We often focus on addiction in terms of substances, but behavior problems can be just as powerful, and dangerous. In this context, religious addiction is looked at within the broader context of spiritually abusive structures.

1. Spiritual Abuse
Part III: Religious Addiction
Presented by Bob Munson, ThD
Administrator, Bukal Life Care & Counseling Center

2. Most of this presentation (part III of the
series) comes from the following book:
“When Good Things Become
Addictions: Gaining Freedom from
our Compulsions”
by Dr. Grant Martin
(Victor Books, 1990).

3. Review: What is “spiritual abuse”?
2 definitions:
“misuse of a position of power, leadership, or
influence to further the selfish interests of
someone other than the individual who needs
help.”
“the manipulation and exploitation of others by
the misuse of spiritual privilege and power.”
Part II of the series focused on the abuser, but
this one focuses on the abused.

4. There may be many reasons why people
become members of an abusive religious
structure. However, one main reason, and
certainly a common compounding problem, is
Religious Addiction

5. Addiction
1. Addiction is a PROCESS not a state of
being.
2. Addiction is a process or method of avoiding
pain through substitution
3. Process involves: (a) Experience of
emotional pain, (b) Desire to avoid emotional
pain, (c) Act out with a substitute behavior that
relieves the pain for awhile, and (d) Return of
pain... often with the addition of remorse.

6. NOTE
1. While the process of addiction may appear to
be a cycle, it tends to be more like a spiral...
spiralling toward a destructive end.
2. The destructive cycle comes from the fact
that the original emotional pain is not dealt
with, and the addict builds a tolerance making
it more and more difficult for the substituted
behavior to provide the needed relief.

7. “Addiction to religion occurs when the focus is
taken off of God, and emotional priority is given
to people or programs. The spiritual addict then
uses religious ritual and emotional manipulation
as the object or experience to produce a change
in mood. The difference is that in true worship,
our varied emotions and intellectual response is
to the presence of God as facilitated by the
forms of worship. In religious addiction, the
primary goal is to obtain some type of emotional
encounter.” <Martin, pg. 133-134>

8. “A cue to religious activity being addictive is
that persistent and continued use brings
about negative and destructive
consequences.” <Martin, 134>
Negative consequences include
-Family disunity
-Church disunity
-Leader upheld rather than God
-Material wealth amassed for personal, not
Kingdom, use
-Damaged emotional/spiritual well-being

9. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#1. High emotional susceptibilty.
Individuals susceptible to the addiction tend to
react quickly to feelings. They are not prone
to analyze the validity or relevance of their
feelings.

10. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#2. Blind Belief. Individuals susceptible to
the addiction may be intelligent, but are
unhealthfully trusting.
Often there is the belief that faith is an absence
of doubt, rather than trusting (a cognitive,
emotional, and volitional process) in what is
true and good. (Note Hebrews 5:14)

11. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#3. Black-and-White Thinking. Addicts
tend to categorize ideas, values, preferences
and people into COMPLETELY GOOD and
COMPLETELY BAD categories.
“If you are not for us, you are against us.”
“Small differences are BIG.”

12. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#4. Theological Isolation. Addicts become
separated from alternative viewpoints, and
isolated (often socially) from individuals with
these other viewpoints.
As we move into characteristics #3 and 4, we
are moving more away from the prior
characteristics of addicts, to the ones being
developed within the abusive structure.

13. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#5. Obsessive Participation. Addicts
become involved in excessive fasting, prayer,
attendance, public testimonies, or
confessions (or other ritualized behaviors).
This behavior is part of the control and isolation of the
abusive religious structure. However, the ritualized
behavior of the addict, tied with the gradual failure of
the activity to relieve pain, also creates the
obsessive behavior.

14. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#6. Harsh and Angry Attitudes. While the
early stages of the addiction and the abusive
structure may involve peace and love,
gradually black-and-white thinking leads to
judgmentalism and angry, critical intolerance.

15. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#7. Strong Attempts to Persuade. While it
is common for a religious person to share
their faith with others, the addict will
compulsively talk about their (excessively
narrow) beliefs.
This is related to the judgmental viewpoint and
the obsessive ritualization of behavior.

16. Characteristics of the Process of
Religious Addiction?
#8. Symptoms of Tension. The addict's
spiral of more extreme activities leads to
greater problems:
Physical symptoms of poor stress
management may include chronic headaches,
back pain, high blood pressure, weight
problems, anxiety attacks, depression, sleep
disorders, and allergies.

