DESCRIPTION:

Pastoral counseling as a specialized ministry within the field of pastoral care will be explored didactically and practically in preparing persons who plan to do pastoral counseling and pastoral psychology. A survey of counseling theory from an integrative perspective, with attention to particular ministry issues, will be incorporated into a practical format in a community setting.

To pastor effectively is to be available to people in crisis, in growth passages, and in change throughout the life cycle. The pastoral counselor is capable of offering therapeutic intervention and support, as well as facilitating the pastoral care of the people of God surrounding the counselee.

Students completing this course will have demonstrated (1) a better understanding of and an ability to interpret individual experience, family relationship patterns, culture, and congregational life; (2) skills in counseling individuals, families, and congregations; (3) the ability to more deeply empathize with people to whom they minister, and seek ways of preventative education and care for others; (4) that they have begun to identify what theological commitments he/she brings to the counseling process; and (5) more commitment to self-development and self-care.

Lecture, discussion, audio-visuals, case studies, experiential exercises, triads utilizing counseling skill training processes, and practice in simulated counseling circumstances will integrate theory, theology, and practice. The course meets weekly for a three-hour session.

A minimum of 1200 pp., including weekly assignments from the required and recommended reading:

Justes, Emma. Hearing Beyond the Words: How to Become a Listening Pastor. Nashville: Abingdon, 2006. 109 pages. ISBN: 0687494990. Pub. price $17.00.

Lartey, Emmanuel Y. In Living Color: An Intercultural Approach to Pastoral Care and Counseling. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2003. 192 pages. ISBN:9781843107507. Pub. price $26.95

Meier, Scott T., and Susan R. Davis. The Elements of Counseling. 6th ed. Brooks Cole, 2007. 87 pages. ISBN: 9780495017745, Pub. price $33.75.

Miller, William and K. Jackson. Practical Psychology for Pastors. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1994. 468 pages. ISBN: 0131718290. Pub. price $55.00.

Expanded syllabus/course reader, with selected chapters, available in the bookstore.

(1) Attend lectures and small group sessions and write reflections on selected experiences and assigned readings (25% of the grade). (2) Attend one session of a 12-step group (AA, NA, Al-Anon, etc.) and write a report with theological and psychological analysis (10% of the grade). (3) Present a paper (12-15 pages) on "the basic assumptions I bring to the pastoral counseling relationship" as well as name the key theological commitments you bring to the pastoral counseling process (30% of the grade). (4) Do a reciprocal case study with a fellow student and demonstrate counseling skills in a small group examination with two other dyads and a professor or TA (35% of the grade).