Theology for Better Counseling

Theologically Formed, Clinically Precise, and Ethically Integrated

Counseling clients have big questions—about God, suffering, justice, and what makes a good life. The experiences they've had don't always line up with what they've been taught about who God is or where he is in their suffering.

Are you prepared to answer them?

As counselor and professor Virginia Todd Holeman discovered, being biblically literate did not always equip her to give clients the help they longed for. She needed a more robust and formative theological foundation.

In Theology for Better Counseling, Holeman shows how deep theological reflection can make a difference in your counseling practice. Not only does it shape who you are as a counselor, but it can also bring your theological commitments, therapeutic practices, and professional ethics into greater alignment. Far from being irrelevant abstractions, theological reflection helps you respond to client needs around issues such as loss, forgiveness, justice, and anxiety.

What’s new in the second edition:

• a new chapter on meditative prayer practices and mindfulness
• new content on insights from neurobiology
• updated references and recommended resources

This book guides counseling students, pastoral counselors, and mental health professionals into becoming as well-formed theologically as they are trained clinically. With Theology for Better Counseling, start getting equipped to address the hard questions.

About the Series

Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.