17. Religious Addiction Seems so Bad, so
Why Does it Happen? What Does it
Provide?
1. Avoids Intimacy. Addiction generally
avoids intimacy. In the case of religious
addiction, preoccupation with a particular
ceremony, experience, or doctrine keeps God
(who may be scary to many) at a comfortable
distance.

18. Religious Addiction Seems so Bad, so
Why Does it Happen? What Does it
Provide?
2. Avoids Emotional Pain. Avoiding
emotional pain is key in addiction. For
religious addicts, they might be thinking
something like:
“I am such a terrible unworthy person that God
would not accept me the way I am. I must do
these things to earn His acceptance. Then I
can share my pain, and He will do something
about it.”
<Martin, 139>

19. Religious Addiction Seems so Bad, so
Why Does it Happen? What Does it
Provide?
3. Elevates Mood. Addiction provides a
short-term emotional “high” that also deadens
pain (for a time). For religious addicts, a
special “spiritual high” or emotional
exhilaration is sought. In fact, getting the
feeling again becomes the obsession of the
religious addict.

20. Religious Addiction Seems so Bad, so
Why Does it Happen? What Does it
Provide?
4. Compliance to Authority. Some feel a
very strong desire to lead... but submission to
authority is a strong desire for many as well.
The Bible describes human authority as
limited... requiring a cautious, enlightened
submission. (Consider I Cor. 16:16, Heb. 13:17, I
Peter 5:3,8, I Cor. 12:8-10, I John 4:1, Col. 2:6-23)

21. Religious Addiction Seems so Bad, so
Why Does it Happen? What Does it
Provide?
5. Group Pressure. Humans are social
beings, leading to the desire to be part of a
group (an “Us”). This desire and the need to
adapt for social groupings to exist leads to a
powerful pressure to comply with group
wishes.

22. Religious Addiction Seems so Bad, so
Why Does it Happen? What Does it
Provide?
6. Evidence of Spirituality. Addictive
religious behaviors often look “spiritual.”
Somehow we often think that a person who
prays 5 hours a day is more spiritual than
someone who prays 15 minutes a day. <But
is this true... or based on a poor
understanding of the nature of our
relationship with God?>

23. Stages of Religious Addiction
Recalling that addiction is a process (a spiraling
degenerative process) what are the major
stages?
Stage #1. Intoxicating Religious Experience.
There is a Euphoria at this stage. Much of the
rest of the addictive process is a seeking to
restore this “honeymoon” period.
Somewhere in this stage, the experience and
the feelings take priority over God.

24. Stages of Religious Addiction
Stage #2. Loss of Control. There is a gradual
loss in ability to control when a behavioral
pattern is started or stopped.
The family and friends begin to sense
problems. There is also a “spritual deadening”
as repeated rituals take precedence while the
fruit of the spirit is lacking or shallow.
Usually the person hands more and more
power over to a leader. Increasing focus is
given to a specific belief, doctrine, or to the
personality of the leader.

25. Stages of Religious Addiction
Stage #3. Life Breakdown. The activities that
had been sustaining the addict are now losing their
mood altering effects. But the addict is still afraid to
withdraw. The reason is, in part, fear of the effects of
withdrawal.
The addiction is now having adverse effects at work
and at home. Irrational (even immoral or criminal)
thoughts may now be attributed to coming from God.
Extreme suspicion and secretive behavior becomes
evident.
Violation of prior moral codes may now occur while
resisting/rejecting outside accountability for
behavior.

26. What to Do?
This is talked about in other presentations in this
series. However, the basic steps are simple enough
(although accomplishing them... especially without a
strong support system is very difficult).
1. Acknowledge that there is a problem (a very difficult
and important first step). Many will feel that such
acknowledgement is risking their soul.
2. Talk to someone (on the outside) who can help and
is willing to help.
3. Find a support group. Everyone needs to the
support of others who have gone through similar
experiences.
4. Stop the behavior. A major part of one's life is now
allowed to die... a painful but important step.

27. References

Martin, Grant. “When Good Things become
addictions: Gaining Freedom from our
Compulsions.” Victor Books.

Enroth, Ronald M. “Churches that Abuse.”
Zondervan.

Bozzi, Vincent. “A Healthy Done of Religion.”
Psychology Today, NOV 1988, 14-15.

Ryan, Dale S. and Jeff VanVonderen. “When
Religion Goes Bad: Part 2-- Religious Addiction.”
www.spiritualabuse.com/?page_id=46