BOOK REVIEW

Behind the Masks: Personality Disorders in Religious Behavior

by

Michael Bittle
SID 8943314

Pastoral Care with Difficult Persons and Abnormal Behaviour

MS 3XG3

Instructor: Dr. Wade Rowatt

July 15, 2010
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Oates, Wayne E. Behind the Masks: Personality Disorders in Religious Behavior. Louisville,
KY: Westminster, 1987. 139 pages.

One of the fathers of the psychiatry of religion.

An absolute, bustling dynamo of energy.
Tireless writer of 57 books.
The man who thought up the word ‘workaholic’.
He built a bridge between religion and psychiatry.1

These were but some of the accolades used to describe Dr. Wayne E. Oates in his New
York Times obituary, who passed away October 21, 1999. Obituaries often carry gratuitous
plaudits for a deceased, in order to remember their more positive character traits or treasured
accomplishments. Such was not necessary for Dr. Oates. His life was a remarkably true story of
a child who overcame great adversity through faith, intelligence, and hard work, and then went
on to apply these gifts to the benefit of untold thousands.
Later described as a Living Legacy, Dr. Oates was born June 24, 1917 into an
impoverished South Carolina family and abandoned by his father at birth. To support the family,
his mother worked long hours at the local cotton mill and his grandmother and sister assumed the
role of primary caregivers. Selected at fourteen years of age to serve as a Page in the United
States Congress, this experience was a turning point in Oates' life. He then went on to study at
Mars Hill Junior College and Wake Forest University, receiving his Ph.D. in Psychology of
Religion from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Oakes subsequently held positions in
church, university, and medical school settings.
Throughout his prolific and very productive life as a teacher, mentor, and pastoral
counselor, Oates wrote and published 57 books and trained thousands of pastors, counselors,
psychiatrists, and others in the helping professions. His cross-disciplinary approach
fundamentally changed the contemporary practices of counseling, resulting in what is now
recognized as the pastoral care movement. Oates is credited with developing the 'trialogue' form
of pastoral counseling, recognizing the three-way relationship which exists between a counselor,
a counselee, and the Holy Spirit. In 1984, he was honoured with the Oskar Pfister Award by the
American Psychiatric Association for his contributions to the relationship between psychiatry
and religion.2
In 1987, Oakes published Behind the Masks. His choice of a book title was no
coincidence: this was the first major contribution to the field of religious psychology since Dr.
Hervey Cleckley’s book, The Mask of Sanity, in 1941. Where the Cleckley focus was on
psychopaths, the Oates book looks at the origins and treatment of 8 different personality
disorders whose behaviour at times may superficially resemble sanity.
Behind the Masks presents complex psychological concepts in a practical manner which
can be easily grasped by church pastors, lay counselors, teachers, and parents, and which is
infused throughout with a loving Christian theology. As a testament to Oates’ legacy, Behind the
Masks is still in print 23 years since its first publication, and is still used and studied at the
graduate level in Divinity Colleges in Canada and the United States.3
In Behind the Masks, Oates presents these personality disorders in eight separate
chapters. He offers an insight into the characteristics, dangers, and methods of dealing with
individuals who suffer from these eight distorted ways of life, and he encourages his readers with
the offer: “You and I will be concerned in the following pages with humanely, gently, but
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persistently unmasking these ways of life … [to help] the outward person and the inward person
be at one”(14). He concludes the book with a discussion of the formation and transformation of
Christians.
Each chapter is summarized below:
1. The Mask of Dependence
“There is a time to be dependent, and there is a time to be independent”(17). The
characteristics of someone living a dependent way of life include being likeable, friendly,
obliging, submissive, a poor self-image, lacking initiative and diligence, and unable to provide
self-direction. The major hazards for the dependent way of life include separation anxiety and
panic attacks (21). Counseling dependent persons involves “calling out and affirming [their]
spiritual gifts and strengths”(27).
2. The Mask of the Packaged Personality
“Histrionic persons …. are aggressive scene stealers who manipulate others for their
approval and attention … yet they are nicely packaged people” (30). The characteristics of
histrionics include being lively, dramatic, overly exaggerating, overreacting, craving new
stimulations and excitement, living a life without commitment. In their interactions with
members of the opposite sex, “histrionic persons are frequently strikingly charming, tend to dress
with a startling showiness, and seductively seek to control the opposite sex” (32). The major
hazards for the histrionic way of life are dissatisfaction with the less exciting aspects of daily life
and sexual acting out in churches (34). Counseling a histrionic person involves helping them fill
the “inner emptiness” of their life by encouraging them to deepen their relationship with God and
to “decide who they really are and what under God is their destiny” (39).
3. The Mask of Self-Assurance
“Self-absorbed persons wish little or nothing from others, except that which gratifies their
appetite for adulation and confirmation of their superiority” (43). The characteristics of the self-
assured include hubris, narcissism, inflated self-esteem, “lack of empathy and exploitation of
others” (45), grandiosity, aloofness, and “a deficient social conscience” (46). The major hazards
arising from this way of life include inappropriate sexual liaisons, a corruption of prayer to
coerce individuals, the pursuit of self-gratification in the name of Jesus, heretical interpretation
of the nature of Christ, and even death of their followers as in the Jim Jones case. Oates’
comment that “suicide becomes a way of salvation” rings true when we consider 9/11.
Counseling a narcissistic person may involve finding out what in their past made them develop
this way, and to “enter into their world with empathy” (54) to affirm their feelings lovingly.
4. The Mask of Hostility and Aggression
“The antisocial, hostile-aggressive way of life seems most in demand” (56) in both the
business world and church. The characteristics of the hostile-aggressive way of life include a
seemingly fearless ability to plunge into new situations, they are “tough, thick-skinned, and
powerful” (58), combative and belligerent, vindictive, cynical of others, amorally ruthless in the
acquisition of power (60), and very conscious of their social status. The major hazards arising
from this way of life include havoc created by their anger, vandalism, theft and the abuse of
drugs and alcohol; within a church setting, they “may use their powers of debate, exclusion and
inclusion, and theological name-calling”(59). Counseling an aggressive-hostile person can begin
once they have suffered a major incident of ego deflation, either emotional or physical, and they
become willing to accept help from another and begin to focus less on themselves and
controlling others, they may humbly ask God to enter into their lives. From that moment of
surrender, they become teachable in a new way of living.
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5. The Mask of Passive Aggression

