What is Truth? The Spiritual Quest of Forensic Psychiatry.

The search for truth is a foundational aim and value of forensic psychiatry. It is also a deeply spiritual exercise. It must, therefore, be possible to describe a spirituality of forensic psychiatry, which I attempt to begin in this article. This exploration opens with a discussion of spirituality and its contexts. I then examine the nature of vocation in its application to medicine, psychiatry and the law. This proceeds to a close evaluation of the attitudes and activities that I will argue occupy the groundwork of forensic practice and form pathways to truth: presence, empathy, compassion, and centering. I then examine some of the forces that harm the expression of truth in the courtroom, and the means for healing those injuries. Concern for the common good, an integral part of my own spirituality, arises repeatedly in this discussion. I conclude with thoughts on the search for truth, in our work and in ourselves, and an invitation to colleagues to imagine forensic psychiatry as a spiritual practice. My hope is that this endeavor will stimulate reflection among forensic clinicians and encourage further inquiry and explication.