Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, August 16, 1993 TAG: 9308200100
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CODY LOWE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Despite their popularity, however, they are not without their critics.
"I think they all mean well and can help people," said Steve Strosnider, director of the Counseling and Psychology Division at Lewis-Gale Clinic.
Strosnider was not familiar with the details of the "When I Grow Up . . . I Want To Be an Adult" workshop being led by Wayne and B.J. Paturel, but offered general observations on such programs.
The caveat he offers is that "any church-related counseling group is exempt from state licensing laws."
That means counselors need not pass an exam and are subject to no "quality controls, other than the church that sponsors them," Strosnider said.
Many clients of his secular program will ask " `Do you have a Christian counselor here?,' " Strosnider said. "We do . . . and for those who are specifically interested in interweaving their spirituality in treatment that is very good."
David Anderson, a therapist in the Lewis-Gale program, does incorporate biblical principles with established clinical techniques "if people want that," he said.
But "if a client doesn't want to talk about spiritual things, I'm not going to foist that onto them."
Anderson says being a Christian does not mean he has "to compromise clinically."
Strosnider says he worries that some church-based programs may offer what he sees as simplistic answers that "ignore principles of human behavior."
For instance, he has no objection to telling people that " `the Bible says it's a sin to think that way,' " but "if that is not discussed in the context of `all of us think that way sometimes' " there is danger of mistreatment.
"It all gets back to training. Many churches and pastors have excellent programs," Strosnider said.
He concedes, as well, that lay-led programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous can be tremendously successful.
The burgeoning self-help movement in churches has attracted a lot of attention nationally.
While most of the books being written on the subject endorse its concepts, not all do.
Some critics, such as Wendy Kaminer in "I'm Dysfunctional, You're Dysfunctional," contend the entire self-help movement - secular and religious - encourages a "cult of victimization."
Kaminer objects especially to what she sees as a lack of perspective about suffering in many groups - that child abuse, for instance, can be defined as being "yelled at" by your parents or being raped by a parent.
She and some other critics also are offended by the widespread notion that it is "normal" for a family to be "dysfunctional."
by CNB