“Whereas hostile-aggressive persons are obsessed with capturing power and authority,
passive-aggressive persons are … beset with the temptation to resist authority” (70). The
characteristics of the passive-aggressive person include perfectionism which is acted out as
procrastination and indecisiveness, sloppy decision-making, passive resistance to authority,
“dawdling, stubbornness, intentional inefficiency, and forgetfulness” (71). Oates adds two more
diagnostic criteria to this list: (1) foggy time awareness with an immature focus on the “now” at
the expense of planning; and, (2) eschewing the effort and diligence involved to prepare oneself
for success in employment. The major hazards arising from this way of life include “chronic and
long-term ineffectiveness in job and marital and family responsibilities” (72). Counseling a
passive-aggressive person involves a “focus on the vocational heart of the person’s being,
develop a program of close supervision over a period of time, rebuild their confidence in the
works of their hands, and help them develop the positive identity they need so badly” (80-81).
6. The Mask of Too Many Scruples
Perfectionism “is the flying colors and main publicity logo of the overscrupulous
person”, the classic Type A personality (82). The characteristics of the overscrupulous person
include trivialization, stinginess, controlling behaviours, work addiction, obstinacy, and being
overly concern about status. The major hazards arising from this way of life tend to play out on
the individuals themselves, as they try to impose their small-mindedness in their lives, their
homes, their workplaces, the church, and on their God, whom they remake in their own image.
Counseling an overscrupulous person involves entering into their lives empathetically through a
shared stress and helping them to learn relaxation and stress management techniques culminating
in a day-by-day attentiveness to enlarging their perception of and relationship to God.
7. The Mask of Detachment from Life
“Some people live a way of life detached from other people … in a passive way [or] …
are actively detached” (95). The characteristics of the passively detached person include
“poverty of feelings and thought”, shyness, and withdrawn isolation from others. The actively
detached person is an avoidant personality, prone to anxiety disorder, phobias, obsessive-
compulsive behaviours, bodily illnesses, chronic depression, and schizoid tendencies when their
avoidant coping techniques fail them (102).The major hazard for both is that it becomes difficult
for them to relate to other people, and for other people to relate to them, which serves to
reinforce the detachment. Counseling the passively detached person begins with interpreting
correctly their non-verbal messages, and with the actively detached person to become aware of
and intervene in any situation where they are being demeaned to offer them appreciation and
trust (103).
8. Persons on the Edge of Chaos
In this chapter, Oates considers three different kinds of “severe” personality orders: the
borderline (stably unstable) personality, the paranoid (suspicious) personality, and the
schizotypal (eccentric) personality (109). Common problems among all three types include
“developmental immaturity or social invalidism, cognitive disorganization or a deep thought
disorder, and feelings of estrangement or alienation” (115). Oates adds to this that “they share a
common high and persistent level of ‘nuisance’ to those with whom they live and work” (115).
Such people are in particular need of Christian love, understanding, patience and tolerance, and
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medical referrals when necessary.

