WEEK 2 | LECTURE 1, 2, 3

Slide 1 of 7

As we begin this second week of COUN 506 we are

going to concentrate on building models for

integration in counseling. Our beginning point in this

is to understand more specifically how OUR

worldview impacts the models that we use in

counseling. The way we interpret behavior has a lot

to do with our worldview, and a lot to do with our

expectations of our clients.

Slide 2 of 7

One of the first steps in applying worldview questions

to counseling is that we have to begin to think in

terms of the bigger questions that are involved,

starting off with: “Who am I?” Those who

approach the question of human nature from a

theological perspective think of people as created in

the image of God. The focus of those who are

theologically-trained and oriented is the belief in

people being a free creation imbued with a free will,

but also as fallen beings created for a purpose. This

is true even when we see a person in a counseling

situation and it is clear by the problems they are having or created for themselves that they are far from achieving the

purpose for which they were created. It does not remove the fact that this is a person with a purpose for which they are

created. From a psychological standpoint the question ”Who Am I?” raises the issue of rationality; the idea of humans as

essentially “a self,” not a creation but a rational self. Some theories of psychology stresses that when people begin their

lives, they begin as “blank slates” where from the moment they are born, their experiences, their environment, and their

relationships begin to fill the “pages” of their mind and lives. So there is a sense in psychology that people are akin to “self-

creating social organisms” that interact with people and systems around them. From the perspective of Christian

spirituality, identity questions are phrased in terms of the spirit, in terms of the God-breathed life. Recall the image in

Genesis where God forms Adam from the ground and breathed life into him. That is an image specific to Christian

Spirituality: the notion of human beings as children of God and temples of the Holy Spirit.

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Slide 3 of 7

Next we look at the worldview question: “Where am I?” referring to the world in which

we live. From a theological perspective the world is considered to be a good creation by

God: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth and God saw that it was

good”; that phrase is repeated many times in that first chapter of the book of Genesis. When

God created human beings he saw that it was very good. So it is a good world created by God

that while still under His sovereignty, He has charged us to have dominion over the world. From the perspective of psychologists, the question is addressed

in terms of two environments: one being the internal environment of the person, or their individual heredity; and the second being the external: the physical, social, and relational environment in which they live. For

Spirituality, the world is described as a “community,” while for us who are believers in Christ, our fundamental identifying terms of our environment is as members of the “Body of Christ.” It also emphasizes that the world in

which we live and see is not one realm, but that we exist in a two-realm world: the physical world and the spiritual world.

Slide 4 of 7

Now, rarely does anyone come to counseling simply

for the fun of it, or because they have nothing else to

do. Anytime you see a client, it is because they are

having a problem. Theologians looking from the

“What’s wrong with the world?” perspective, refers

to problems in the terms of sin and rebellion to God’s

law. Jay Addams emphasizes this in “nouthetic

counseling”: that anytime a person comes to you with

a problem, the problem is sin. This problem of sin

shows up not only in that individual’s rebellion to

God’s law, but also in terms of the larger work of

Satan and the presence of evil in their life.

Psychologists on the other hand emphasize that when a person is having problems, the fundamental issue is pointing

toward some type of disorder, or their failure to cope in adequate ways, or they are living in a dysfunctional environment.

In spirituality, when there is a problem in life, the problem is broken relationships and alienation from God, self, and others.

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The problem is also phrased in cosmic terms: that in fact part of the problem in life is really the result of spiritual warfare or

the result of quenching God’s guiding and comforting Holy Spirit.

Slide 5 of 7

So where does that lead us in seeking solutions to our

problems? In terms of theology, the way to deal

with problems are solutions that only come from

God. The grace of God is freely given to us, with the

correct human response being repentance.

Repentance leads to redemption in Christ, and then

we can embark on the life-long process of becoming

sanctified, or more like Christ. From a psychological

perspective, the solution to problems is known as

“self-actualization,” or the notion that we are self-

controlled persons who need to unleash “the self”

within us. Then we can understand and conquer our problems and recover through psychological interventions.

