Prof Insights: Faculty-Led Workshop Series – Professor Marrs
Description
Due to concerns about the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, this workshop will be held online.
Making Christian Counseling More Christ Centered
Many Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) pastors and church leaders realize that much of what passes for Christian counseling is based in the Law and not the Gospel of Christ. Dr. C.F.W. Walther, the first president of the LCMS and Concordia Seminary, said that properly dividing Law and Gospel in private ministrations is more difficult than in preaching and teaching. How can Lutheran pastors and other counselors better learn to properly distinguish Law and Gospel in counseling situations — and apply the Gospel as an antidote where needed? How can Lutheran pastors better equip the non-Lutheran Christian counselors they refer parishioners to with these critically important concepts? When should a Lutheran pastor refer a parishioner to a mental health specialist, perhaps even a non-Christian one, when the expertise needed falls into the left-hand kingdom? These and other complicated pastoral-care questions will be addressed in the hope that participants will become more confident and effective in their care of the souls entrusted to them.
Registration deadline: July 16, 2020
Register
Dr. Richard Marrs
Marrs has been in the forefront of his field when it comes to confronting the assumptions and approaches of secular counselors. He has worked to bring a Christocentric, Law-Gospel approach to counseling among evangelicals. In addition to holding a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) from Concordia Seminary, he has a Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Loyola University of Chicago in Chicago, Ill., and has served as a Christian counselor and licensed psychologist. He is author of Making Christian Counseling More Christ Centered. He currently serves as associate professor of Practical Theology and director of the M.Div. and Residential Alternate Route (RAR) Programs at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.
Tentative schedule
| DATE | TIME | EVENT |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 6 | 10-11:45 a.m. | Session One |
| 11:45 a.m.-noon | Q&A | |
| 2-3:45 p.m. | Session Two | |
| 3:45-4 p.m. | Q&A | |
| Aug. 7 | 10-11:45 a.m. | Session Three |
| 11:45 a.m.-noon | Q&A | |
| 2-3:45 p.m. | Session Four | |
| 3:45-4 p.m. | Q&A | |
| Aug. 8 | 10-11:45 a.m. | Session Five |
| 11:45 a.m.-noon | Q&A |
Note: The schedule is subject to change at the discretion of the faculty/staff presenters.
