The Abuse of Power: A View of Sexual Misconduct in a Systemic Approach to Pastoral Care

The article explores the dynamics of transference and countertransference in hierarchical relationships which exist between clergy and lay persons, both in the parish setting, as well as in the pastoral counseling relationship. It is of utmost importance that the power differential be consciously acknowledged by pastoral caregivers so that appropriate boundaries can be exercised. All too often it is the negligent, careless, or unconscious disregard for this power dynamic by individuals providing pastoral care that has led to the sexual violations recently surfaced within our religious institutions. Acknowledgement of the imbalance of power, and its consequences for both clergy and parishioner, is essential in a systemic model of pastoral care.     

Stewardship Models of Pastoral Care,Counselling and Supervision: The Commonians Meet Ricoeur at Worship

The common factors debate in psychology and, more recently, marriage and family therapy is slow to erupt in pastoral care and counselling. This article introduces the common factors debate into pastoral science by proposing the Stewardship Models of Pastoral Ministry and Supervision. The model integrates common factors research and pastoral practice using Ricoeur’s “economy of the gift” ethic. The model’s focus is pastoral care, counselling and supervision in congregations, a unique community context in search of an adequate pastoral praxis.     

The perception of God in pastoral counseling

Many people who go to pastoral counselors for help have a perception of God that is psychospiritually unhelpful, if not damaging. Four examples of unhelpful God-perceptions are discussed: God is vengeful; God is needy; God is our caretaker; and God is our tutor. Pastoral examples of the negative consequences of each of these God-perceptions is given. The article ends with a section which describes the pastoral implications of unhelpful God-perceptions.     

Present status and future prospects in pastoral theology

The article cites three factors which help to understand where the field of Pastoral Theology currently finds itself. It describes five trends which include possibilities and pitfalls for the field: evangelicalism and pietism, expansion of the guilds, a broader definition of pastoral care, the moral dimensions of pastoral care, and family relations emphasis. The article concludes with suggestions for realization of the possibilities and avoidance of the pitfalls.     

Pastoral counseling among Chinese churches: a Canadian study

This article reports the results of a survey of Canadian Chinese pastors (N 20) regarding their experiences and attitudes related to pastoral counseling. It identifies common concerns encountered during pastoral counseling, as well as key areas of church concerns. Results of the survey indicate that pastoral counseling may be more important than is currently recognized by Chinese pastors, particularly in key areas of marriage, family life, and general relationship issues. The authors discuss possible implications of the survey relative to training and equipping Chinese pastors to engage more in pastoral counseling as an integral part of their parish ministry.     

Family stress theory: A perspective on pastoral care

This article reviews crisis theory from family stress literature and research from medical sociology to advance a rationale for clinical pastoral care of seriously ill patients and families. It describes Reuben Hill's A,B,C,X crisis model and offers it as a conceptual framework for understanding the psychosocial experiences of families facing illness and the role of pastoral care in the coping process.     

How to Talk to Christian Clients About Their Spiritual Lives: Insights From Postmodern Family Therapy

Responding to literature calling for the integration of Christian spirituality and postmodern thinking, this article presents a more specific discussion of how postmodern family therapy approaches can be used to open therapy to the spiritual lives of Christian clients. In this article, postmodern family therapy approaches are described and the compatibility of postmodern family therapies and Christian thinking are examined. Finally, we see how a clinical practice based upon postmodern ideas can provide pastoral counselors with useful tools for talking with Christian clients about their spiritual lives. P. Gregg Blanton is Professor of Human Services at Montreat College. He is affiliated with the Pastoral Counseling and Growth Center in Asheville, NC.     