Spirituality speaks of the solution to human problems in terms of communion with Christ, and reconciliation with others

coming through abiding in the Spirit and through the power of prayer.

Slide 6 of 7

Next we need to look at a change that has taken

place over time from what is known as a “modern”

worldview to a “post-modern” worldview. Here you

see a simple typology comparing the two.

This sort of typology is very important in counseling,

especially concerning the various generations of our

clients. Those who were born in the first part of the

20th century are much more likely to have a

dominant “modern” view. Those born in the latter

part of the 20th, or are just coming into adulthood

now in the 21st century, typically lean toward the

“post-modern” viewpoint. For those who come from the “modern” worldview, their focus is on the rational. If they can

figure it out and think it through, THEN they have the direction to live. They seek to discover the “truth,” and from that

truth they THEN know how to live and make decisions. The priority is on the individual, learning to be responsible for

yourself and your own, not looking to others for help. Modern people believe that there is objective truth, and that we can

be objective in our search for that truth. Modernists tend to think that there is a correct way to live, and that there is the

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possibility of living a moral life. On the other side, “post-modernists” feel that life is much more experiential. The real

source in life is their experiences, not thoughts or reasonings. For example, my experiences are not the same as your

experiences so my experiences are THE authoritative source for ME. Because of their emphasis on experience, they seek

to understand life from their experiences and then to discern truth FROM those experiences. In other words their

experiences become the means for understanding truth. More and more they place an emphasis on community rather

than individuality, which can be seen as a positive shift in the sense that seeking counsel from another person is acceptable

instead of embarrassing. Also, post-modern people see life in subjective terms, in that there are many ways to live, all of

equal value, and that it is arrogant to speak in terms of there being only one way to live. Now please keep in mind that

what was just presented to you is a simple typology, a way of conceptualizing the shifts in thinking so if you see things a

little differently from this, it is okay. It is simply a quick way to help you process the shifting of worldviews that is occurring

in our lifetime.

Slide 7 of 7

As we finish up this lecture, be aware that there are

five keys to a Christian integrated worldview that you

will be hearing about throughout this course. To

study a bit deeper on this, refer back to Entwistle’s

book. The first as has been mentioned before that

“all truth is God’s truth”; this is key to a Christian

worldview. The second is the notion that “human

abilities are gifts from God”: meaning we are not

completely independent beings but are creations of

God, so our abilities are gifts from our Creator and

given to us for a purpose. A third key is the belief

that “human life is a unified whole,” where clients are

to be approached holistically and as part of a family and community. The fourth key focuses on the “reality of sin,” meaning

human sin IS a limiting factor in all of our pursuits. This fifth and final key is “humans and our behavior can be understood

to a great degree through rational means,” meaning through empirical observation, through scientific methods, and

through the revelation we receive from God. Unfortunately, the way in which we interpret those facts is going to be

limited and flawed because of our fallenness. This ends the first lecture of week two. Continue to do your reading and

studying as we continue to explore the philosophy behind integrative counseling.

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Slide 1 of 8

In this second lecture of week two, let’s focus for a

few minutes on the philosophical underpinnings of

integrated counseling. Your reading for the past

several days should have given you a good survey of

the worldview and philosophy regarding the practice

of psychology from a Christian point of view. In this

lecture we are going to take some time to unpack

some of that dense material. We’ll start with

epistemology and its impact in how we approach

counseling. Then we will focus on metaphysics and

cosmology, which is our understanding of our nature

of the world, and finally we will spend some time focusing upon anthropology, which is the understanding of human nature

that we bring to the counseling practice.

