How to Tame Our Lizard Brains
And what neurodiversity can teach us about fear.
There is no denying that we are in a pretty contentious environment these days. As we are increasingly sorted by algorithms, media consumption, and even in our physical environments, truth can become obscured, and fear may dominate our minds. Our churches are not exempt from this. I recently read a fascinating, and admittedly quite alarming, book by Tim Alberta titled The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism. The book shed light on some disturbing aspects of the state of the evangelical church in our current political climate and underscored the challenges many pastors are facing in their churches today.
Regardless of one's political convictions, it is widely agreed that being driven by fear is never a positive outcome. This raises the important question of what is shaping us—are we truly being molded by the Word of God, or are we being shaped by perceived (and sometimes real) fears fueled by political figures, the media, or well-meaning friends and family?
Fear isn't necessarily a bad thing. It warns us about threats and prepares us for a response. But when fear isn’t in its proper place, it can be catastrophic, as Tim Alberta highlights in his book.
This brings me back to the question of what can be done about this. In my tradition, I have largely been taught that spiritual formation comes from preaching, personal devotions, and perhaps a few books or Bible studies here and there. While this is valuable, it comes with its own set of problems. Firstly, much of this responsibility falls on me. If I fall short in my ability to be disciplined about regular devotions or lack the time to attend weekly Bible studies, all I tend to rely on is the preaching when I attend church—just a 30-minute sermon to compete with daily fear-inducing news, social media, and whatever else comes along during the week.
Secondly, the approach to spiritual formation is heavily centered on reason and facts. For those who are mentally sound, calm, and have it all together, this reason-based approach works fine, allowing them to be formed by scripture. However, what if one doesn't have it all together and is overwhelmed by fear or suffering through major anxiety? We need a way to deal with our strong emotions that doesn't rely on reason.
I have been studying neurodiversity to help understand my child's autistic diagnosis as well as my own ADHD diagnosis. The brain is incredibly fascinating! While the science is complex, a key difference in neurotypical and neurodiverse children is related to the amygdala and how it relates to our prefrontal cortex. The amygdala controls our limbic system and is responsible for our fight or flight response, helping us recognize fear. The prefrontal cortex helps control and process that fear. In autistic children, there is some damage or underdevelopment and so certain behaviors are a lot harder to overcome. But the amygdala can get overwhelmed in neurotypical people too. When our perceived threat is “too real” or too constant, our prefrontal cortex is unable to keep up and cannot process those fears. The great news is our brain is flexible and can change! There are many ways to help encourage change, and put our lizard brain in its proper place, but one is particularly fascinating to researchers, and that is music and the arts.
We are learning a lot about how music (as well as other art forms) helps the brain's functions. We still don't fully understand how the arts can heal, but they do. According to researchers Ivy Ross and Susan Magmeson, authors of "Your Brain on Art," our minds and bodies can be transformed by engaging with the arts. They can lower our stress hormones and break through powerful emotions. In one experiment, Renee Fleming had her brain scanned while she was imagining herself singing and multiple areas of her brain lit up. We are only beginning to understand the science behind this. You can read more about the NeuroArts movement here.
So that brings us back to the Church’s problem. I listen to podcasts a lot and a few months ago I ran across one that really piqued my interest. I regret that I can't find it for reference (it might be a Good Faith episode), but when I do, I will post it! The guest was highlighting the current climate in our Churches and brought up the idea of 'pre-pastoring' in our Churches, a way to help church members deal with the powerful emotions that are driving us to actions that are contrary to Biblical teaching. What could 'pre-pastoring' look like? We talk a lot about how music and the arts are important in education, and in our lives in general, but why not in the Church?
The scientific discoveries on the importance of engaging with the arts are fascinating in of themselves, but there’s other factors to consider when we think about incorporating it into our Churches. We need to experience something (or rather someone) bigger than our fears. We need a fresh encounter the Holy God. We know the arts have a unique ability to inspire, bring wonder, hope, and healing into our lives, but the arts can also help us encounter God in a more awe-inspiring way.
The arts can create spaces for us to experience beauty and wonder, to contemplate, and to be inspired. Aesthetics is a disarming way to tell the story of Christ and engage with Him. We need to recover a sense of awe and relearn what it means to fear God. Only then can we be more effective in our witness and influence in the world.