Archive for the ‘Psychiatry’ Category

“Psychobabble” Admitted Disease, Plague Continues to Strike Churches

March 5th, 2007 by David Dansker

satring1crop1.gif. Credit:NASA

Churches across the land will be exposed to compromise again this year as pastors relinquish their pulpits to psychologists. Already, speaking schedules are being booked at near capacity for these counselors to come in and take authority over flocks, and to instruct them in the intimacies of marriage and romance. Take for example Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott, clinical psychologist and marriage and family therapists. This year their “Becoming Soulmates Seminar” is being held at churches all over the country, and in Canada, and includes twenty-nine bookings to date.[i] The Parrotts have also appeared on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, CNN, The View with Barbara Walters, NBC Nightly News, and Oprah; and their work has been published in Family Circle, Redbook, Men’s Health, Focus on the Family, Brides, and USA Today.[ii] Insight as to their message might be gleaned from another of their series also appearing at churches entitled Love Talk, which includes the book by the same name, online assessment, DVD’s, small group workbooks, and leader’s guide.

In Love Talk, the duo claims to translate “psychobabble” into an “easy to understand language,” which can be used by them to teach couples how to “speak each other’s language.”[iii] It is fitting that these psychologists have finally come to accept the arch pejorative of their craft as a descriptive neologism: babble means confusion of tongues.

The concern that pastors should have regarding these counselors is that they continue to be received by major audiences through popular, nationwide secular programs. By this it may be presumed that they cannot be preaching the exclusive message of the gospel. Indeed, when going to the world marketplace with their merchandise, they should cast a broad net. A look at their product description for Love Talk gives an idea of how broad:

In this six-session Zondervan GroupwareSmall Group Edition DVD curriculum, acclaimed relationship experts and real-life couple Les and Leslie Parrott are back with a wonderfully insightful guide for improving the single most important factor in any marriage or love relationship— communication![iv]

The term “any marriage” sounds all inclusive and applicable to the saved, unsaved, and unequally yoked, but do they expand their claim of nourishment and efficacy to explicitly extra-biblical unions? The terms taken together, “any marriage or love relationship” (emphasis added) would seem conclusive that they do. The point is that their product of therapy is designed and marketed to people in non-Christian, extra-biblical, romantic unions. It cannot be purely comprised of Christian corrections and reproofs, or even predominantly Christian. The short is that for the world this is a therapy of the world, but for the Christian to turn towards this instruction they turn away from biblical counsel.

Sincere, but negligent pastors are in for a rude awakening when they see and hear how Biblically anemic these programs are. In the aftermath, they will be scrambling to supplement them with scripture. Then will it finally occur to them that they had the material all along, could have done a better job; and that they did not need to hire famous, smiling faces, but only seek the face of God?

Notes:

 

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Posted in Christian Psychology, Celebrity Christians, Dr. Les Parrott, Love Talk, Teletherapists, Deception, Psychotherapy, Psychology, Psychiatry, Psychoheresy Beat | No Comments »

In Restoration of Ted Haggard, psychologists make high-profile convert

February 11th, 2007 by David Dansker

After undergoing several weeks of “intensive counseling,” Ted Haggard is supposedly only twelve steps from complete restoration. Released to pursue secular employment, he is being encouraged to continue in “Christian counseling,”1 and to join a sexual-addition program. The tune being played for him to do his twelve-step is piped by his restoration panel which includes H.B. London of Focus on the Family (FOM). London runs the FOM ministry to pastors, and would probably employ similar psychological treatments as relied upon by FOM’s founder, psychologist Dr. James Dobson. This therapy has been so successful that Haggard plans to study for his own master’s degree in psychology.

The 14,000 members of New Life Church, the church Haggard built, might not even notice the heresy in this latest development in what has become their saga. In their restoration process, the disgraced Sheppard of the flock was replaced by the likes of courageous associate pastor Bob Brendle.

While standing face to face with male prostitute Mike Jones, the instrument of Haggard’s downfall, Brendle leveled such decisive doctrinal prose as: “I don’t want to impose my religious beliefs on you.”2 This statement was uttered not in the private confines of Jones’ own castle, or in the neutral environment of his workplace, where he is similarly protected from proselytizing, but it was brazenly delivered in Brendle’s own work place, reputedly to be a house of God.

The concluding revelation to Brendle’s fiery opener was that he believed Jones was actually an instrument “God used to correct us.”3 The only correction Jones seemed to receive, however, was a church response that “was overwhelming warm.”4  If Jones finds no other repository of God’s word during his sojourning here, he will eventually experience a reception where it will be overwhelming hot.

In the aftermath of Haggard’s fall and restoration, all aspects of this truth have apparently been subordinated to truths in psychological therapy.  According to FOM’s London, who seems to classify Haggard’s past Christian pastorate and his redirection into the field of psychology as forays into “healing, helping professions,” a key factor in motivating a desire to help other people is “some sort of dysfunction or traumatic event in our lives.”5  This may be why Haggard is being restored to psychology, and eventually to such a high degree; he is receiving therapy for dysfunction, and not offering repentance for sin.

The former remedy stems from a clinical premise which uses jargon that might be used to describe catching a bad cold, and treated by the sterile administration of a hypodermic injection. The later circumstance sounds dirty, vile, and filthy; and requiring the trembling, sobbing, broken and desperate soul to fall prostrate before an Almighty, Holy, and forgiving God. Certainly one is more appealing to the flesh than the other. What a fine trophy Haggard will make in the halls of psychobabblers everywhere. A man at the pinnacle vocation of receiving and dispensing counsel from the creator of the universe, the author of mankind’s redemption, the finisher of his restoration through the plan of faith; a man who sank so low as to only be salvageable through the power of therapies authored by reprobate men.

Notes:

1 -2. Erick Gorski, “Haggard says he is ‘completely heterosexual‘,” Denver Post.com. Feburary 6, 2007. http://www.denverpost.com/ci_5164921
3 -4. The Christian Post, “Haggard’s Accuser Visits Megachurch,” January 29, 2007.
http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070129/
25472_Haggard%27s_Accuser_Visits_Megachurch.htm.
5. Gorski, “Haggard says he is ‘completely heterosexual’” (emphasis added).

Posted in Teletherapists, Christian Psychology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychotherapy, Psychoheresy Beat | 2 Comments »