Jamaica Theological Seminary: Pastoral Counselling Approaches THPR3320

This essay provides a comparative analysis of pastoral counseling and other counseling methods, particularly clinical counseling. It highlights the historical context of pastoral counseling, tracing its roots to the church's early involvement in addressing personal problems and its subsequent interaction with the rise of psychology and psychiatry. The essay emphasizes the integration of therapeutic and spiritual components in pastoral counseling, contrasting it with the evidence-based and often secular approach of clinical counseling. Key differences are explored, including the role of prayer and faith, the methods of intervention, and the overall perspective on the source of solutions. The essay concludes by underscoring the unique calling of pastoral ministers in offering solutions to societal problems through a blend of spiritual guidance and psychological understanding. Desklib provides a platform for students to access this and other solved assignments for academic assistance.

Running head: PASTORAL COUNSELLING
Pastoral counselling
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PASTORAL COUNSELLING 2
Question 1
The first article, The Need for Pastoral Counselling, argues that when the idea of Christ
was established many people depended on church to advise them on their personal problems.
However, the pastors who were providing emotional support to the community forgot their roles
when mental illness broke out. People had to depend on medicine to solve the condition.
Consequently, the article The Context of Pastoral Counselling claims that the pastors are the
ones who brought the idea of psychotherapy into the church. In this article, psychological
counseling and the pastoral counseling go together. However, even though these two activities
can be done together the main challenge is the tension that develops between psychological and
the pastoral needs. On the other hand, the first article claimed that the pastoral work came first
before the psychological counseling. However, many pastors later ended up forgetting their roles
as counsellors leaving the psychological counselors to take up the roles. It proved expensive to
villagers because pastoral counseling was free and easy to get as compared to psychological
therapy where one had to pay before getting the services.
The main similarity in these two articles is that pastoral counseling and psychological
counseling go together. The important factor is that pastoral counseling should shape up the
activities of the psychological counseling. The pastor should know that many people depend on
their ideas before seeking help to psychological counselors.
Question 2
There are several differences between pastoral counseling and other counseling. One of
the main differences according to Kugelmann, (2016) is that pastoral counseling needs both
therapeutic and spiritual components to understand a given situation. The pastoral counselor will

PASTORAL COUNSELLING 3
have an explanation of the situation and then call the name of the Lord through prayers to find a
solution to the given complication. However, when it comes to other counseling such as clinical
counseling, the counselor will listen to the situation and use clinical training and other resources
to provide a solution to the situation in reference to MacArthur & Mack, (2017). The solution
that the clinical counselor offer is always evidenced-based, the person cannot have a solution
without the counselor getting evidence of the situation.
The second difference according to Pembroke, (2016) is that the pastoral counseling
applies many ways to try and find the solution to a given situation, the pastor can even pray to
the person even when he or she is away provided that person has explained the situation he is
undergoing through in his life that require pastor’s assistance. When it comes to other
counseling, one has to book the session to explain his or her situation to the counselor. In most
cases other counselors do not see themselves as vessels of God, they are mainly concerned with
social, developmental and emotional concerns. However, Watts, (2018) argues that in pastoral
counseling, spirituality and faith are the essential aspects that give motivation during the journey
to getting a solution to the challenge. Other counselors do not even pray before beginning their
session, some of them do not consider the responsibility as a call but source of funds. In pastoral
ministering where many pastors are called by God to offer the solution to the problems facing
members of the society.

PASTORAL COUNSELLING 4
References
Kugelmann, R. (2016). Pastoral Counseling between Psychology and Religion. Vol. 2 pp.40-130
MacArthur, J. F., & Mack, W. A. (2017). Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically. Thomas
Nelson. Vol.3 pp.80-100.
Pembroke, N. (2016). Renewing pastoral practice: Trinitarian perspectives on pastoral care and
counselling. Routledge. Vol.2, pp. 23-89.
Watts, F. N. (2018). Theology and psychology. Routledge. Vol.2 pp.56-97.