9. After the Masks Are Gone
The closing chapter of Behind the Masks outlines ways for the church to teach, nurture
and discern love to create prevent, affect, and addresses personality disorders.4

If we set aside the many - what were then contemporary and are now outdated -
references to the Vietnam War and the eras known as the 60’s and 70’s, then the core value of
this book remains as vibrant and useful to the pastoral care student today as it was over twenty
years ago. For each of the 8 “masks”, Oates draws from realistic situations and from biblical
characters to illustrate the nature of the personality disorders and the care given to them. He
notes that “the Wisdom literature of the scriptures and the writings of persons such as John
Bunyan and William Shakespeare have been primary sources, and the teachings of Jesus and of
Paul have been searchlights of understanding and empathy” (9).
Oates clearly articulates three major concerns in the book. The first is that individuals
with personality disorders have often overlaid a mask of Christian faithfulness, a veneer of
Christian faith, on their disorder which has allowed them to assume positions of influence and
authority in our church organizations, in both ordained and lay leadership positions. The second
is that churches are generally ignorant of, or purposefully ignoring, individuals in their
congregations who are suffering from these masks of personality disorder, which has invariably
led to confusion and consternation in parish activities. The third is that the impact of these
disorders flows well beyond the church into the homes and work places of these people, and into
the lives of the families, friends, and victims.
“Oates makes a striking comment on why parishioners and clergy with personality
disorders are not deeply changed via participation in corporate worship or revival services. These
large meetings lack the power of personal confrontation found in small groups or one on one.”5
Two main themes emerge from the book. The first is that “masked individuals” can be
found throughout all church communities. It is incumbent on clergy and church leaders to remain
alert and identify their presence, to minimize the potential impact they can have on the church
community, and to help them be restored into a more loving fellowship with Christ and their
church community. The second is that individuals suffering from personality disorders are
generally incapable of identifying the disorder at work in their own lives. This, says Oates, is
where the church has a major role to perform in helping the individual confront and remove the
mask to find healing in the love of Christ and through fellowship with other believers.
The concerns expressed by Oates 23 years ago are just as relevant for the church today,
particularly in the main stream liturgical churches suffering from significantly reduced income
due to the economic recession and declining membership. As church staff sizes are being
decreased, more influence and authority is being exercised by fewer clergy and by more lay
leaders. The opportunities for distorted personalities to take advantage of greater authority,
coupled with reduced supervision, are increased, along with the potential dangers this carries.
Throughout the book, Oates masterfully interweaves Old Testament references and New
Testament passages to create a Christ-centered model for the counselor. Yet he also draws from
and refers to the main psychological theorists and practitioners, and this provides a strong
balance to the book and makes it a very useful quick reference tool. Even if it were only for this
reason alone, I would strongly recommend this book as a supplemental source for the religious
and secular counselor, care giver, student, or church leader.
But even more than that, I would recommend this book because it was written by a man
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whose intellect was thankfully as large as his heart, and because his message of Christ-centered
love and inclusivity in the fellowship that the church has to offer needs to be heard and embraced
by a new generation of pastoral counselors.
Finally, I would like to conclude with a comment made by the Rev. Stephen E. Yon: this
book “will serve as resource for understanding disorderly behavior of those served in the church.
But perhaps more importantly, the book may serve as the beginning of a self-examination
process for the reader as well.”6

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1
Douglas Martin, New York Times, October 26, 1999. Online at
http://www.nytimes.com/1999/10/26/us/wayne-e-oates-82-is-dead-coined-the-term-workaholic.html
2
Much of this material is drawn from Living Legacy, Oates Institute.
3
I conducted a Google search on the book title and it came up with a number of Divinity Schools at
universities in Canada and the US that are still using the book.
4
Review by the Rev. John M. Crowe, Pastor at Bethel UMC, Goldsboro, NC. Online at
http://www.amazon.com/review/R22UI3CAMC4G89
5
Ibid
6
Rev. Stephen E. Yon, Administrator of the Bedminster Institute for Congregational Care (BICC), in The
Reformed Review, vol 45 (2) p. 153. 1991.