C8547
Course Unit Outline
Unit Code
C8547
Unit Name
Pastoral Counselling in Context
Unit Weighting
9 credit points
Type of Unit
Regular/Extensive
Prerequisites, corequisites or exclusions
Nil
Academic Staff
Janiene Wilson. B.Juris/LLB(UNSW 1979); BA Psych, ( Macq 1984); MA( Couns. Psych)(Macq
1989);Grad.Dip.RE( Catholic College of Education 1985);B.Th(SCD 1998);MAPS; MNSWIPP Lecturer
Curriculum Objectives
This graduate course introduces students to various models of pastoral counselling that are integral
to the process of ministry. Emphasis will be on learning the function of basic counselling skills
within the pastoral context
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this unit students will be able to:
1. assess the role of counselling skills in ministry
2. adapt these skills to various pastoral situations and contexts
3. identify the differing features of a variety of pastoral situations
4. apply counselling skills appropriately
5. exhibit an understanding of the ethics of the practice of pastoral counselling, and its limits
Threshold concept to be acquired in this unit
An understanding of the variety of contexts within which counselling skills in pastoral ministry are
employed is crucial to its effectiveness.
Content
1. What is the significance of context to pastoral counselling?
2. Counselling and sacramental ministry
3. The difference between spiritual direction and pastoral counselling
4. Grief, loss and bereavement
5. Mental illness; depression, psychotic illness, bipolar disorder, eating disorders
6. Personality disorders
7. Suicide and crisis counselling
8. Addictions
9. Ethics in counselling practice in the pastoral context
Learning Activities
Role plays; films; class presentations; systematic reflection on, and application of, selected texts;
lectures
Required Specialist Facilities or Equipment
Audio-visual equipment
Assessment Profile
Assessment tasks are designed to both help students to attain the unit outcomes and to enable
teachers to assess student attainment. In this unit, assessment of student achievement with
respect to the unit outcomes will be based on:
1. Critical reflection on, and appraisal of, various counselling contexts. (Essay). [Outcomes 1, 2 and
3]
2. Critical application of counselling concepts. (Portfolio of reading summaries). [Outcomes 4 and
5
3. A record of critical reflection upon learning from practical exercises and role plays (weekly
portfolio). [Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5]
Representative References
1. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. IV-TR.
USA, 2000.
2. Browning, Don S. Reviving Christian Humanism: The New Conversation on Spirituality, Theology,
and Psychology. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2010.
3. Coombs, Robert Holman (Ed). Handbook of Addictive Disorders. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley Press,
USA, 2004.
4. Crowley, Paul G. Unwanted Wisdom. Continuum: New York, 2006.
5. Joyce, Peter R. & Phillip B. Mitchell. Mood Disorders: Recognition & Treatment. Sydney, NSW:
UNSW Press, 2004.
6. McLeod, John. An Introduction to Counselling. Buckingham [England]; Bristol, Pa.: Open
University Press, UK, 2009.
7. McWilliams, Nancy. Psychoanalytic Diagnosis. 2nd ed. New York: Guilford Press, 2011.
8. May, Gerald G. Addiction & Grace; Love & Spirituality in the Healing of Addictions. San
Francisco, CA: Harper One, 2007.
9. Wicks, Robert J., Richard D. Parsons & Donald Capps (Eds). Clinical Handbook Of Pastoral
Counseling. New York, NY: Paulist Press, 1993.