Liking for religion or spirituality and counseling has thrived during the past decade, giving chance for Christian and secular counseling. Once a person shows interests or makes a request to be counseled, recognizing the kind of services they require is vital. The fist process of getting a counselor may be far-reaching, puzzling, or even discouraging at first but it is always needful. Christian counseling bases its tenets on the biblical views and is intended to make an individual accept their pain through a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ (Hood, 2018; Paul & Kelly, 2005). In contrast, secular counseling is based on humanism and enables an individual to accommodate challenging situations in their lives. Both counseling approaches are options to help several individuals going through struggles and challenging times.
Bowers (2017) indicated that counseling intends to ensure a multifaceted approach to the client. The ultimate goal is to make the client believe in the therapeutic process. Christian counseling is an evolving field that is grounded in faith and belief. Christian counselors need to explore every theory to realize what is consistent with Christian values or otherwise. The Christians have been admonished to serve in the New Testament, and Christian counselors take the profession as a call (Paul & Kelly, 2005). Christianity is a faith that is focused on having a relationship with Jesus, “who being in the very nature of God did not consider His reputation but took the very nature of a servant” (Philippians 2:6, 7 KJV).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Gostečnik (2017) further indicates that many counseling approaches are accessible to the pastoral counselor. Pastoral counseling still entails caring, reassurance, encouragement, showing empathy, and offering Biblical guidance on various issues of life. Spirituality becomes the core of Christian counseling as the intentions of counseling is principally based on the Bible. In Christian counseling, Christ is the chief counselor and pattern to be followed by counselors. With this kind of counseling, God is the center of discussion and reference. One significant goal is to enable the individual to have a rich and precise perspective of God that relates or addresses the individual’s life or issue. Hood (2018) further emphasizes that elicits a natural ability to share with others and the adaptability to respond to the unexpected cordially and shift their standing as needed. Christian counselors are not distinct from and strange to the church, to their leaders or pastors, and counseling counterparts since they are loyal to one God. They are accountable to God for every word that they speak.
On the other hand, secular counseling incorporates education, behavioral approaches, and shifting one’s perspectives to offer symptom relief to the client. The counselor concentrates on the problem and the client. The secular counselor obtains a license by the state and should be guided by the state’s regulations (Hood, 2018). As opposed to Christian counseling, several states hold to the view that God should not be incorporated for anything that pertains to the state. Secular counselors sympathize with a person’s hurt and can offer approaches to come out of these distressing and challenging times (Paul & Kelly, 2005). The counselor challenges the thought patterns of the client. They go ahead to recognize and address any triggers to challenging times. Patterns could include the way people respond to one another, and the counselor endeavors to provide a good environment for the client to open up. The ultimate goal for a secular counselor depends on the situation and not biblical principles.
Another key difference between Christian counseling and secular counseling is the authority that the counselor is accountable to. According to Gostečnik (2017), Christian counselors are responsible to God and their pastors, since they are approaching the profession as a call to help others that are in need. They could work in a rehabilitation environment or a simple marriage counseling context. The great essence of counseling to resolve and restore disagreements between individuals (Hood, 2018). Christian counseling is different from secular one since it particularly involves the spiritual dimension, biblical principles, and considering the will of God in one’s life.
Both Christian and secular counseling are similar in the way they allow clients to willingly select their treatment goals. In both cases, the counselors help the clients to clarify and assess their goals that will be helpful. Secular counselors have further training to help them guide their clients (Paul & Kelly, 2005). Dominick (n.d) explained that they are also wired to push and motivate self-empowerment. The clients are allowed to make adjustments by themselves, but as the counselor guides them (Hood, 2018). In the same way, Christian counselors take the client in a process of understanding the problem and being realistic in the solution established (Paul & Kelly, 2005). Both kinds of counseling ensure that issues of the clients are established and the goals set are met satisfactorily.
In conclusion, Christian counseling and secular counseling have several disparities but they have meeting points. Christian counselors could pray with the client and make them discover the unhealthy views (particularly those linked to previous experiences and sufferings), which help them navigate and adjust to a faith standpoint that involves a healthier view of God, self, and circumstances. The secular strategy offers insights on human behavior based on the counselor’s research and experience. Both counselors have a similar goal to help an individual deal with their problems amicably and getting meaning and joy in life. When the client is healthy and well-adjusted in thought both mentally and emotionally, the counselors are fulfilled.
References
Bowers, R. (2017). Wholistic applications of counselling with the aging in dialogue with pastoral care concerns: A postmodern and transcendental analysis . Earth Rattle Publishing.
Dominick, H. D. (n.d.) Counseling Christianly.
Paul, P., & Kelly, C. (2005). With God as my shrink. Psychology Today , 38 (3), 62-68.
Hood, S. (2018). Shame Off You-A Case Study in the use of Spiritual and Religious (S/R) Interventions in a Professional Counselling context. Australian Counselling Research Journal , 12 (1), 18-23.