Slide 2 of 8

Okay, let’s start with epistemology. Here you can see

the four important ways of knowing: detailed Logic,

Rational Discourse, Empirical Methods and

Revelation. These are simply ways of talking about

how human beings interact with knowledge. Logic is

an internal process with internal dialogue. Rational

Discourse refers to the ways we interact with other

people and with data, the ways that we reason about

things and turn them over in our minds. Empirical

Methods looks at our ability to investigate facts

through observation and analysis. Revelation, which

could also be called special revelation, is how we interpret God’s word, his written revelation to us. These are all

important ways of knowing. Now part of the worldview presupposition that we bring to counseling is the way in which we

give authority to these various ways of knowing. For a Christian, the most authoritative way to know is by God’s Word, His

revelation. Now depending upon the particulars of your worldview, you grant authority to these other ways of knowing by

giving them differing degrees of importance.

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Slide 3 of 8

Now going a little farther with this whole idea of

epistemology, “how do we know what we know?”

For example, a client comes to you for counseling and

begins their comments by saying, “I believe God is

telling me…” Now that statement means something

important, but it can be interpreted in at least four

different ways. First, a Naïve realist would see this

statement, “God told me…” as being literarily what

the person has said. In other words it would be the

same as hearing a recording of God’s voice. If this

client said that God told them something, then God

must have told them something. On the other hand, an anti-realist would immediately assume that the client must be

hearing things because God does not speak in a physical voice. And if there is a God that speaks at all, He certainly doesn’t

speak in a physical voice, so this person must be delusional. A critical realist would want to carefully explore this claim with

the client with openness, and to be open to the fact that God can do whatever God chooses to do. The critical realist

believes that, throughout the Bible, God spoke to His people. Also, throughout the centuries since the writing of the Bible,

many faithful people have claimed to hear from God, so there would be an exploration that is open to the possibility of this

being true. Finally, the faithful realist, would be a person grounded in natural law, a counselor that understands there is a

natural law which normally does not include hearing God’s physical voice, but also believing in God’s sovereignty and power

and ability to reveal Himself in whatever way He chooses. It is a question of reality. What is real? What is imagination?

Those kinds of questions are always involved.

Slide 4 of 8Since no one can know everything, and no one knows

anything perfectly, we also have to consider some of

the limiting factors in Epistemology. One of these is

“flawed thinking”; another is when a person is being

emotionally overloaded. Another refers to our

cultural biases, because all of us can have this at

some point in our lives. We also have to take into

account our own presuppositions which can make us

open only to some truths and knowledge while we

reject others. And we can never forget the presence

of sin in our lives, personally and in the world. This

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means we must factor in self-deception, because all of us are self-deceived at some level. Finally, we cannot forget drugs

and disease as a limiting factor. So as you can see, the simple fact is that no one knows everything perfectly.

Slide 5 of 8

So all of this leads us to asking, “how can anyone

know anything?” From the tradition of the

Hellenistic training that we received in our education,

you see a great focus on intellectual virtues. One of

these virtues is honesty. It is very important to be an

honest person, and be able to honestly sort facts

from fiction, facts from interpretation. It is also

important to be self-aware, to really know where you

might be self-deceived, to have a sense of what your

gifts are, and where your flaws might be. An

extremely important virtue is diligence, which is the

need to be persistent in seeking the truth, and then to remain open to new truth. A few others is being teachable and

having respectfulness, that is, listening to others. In a later lecture we will talk a great deal about this, about the ways in

which the counselor is not only teaching and guiding the client, but the client is teaching and guiding the counselor so that

we learn from every person with whom we interact. Next, Responsibility refers to fully embracing our moral duty to use

our knowledge to honor God. Then we must also practice a realistic humility, where we can admit our limits without

shame or embarrassment. Paul speaks about these intellectual virtues in his letter to the church at Philippi, writing in

Philippians 4:8, “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is

lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.” The key point being

made here is that integrated counseling is driven by the devotion to intellectual virtues, both for the sake of the client and

for the sake of our effectiveness as counselors.

