Case Study Analysis: Exploring Issues in Pastoral Counseling

This case study presents a scenario involving Richard, a respected member and potential leader in the Community Church of God, and Pastor Greenbush, a conservative pastor known for upholding traditional family values. Richard, after ten years of marriage, faces a crisis and seeks counsel from Pastor Greenbush. The pastor, with his deep convictions rooted in biblical teachings, is expected to analyze Richard's situation and provide guidance. The case highlights the complexities and potential challenges in pastoral counseling, especially when personal actions conflict with religious doctrines. The study emphasizes the importance of the pastor's role in offering support and guidance while adhering to religious principles. Desklib provides similar solved assignments and study resources for students.

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Running head: ISSUES RELATED TO PASTORAL COUNSELING
Various Issues that are related to Pastoral Counseling
Name
Institution
Author’s Note

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ISSUES RELATED TO PASTORAL COUNSELING
Issues Related to Pastoral Counseling
Religion is a very essential issue (Young, Griffith & Williams, 2016). Pastor green bush
being a well-respected personality among the lives of many individuals, he had built a strong
reputation as a result of all his reasonable and important teaching that he was giving to the
people. Moreover, since he was a relatively conservative kind of personality, pastor green bush is
a man who focused on various moral issues within the society. This is an act that made both his
teachings and preaching to have the capability of reflecting his deep convictions. Therefore,
there is no need to blame the pastor for his opinions since he was a man who was determined to
change the society by taking care of the family issues and leading it towards the right direction
according to the teachings documented in the bible.
The phase of preparation teaches many issues (Sperry, 2016). Relating this case to the
period of development, it is therefore clear that every individual should be prepared to do what
the bible expects them to do. Due to this, there is a need to avoid evil doings and be able to lead a
pure life. The preparation phase exposes us to quite a number of issues taking place according to
the biblical point of view. Richard too was ready for counseling and decided to approach the
pastor whom he believed was the best alternative.
When Richard approaches his pastor, the phase of relaxation may not go as expected
since there will be no appropriate handling of the issue that occurred in the life of Richard. This
will further lead to the emergence of many other forms of adverse outcomes. The phase of
relaxation will also make it difficult for the pastor to handle the entire issue within an appropriate
time.

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ISSUES RELATED TO PASTORAL COUNSELING
Richard would talk about the whole scenario with the pastor in order to clearly explain
every scenario that happened. Additionally, he will be able to say everything that he planned to
do right after the occurrence of the incident including the divorce that the wanted to make
including the separation that was against the preaching of pastor Greenbush.
Pastor Greenbush is therefore expected to analyze this issue into in-depth details and be
able to come up with the right decision as a leader and a counselor of the people. He should,
therefore, be able to listen to everything that happened and advice Richard accordingly.
Furthermore, pastor Greenbush should be able to tell Richard the truth and make him aware that
whatever he did is an action that is unaccepted in the bible (Tan, 2016). He should be able to
explain to Richard that in as much as God gives another chance through repentance, there is the
need to avoid evil doings together with evil places as this is one way that will make him stay
closer to God (Tan & Scalise, 2016).

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ISSUES RELATED TO PASTORAL COUNSELING
References
Sperry, L. (2016). Varieties of religious and spiritual treatment: Spirituality oriented
psychotherapy and beyond. Spirituality in Clinical Practice, 3(1), 1.
Tan, S. Y., & Scalise, E. T. (2016). Lay Counseling, Revised and Updated: Equipping Christians
for a Helping Ministry. Zondervan, 5(4),88-102.
Tan, S. Y. (2016). ACT for clergy and pastoral counselors: Using acceptance and commitment
therapy to bridge psychological and spiritual care. New Harbinger Publications, 2(5),
18-67.
Young, J. L., Griffith, E. E., & Williams, D. R. (2016). The integral role of pastoral counseling
by African-American clergy in community mental health. Psychiatric Services, 54(5),
688-692.