Summarize
Chapter five of Loren Townsend’s, Introduction to Pastoral Counseling explores the
formation of transforming relationships. Townsend explains that “Pastoral Counselors act as
agents of transformation by forming therapeutic relationships that help people change or cope
with things that cannot change.”1 The chapter “examines how pastoral counselors apply [the
integration of behavioral sciences and theology] and work with clients toward transformation.”2
Throughout this chapter, various cases used to explain this practice to assist clients with a
transformative experience. Pastoral counselors often lean towards insight-oriented therapy
focusing on the manifested behavior of the client’s present behavior. The treatment goal is to
assist the client in becoming self-aware and understanding of past experiences and their impact
on the client’s current behavior. Townsend identifies a secondary modality, such as “work with
couples, families, or special populations.”3
Townsend highlights the benefits of psychotherapy and the long-term benefits for people
who have a mental illness. One such benefit claimed in the chapter is the more profound, longer-
lasting change the client experience than those from short-term therapy. The therapist assists the
demoralized person in transforming their view of their world, accompanied by hope and renewed
self-worth.
The chapter highlights pastoral counseling and client-counselor relationships by
classifying the method beyond a counseling technique and identifying it as a “relationship that
heals.”4 Pastoral counseling has long been relationship-centered because of the function of the
pastor. Scripture parallels the role of a pastor to shepherds called to oversee, guide, protect, and
1 Loren Townsend, Introduction to Pastoral Counseling. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press 2009). 103
2 Ibid, 103
3Ibid, 105
4Ibid, 107
1
provide for the sheep. Scripture reveals harsh criticism and condemnation of shepherds that
poorly execute their duty. Psalm 23 outlines the function of a good shepherd who leads sheep to
a place of respite, restoration, care, and comfort. The experience with the shepherd rewards the
sheep with renewed hope and assurance. Furthermore, Townsend asserts “that pastoral
counselors work from an internalized religious-spiritual frame of reference that values the
relationship with the client above any other single factor in therapy.”5 The term “pastoral
presence”6 is used to describe the counselor’s personal identity. Presence reflects the highest
priority of the shepherd and the pastoral counselor. Often quoted among pastors, “shepherds
must smell like the sheep.”
Townsend explores the role of empathy within pastoral presence. Empathy defined by
the chapter “describes how humans understand others by putting ourselves in their places.”7 In
other words, empathy means to imagine what it would be like to be in the shoes of that person.
Townsend admonishes the pastoral counselor that managing differences and expectations are
essential when counseling cross-culturally. When engaging someone with a differing cultural
lens, Townsend asserts, ‘‘to know the heart of the stranger’ requires humility, careful evaluation
of one’s internalized expectations about empathy and presence, and the ability to collaborate
across boundaries of difference.”8 However, Townsend highlights “not knowing” as an
opportunity to empower the client as the expert of their knowledge and observation. According
to Townsend, “the counseling relationship must be cocreated between the counselor and client.”
Essentially, Townsend advocates for a collaborative relationship, or reciprocal relationship,
5 Ibid, 107
6 Ibid, 107
7 Ibid, 110
8 Ibid, 111
2
between the pastoral counselor and the client. “Clients who actively collaborate with their
therapist in this relationship fare better in therapy.”9
Chapter five addressed the misperception of pastoral counselors who inadvertently
misappropriated where the power of change exists. According to Townsend, the client is the
primary agent of change throughout the therapy. The role of the pastoral counselor excels when
the client moves toward spiritual self-healing, and ‘‘true change’ requires extensive time in
therapy and is marked by personality transformation.”10
As the chapter concludes, Townsend challenges pastoral counselors not to limit
themselves to a single theory. Additionally, “pastoral counselors regard their work as successful
when clients (1) change what they can to improve their spiritual, emotional, or relational life, or
(2) change their attitudes when other improvements are impossible.”11 The process of change
occurs over time and varies as much as the client. The pastoral counselor must identify the stage
of change the clients are in and assist them in moving another stage. However, the movement
relies upon the analysis of the pastoral counselor to ascertain the progress or lack thereof.
