I have a good friend who has bipolar disorder and has major psychotic episodes with delusions that they are married to god/jesus and that they are here to prepare for "something big". Auditory hallucinations, visual hallucinations, feeling that they have super natural powers—all of the same things that happened to Moses, Jesus, Paul, etc. With all that is known about psychiatric illnesses like bipolar disorder and Schizophrenia, why are there still so many believers. I've often times told my friend that if the meds can make them stop hearing god, he is a very weak god.
Marc L
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Because for the most part, your average, everyday believer isn't insane. Religious belief is usually indocrinated into a person at a very young age, and it's hard to question what you've always "known".
Your friend, on the other hand, needs help.
Marc
Jocky
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Indeed she does.
There is hope - my sister has bipolar (not as acute as this case by the sound of it, but there she has had some delusional episopdes over the years). Most of her excesses of behaviour have been modified considerably by mediaction, and she is a lot happier for it. I hope the same outcome is possible for your friend.
As Marc says, most religious people are not delusional in this way - although I fear that evangelical and charismatic branches of Christianity have sometimes done a disservice to people suffering from such delusions, by treating them as if they were really having divinely-inspired visions instead of encouraging them to seek help
