Page 92 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 8
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Christian Psychology alive
Ninky C. Shuenyane
An assessment of current Ninky Shuenyane
(Masters of Arts
counselling practices in in Research Psy-
chology) is a
churches in South Africa South African re-
search psycholo-
Patlisiso eno, e ne senka go ka tlhaloganya mek- gist. She is a Lec-
gwa e diphuthego tsa seKereste ka go farologana turer in Psycho-
ga tsone mono Afrika Borwa di dirang ka teng logy at the Insti-
go thusa badumedi ka ditirelo tsa counselling. tute of Christian
Maikaelelo a mangwe gape e ne e lo go itse le go Psychology and
tlhaloganya kitso ya diphuthego ka ga counsel- in Biblical studies at Perfecting Church
ling ya seKereste (Christian counselling) le gore International. Both Theology and Psycholo-
e farologana jang le counselling e e tlwaelegi- gy can change humanity for the better and
leng. Baruti le bagolo ba diphuthego tsa sePen- enhancing the integration between the two
tekoste di le 46 ba ne ba bodiwa dipotso ma- disciplines to alleviate suffering and build a
lebana ke kgang eno. DipholÔ di ne tsa bontsha better humanity is of interest to Ninky.
gore diphuthego di le dintsi di na le ditirelo tsa Her home languages is Setswana.
counselling tse di neelwang ke baruti, bagolo,
bagogi le baithaopi ba ba mo diphuthegong. nshuenyane@icp.org.za
Botlhe bano ba tlhotlhelediwa kitso ya coun-
selling ke baruti le bangwe ba ba nang le kitso. There is lack of awareness of Christian psy-
Baruti le bagolo ba diphuthego ba sedimositse chology a field of psychology and most church
fa go le botlhokwa gore botlhe bao ba neelanang leaders had not heard of the discipline. An ack-
ka counselling ba bone tlhotlheletso e e maleba, nowledgement by respondents that a Christian
gore ba neelane ka thuso e e manontlhontlho, e psychologist led by the Holy Spirit and guided
e agang le go thusa botlhe ba ba tlhokang coun- by Scripture can enhance the lives of counselees
selling. Bontsi bo ne bo sa itse ka ga Christian better.
psychology, mme ba ne ba simolola go ultwa ka
ga yone. Mme go ntse jalo ba ne ba dumelana Introduction
gore diphuthego di ka godisiwa thata ke go nna The church has always been the place where
le psychologist ya moKereste (Christian psy- people went for solace and comfort and still is
chologist) e e tataisiwang ke Mowa o o Boitshe- the place where people go in times of need or
po le dikwalo tsa Beibele. crisis. Whether it is to seek God, to get guidance
to just fellowship with fellow believers, it has
The study sought to explore the current coun- been a central part of the history of man. As hi-
selling practices within churches in South Af- story has progressed so have societies evolved
rica. Also to establish awareness, thoughts fee- into more complex systems that are impacted
lings and perceptions toward Christian psycho- by their socio-economic, political and cultural
logy as a field in psychology. Respondents com- environment. For a while there has been a de-
prised of church leaders from 46 churches of bate regarding counselling in the church and
mainly Pentecostal denominations in South Af- whether or not to integrate secular counselling
rica. Findings indicate that most churches have methods. On the one hand there are those who
counselling services provided by pastors, elders believe that it brings compromise to the Chri-
and volunteers. Counsellor training is inconsi- stian belief system. On the other hand, there are
stently provided by church leaders themselves those who propagate the integration saying that
or experienced counsellors. A need is expressed that it enhances Biblical counselling as it better
by church leaders of formal counselling training equips counsellors to help their church mem-
as well as ongoing refresher courses. bers and communities.
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