The Sanctuary Course

The Sanctuary Course was created to equip churches as they seek to become sanctuaries where individuals with mental health challenges feel safe, supported, and a sense of belonging.

This is a free eight-session resource designed for small groups. It includes compelling films, a coursebook, an audiobook, and a discussion guide that includes prayers, exercises, artwork, and discussion questions designed to inspire conversation and deeper reflection.

Each session explores key mental health topics, drawing upon the insights of mental health professionals, church leaders, theologians, and people with lived experience of mental health challenges. These resources prepare communities of faith around the world to raise awareness, reduce stigma, support mental health, and promote mental wellbeing.

To participate, your church will need:

• A free account on Sanctuary’s online resource portal. Once you sign up, you can access all of Sanctuary’s resources.
  
• The downloadable materials included with the course
  
• Participants: anyone who wants to learn about faith and mental health. It requires no previous training or expertise—just a willingness to engage in dialogue with other believers.
  
• Facilitator(s): anyone with a desire to create a safe space for conversation and learning.

How to participate:

1. (Optional) Before running the course within your congregation, it can be helpful to have church leaders experience a resource first so that they are acquainted with the approach and language used in the course.
   
2. Find participants and facilitators. We recommend small groups of twelve or fewer. Many churches run several groups at one time.
   
3. Participants and facilitators can sign up for a free account on Sanctuary’s resource portal to access the course and materials.
   
4. Register your course. A friendly pop-up will appear when you first access resources, asking you if you are facilitating a course. Sanctuary encourages facilitators to fill this out so they can support them along the way.
   
5. Facilitate the course at your own pace.
   
6. Share your feedback. On the last page of the resource is a link to a short survey about your experience. This feedback helps Sanctuary improve their resources and the user experience provided.
   
7. If you’d like to continue the conversation about mental health and faith, you can explore Sanctuary’s website to find other resources, including the blog, and the podcast.