Readings thus far have tried to address the question of “What is pastoral counseling?” As a discipline, pastoral counseling is, in some ways, still in search of an identity. Some writers suggest that all counseling is pastoral because it is aimed at healing; others suggest that pastoral counseling is counseling done by a pastor in…
In many ways, clinical counseling and pastoral counseling have a significant overlap in techniques used and in necessary skills. Lack of active listening, empathy, respect, and authenticity would make any class of counseling ineffective, and perhaps not genuine counseling at all. Pastoral counseling in practice exhibits its uniqueness first in its basis in the identity…
Thinking on the little way recently, because of St. Therese’s feast day Oct 1st! St. Therese is so great- I think she’s a saint that is so reachable and relatable. Her book Story of a Soul is practically a diary of her interior life that reveals so much about her spirituality, but also just how…
Going through life, and especially growing up, we are constantly asked what we want to be when we grow up. Some kids say they want to be president, others want to be an astronaut, and some claim they will be dinosaurs. For myself, I never really felt that I found something that I could see…
What is pastoral counseling? In short, I don’t entirely know. In a way I know exactly what it is because of how pastoral counselors are currently practicing, even what it has been as I have studied the development of it. The real trip up is what will it be tomorrow? What is it always becoming?…