By Emily Keller, TGC.
For months, my eating disorder interrupted Communion.
I sat in the pew quietly trying to calculate how I’d work the calories of my bread and cup into my increasingly restricted diet, which was, in fact, doing the job I’d given it. But as my body shrank, so did my capacity for joy, fellowship, and meaningful relationships.
You likely have someone just like me in your congregation today. An estimated 28.8 million Americans, or roughly 8 percent of the population, will experience an eating disorder in their lifetime, with an even greater number experiencing symptoms but not getting diagnosed. Despite their prevalence and severity, these struggles often remain hidden and unaddressed, especially within the church.
When I was struggling, a friend noticed what I could no longer hide. What followed was a season in which my church stepped in, ultimately reshaping my relationship with myself, deepening my connection to the local church, and drawing me closer to the Lord.
Here are four practical ways the church can support individuals living with eating disorders.
1. Practice hospitality.
In a culture marked by disembodied digital loneliness and screen-perpetuated isolation, the church can offer hospitality and care through the ordinary practices of shared life. This is a tangible way for Christians to actively participate in the communal life for which we were designed. Eating disorders distort people’s relationships with their own bodies, and they also may make ordinary experiences, like sharing a meal, feel complicated and overwhelming.
Hospitality might mean inviting someone battling disordered eating to a meal, not drawing attention to what (or how slowly) he or she eats, and offering consistent presence without scrutiny.