Historically, spirituality and psychology have worked together in various ways to promote wholeness. Churches and other religious groups have often served as hosts for a variety of helping services. Some theologians have used insights from psychological theories to help them understand various dimensions of religious and biblical material. These scholars are suggesting that there is an even more direct connection, one that argues for direct integration of spiritual thought into therapeutic practice. Mussar would suggest that moral reasoning is clearly one of the building blocks of good counseling. In addition, a classic text in this area states that psychological growth must precede spiritual life.
This brief theoretical framework explains the integration of Mussar and Hasidism into counseling, music therapy and officiating services. The first suggestion is that moral reasoning, self-awareness, and emotional intelligence are some of the building blocks of good counseling. Without these attributes, it is difficult to make appropriate choices in therapy, show understanding and empathy to clients, and maintain the appropriate boundaries inherent in the counseling process. An argument in favor of the integration of spiritual teachings into the counseling and the officiating or pastoral world is due to the fact that the cognitive and psychological realms influence the affective world. Focusing counseling and officiating/pastoral dynamics only in terms of emotional responses ignores an important part of research and theoretical information. The application of this process in officiating or giving pastoral counsel may be on a global level, focusing on changing behaviors inside the community of faith, or on an internal level, inside a congregation of people. This does not replace the need for basic professional training and psychological sophistication or insight. Rather, it provides an important addition to the wisdom the counselor brings to the counseling session or meeting. The effect of such an approach will be the enhancement of intelligence in order to enhance the counseling session or meeting. Holistically, we are not mere psychological beings. We are also religious beings, evolving physically and spiritually. The enhancement of one domain, therefore, works as a corollary of the other. I suggest, therefore, that an individual who enhances his or her spirituality affects his or her psychological state and therefore has a higher probability of seeking psychological help if such help is required.
Spirit of Wellness 