Page 82 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 20

Psychotherapist, family and couple therapist, worked in Family Counse-
ling Center in Lutheran Church in Finland.
Master of Arts in Social Psychology, Educa�on and Musicology. Member
of the ACC Finland board, supervisor and trainer of counseling and Chris-
�an therapy.
She has had paren�ng courses for 35 years and marriage courses with her
husband Arto in Finland and Russia.
Saara Kinnunen is the author of fi�een books, some of them translated
into Estonian, Russian. The last two books (2014, 2016) are on the area of
integra�ve Chris�an therapy.
Her last book Longing for the father was rewarded as the best Chris�an
Saara Kinnunen book of Finland in 2016.
(Finland)
saara.kinnunen@evl.fi
Former ar�cle:
h�p://emcapp.ignis.de/6/#/140

Comment to

“Vicarious prayer on behalf of children in educa�onal counselling”

It is quite seldom you see ar�cles about how to prayer works in both cases. Somehow I should
use prayer as a tool in family counseling. That recommend not to take the child to the prayer
is why I was more than happy to read Werner mee�ng. It is God who works with or without
May`s ar�cle. the client.
In the Bible, we see many examples of vica- In a prayer situa�on, the Holy Spirit can open
rious prayer and we could follow that example the roots more deeply as happened in Tim`s
more o�en both in individual Chris�an counse- case. Also, Kers�n`s parents got more under-
ling and in family counseling as well. We o�en standing of how helpless, sad, and lonely Kers-
pray for healing and that is right, but in Nehe- �n was in the hospital and understood the hat-
mia´s case, the prayer took account of the red as a normal reac�on. The parents worked
whole situa�on and saw the roots of the pro- both with forgiveness for the personnel in the
blem. hospital and their own reac�ons and behavior
In the counseling process, we have �me to find toward Kers�n. I am wondering if it was neces-
out the roots of the problem. We listen to the sary to ask God to forgive the hatred with
client and validate her/his/family`s pain and which Kers�n had reacted to their helpless si-
suffering. The client will get a be�er under- tua�on because she was a child and a vic�m
standing of the current problems. Here is the who did not have the same responsibility as an
difference between pastoral care and the lon- adult for her own behavior at that age.
ger counseling process. In Kers�n`s case, we Tim´s case showed how vicarious prayer chan-
see that the counselor had worked for years ges the foster parents' a�tudes toward Tim.
with the family. She had listened to them The healing power of God is ac�ve even today
and showed empathy to them. They had a and too o�en we forget it and do counseling
good therapeu�c alliance together. depending on our own knowledge and wis-
The couselor were sensi�ve both to clients and dom. We know that the Holy Spirit is not
to the Holy Spirit. When it was the right mo- bound to the present moment but He can go to
ment she made the proposal that everyone in- the past and do healing there. That is a great
volved should become one with Kers�n in Je- gi� to every parent who knows her/his mista-
sus' name and come before God on her behalf. kes and wrongdoings in the lives of their child-
The ar�cle does not tell if Kers�n was with ren. Why should we not use this also in coun-
them or not. It does not ma�er, the vicarious seling with Chris�an clients?

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