Hide-and-Seek With a Christian Filter: A Response to Bland & Hoard (2026)

This piece responds to Bland and Hoard’s work on The Christian Filter by focusing on the psychological function of the Christian filter for hiding. The theme of hide-and-seek is explored to understand the patient’s relationships with God and with his clinician. The difference between being sought and being shamed helps expand the understanding of therapeutic action. The mechanism of hiding is also used to explore how various forms of filters impact clinicians’ understanding of their patient’s experience with God. An argument is also presented for understanding the necessity of hiding as a function of emerging self-agency and how it differs from shame-driven hiding.