Shame and Pastoral Care: Implications from an Asian Theological Perspective

Using the story of a Korean woman as a case study for pastoral caregivers, this article attempts to address some appropriate pastoral responses toward the “human impasse” from an Asian theological perspective. This article highlights the significance of remembrance and connection rather than repression and forgetfulness in order to bring justice to shamed persons, like this Korean woman. This article builds on Jacoby’s “social amnesia,” calls for redefining the meaning of community, and attempts to address the human predicaments such as shame experiences from an Asian perspective. In order to address pastoral responses, this article also builds upon Martin Luther King, Jr.’s concept of interrelatedness and shared destiny. It critically examines Jung Young Lee’s theology of marginality and draws the pastoral implications of this theology of marginality with respect to shame experiences. This article concludes with an Asian model of pastoral care and counseling.     

Mild Head Injury in Children and Adolescents

Although mild head injury is the most prevalent type of head injury in children and adolescents, only a relatively small number of studies on this kind of head injury have been reported. This article summarizes a review of studies examining cognitive, academic, and psychosocial outcomes in children who sustained mild head injuries. Despite earlier claims of mild head injury being a "silent epidemic," the studies, which were published from 1970 to 1998, provide no compelling evidence to support this view.     

Caring for the stories that come to us: work narratives and their sacred promise

People often lack opportunity and place to reflect upon and share the sacred moments that occur in their work. Thus, these experiences are marginalized and neglected. Yet, they embody the soul of one's vocation. Drawing upon material from narrative family therapy, this article suggests that attending to and remembering these core but marginalized experiences is an activity for pastoral care. Narratives integrate spirituality and work. The article discusses the structure of narrative, its life cycle, and living in a universe composed of many stories. It explains a storytelling ritual that creates a safe place among the listeners who can then receive the narrative's sacredness. Two extended examples of sacred work narratives are given. A task for pastoral care is to construct hospitable places, sanctuaries, to hear the voice of these marginalized stories.     

Alcohol,head injury,and neuropsychological function

Evidence is reviewed indicating that the extent of alcohol abuse alone cannot account for the neuropsychological deficits observed in alcoholics, and that alcohol abuse and head injury may interact in some patients to influence neuropsychological status. Alcohol abuse both increases the risk for head trauma and potentiates the resulting brain injury, which can lead to negative neuropsychological consequences. Clinicians involved in the treatment of addiction should assess patients for history of head injury, and neuropsychological deficits consequent to both head injury and ethanol. These deficits may limit patient ability to comply with addiction rehabilitation programs. Conversely, clinicians in acute care and rehabilitation of the sequelae of head trauma should routinely assess their patients for substance abuse, because such abuse can have a significant impact on recovery from brain injury.     

Self-Differentiation in Christian Perspective

This article examines the concept of self-differentiation in family systems theory and therapy from an explicitly theological perspective and seeks to advance the discussion of its pastoral applications begun by the late and revered Edwin Friedman.     

The Theological Contributions of Bishop K. H. Ting to Christian/Pastoral Counseling

As China enters an era of urbanization and change, mental health issues are increasingly becoming a concern of the Christian church. Pastoral counseling is taking new shape as people of faith respond to those in their midst in need of care. Bishop K. H. Ting, a long-time leader of the Chinese church, has stressed the importance of an indigenous Chinese Christianity. This article is based on an examination of Bishop Ting’s theological writing with the aim of eliciting themes that might be foundational in the construction of inherently Chinese models of pastoral counseling. Based on a survey of his work, six themes emerge with particular importance for pastoral counseling: the Three-Self church, God is Love, the Cosmic Christ, ethical responsibility, theological reconstruction, and religion in society. These themes are explored within their uniquely Chinese context and suggestions for application to the practice of pastoral counseling are discussed. Original publication: Wang, P. (Ed.) (2006). Seeking Truth in Love. Nanjing, China: Nanjing Seminary Press. This essay was originally published in a collection of essays honoring Bishop K. H. Ting on his 90th birthday. Bishop Ting has been the head of the Chinese Protestant church for over five decades and his leadership has profoundly shaped Chinese theology and church life. The purpose of this essay is to explore how his collected theological writings might inform a uniquely Chinese approach to pastoral counseling. This article is published with the permission of the original publisher.     

