental health; several offer counseling services; some primarily provide resources; others have mental health ministries; a handful focus on spiritual healing; and two dioceses place information about mental health and demonic activity next to each other. While most dioceses conceptualize mental unhealth as mental illness, others emphasize disability, communal, or spiritual frameworks. Two pastoral letters by bishops emphasize the need for a distinctly Catholic framework. These varied approaches reflect the historical debate within American Catholicism about psychiatry and psychology. The review also reveals the need for further reflection upon the role of biology and the spiritual life in mental health, the relationship of the individual and communal dimensions of mental health, the potential overlap between mental disorders and disabilities, and the notion that mental health exists on a spectrum.