CHRISTIAN SPIRITUAL PERSPECTIVE IN HELPING PROFESSIONS

Abstract

Intervention in helping professions involves a lot more
than knowledge-based methods and skills adopted by professionals,
often it involves exchange of ideas, feelings, beliefs, and values that
may or may not be directly addressed or acknowledged, but have
profound influence in the process of recovery or reestablishment
of the wellbeing of clients. We will try to prove the link between
Christianity and contemporary society values such as individual
freedom, right to service (human right), social justice, human
dignity, professional integrity, and subsidiarity.
Christian spiritual perspective accepts the belief that God exists
and that He created the entire universe, including the material
and spiritual realms. These spheres are in mutual coexistence,
reflecting intelligent creation, and exist in reality independent of
humanity. In the created order, humans are ontologically unique,
created in the image of God. Common to all people is their dignity,
value, personality, creativity, strengths, and rationality. The value
of human differences and autonomy is an important ideal that is
emphasized in Christian spiritual perspective in understanding
human uniqueness and individuality.
Christian spiritual perspective will be therefore seen as a resource
that promotes client efforts to solve or deal with problems. The
Christian spiritual perspective can be used as part of therapeutic
approaches in counseling models based on empowering strengths
and recognizing the role of life events in the therapy, an interactive
process in which individuals construct their meaning on the basis of
life experiences.