The chapter closes with a therapy session with a couple that depicts how to organize
therapy. The pastoral counselor meets with the couple, assesses the couple together and
individually, and develops a strategy to best lead the couple to true change. The pastoral
counselor incorporates varied modalities and assistance from a supervisor while remaining true
to herself.
Concrete Responses
During my eight years of pastoral ministry, and eight years as a youth pastor, my
experience with pastoral counseling has been varied. Most of the experience has revolved
9 Ibid, 113
10 Ibid, 116
11 Ibid, 124
3
around premarital and marriage counseling. I often viewed myself as a person that is very
empathetic towards people. Jesus was moved with compassion when he witnessed the condition
of the people, which I regard as a hallmark attribute for the pastor. However, I recall an instance
when my cultural bias and blindness prohibited me from collaborating effectively with a couple,
specifically the groom-to-be.
The groom-to-be admitted during the assessment period that he was agnostic, and he
wasn’t interested in becoming Christian but not opposed to its teaching. He chronicled his
history growing up in the church as a child and expressed his dissatisfaction with the church’s
inability to answer his inquiries. He explained how the church refused to help reconcile what he
learned in school with faith. As his questions went unanswered, he could no longer see how he
could possibly integrate faith in his life. If religion cannot answer his questions, he presumed
that religion had no place in his life. As a result, he went on a quest to find something more
congruent with who he was becoming.
The couple met in high school, where he admitted being a nominal Christian leaning
away from the tenants of the Christian faith. They dated for some time and found themselves
ready to be wedded. The young lady had served with me in the youth ministry and followed me
to be a part of the church plant. She exhibited a strong sense of faith while assisting the youth in
spiritual formation. The bride-to-be struggled with the feelings that she had for him and his
reluctance to embrace her faith. However, the groom-to-be was open to spiritual, premarital
counseling. During our sessions, he didn’t oppose her faith or demonstrate reluctance. Still, he
was open to an intelligent conversation about the subject without being criticized for his belief
system, as I later found discovered.
4
Due to a lack of experience, I failed to collaborate with the couple to identify appropriate
goals with them. Not only were unclear goals the problem, identifying the stages of change were
not a part of my skillset, and I became bound by an arbitrary three-session rule. A rule that I
adapted from previous ministry training woefully underserved this couple. The tension present
was trying to “get the groom-to-be saved” and get it done in three sessions without considering
that more time was needed, or possibly spending one-on-one time with him. The unintended
goal was to get through the three sessions and get the couple to the altar.
Viewing the couple as cocreators in the premarital sessions could have yielded a better
outcome. They are married and seemingly doing well. Could they have benefited from long-
term sessions to experience real transformation? Yes. Unfortunately, my assumption is that we
only provided a “band-aid” over the real issue. I have not talked with them since moving to
Chicago, but I think about ways I could have leveraged the time with them more effectively.
Reflection
What I would like further information on is how to effectively use empathy in
constructing “reverence for the client’s unique experience and a conversation that creates mutual
understanding.”12 I agree that cocreation provides a holistic approach to therapy, whereby the
client offers the pastoral counselor with invaluable insight not privy to the counselor. “Not
knowing” repositions the counselor as the learner and the client as the expert. Every person has
a culture that reflects their particular values, thoughts, attitudes, and actions. There is no cookie-
cutter approach to counseling, and with each new appointment, the counselor must investigate
those values, beliefs, and opinions with the client. Townsend asserts that “not knowing” the
counselor “rejects professionally privileged knowledge in favor of indigenous knowledge.”13 If
12 Ibid, 112
13 Ibid, 112
5
the counselor is going to know the client, it requires careful study of the cultural context in which
the client lives. To see the client means that they need to know their culture.
