In this paper I will express what I am learning and experiencing in this course. I will begin by summarizing the knowledge I have acquired. Then I will assess the merits and relevance of the ideas we encountered in the course readings. Next I will describe points of discomfort in the course. I will finish by talking about how the course has shaped my understanding of my vocation.
First I learned the definition of pastoral care. While I have heard of Christian counseling, I was not keen to the term pastoral care. Christian pastoral care and counseling seeks to merge the biblical witness, Christian tradition, psychological principles and techniques, and the personal identity of the pastor to restore people to right relationship with themselves,
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My focal point is more than behavior modification; it is on the mind, body, and spirit of a person. Through pastoral care, I am seeking the welfare of people through spiritual formation. Pastoral counseling tends to focus on specific issues and needs articulated and loses focus on developing a person’s total well being. Pastoral care helps people understand that they are not wholly dependent upon bring about said change in their lives. Pastoral care also attempts to integrate psychology and theology and is less technical than counseling. This course has helped me put a name to the desire I have to intertwine theology and …show more content…
Interculturality was term created by Emmanuel Lartey who was heavily influenced by Augsburger and intercultural study. Interculturality takes in to consideration three things according to Lartey, contexuality, multiple perspectives and authentic participation. As a pastoral care giver I must take seriously the social, cultural, economic, political and environmental context people experience life in. I must then realize, we may examine the same issue and arrive at a different understanding, which is okay. I should still be concerned about people and they still have a right to participate in discussion and examination of an issue. Interculturality challenges me to not just tolerate but to actually love and be in community with people who are different. In the teaching I would incorporate Larteys perspective on humans sharing certain respects. Those being we are like all others, we are like some others and we are like no other. All of humanity has things in common, we were born and we will die. We are born into a community within which we are socialized. Our uniqueness comes from singularity of story, history, genetics and the like. “Interculturality, therefore, while at various points in a discussion may focus on one or other of these aspects of our humanity, seeks always to have the others in view and therefore to hold all three in creative and dynamic
These lessons are important in the classroom for several reasons. First off, we as teachers need to find ways to make sure that students from all ethnic backgrounds are included in classroom discussions and that they have the ability to apply themselves to the material taught in the classroom. However, teachers also need to realize that these practices need to be implemented so that stereotypes among the different cultures do not
Clinton, T. & Ohlschlager, G. (2002). Competent Christian counseling: Foundations and practice of compassionate soul care. Colorado Springs, CO: WaterBrook Press.
Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling written by Mark McMinn and published by Tyndale House in 2011 notions towards the idealization that Christian counselors need to be privy in the most recent psychological methods as well as theological theories. “This is a book about counseling processes techniques” (McMinn, 2011, p. 150). McMinn also alluded that Christian counselors benefit from having a spiritual maturity. With having these attributes counselors are better prepared to take note of prayer, Scripture, sin, confession, forgiveness, and redemption. McMinn (2011) model flows in the direction of healing while equating to a more advantageous relationship with The Lord Jesus Christ as well as with other relationships (McMinn, 2011).
Though I do not plan on being a Christian Counselor I do believe that I can incorporate or integrate the Christian Perspective justifiably into my therapy approach. In the beginning of this class I had no idea what it actually meant to be a Christian Counselor I now have a good grasp of this concept. I have also learned how this concept is related to the psychological theological and spiritual aspect of therapy. Although I may not choose this path specifically it has taught me or showed me way sin which I can incorporate or integrate these concepts into my own practice as a therapist and where these concepts fit or are applicable for me. The integration process in my opinion is somewhat ongoing but it is important to have a overall grasp on the concept at the beginning of practice to know where you stand and how you will apply this to the therapeutic process.
McMinn (2011) establishes the topical history of integrating psychology and theology, and promptly transitions to the necessity of inclusion for spirituality into counseling sessions; he cogitates three queries: Will this aid in establishing a healthy sense of self? Will this aid in establishing a healthy sense of need? Will this aid in establishing a healing relationship? (McMinn, 2011, pg. 32). These three components cater to psychological and spiritual health. Christian counseling helps the client move away from need, a faulty sense of self, and relationships to “an assured sense of self, a cognizance of human need and limits, and revealing interpersonal relationships with others and most importantly, God” (p. 59). McMinn (2011) provides intervention tools needed for effective therapy. However, amid the six challenges, counselors can see the risks in implementing the suggested tools with: defining relevant ethical standards, establishing a scientific base, confronting dominant views of health, expanded definitions of training, blurred pers...
