What is a migraine? It is technically not a normal headache. There are many who think that a migraine is just a "really bad headache" (I have heard many use the word this way). In spite of the fact that a migraine does involve severe head pain, there is much more to it than that. I suffer from mild migraines (though I know some people who have them far worse than I do). Migraines are a symptom of a condition whereby the person experiences recurring "headaches" that are ordinarily accompanied by dizziness, nausea, sensitivity to light and sound, and which can often cause confusion.
It is debatable whether migraines should be termed a "condition" or a "disorder" or even a "disease". Whatever they are called, I am able to deal with them with over-the-counter medicines, though sometimes that does not do any good. A couple weeks ago I got slammed with one that was quite debilitating for a number of hours. It clouds the thinking process and makes me have to cancel appointments because there is no telling what I might agree to in that condition (it is a good thing I trust my wife and kids not to take advantage of me then!).
It is my firm opinion that many people in this day and age are suffering from a form of "spiritual migraines". Spiritually, they suffer pain (though they do not always know that is what it is), and it causes them to become confused and disoriented. Many of God's people seem to have lost the ability to think clearly about things. It is not uncommon for some Catholics to go from clear thinking one moment, to a muddle-headed confusion the next. I am often amazed at the errors that people fall for these days.
Take, for example, the arguments of those who are trying to promote the idea that sodomy is morally neutral (or even an actual "good"). If you really examine what they are saying, their arguments open the doors to all kinds of moral atrocities. Or, in another vein, consider the manner in which people twist the discussion of murdering the unborn into an issue of "health care" for the pregnant woman. Both of these are defended by arguments that are self-contradictory and self-destructive. A clear minded observer who understands basic logic can spot these problems. Yet, remarkably, there are numerous people who do not see this.
Sometimes when I get into conversations with people in public (the doctor's office waiting room, the line at the grocery store, etc.) I find them defending some of the most ridiculous points of opinion. A few times I actually tried to point out the illogical nature of what they were saying, but it quickly became evident that it was fruitless. People who accept and defend foolishness, are rarely able to see the foolishness itself. As it says in Holy Scripture, "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion" (Pr 18:2).
Thus, as I said above, untold amounts of people are suffering from a spiritual migraine that has debilitated their thinking and made them unable to get their spiritual "bearings". They ignore things that are crucial for their spiritual well being (it is sometimes hard even to eat when suffering from a migraine), and at the same time they will often have a fit about things that are relatively minor (anything above a whisper can feel like a sledgehammer on the forehead to someone with a migraine). I know it is just a metaphor, but this gives a very good description of something that is plaguing the Church today: bad thinking.
Unfortunately, overcoming the condition of suffering from a spiritual migraine is not as easy as taking some medicine. It requires a long term and vigorous effort to change one's thinking pattern. The world wants us to be muddleheaded so that the devil can tell us how to think. If we have given in to this, even just a little bit, then our whole pattern of thinking needs to be renewed; we need what St. Paul referred to as the "transformation of the mind" (cf. Romans 12:1-2). If someone's mental process has been infected by the world, then he cannot clearly discern what is good and right--and the worst part about it is that those who have fallen into this error believe that their thinking is trustworthy (sin blinds us to itself). At least those who suffer from physical migraines know that they are suffering; that is the purpose of physical pain.
If someone you know suffers from spiritual migraines, then get them some help right away. Encourage them to realize the grave dangers of worldly thinking. There is spiritual pain that accompanies a spiritual migraine, but we have to point it out to them so that they can realize their problems are consequences of their bad decisions and not merely coincidental. Parents, help your children to learn wise thinking patterns, and if you see them heading down the road to worldly and lazy thinking, then train them in good godly wisdom. Let every one of us humble ourselves before the Lord and ask Him to help us see any foolishness that we have so that we can repent of it.