However, Townsend continues “an individualistic focus may miss or minimize larger
cultural oppression of which is not immediately aware.”14 The example of African Americans
forming communal identity through both America’s slave history and African origins is
particularly insightful. The pastoral counselor could broaden their perspective to reduce
unintentional, internalized racism. When seeking to understand the broader context of a more
significant cultural oppression, you need to consider what they believe, follow the stories they
tell each other, and the stories that they live based on shared experiences. The counselor can
empathize when listening with the heart occurs. The pastoral counselor expresses that they are
open to learning about the client, their cultural expression, and the openness to be taught.
I would like further information about the studies that Townsend alludes to in the chapter.
Townsend states that “the therapeutic relationship itself is more powerful than any specific
cognitive, behavioral, or psychodynamic therapeutic procedure.”15 Scripture emphasizes the
importance of relationships. Proverbs 14:21 states that “It is a sin to belittle one’s neighbor…
The proverb warns against devaluing any person by categorizing this behavior as a misstep. The
pastoral counselor must work to build cultural bridges to be relevant. It is imperative to get
inside the mind of the client to forge a co-creative relationship.
Where I disagree with Townsend is with the assessment “that pastoral counselors may
overestimate their contribution to therapy by focusing on pastoral identity and relational and
therapeutic skills while underestimating the power their clients hold as the primary agents of
change.”16 This assessment errs on the side of pride when there is a lack of self-awareness by the
14 Ibid, 112
15 Ibid, 113
16 Ibid 116
6
pastoral counselor. For the counselor to posture themselves as the change agent, it not only
diminishes the responsibility of the client’s role in transformation. Additionally, the most
significant change agent rests in the transformative power of God active in the life of the client.
The assumption that a pastoral counselor would ignore this truth hinders the efficacy of the
therapy. Counselors that observe this most critical spiritual resource would be negligent.
Application
The chapter revealed some critical areas that require my attention to becoming a more
effective counselor. It was recommended that the pastoral counselor empower and rely upon the
client’s inherent knowledge. I would do well to guide counseling sessions with more open-
ended questions to probe the mind of the client to better understand through their eyes. The
more informed I am about the client, the more effective the sessions would become for both the
client and me. For me to make this adjustment, I will need to develop patience and a pace with
the client that will need to be as varied as each client.
Historically, I have viewed time as a commodity, and I misappropriated time in some
instances at the expense of a client. Overextending myself did not afford me the opportunity of
investing as much time in exegeting the person as I did in exegeting scripture. Each person
requires adequate time to develop the relationship and understand their context before any
application. The first thing that will change is the time restraints I place on myself and the client.
These imaginary restraints are self-imposed without any origin. I will approach each client just
as I would on the mission field. I commit to listening for each person’s story, values, fears, and
cultural nuances with empathy and patience while resisting the urges of shortcuts to the finish. I
must accept that there may be instances where long term therapy is necessary for a favorable
outcome.
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Additionally, I will do a better job explaining to the client their role in the transformation
journey. Townsend stated that “all change is self-change.”17 Not only is the client the expert on
their life, but they are also the primary change agent in their life, aside from God. Therefore,
helping the client to realize that when given the right tools, change is inevitable. Townsend
states that “Clients who actively collaborate with their therapists in this relationship fare better in
therapy.”18 However, Townsend goes on to say, “When there is a discrepancy between client
and therapist in this relationship, therapy is less successful and clients are more likely to drop
out.” I personally have witnessed this occur with a client. I failed to collaborate with the client
effectively, which lead to a breakdown of the relationship. However, I will need to minimize the
need to offer answers when the client seeks a quick fix to their immediate problem.
Lastly, I will need to give more attention to the efficacy of the therapy sessions. The
need to take copious notes, being attentive to non-verbal communication, and regression could
provide me the information needed to change course when needed. In the case study with
Denise M., an adjustment was made after meeting with a couple in need of marital therapy.
Denise invited a supervisor to observe and provide valuable input. I could seek input from
experienced pastoral counselors if I deem I have reached an impasse within the therapy.
Denise’s plan adapted to the couple rather than the couple adapting to the plan.
Bibliography
Townsend, Loren, Introduction to Pastoral Counseling. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press 2009
17 Ibid, 114
18 Ibid, 114
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