Whether you belong to a certain race, nationality, ethnicity, religion, geographical region or you identify with a certain sex you belong to a particular culture. Culture as define by Shiraev and Levy (2013), “Is a set of attitudes, behaviors, and symbols shared by a large group of people and usually communicated from one generation to the next” (p. ). In other words, we are a product of what has been handed down to us from the generations before. However, culture is evolving and it changes all the time. Hence the reason, no one group has a unique culture, since we are all influenced by each other’s way of life. As a result of this influence, we form relationships with people we know little about and share our values and beliefs with each other. Thereby creating a cross-cultural mix.
Experiencing a society of multi-cultures is beneficial through a variety of concepts to epitomize each individual identity. A person may vary in the degree to which he or she identifies with, morals, or...
Biblical Counseling is making a strong impact in today's churches and community. Counseling is seen as one of the most productive ways of helping a
Now in order to fully understand the importance of addressing the topics of religion and spirituality into therapy as well as with grasping the importance of becoming skilled at integrating these issues into counseling, it is of great importance to distinguish between spirituality and religion and knowing how a client identifies with each one. And with religion and spirituality playing significant roles in aiding emotional well-bein...
Culture and socialisation are the two major entities that help shape our identity. The culture one is raised in as a child, and the people we come into contact with in our daily lives, can all be classified as encounters we have with socialisation. As young children who enter this world, we imitate those close to us and behaviours begin to form. It is through this imitation we also discover to express our emotions. These characteristics are engrained in us from a young age and are the major basic building blocks to help us develop our individual identities.
This report will address three fundamental themes of intercultural comm-unication: stereotyping, discrimination, prejudice, essentialism, and their func-tions in every day life, relativism and ethnocentrism as a role in worldview, and the rapid increase in cultural diversification around the world. Gender and sexuality are not deemed relevant to the case at hand, and will not be exam-ined in this report.
The shepherd and sheep relationship is the best illustration for the relationship between pastor and parishioners. When Jesus asked Simon Peter does he love him three times and said to him “Feed my sheep”, the shepherd and flock relationship has been set. Since Jesus is our good shepherd (Jn. 10:11a), he laid out a good example for us to follow - to lay down his life for the sheep. (Jn. 10:11b) Thus, the wellness of both in and out of the parishioners should always be the concern in the pastors’ hearts. Soul care for the people is essential. Christian friendship is the foundation of Christian soul care. Pastoral ministry including preaching, teaching, and worship forms the broad context of pastoral counseling. Pastoral care is within pastoral ministry but broader than pastoral counseling. God’s love is the source and motivation. Within the pastoral care, there are spiritual direction and pastoral
During this class there was a great deal of exposure to essays written by people from different cultural backgrounds. These essays tell the stories of these people over the course of their lives and occur at different times in our society. The essays are used as teaching tools to convey different ideas and facts about other cultures. They were all taken from the book “Among Us Essays on Identity, Belonging, and Intercultural Competence” by Myron W. Lustig and Jolene Koester. This is the second edition and was published in 2006. The textbook Intercultural Competence also by Lustig and Koester helped to bring a better understanding of the essays.
This article has offered great information into the world of therapy with the incorporated prayer and scripture. However, I believe that more research needs to be completed to prove that incorporating a Christian approach helps people. Since, the unbelievers will attack this method as a waste of time and energy, research must be used to prove its
In our fast passed and ever changing society, personal experiences built up over time and often make life difficult to deal with over time. Everyone has their own prospective on what is important and how they will tackle various problems they face from day to day. It is the responses to our harsh environment and experiences that can often manifest into feelings such as: anxiety, resentment and possibly guilt (Crabb, 1977). It is those that have negative experiences in life that seek out the help of counselors, to better understand and change the root of those problems. Each Christian counselor must carefully research and develop a counseling model which best aligns with their education level and spiritual beliefs. The following will be a summary of the models of counseling developed by Dr. Crabb and Dr. Hawkins, addressing the strengths and weaknesses of each model. Through this theory critique a Christian counselor should be able to identify and develop a strong foundation for their counseling theory and better serve their clients while maintaining a strong spiritual foundation.