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Slide 6 of 8

Metaphysics and Cosmology is our understanding of

the world. Let’s return to the claim of our

hypothetical client who not only says that “God told

me…,” but now they claim that they have

experienced a miracle. Now how does a counselor

respond responsibly to that claim? Those coming

from a Naturalistic point of view, which limits their

view to a created order and to what can be

observed, would see this claim as really a statement

of a coincidence. What the client experienced was a

natural event that has a natural explanation but that

they are trying to interpret as an act of God.

This really has to do with a philosophy best described by Andrew Liddle when he says: “the cornerstone of modern

cosmology is the belief that the place in which we occupy in the universe is in no way special. This is known as the

cosmological principle and it is an idea which is both powerful and simple. It is intriguing then that for the bulk of the

history it was believed that we occupy a very special location, usually the center and the scheme of things.” Simply put, a

naturalist cannot believe that miracles actually happen. A materialist is even more dismissive. A “materialist” would

believe that the person making such a claim is ignorant, and is engaging in superstition and magical thinking. The

materialist would say that which is normal in life is science, because what can be observed and measured in the natural

environment would represent the limits of what we can know. For a supernaturalist, when they hear a claim such as this

from their client they assume that an act of God can and does happen. That God is sovereign and that nature will certainly

accommodate whatever God desires to do. They would also be able to say that we speak of Acts of God day in and day

out. For example, if a hurricane destroys a house, insurance is filed asking for compensation due to an “Act of God,” so why

is a miracle out of the question? The “supernaturalist” would make the distinction that science is important in describing

nature but not as a normative principle, meaning God sets the standard and science only describes the way nature is.

Finally, a person coming from an integrative viewpoint would be respectful of the client and their claim, and would want to

explore in a very careful way what actually happened. They would be aware that the client, as well as the counselor, is

making an interpretation of the facts as they are presented, but also would be open to God’s free working in the world.

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Slide 7 of 8

Let’s turn our focus now to the philosophical

presuppositions of human nature which is called

Anthropology. Jay Adams, in dismissing any other

viewpoint other than the biblical one, has said:

“Psychology is just sinful human beings sinfully

thinking about sinful human beings.” Now how do

we respond to such a statement? Our response in

many ways is going to reveal what you think about

human life, about human nature, about the ways in

which humans change, and the potential for change

in people. Our response will also indicate our

worldview. Perhaps the chart on the next slide will help you in thinking about your response to this question.

Slide 8 of 8

For Psychologists, Theologians, and those who

engage in spiritual formation, there are distinctions in

the approach that each would bring to the subject of

anthropology. The chart tries to outline some of

these assumptions. Look at the column labeled

“Assumptions and Exemplars” for a moment. Notice

from a Psychological standpoint that the assumption

is that people are bio-psycho-social beings, meaning

we are biological organisms with minds and

personalities who are socially embedded but limited

to an observable and naturalistic point of view. A

Theologian would describe sources of information and the nature of people as being the way that God describes people.

We know what a human being is because of what God’s Word says about them. God’s Word describes people as being

created in the image of God and that our sources of data for understanding human nature are supernatural sources, God’s

revelation through the Bible. From a spiritual point of view we think of human beings in terms of God’s creative Spirit and

Living Word, which is not only The Bible given to us more than 2,000 years ago, but the Word of God living and working in

us today. When you think of the “methods” for understanding human nature, psychology is going to rely on empiricism,

which is scientific and naturalistic inquiry, while theology is going to use Hermeneutics and theological reasoning, the

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standards of interpretation of scripture. Spirituality focuses on prayer, practices of spiritual formation, and the faith

community as a way of understanding human problems and human nature. Another area is our “standards of thinking,”

since it is very important to have some way of standardizing our thinking about problems. Psychology relies on theories, on

psychological constructs. Theology relies on the systematic theology that has been developed over many centuries.

