‘Christians are being called upon increasingly to care, counsel, and cure across cultural boundaries, ‘ writes the author. Of course foreign missionaries counsel people from other cultures, but so do many pastors – particularly those in urban settings. Because Christian counseling theory presupposes that counselor and counselee share the same culture, the insights of this discipline must be brought together meaningfully with the cross-cultural perspectives of missiology.
Counseling Cross-Culturally pioneers this new field. After surveying approaches to counseling in the West and those in the non-Western world, the author develops a theory of Christian cross-cultural counseling. The final part, consistent with the author’s broad view of counseling, discusses counseling concerned with the well-being of people, Christian conversion, spiritual growth and development of a Christian life style, and Christian service. Numerous case studies, drawn from a variety of cultures, provide realistic examples of the questions that counselors will encounter.
A psychologist who trains Christian workers for cross-cultural service describes this book as ‘a helpful, thoughtful study of complex issues surrounding counseling…. It is extremely valuable to expose any missionary candidate to this type of book. It broadens awareness to cross-cultural issues and touches on common problems of missionary-counselors…. Counseling Cross-Culturally is an admirable attempt to integrate a conservative, evangelical theology with the complexities of culture and life.’
About the author
David J. Hesselgrave is also the author of Communicating Christ Cross-Culturally and Planting Churches Cross-Culturally. After serving as a missionary in Japan for twelve years and receiving his Ph.D. degree from the University of Minnesota, in 1965 he joined the faculty of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where he is Professor of Mission.
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