Detroit-area parishes part of national trend of expanding ministries to address mental health concerns since COVID-19 pandemic
ROCHESTER HILLS — Reflecting on the uncertain early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Holly Abolins, director of discipleship formation at St. Mary of the Hills Parish in Rochester Hills, can think of one positive from the time of sheltering in place and distancing.
COVID gave society permission to start talking more freely about mental illness and mental health concerns.
“COVID affected all of us in some way, and not just physically, but in our heads and hearts,” Abolins told Detroit Catholic. “It gave us permission to start talking more freely about mental illness and working on our mental wellness. I think that people felt that they were not alone.”
Abolins has long had compassion for those suffering from mental illness. From the time she started her position, she has been looking for ways to incorporate mental health ministry into the parish.
As Abolins observed the impact of COVID-19, saw the toll it took on the mental wellness of those around her.
“I have always had a compassion and a desire to help (those who have mental illness) — just to be aware and to listen, because a listening ministry has been a part of my calling,” Abolins said. "And if there is anywhere you should be able to get help when your heart is hurting, I hope they would come home to their church.”
However, Abolins realized, in many cases people weren’t turning to their churches because mental health ministries were not offered. So Abolins decided to rectify that. In 2021, she connected with two nearby parishes — St. Irenaeus and St. Andrew — joining forces with Cindy Monaghan, Christian service coordinator at St. Irenaeus Parish, and other parish staff and volunteers.
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The team discovered grants offered through the International Association for Catholic Mental Health Ministers and applied. They were among the recipients, and the grant, combined with another they applied for through the city of Rochester Hills, gave them a start.
Today, the Rochester Area Family of Parishes offers a robust mental health ministry for all ages, providing speakers, small groups, mental wellness events, resource fairs and prayer services and other resources.
“We identified mental health challenges that affected our parishes, parishioners and community," Monaghan said. "We wanted to provide an up-to-date, vetted mental health resource list that included spiritual resources and emergency mental health resources. We wanted to offer the whole spectrum: from languishing to thriving with mental illness and mental wellness. I hope we give people enough tools to care for themselves.”
Mental health hasn't always been openly discussed, but awareness has increased in recent years, especially since COVID, Abolins observed. More people are seeking support and help, opening up about mental health topics that were once considered taboo.
“In general, there is that sense that people are more open to it," Abolins said. "People who are willing to share their stories about it, from athletes to movie stars to singers to our own parish leaders and our own church leaders, they are the brave ones who are willing to share their personal story.”
A national crisis
The Rochester Area Family of Parishes' program, which is open to its parishioners and non-parishioners alike, is part of a national trend to make mental health a visible part of Catholic ministry.
In 2023, Deacon Ed Schoener, president and founding member of the Association of Catholic Mental Health Ministers, told OSV News that while Catholic charities and organizations have long offered access to therapists, counselors and mental health professionals who can offer medical diagnoses or care, the idea of “mental health ministry” is relatively new.
"This is a brand new ministry in the Church," Deacon Schoener explained. "And I think it's growing fairly rapidly for a new ministry like this, in a very ancient institution."
In October 2025, the Catholic Church in the United States, through the guidance of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, renewed its National Catholic Mental Health Campaign (NCMHC) to encourage “all people to become more aware of the issues, eliminate the stigmas around mental illness, and seek creative ways to journey with those who struggle.”
On Oct. 12, the Sunday following World Mental Health Day, Catholics were also invited to participate in Mental Health Sunday by praying specifically for the intentions of those struggling with mental health.
The need for mental health support and ministries remains acute. As of 2025, the Centers for Disease Control reports that one in five adolescents and one in four adults live with a mental health condition, with very little significant change since 2021. In a 2023 interview, Deacon Schoener estimated only 40 of the 194 territorial dioceses and archdioceses in the United States have “some level of mental health ministry.”
While several parishes in the Archdiocese of Detroit offer components of mental health ministry — from workshops to peer-to-peer support groups and outreach ministries — relatively few offer a dedicated ministry similar to the one run by Abolins and her colleagues.
For the past month, St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Melvindale has offered the Sanctuary Course for Catholics — a free online course designed to raise awareness and start the conversation in local churches regarding mental health.
The course, offered by the Association of Catholic Mental Health Ministers in partnership with Sanctuary, has been hosted weekly at the parish, and is set to be completed Nov. 11, but there are plans to restart the course sometime in the new year.
Tom Smith, a parishioner at St. Frances Cabrini Parish in Allen Park, helped bring the course to the Quo Vadis Domine Family of Parishes after seeking spiritual direction and being encouraged to take a charism survey through the Catherine of Siena Institute’s Called and Gifted Discernment Process.
Smith felt compelled to become involved in a ministry where he could encourage and help others, and got the support of his pastor, Fr. Tim Birney.
“The eight-week Sanctuary Course focuses on three main perspectives: social, psychological and theological,” Smith explained. “It is a way to start an engaging conversation and get people open to new ways of thinking about mental health from a Christian faith perspective — where does God come into the picture and what does it look like?”
The course is educational, Smith added, and helps to address the stigmas surrounding mental health.
Mental health ministry is not a substitute for professional care or medication, but the Church is often the first place people turn in a crisis, Smith said, and should be prepared to offer resources and referrals.
Removing the stigma
Despite the increased awareness surrounding mental health, Abolins said there are still some who feel mental illness is “made up” or that people are “overreacting.”
The more people talk about it openly, the more the stigma will be removed, Abolins said, making it easier for people in crisis to address the issue the same as they would for any other health concern.
“If you aren’t feeling well and you go to the doctor and they tell you your sugar is too high, then you start off by looking at what you eat and seeing if that helps, and then maybe go to a nutritionist,” Abolins explained. “Maybe you start taking insulin and you start feeling better, and you just learn to incorporate it in your life.”
The same approach should be taken with mental health, she added.
One of the most impactful ways to reduce the stigma is to hear from people who have faced mental health challenges, Abolins said. Testimonies shared in the Sanctuary Course and in documentaries such as My Ascension, which tells the story of a young woman who survived a suicide attempt, can help people relate in a way that encourages them to seek help, Abolins said.
“One woman (in the Sanctuary videos) said, ‘People told me that if I just prayed, I’d get better, and I prayed, and I didn’t get better,’” Abolins said. “It really hit me because it is true. When you don’t understand or you have never experienced mental illness or anything related to it, it is easy to look at someone who is living with mental illness (and say), 'Just get over it or pray about it, and God will take care of you.' But there are some situations and times where you are in such a sad, hard, or dark place, you cannot feel God’s love."
By breaking down stigmas, Monaghan believes the Church can become a welcoming place for all.
“What sets us apart is that we are a Church and we do share the Gospel — the Spirit is guiding us,” Monaghan said. ”If there is no Church, God, or Jesus in your ministry, it is not a mental health ministry; it is just another social service agency.”
By grounding their approach in faith, Abolins hopes ministries such as the one at St. Mary of the Hills will be able to grow and reach more people who are struggling.
“I hope that when somebody is hurting, they feel like they can come to their faith and church to get help and that they will find it,” Abolins said. “God only wants the best for each of us, and He knows that because we cannot see Him and sometimes cannot feel His love, He sends us each other. We are supposed to be His love to others.”
