Synonyms
Pastoral care; Pastoral psychotherapy
Definition
Pastoral counseling as an approach to mental health counseling is rooted in the sense of responsibility for the care and welfare of others that one finds in religious traditions. It is a specialized form of counseling offered by persons who are accountable to religious communities.
Current Knowledge
Historical Background
Pastoral counseling emerged as a specialized approach to mental health counseling in the 1950s to describe the activity of religious ministers who were engaged in providing mental health counseling in a variety of religious and mental health settings. It developed as a consequence of a growing interaction between those in religious ministry and those in psychiatry, psychology, and social work.
The American Association of Pastoral Counselors was founded in 1964 to provide a professional organization for those doing pastoral counseling. The purpose was to establish standards for membership and to certify those who...
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References and Readings
American Association of Pastoral Counselors. (2008). Mission statement. www.aapc.org
Ashbrook, J. (1996). Minding the soul pastoral counseling as remembering. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.
Bidwell, D., & Marshall, J. (Eds.). (2006). The formation of pastoral counselors challenges and opportunities. New York: Haworth Press.
Dykstra, R. (Ed.). (2005). Images of pastoral care classic readings. St. Louis: Chalice Press.
Hunter, R., Malony, H., Mills, L., & Patton, J. (Eds.). (1990). Dictionary of pastoral care and counseling (pp. 849–854). Nashville: Abingdon Press.
Maloy, W. (2004). Reflections on the journey. Unpublished AAPC presidential address.
Maynard, E. A., & Snodgrass, J. L. (Eds.). (2015). Understand pastoral counseling. New York: Springer Publishing Company, LLC.
Ramsay, N. (Ed.). (2004). Pastoral care and counseling redefining the paradigms (pp. 1–43). Nashville: Abingdon Press.
Stokes, A. (Ed.). (1992). AAPC in historical perspective 1963–1991 (pp. 1–13). Fairfax: AAPC.
Woodruff, R. (1995). Pastoral counseling a ministry of mental health (pp. 8–9). Fairfax: AAPC.
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Maloy, W.V. (2018). Pastoral Counseling. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_417
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