Please read the following passage, then answer the questions below
Biblical Basis and Approach to Conversation
The Old Legend
A famous Greek story tells of King Odysseus that departs his home to go to war in Troy and leaves his son Telemachus behind at home. He leaves his son in the care of a faithful servant who is supposed to teach him the skills required to be a good king. This servant’s name was Mentor.
An example from today: a sport’s coach.
In sports, it quickly becomes obvious how important the role of the coach is. He does not only see the strengths and weaknesses in his players, he sees what risks and benefits they bring to the team. He knows how to bring out people’s true potential. While he always leaves the ball on the field with his team, he helps to guide them towards victory.
A mentor helps people to reach a goal. As mentors in God’s service, we help people understand God’s goals and plans and achieve them. To know that, we must know what God’s plans and goals for people in general are.
Pastoral Counselling
In German, the word for a counselor is “Seelsorger,” literally soul-carer (Latin cura animarum). “Seelsorge” or pastoral counseling is the practice of guiding people both spiritually and personally, especially through difficult seasons of their life. Pastoral counseling developed in the church in a time when people in general still assumed that God could heal and re-order the soul. If a person was “sick” in their soul, they would go to their Pastor and when they were sick in their bodies, they would visit a doctor. Pastoral counselors of course also maintain the patient confidentiality as any other counselor would. However, in most cases, they also underlie stricter confidentiality – the seal of the confessional.
Today, pastoral counseling still falls within the realm of the church as we are convinced that God alone knows the souls of man and can heal them.
The difference between mentoring and pastoral care is minute. In this text, the terms pastoral counseling and mentoring will be synonymous.
Humanisms View of Human Nature
The humanistic view of human nature assumes that all people are primed for growth and self-actualization and that they are capable of problem-solving and change. These capabilities might be hidden or damaged for instance due to personality disorders, traumatic experiences, illness, aging, disabilities, among others (Marlis Portner; Presentation 11/5/99 in Kassel at the Convention of the DGSGB).
The major difference between humanity's humanistic and biblical views is that humanism assumes that people are essentially good and simply need room to grow and develop freely. The more freedom a person has to make their own choices, the healthier they will be. The Bible, on the other hand, says that human nature is sinful to the core. A person must be educated and steered by God and his commandments. If a person is separated from God or his commandments, he is helpless in the face of sin and will be destroyed by it sooner or later. The sinful nature of humanity stands in direct contradiction to the nature of God.
The Bible’s View of Human Nature
Genesis 1:27-28 (NIV): “So God created mankind in His own image; in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number: fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
God created mankind in his image, so mankind is not God. However, he has similarities to God. Sin destroyed mankind, who as a consequence lost their godly glory.
Romans 3:12 (NIV): All have turned away, they have together become worthless, there is no one who does good, not even one.” Referencing Ps 14:1-3