History and Method of Charles V. Gerkin’s Pastoral Theology: Toward an Identity-Embodied and Community-Embedded Pastoral Theology,Part I. History

The purpose of this article is to explore the legacy of Charles V. Gerkin’s pastoral theology and to construct a method of pastoral theology. In Part I, I will trace within a larger context of pastoral theology the history of Gerkin’s pastoral theology since his early clinical praxis. In Part II, I will explore his method of developing pastoral theology and construct a renewed critical and constructive method of pastoral theology, reflecting on the implications of exploring the history and method of his pastoral theology.     

Family counseling: Basic concepts for ministers

Much of the time that ministers spend counseling is taken with family related issues. Yet many ministers find themselves in the difficult position of having little or no formal education or training in family counseling. This article deals with some basic issues related to problematic families and pastoral counseling that are meant to bridge the gap between having no formal training in family counseling and having advanced training and education.     

History and Method of Charles V. Gerkin’s Pastoral Theology: Toward an Identity-Embodied and Community-Embedded Pastoral Theology,Part II. Method

The purpose of this article is to explore the legacy of Charles V. Gerkin’s pastoral theology and to construct a method of pastoral theology. In Part I, I will trace within a larger context of pastoral theology the history of Gerkin’s pastoral theology since his early clinical praxis. In Part II, I will explore his method of developing pastoral theology and construct a renewed critical and constructive method of pastoral theology, reflecting on the implications of exploring the history and method of his pastoral theology.     

A lesson from Katrina: pastoral care from an Asian theological perspective

Situating pastoral caregivers in the dramatic catastrophe caused by hurricane "Katrina" in New Orleans, this article attempts to address some appropriate pastoral responses toward the disaster from an Asian theological perspective. The article highlights the significance of remembrance and connection rather than repression and forgetfulness in order to bring justice to all victims of Katrina. It builds on Jacoby's "social amnesia," calls for redefining the meaning of community, and attempts to address the human predicaments on the surface of Katrina through an Asian perspective. In order to address pastoral responses, the article builds upon Martin Luther King, Jr.'s concept of interrelatedness and shared destiny. It critically examines Jung Young Lee's theology of marginality, and draws the pastoral implications of this theology of marginality with respect to Katrina.     

A Cross-Cultural Case for Convergence in Pastoral Thinking and Training

This article argues for convergence of pastoral training models as a consequence of the pluralistic nature of contemporary life. It proposes a more active partnership between pastoral disciplines in an attempt to bring wholeness to pastoral service and to pastoral education in a multicultural context. Pastoral counseling, pastoral care and pastoral ministry are presented as mutually complementary and as under girded by the same pastoral theological principle of genuine encounter. Since pastoral theology is informed by personal experience, the author illustrates his points by reference to personal cross-cultural experience. This article is an adaptation of a paper delivered at a multicultural conference in Seoul, Korea in November 2008.     

Neuropsychology and the emotional component of religion

Religiosity may be seen as both a rational and an emotional phenomenon. Recent technological advances have allowed neuroscientists to relate emotional perception and expression to distinct neurological substrates. When these are rendered dysfunctional through a stroke or other brain injury or disease, the victim's religiosity may change in specific ways. These changes are detailed through case study material in this article. Factors involved in recovery are delineated and guidelines for pastoral care of these patient/parishioners are offered.     

Voices outside the camp: Some significant nonpastoral books in 1979–80

A review article of recent books in disciplines related to pastoral care which may increase the effectiveness of the pastor's care and counseling ministries. Books selected challenge prevailing assumptions, offer new ways to perceive the pastoral task, and provide new and significant information. Books are reviewed from personality and psychotherapy, family history, theory and therapy, studies of violence and victimization, psychology and theology, and general ministry theory.Dr. Hunter is Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology and Book Review Editor ofPastoral Psychology. His address is: Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322.