"I have a theory that you can’t find any saints any more because of psycho-tropic medication. I think that the old days the saints were hearing voices and they didn’t have any thorazine to calm them down. [laughter] Now that we have all of this medication available to us, you can’t find a saint any more."
Elisabeth Hasselbeck noted the late Mother Teresa, who has not yet been given sainthood, as a modern example. Behar responded by citing Mother Teresa’s doubts and that the Church’s standard has changed due to medical advances.
"That’s why Mother Teresa had issues. Let’s not forget, she didn’t really believe 100 percent like those saints who were hearing voices. She didn’t hear voices. So the Church said ‘okay, she does good deeds. Let’s make her a saint.’ In the old days it used to be you heard voices. You can’t do that anymore."
Hasselbeck disagreed responding that voices had nothing to do with it, but rather a very strong faith asserting "I don’t think they were hearing voices. I think they were committed to their faith and they’d go to death for it."
The transcript is below.
JOY BEHAR: I’m going to get in trouble for this, but you know what? I have a theory that you can’t find any saints any more because of psycho-tropic medication. I think that the old days the saints were hearing voices and they didn’t have any thorazine to calm them down. [laughter] Now that we have all of this medication available to us, you can’t find a saint any more.
ELISABETH HASSELBECK: I don’t think so, Mother Teresa.
BEHAR: That’s why Mother Teresa had issues. Let’s not forget, she didn’t really believe 100 percent like these saints who were hearing voices. She didn’t hear voices. So the Church said "okay, she does good deeds. Let’s make her a saint." In the old days it used to be you heard voices. They can’t do that anymore.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: They’d cut your hair off. They’d set you on fire. Don’t forget what they did to Joan of Arc.
BEHAR: Because she was hearing voices.
GOLDBERG: They set her on fire. That’s why people stopped saying anything.
BEHAR: Well it was- no, no, no, in the last century before you had medication, they still were hearing voices. I’m telling you.
HASSELBECK: I don’t think they were hearing voices. I think they were committed to their faith and they’d go to death for it.
SHERRI SHEPHERD: Because I hear voices. I hear voices in my head.
BEHAR: Well, duh!
[laughter]
HASSELBECK: I hear voices too.
BEHAR: Medication is in order perhaps!