Spirituality relies upon a formation of tradition and upon careful examination of biblical patterns for life. And the last area

is the “Ideals and Goals” for counseling practice. How do we think about those we see in counseling and what are

appropriate goals and ideals for what we do with them? In psychology we think in terms of therapeutic effectiveness, in

how we seek to understand people and more importantly, helping them understand themselves and understand their own

problems, and to work towards their own solutions. In theology we think in terms of salvation, in terms of the process of

sanctification throughout life and the power of faith in people’s lives. In Spirituality, we speak of unity and love, and of

helping people to love God with all their hearts and minds and soul and strength, and to love their neighbor as themselves.

We think of abiding in Christ. Now this concludes the second lecture of week two. I pray the Lord’s blessing upon you as

you continue your studies in integration of psychology, theology and spirituality.

Slide 1 of 6

Welcome to part three of this week’s lecture. This

time, we are going to focus on five models for

interdisciplinary integration. Now before we actually

speak about the models themselves, I want to give

you a brief overview of the theoretical construct of

how all of these integrated models were built.

Slide 2 of 6

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In his book entitled, “Christ and Culture,” H. Richard Niebuhr presented five different views of the way in which Christ is at

work in the cultures of the world. These views represent different beginning points for understanding how the living Spirit

of Christ is at work and how we can better understand the nature of the authority of Christ and his impact on culture. The

first in this typology is Christ AGAINST culture, which really is an “either-or” view, meaning we are either of the world or not

of the world. We are either with Christ or against Christ. This will represent the enemy’s view of integration. A second

type is Christ OF culture, where Christ is viewed as assimilated into the culture. Whatever is the cultural expression of the

work of Christ is the reality of Christ to that culture. Next we have the Christ ABOVE culture, that is an “above-and”

approach, in which you can have this private devotion to Christ, and at the same time be a very worldly person in another

compartment of your life. Fourth, we have the Christ AND culture paradox: two kingdoms striving to be predominant,

which is another version of compartmentalized faith. Lastly, we have Christ the TRANSFORMER of culture, where true

conversion and real change is possible.

Slide 3 of 6

There is a long standing struggle between Christians

and those coming from a worldview of science that

goes back hundreds of years. This is the first

paradigm: Christ against culture; the notion that

people are either of the world or not of the world.

Adherents line up on either side of the room to

champion either the perspective of psychology and

the secular worldview, or the perspective of

Christianity. On this slide there is a table that

compares the thinking between these two

perspectives. On the secular side we list the father

of modern psychology, Sigmund Freud, who saw religion as being the same thing as a neurosis. He felt that individual and

organized religion were not realities in and of themselves, but really an inappropriate way of coping with problems, a

neurosis. Then we have Albert Ellis, a more recent psychologist who went from being very negative towards any form of

religion to eventually holding the position that religion is okay as long as we don’t get too carried away with it. Now his

sense was that religion becomes a neurosis or illness when people are too devoted to God so that it becomes an over-

compensation, or a way to hide from their problems. The belief behind this viewpoint is the basic assumption that

scientific thinking and religious commitment are simply not compatible. So they focus strictly on the personality or on the

care of the psyche of the person, and they reject and seek to eradicate the influence of the Christian faith in counseling and

the practice of psychology. In the other column we find Christian believers, such as Jay Adams, the father of nouthetic

counseling. As mentioned in an earlier lecture, this is a form of counseling that relies exclusively on the Bible for guidance

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with clients. Adams does not think of his way as “therapy,” but prefers the term Biblical counseling. Martin and Deidra

Bobgan are two writers who also support the Christian point of view and have coined the term “psychoheresy,” referring to

a psychological worldview that they see as a competing with Christianity. John MacArthur is a third Christian believer who

speaks of the rival Gospel of psychology, or a “neo-gnosticism.” For these thinkers, Christian counseling should be limited

to the care of the soul. They believe that God’s Word is sufficient for all our needs and that psychology in all of its forms

should be rejected and eradicated from Christian practice. For each side holding a Christ against Culture point of view, you

can see that they do not leave much room for integration, do they? So we want to be careful in how we do Christian

counseling that uses psychological principles, and how we can get past this sort of philosophical impasse.

