Every morning I scan the news online and spend half an hour reading the articles that fit my interests.
In the last couple of weeks two have stood out as relevant to pastoral care. Let me describe them for you.
The first is a puff for a book by psychologist, Gillian Bridge. The headline is: ‘Our fixation with feelings has created a damaged generation’(1). Bridge discusses the mental health of young people; a million prescriptions for antidepressants are being written for teenagers each year. She provides an explanation: ‘This focus on me, myself and I is the problem … it’s taking people who are vulnerable to begin with and asking them to focus inwards’.
Finding a counsellor: Do they have to be a Christian?
As a pastor, when I feel that someone is a bit stuck, I often refer people to a friend who …