Pastor as Counselor

Pastoral counseling is a wisdom ministry of care, connection, and restoration.

This very practical book offers no-nonsense instructions for pastors,
chaplains, and ministers whose real specialty is the practice of
relational wisdom. Patton provides a helpful, step-by-step template for
pastoral counseling sessions and clear guidelines for understanding when
to defer and how to refer—all while remaining faithful to the basic
pastoral calling to connect persons seeking help with the relationships
and resources they need to deal with their lives.

"In a society
of specialists, John Patton’s Pastor as Counselor is a bold reminder of
the healing potential of 'care-full' attending to lost and separated
persons through the unique relational wisdom of the generalist pastor.
This is vintage Patton, written with gentle wisdom and generous counsel
summarizing decades of practicing and teaching pastoral
counseling."—Herbert Anderson, Emeritus Professor of Pastoral Theology,
Catholic Theological Union, Chicago, IL, and Faculty in Practical
Theology, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA

"John Patton
wrote this 'how-to' book for ministers without specialized training in
mental health issues. Ministers are good at developing and deepening
human relationships, and that is exactly what they need in order to
become skilled short-term pastoral counselors. Concrete, down-to-earth,
and quintessentially practical, this is a book that should be on the
syllabus of every seminary’s introduction to pastoral care and
counseling. It is the fruit of a lifetime of reflection and embodied
relational wisdom at its best." —Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger, Charlotte
W. Newcombe Professor of Pastoral Theology, Princeton Theological
Seminary, Princeton, NJ

"When it comes to counseling, our first
port of call is often the mental health professions. In this book John
Patton carefully draws out what is special about pastoral counseling.
With theological depth and wise practical utility, he offers a clear
guide for pastoral counselors as to what it is that gives them their
identity and what that looks like in practice. This is a wise and deeply
practical book that will inevitably be transformative." —John Swinton,
Chair in Divinity and Religious Studies; School of Divinity, History and
Philosophy; University of Aberdeen; Aberdeen, UK


"John Patton
has acquired unparalleled wisdom over decades of providing, supervising,
teaching, and writing about pastoral care. This most gifted and deeply
reflective thinker has crafted a primer that will become a classic,
spelling out what’s central for those new to the vocation, reminding the
more seasoned of what really matters."—Chris R. Schlauch, Associate
Professor of Pastoral Psychology and Psychology of Religion, Boston
University School of Theology, Boston, MA

"Patton's book nicely parallels what he asks pastors to do in counseling others. Through a well-developed structure, he offers wise presence, spiritual conversation, and relational wisdom. His book would be a valuable resource in an advanced pastoral care course in a theological school. Similarly, a peer group of pastors would benefit from collective engagement with insights it provides as they assess their pastoral counseling relationships." Kenneth J. McFayden, Union Presbyterian Seminary, Richmond, Va. (Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology 71(4)