2 BOCNEWS.com JANUARY 2019 Well, this is it. As promised, we will begin a venture through the Bible in a nontraditional way. Some may see it as controversial. Others may see it as blasphemous. While I have no control over the former, I can guarantee you that the latter is simply not possible. Perhaps you are wondering why I am making such a big deal regarding this series. Last month’s column shared what is to be featured. I am going to identify many characters throughout the Old and the New Testament from a mental health perspective. I am able to share insights as an ordained minister and a licensed mental health professional with advanced degrees in each of these two areas. With one foot in the religious camp and the other in the mental health camp, I view all of God’s children… all of us as human, with human frail- ties and human victories. As we move through life, we are challenged over and over and over again. Our respons- es to challenges, as well as our gen- eral character says a lot about our uniqueness, including our approach- es to processing thought and result- ing behaviors. We are looking at the Bible through a mental health lenses in order to remember that we are human beings created in the image and likeness of God. Our role on earth is not one of perfection, but one of perfecting. We never finish this process. The key is to keep growing with full confidence that God loves us without condition and will help us on our journey. As a mental health and religious credentialed professional, I have taken comfort in realizing that God’s most noted heroes were no different from you and me. They suffered trauma, grief and loss, behavioral misfunc- tions and mental health issues. Their stories reflect our stories, told with different languages but the same sub- stance. It is my intention to share with our reading public a way to know that emo- tional, behavioral, and mental chal- lenges are not an issue of Godliness, but an issue of our humanity. It has helped me to realize that when I see my human frailties in these areas that I am in Good Company….as I realize that God’s champions suffered the same challenges. So, let’s get started by going to the beginning, Genesis and remembering the first command that was given to the male and female of Adam, found in Genesis 1:28 to be fruitful and multiply. There are many applications to this scripture, we are going to be literal, seeing this command as a responsibil- ity to procreate. When we grew up, we struggled with our hormones. We were told not to have sex, or to, at worst, be careful until marriage. Yet most of us found it challenging, if not impossible, to do either. Worse yet, we were led to believe that there was something wrong with us for wanting to indulge in sexual intercourse during our teen- age years. While I am not condoning reckless sexual behavior, I do want to offer an explanation about the appropriate- ness of sex and an insight into how we can effectively navigate our teens through the completion of their for- mative years and beyond. When we were younger, wanting to explore our sexual capacity, way before marrying age, we were well within natural inclinations. There was noth- ing wrong with our hormones. They were working just as they should. The challenge for us then, and our teens now, is to effectively manage sexual tendencies until a socially appropri- ate age. There is nothing wrong with these inclinations. They are natural and at a different time were honored just as they were. Think about your grand or great grandparents….when they got mar- ried… how old they were? Many of their love stories revealed the fact that they married early in life. Some of our fore-parents married as early as 13 or 14 years of age. It may be difficult to imagine but our ancestors did not wait until they were 18, never mind 21 years of age or older before they got married. Marriage occurred early in life and so did childbearing. Another consideration is the cel- ebration of the Bar Mitzvah and the Bat Mitzvah, a benchmark in adoles- Being Fruitful in the 21st Century HEALTH By Rev. Marjorie B. Lewis, Ph.D., D. Min. Our teenagers are not abnormal or immoral because they have sexual cravings as early as 12 and 13. Continued on Page 6