Foundations of Pastoral Counselling

Neil Pembroke has more than twenty-five years of practical experience, teaching, and research on pastoral care and counselling. He has published six books and almost fifty articles with leading international outlets; has served for many years on the editorial boards of Pastoral Psychology and Practical Theology and as a regular reviewer for Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health

Introduction 1

Part 1: Fundamental Attitudes and Skills

1 Respect for the Uniqueness of the Counsellee, or Resisting the Totalizing Tendency
2 Empathy and the Body, or the Quest for Participatory Sense-Making
3 Deep Listening, or Being Formed in the Discipline of Attention
4 Conditions for Genuine Dialogue, or It’s the Relationship that Heals
5 ‘Relational Humanness’ and ‘Relational Justice’, or Caring for Two Worlds

Part 2: Fundamental Interventions and Strategies

6 Revising Faulty Thinking, or a Socratic Approach to Healing ‘Belief-Sickness’
7 Facilitating Self-Challenge, or Learning the Art of Indirection
8 Working with Counsellee Images, or Exploring the ‘Metaphors We Live By’
9 Connecting with a Community of Hope, or Pastoral Rituals that Shine a Light

Concluding Reflection: It’s Also about Personal Spirituality