Dr. Luke M. Tillett: On Mental Health in the Seminary and the Church

Dr. Luke Tillett, who teaches in the mental health counseling program at TEDS, is this episode’s guest. Dr. James Arcadi and Dr. Fellipe do Vale have the opportunity to talk about the vital work he does in the program.

Luke describes the path he took to get to the point where is now, as someone who both teaches and practices mental health counseling. Counseling and pastoral practice were always intertwined for Luke, and he shares how his motivations to be a better pastor led him to gain skills in being a good counselor. He has professional experience in both roles and therefore possesses a remarkably useful set of experiences to form future ministers at TEDS for work that is sensitive to mental health concerns. Luke’s research, in fact, has investigated how religious practices impact mental health wellbeing, particularly how they can serve as a “protective factor” against mental health challenges and how a lack of emotional involvement in those practices also prevents them from being beneficial in emotion regulation. From these rich insights, Luke describes the difficulties raised by the pandemic, highlighting the benefits of a good therapist (and helps to address some Christian concerns surrounding therapy). He provides advice for pastors in these hard days, and for congregants who wish to help support them. Finally, Luke articulates a lovely vision for the role counseling plays in a seminary curriculum aimed at forming Christians for ministry.

Along the way, listeners will discover…

• Some concrete advice for church members interested in supporting their pastors
• How spouses can overcome not having anything to talk about
• Luke’s preferred method for painting a midwestern landscape in February

To learn more about Dr. Luke Tillett, visit his faculty page, read his profile at LifePlace (where he practices counseling), or listen to a recent interview he did.