NEW EBOOK: "CHRISTIAN COUNSELING" EXAMINED

 [Although we do not follow the "Church Fathers" as a whole, we find these things said here to fit pretty well with Old School Baptist beliefs.  This is an excerpt from an eBook coming out today as a Kindle eBook - ed]

Scriptural Immersion and Ecclesial Mentorship

Rather than formal "seminary" programs:

• The early Fathers were immersed in Scripture, often memorizing large portions.
• They were shaped in catechetical schools (like Alexandria or Antioch).
• They learned through discipleship under other bishops, elders, or theologians.
• Example: Irenaeus was a student of Polycarp, who was a disciple of the Apostle John.
• Example: Gregory Nazianzus was mentored by Basil the Great, his close theological ally.

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C. Monastic and Ascetic Formation

• Many Fathers were formed in monastic communities, where spiritual direction, self-examination, and prayerful discernment were central.
• Evagrius Ponticus developed one of the earliest Christian models of the soul’s battle with “thoughts” (logismoi)—a forerunner to later Christian approaches to inner life.

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2. If They Didn’t Have Modern Counseling Training, Why Are They Still Essential?

A. They Developed the Original Models of Christian Soul Care

• The Church Fathers were the founders of cura animarum (care of souls).
• Their writings established:
• How to comfort the grieving
• How to guide the penitent
• How to confront heresy and moral failure
• How to shepherd with compassion and conviction

Their focus was holistic: treating sin, emotions, spiritual alienation, and the need for grace, not as clinical problems, but as spiritual diseases with Christ as the remedy.

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B. They Understood the Heart in Theological Terms

• Unlike modern psychological frameworks, the Fathers approached the inner life as a moral and theological reality.
• E.g., Augustine’s Confessions offers one of the earliest psychological autobiographies—but it's centered on sin, grace, memory, and God.

This has enduring value for Christian counseling, especially:

• Biblical counseling models (which reject psychologizing sin)
• Spiritual direction rooted in doctrine and Scripture

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C. They Modeled Theology Applied to Pastoral Crisis

• Their letters and sermons are filled with:
• Encouragement for the suffering
• Rebuke for the wayward
• Hope for the dying
• Example: John Chrysostom counseled the bereaved with appeals to resurrection hope.
• Example: Ambrose helped direct emperors like Theodosius in penitential practice.

These are pastoral counseling acts, even without DSM categories or therapy modalities.

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D. Their View of the Soul Anchors Christian Anthropology

• Today’s counseling models often assume a secular, naturalistic anthropology.
• The Church Fathers insist the soul is created by God, designed for union with Him, and that disordered emotions and behaviors stem from disordered loves or sin (Augustine’s phrase: ordo amoris).

That vision of the soul is foundational for any authentically Christian counseling model.

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3. How This Differs From Modern Training

Feature	Church Fathers	Modern Christian Counseling
Basis of Knowledge	Scripture, classical philosophy, and theology	Psychology, theology, neuroscience
View of the Soul	Theological and spiritual	Psychological and biopsychosocial
Training Style	Mentorship, ascetic discipline, catechesis	Formal education, licensing, and clinical hours
Primary Tools	Bible, prayer, spiritual discipline	Talk therapy, assessments, behavioral tools
Counseling Focus	Sin, salvation, sanctification	Mental health, trauma, behavioral change

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Final Thought

While the Church Fathers didn’t have modern degrees or clinical supervision, they had:

• Profound theological insight into the soul
• Deep experience in shepherding
• Scriptural fluency and philosophical reasoning
• A vision of wholeness grounded in union with Christ

This makes them not obsolete, but foundational. Christian counseling that ignores their insights risks losing the very spiritual roots that make it “Christian.”

WHAT IS SOUL CARE AND IS IT A BIBLICAL CONCEPT?

The layered meaning of the word sold in the Bible

The concept of the soul in Scripture is rich, layered, and central to the Bible’s view of human nature. It does not mean the same thing in every passage and must be understood within its original languages and theological contexts.

Structured explanation of the meaning of "soul" in Scripture:

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1. Key Terms in Hebrew and Greek

Language	Word	Transliteration	Basic Meaning
Hebrew	נֶפֶשׁ	nephesh	Breath, life, inner being, person
Greek	ψυχή	psuchē	Soul, life, self, the inner person

These words have a range of meanings depending on the context—far broader than the modern Western idea of an immaterial spirit trapped in a body.

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2. Old Testament: נֶפֶשׁ (nephesh)

Used Over 750 Times in the OT

First used in Genesis 2:7:

“Man became a living soul (nephesh)” — not received a soul, but became one.

Refers to:

• A living person (Gen. 12:5)
• One’s life or desire (Ps. 42:1–2)
• Inner suffering (Ps. 6:3)
• The whole person (Lev. 17:11)

Key Insight:

Nephesh is the whole person as a living, breathing, feeling being, not a separate immaterial “part.”

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3. New Testament: ψυχή (psuchē)

Used Over 100 Times in the NT

Carries over the meaning of nephesh, but also reflects Greek philosophical influences (esp. in Paul’s day).

Refers to:

• The whole person (Matt. 16:26, “lose his own soul”)
• The inner life or self (Luke 1:46, “My soul magnifies the Lord”)
• That which continues after death (Rev. 6:9)
• Emotional/spiritual life (John 12:27, “My soul is troubled”)

Key Insight:

Psuchē is your whole inner self—your emotions, thoughts, desires, and spiritual life.

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4. The Soul Is Not a "Part"—It Is the Self

In both Testaments, “soul” refers to the entire person, especially in their relational and moral capacity before God.

Examples:

• Love the Lord... with all your soul (Deut. 6:5, Matt. 22:37) — the core of your being, not just emotions.
• He restores my soul (Ps. 23:3) — meaning He restores me, fully and deeply.
• The soul that sins shall die (Ezek. 18:4) — the person who sins, not an invisible essence.

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5. Key Theological Themes

Theme	Explanation
The Soul as Life	The animating life-force given by God (Gen. 2:7, Matt. 10:28)
The Soul as Desire	The longing self (Ps. 42:1, Prov. 13:4)
The Soul as Identity	The self that thinks, feels, chooses (Luke 12:19, Acts 2:41)
The Soul as Moral Agent	Accountable before God (Matt. 16:26, Heb. 13:17)
The Soul and Salvation	The object of God’s saving grace (1 Pet. 1:9, Heb. 10:39)

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6. Biblical Anthropology: Soul, Spirit, Body

The Bible speaks of humans as unified yet complex beings, not as separate "parts" (like Greek dualism).

Word	Function	Example
Body	Our physical life and presence	Rom. 12:1, 1 Cor. 6:19
Soul	Our personal, conscious self	Matt. 10:28, Ps. 103:1
Spirit	Our God-related, inward dimension	1 Cor. 2:11, Rom. 8:16

These overlap and interrelate. The soul is not “trapped” in the body, but expressed through it. The biblical view is holistic.

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7. Christ and the Soul

• Jesus speaks of the value of the soul:

“What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36)

• He bore sorrow in his soul (John 12:27)
• He entrusted his soul to the Father at death (Luke 23:46)

He came to save the soul—that is, to redeem the whole person, not just the mind or body.

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Summary: What Is the Soul in Scripture?

Feature	Biblical Meaning
Not a detachable spirit	The whole person about God
Not merely emotions	The seat of thoughts, desires, and identity
Not just “life force”	The moral, conscious, worshipping self
Endures in eternity	The redeemed person lives on after death
Needs salvation	“He who saves his soul” = the saved person