Abstract
The incidence of PTSD is on a steady rise in combative countries around the world, and civilian churches are increasingly like to encounter persons suffering from PTSD. This article will consider the ancient rituals for the purification of warriors after battle to demonstrate the responsibility of the church toward returning warriors and explore how the liturgy can function as a place for recovery. I will demonstrate how the sacraments of Reconciliation, the Eucharist, and the Anointing of the Sick function as sites of re-integration into the world the warriors have fought for, recovery from trauma, and purification after battle.
References
Caruth, C. (1991). Unclaimed experience: Trauma and the possibility of history. Yale French Studies, 79, Literature and the Ethical Question, 181–192.
Combat Stress is here to support you. (2014). Retrieved from https://www.combatstress.org.uk/veterans?gclid=CO-uu4iwp8ICFa7LtAodIzoAyQ.
Egan, H. D. (1998). Karl Rahner: The mystic of everyday life. New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company.
French, S. E. (2005a). The code of the warrior: Exploring warrior values past and present. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
French, S. E. (2005b). Warrior transitions: From combat to social contract. JSCOPE, 1–13.
Gradus, J. L. (2014). Epidemiology of PTSD. Retrieved from http://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/PTSD-overview/epidemiological-facts-ptsd.asp.
Herman, J. (2001). Trauma and recovey: From domestic abuse to political terror. London: Pandora.
Homer. (1996). Odyssey (R. Fagles, Trans.) Odyssey. New York: Viking Pengiun.
Horowitz, M. (1986). Stress response syndromes (2nd ed.). New York: Aronson.
Jones, S. (2009). Trauma and grace: Theology in a ruptured world. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press.
Lange, D. G. (2010). Trauma recalled: Liturgy, disruption, and theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.
Mahedy, W. P. (2004). Out of the night: The spiritual journey of vietnam vets. Knoxville, TN: Radix Press.
Pound, M. (2008). The assumption of desire: Kierkegaard, Lacan, and the Trauma of the Eucharist. Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory, 9(1), 67–78.
Rahner, K. (1977). Meditations on the sacraments (S. Attanasio, J. M. Quigley & D. White, Trans.). New York: Seabury.
Rahner, K. (1983). Theological investigations XV: Penance in the early church (L. Swain, Trans.). London: Darton, Longman & Todd.
Rayment, S. (2013, 17/03/13). PTSD on the rise among British servicemen and women after a decade of war, The telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9934809/PTSD-on-the-rise-among-British-servicemen-and-women-after-decade-of-war.html.
Remarque, E. M. (1998). The road back. New York: Fawcett.
Shay, J. (2003). Odysseus in America: Combat trauma and the trials of homecoming. New York: Scribner Book Company.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
O’Donnell, K. Help for Heroes: PTSD, Warrior Recovery, and the Liturgy. J Relig Health 54, 2389–2397 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-015-0034-5
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-015-0034-5