Author: Langberg, Diane
Journal of Psychology and Christianity, Vol. 25(3), Fall 2006, pp. 258-266

Abstract:

As image bearers we reflect, assimilate and are shaped by the forces that surround us. Therapists are profoundly impacted by the suffering and evil with which they sit. We become like that which we habitually reflect. This paper explores the potentially negative impact of therapeutic work and the call of the Scriptures in the life of the Christian therapist to reflect the image of Christ in this world and in our work. Five disciplines are considered as aids in shaping the therapist to reflect the image of Christ: worship, truth, study, prayer and obedience. As these disciplines are pursued, the life of Christ becomes the primary shaping force in the life and work of the therapist thereby bringing his redemptive power to bear in the work of therapy.

Author: P. Gregg Blanton

Journal of Psychology and Christianity, Vol 25(1), Spr 2006. pp. 77-86

Abstract:

A review of the literature on spiritual interventions reveals that the Christian practice of letter writing is missing from Christian psychotherapy. Using concepts from the disciplines of Christian spiritual direction and narrative family therapy, this article brings the ancient Christian tradition of letter writing back into the contemporary psychotherapy setting. Based upon an integrated approach, this article leads Christian psychotherapists through the process of creating and sending letters that incorporate Christian spirituality into the therapeutic process. The rationale, purpose, tone, language, and components of a letter, as well as the five spiritual elements of a letter, are clearly outlined. Finally, this article offers a case study to illustrate the use of this reclaimed spiritual intervention: letter writing.

Authors: Anderson, Sandra F.; Noble, Marion S.; Shaw, Helen Frances

Journal of Psychology & Christianity, Vol. 24(3), Fall 2005, pp. 254-258

Abstract:

Presents a panel discussion about peer consultation among Christian therapists. Instructions offered by Saint Paul about relationships among people in the Christian community; Role of Christian commitment in the group.

Author: Reimer, Kevin

Journal of Psychology & Christianity, Vol. 24(2), Sum 2005, pp. 130-139

Abstract:

L’Arche is a unique Christian community embracing the developmentally disabled and their caregiver assistants, providing a cognitively diverse context for the study of religious experience. This article considers the religious significance of a simple candle ritual in L’Arche. Based on Hutchins’ (1995) theory of distributed cognition, it is argued that problem-solving and meaning in religion are less dependent upon cognitive capacities of individual agents and more related to how knowledge is attributed to artifacts that serve as external scaffolds. To differentiate this discussion from constructivist philosophy, religious experience and cognition are considered on the basis of public language that exerts downward selection influence upon individual brains. The article concludes with methodological considerations in the study of semantically distributed cognitions relevant to the candle ritual and L’Arche religious experience.