Clinical Psychologist, Dr. Isaac Newman, has intimated that people who believe in spiritual things cannot be separated from it.
Commenting on the man arrested for attempting to use his 11-year old daughter for rituals, he intimated that the mindset of using spiritual means to do things will be difficult to reverse.
Dr. Newman averred that people’s spirituality cannot be separated from their existence. He disclosed that even in healthcare, spirituality forms part of the four health dimensions. “That is, physical, mental, social and spiritual.”
According to Dr. Newman, spirituality is part of the human experience but it is the details of the practice and the religious influences that is the problem.
“I think that we cannot do away with spirituality but as we talk about it, as we look at the issues again, as we educate people on what to do with their lives and the effects of these things, I think gradually we are going to make some headway. But we cannot separate people from spirituality.”
Dr. Isaac Newman
According to Dr. Newman, when it comes to who is rich or who is doing well in life, people think about some spiritual connotations to that wealth. He noted also that with the kind of perception the movie industry has created, it has impressed in the minds of the people that these are the ways of making money.
“That is the general perception where you either go by hardwork or go by these means. And because these means is quite simple because you don’t have to put in a lot of effort, people are likely to choose those means. It is engraved in our culture about how people make it in life. That is [why] when people are not making it in life, they have to assign some supernatural forces to it.
“So, if you go to our traditional and even our religious practices, you realize that there is a perception about how to make money and this is one of the ways people think about.”
Dr. Isaac Newman
The Psychologist stated that despite the encouragement by authorities for people to work to make a living, people cannot be separated from their belief systems. He added that despite efforts to change such beliefs, that mindset still persists.
Herbalist shouldn’t have informed child
Dr. Newman asserted that the herbalist telling the child her father brought her to be killed was a very bad thing to do. He stated that the herbalist could have reported the issue without telling the child what exactly the issues were.
“Because, she will never forget. It is going to affect her growth because people take validation from significant others about their own identity, future and her perception about life and all that. But currently, government has made it so easy for people to seek mental health care so they can seek some help from any hospital at all.”
Dr. Isaac Newman
The Police arrested a 42-year-old businessman for allegedly taking his 11-year-old daughter to a herbalist in Oyibi Kom in Accra for money ritual. Evans Oppong, a resident of Fise, near Amasaman, was arrested on Friday, June 3, 2022 while undergoing the ritual at the home of a herbalist.
The herbalist, Nana Adu-Boafo, caused the arrest of Oppong adding that he wanted to prove that “not all herbalists are bad”. A statement issued by the police noted that the suspect’s arrest followed information provided by a patriotic citizen to the Police. The Police expressed gratitude to the herbalist for his selfless service which has saved the life of the child involved.
The victim is currently in the safe custody of the Police while an effort is being made to reunite her with her mother and the rest of the family.
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