Coun 506 Journal Review
Interventions that Apply Scripture in Psychotherapy
Kaitlin Clark
Liberty University
Interventions that Apply Scripture in Psychotherapy
Summary
In this paper I will review the article “Interventions that Apply Scripture in Psychotherapy.” (Garzon 2005). Overall counseling can be very tricky, especially when the client is religious. This will require the counselor to use multiple resources, such as the Bible, when coming up with a treatment plan. The word of God is superior when it comes to healing. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 (NIV) When diving into applying scripture to psychotherapy one needs to be careful of ethical issues. Some of the ethical areas to be cautious of are “dual relationships (religious and professional), imposing religious values on clients, violating work-setting (church-state) boundaries, informed consent issues,
And clinician competency issues.” (Garzon 2005, pg. 114). It is important not to overstep and bombard a client with scripture and religious values, that could hinder their treatment rather than help it. In the article Garzon describes the case of a 30 year old Caucasian male, names George who is seeking out counseling for depressed mood, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, and trouble sleeping. George came from an abusive background; his father was an alcoholic who would become verbally and physically abusive to both George and his Mother. Not only was his father an alcoholic, his mother suffered from occasional stretches of depression and occasionally used antidepressants. Some of the comments his father would make to him were, “You’re a no good &*!@$ loser George. You stay in line or I’ll send you back to your creator.” (Garzon 2005. Pg. 114). This type of verbal abuse could be the reason behind George feeling like he
Kaitlin Clark
Liberty University
Interventions that Apply Scripture in Psychotherapy
Summary
In this paper I will review the article “Interventions that Apply Scripture in Psychotherapy.” (Garzon 2005). Overall counseling can be very tricky, especially when the client is religious. This will require the counselor to use multiple resources, such as the Bible, when coming up with a treatment plan. The word of God is superior when it comes to healing. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 (NIV) When diving into applying scripture to psychotherapy one needs to be careful of ethical issues. Some of the ethical areas to be cautious of are “dual relationships (religious and professional), imposing religious values on clients, violating work-setting (church-state) boundaries, informed consent issues,
And clinician competency issues.” (Garzon 2005, pg. 114). It is important not to overstep and bombard a client with scripture and religious values, that could hinder their treatment rather than help it. In the article Garzon describes the case of a 30 year old Caucasian male, names George who is seeking out counseling for depressed mood, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, and trouble sleeping. George came from an abusive background; his father was an alcoholic who would become verbally and physically abusive to both George and his Mother. Not only was his father an alcoholic, his mother suffered from occasional stretches of depression and occasionally used antidepressants. Some of the comments his father would make to him were, “You’re a no good &*!@$ loser George. You stay in line or I’ll send you back to your creator.” (Garzon 2005. Pg. 114). This type of verbal abuse could be the reason behind George feeling like he
Citations: in text match citations in reference page. * Quotes are used strategically. * Uses correct APA headings that correspond to the 3 main sections. * The paper title is repeated on the top of the first page of text and centered. * Written in Times New Roman font. | 10 | | | Total | 100 | | |