Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
Author Note
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW:
CHURCH MEMBERS IN CRISIS
Ed Price
School of Behavioral Sciences
Department of Community Care & Counseling
Liberty University
Ed Price
I have no known conflict of interest to disclose.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Ed
Price Email: eprice10@liberty.edu
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Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
Summary
The authors do a fine job of defining crisis in setting up the article. Helpful for me was
that a crisis is not the external peril, though an event is the precipitator, the crisis is the reaction
of individuals and families in response to the event (Stone et al., 2004). We learn there are two
types of crises: developmental and situational. In both types, crisis is the internal response to the
external event. For a crisis to occur an individual or unit must perceive the event as a threat or a
hazard. Important to note is that the coping skills of the person(s) experiencing a crisis will
determine the response. If limited or no coping skills exist, a crisis will undoubtedly occur.
Social support during times of crisis is explored in the article. Support from friends,
family, community in all forms is outlined to show how it related to the crisis. Social support
enhances self-concept and reduces stress. The authors go on to document the role of religion and
how it can reduce vulnerability. There is detail that religious understanding can sustain and
prepare people for crisis. Community and the idea of belonging is also highlighted. The church
as a resource provides continuity.
The project or study was intended to address the research question: What factors provide
church members with helpful support in coping with a crisis event? Backing into what support
and resources best support church members in crisis would allow the church body to better
prepare services that benefit people most. The study was carried out over nine months in 1999-
2000. Crisis intervention when analyzed and documented will better equip the church to respond
to future problems and minister to those in need of care and services.
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Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
Interaction
When I consider strife, stress, or crisis in any form the number one thing I consider to be
the best response is community. This article reinforced the concept of community, particularly
Christian community, and the need for a church family to be near in times of crisis. A particular
area of insight reinforced for me was the concept of crisis being defined by the response. In my
line of work, we teach that the only thing a person has control over is their own response.
Response is highly influenced by the predisposition a person or group has prior to the external
event. The study shows how foundation in religious community can reduce severity of crisis.
I loved the open-ended questioning used by the church body conducting the interviews.
It allowed for consistent and measured feedback but also allowed the respondents to express their
feelings. Understanding the construct of self, acts and others and how each relates to a time of
crisis was helpful for me to process and understand. If I personalize this, it’s not just about me
and who I am but also how I react and how others respond. In my own times of crisis, I typically
and historically handicap myself by isolating. In doing so I cut off the response of others and the
support that comes from community.
The reporting that summarized participant dynamics was of interest to me as well. The
universal characteristics of shock, paralysis, feeling overwhelmed, reminders of past trauma,
embarrassment and openness to support were common. What was concluded and not surprising
to me was that presence of others was one of the most beneficial resources noted by study
participants. Social support took many forms and ranged from doing to just being with someone.
Prayer ranked high amongst participants as a universally beneficial source of strength. Various
acts of kindness also stood out as support, a physical way of expressing concern, love and care.
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Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
Application
My role as COO of the Rescue Mission in Charlotte allows me great opportunity to
minister and counsel the addict and alcoholic. The core of 12-step recovery and step one is to
acknowledge that you are powerless over substance or alcohol. Further in you acknowledge
your higher power, (God in many cases), and that opens the door to community. In my
explanation of addiction recovery, I often ask people to answer the question; ‘What do you see
as the opposite of addiction?’. Many people at first pass will answer with sobriety. I counter with
the opposite of addiction is community. Isolation is the tool our common enemy loves to use.
I regularly work with men who are in early recovery. My advice to them is always the
same. Get to 90 meetings, (one a day), in the first 90 days of your sobriety. In addition, I assign
an individual counselor who will include this person in group therapy for one hour, four days a
week. These meetings allow the newly sober person to experience the strength and hope of the
person with a few days more sobriety than they have. It sets an example and in many cases,
they see and hear reflections of themselves in the meetings and the group therapy.
In line with the study, I agree with the application of prayer, acts of kindness and music.
Our setup is communal living, eating, and learning about addiction recovery. It would be
important for me to detail the need for the newly sober person to remain engaged with the other
residents for the greatest success. The writer of Proverbs reminds us; ‘A man who isolates
himself seeks his own desires; he rages against all wise judgment’ (Proverbs 18:1, NIV 1984).
My continual, ongoing advice to the newly sober person is to pause. This may seem like
a crisis, but we have the tools to teach you so that you may pack your own tool bag. The idea is
to impart coping skills so that sobriety will stick, and healing can begin.
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Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
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Journal Article Review:
Church Members in Crisis
References
Stone, H. W., Cross, D. R., Purvis, K. B., & Young, M. J. (2004). A study of church members
during times of crisis. Pastoral Psychology, 52(5), 405–421.
https://doi.org/10.1023/b:pasp.0000020688.71454.3d
Zondervan Bible Publishers. (1984). The Holy Bible, New International Version.