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Slide 4 of 6

On the opposite extreme we have those who hold a

“Christ of Culture” perspective, in which they see

Christian belief as being completely and totally

assimilated into the culture. They see themselves

as living in a parallel universe. One author speaks of

people with the Christ of Culture point of view as

being “spies or colonialists” in their view of

integration. These spies would be those who have a

psychological worldview and predominately use

material from their psychological or scientific

practice, then “cherry-pick” material from the Bible

and from Christian faith that they find useful. So a “spy” can have this worldview and use biblical material without ever

believing the Christian faith or the teachings of Jesus. For example, before the advent of psychology, Thomas Jefferson

created and later published what was known as the “Jefferson Bible,” in which he kept those sayings of Jesus that he

considered to be useful and got rid of the rest of the Bible that he did not understand or like. He was a “spy” in terms of

cherry-picking material from the Bible for his own use. Carl Yume and Eric Fromm would be two more good examples of

those from the scientific world who have borrowed from Biblical principles for psychological purposes. Norman Vincent

Peale would be a Christian leader who provides a good example for this worldview when he created his bestselling book

“The Power of Positive Thinking.” He took excerpts from Christian teaching and applied them psychologically as a way of

helping an individual, but without great concern for the larger context of the use of those materials. From the “Spies”

paradigm, experience is the starting point and there really is not a serious consideration of the whole picture or taking

account the context of various data points along the way. Now the companions to the “Spies” are the “colonialists.”

These are Christians who use psychological principles in the context of biblical counseling while thinking in terms of God’s

Word as the lens for God’s book of works, and borrow from psychology to make the points they wish to make. Welsh and

Powlison, considered to be “new” nouthetic thinkers, would be good examples of this type This means that when helping

people with their counseling problems, their understanding is based on the Bible, but then they apply psychological

principles as a way of describing the needs of clients. The criticism of these folks is that they deal with the temptation to

use psychological findings without scientific research methods but are making an assumption that their point of view is

always right.

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Slide 5 of 6

“Christ and Culture in Paradox: Two Kingdoms “is a

model in which there is a sharp segregation between

science and faith, or a “compartmentalized

approach.” They see the Christian faith as having a

distinct relationship to psychological processes but

not so much interactive or dynamically involved with

the psychological ways of understanding the needs

of people. Instead there is a sharp separation of

people into their spiritual component and into their

psychological component. It is here that you find

language such as “faith is a private matter.”

Regarding “Christ ABOVE culture,” very often in this neutral paradigm there is a lack of effort made for the holistic

treatment of individuals. Gordon Allport is a good example of this kind of psychological neutrality in which they are not

hostile to religion but take an instrumental view of it all.

Slide 6 of 6

Now the fifth model is Christ, the TRANSFORMER of

Culture, which we can also call the “Allies Paradigm.”

This group looks for an alliance between psychology

and those who are coming from the Christian

perspective with the goal of transforming individuals

through the power of Christ, the transformer of

cultures. These individuals believe that the truth of

God is found in both God’s Word and in God’s Works.

For “Allies,” the conflicts between psychology and

Christianity are not differences between the two

worldviews or disciplines, but problems arising when

practitioners fail to approach opposing or different ideas with openness and diligence, desiring unity, and seeking genuine

integration. They believe that open interaction between different perspectives is the only way to do the best we can for

our clients. They also understand that true integration is a disciplined enterprise involving elements of diagnosis, of

interventions that we must address in the counseling relationship, and both the interpersonal and the interdisciplinary

identity of the counselor. This concludes the lectures for this week. Take time to review the slides again, and make notes

on what you’ve learned involving integration.

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