Page 108 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 8
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Christian Psychology alive
to be covered for December 2015’s conference they were all invested in and actively listening
were as follows: to the material they were being presented with.
• How to survive trauma, divorce, loss, and The learners in the audience responded well to
grief (Where is God when bad things hap- hearing their peers making links between their
pen?) Christian beliefs and how this impacts on the
• The pressure to use drugs and alcohol challenges that they are faced with. Giving them
• Responsible sexual behaviour and the dan- this opportunity to be involved in the answe-
gers of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) ring of questions added a realm to the confe-
• What emotions are, and how to deal with rence that would not have been possible had I
them been the only person responding. Something
• Cyberbullying, and social media as a means shifts in adolescents when they can relate to one
of cyberbullying another on a revolutionised level.
• What depression and anxiety feel like, and
how to deal with it in body, spirit, and soul. Furthermore, due to the fact that I am a psycho-
logist by profession, I am well aware of the fact
During the presentation of this conference, we that my own knowledge and expertise is limited.
placed a ‘post-box’ at the front of the school For this reason, I invited an educator as well as a
hall and invited learners to anonymously wri- pastor to join the conference so that they could
te down any pressing questions that they had. give the professional counsel and information
This proved to be an enriching initiative with that was needed in this integration endeavour.
the learners asking over 100 questions within The combination of these three fields ensured
that three day period. The anonymity of being incredibly rich, inclusive, complementary, and
able to ask the questions that they’re afraid to comprehensive content for the duration of this
ask anyone else, or afraid to be heard asking conference. Questions were answered by all the
anyone else, was the key to ensuring that this professionals that presented material, with us
exercise was successful. Some interesting trends often inviting commentary from one another.
and themes could be seen throughout the que- The questions posed showed clear themes that
stions. On the second day of the conference, I demonstrated just how complex it can be for
invited the learners themselves to participate adolescents to make sense of their faith in the
in answering some of these anonymous que- midst of the pains, pressures, and expectati-
stions. An inordinately high percentage of the ons placed on them by others, especially their
learners at this school are born-again Christians peers. Some of the themes that became obvious
who have a deep commitment to their faith, and through the questioning were as follows:
centre their lives on making wise and biblical
decisions. I am, as the process of ageing would 1. There still seemed to be a confusion about
impose, no longer in the prime of my own ado- whether or not Christians are ‘allowed’ to
lescence, and I recognise that while I may pos- be depressed or anxious, and if this is not
sess years of spiritual insight and professional an indicator of weak faith. Many learners
training, my ability to fully relate to what these were not yet well versed in the psychologi-
learners deal with is somewhat limited at times. cal, social, neuropsychological, biochemical
Therefore, giving some of these adolescents the and spiritual explanations and aetiological
opportunity to merge their testimonies with the research conclusions that address the que-
psychological education that they were recei- stions surrounding mental health. Much of
ving was a way in which the integration of these this presentation was shared by me and the
fields became far more accessible to the learners. pastor who was on the panel.
When I came across a question that I deemed 2. Many of the learners are being faced with
appropriate for the exercise, I asked if there were the temptation to use drugs in order to gain
any learners who wanted to volunteer to share peer acceptance, not as much amongst one
their thoughts on the question posed. There was another within the school setting, but defi-
no shortage of volunteers which indicated that nitely within their communities. Marijuana
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