Abstract
This paper will explore the third wave of cognitive behavioral therapies, specifically mindfulness- and acceptance-based therapeutic approaches, to determine their usefulness for the practice of pastoral care and counseling. The introduction of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) will provide pastoral and clinical practitioners with important frameworks to situate their work, from which they can make more informed and effective interventions with clients and congregants struggling with internal distress and conflict. We will see that cultivating an acceptance of the full range of internal experience has the capacity to calm the anxious mind and brain, more so than does a stance of experiential avoidance and resistance.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bingaman, K. (2014). The power of neuroplasticity for pastoral and spiritual care. Lanham: Lexington.
Bolte Taylor, J. (2009). My stroke of insight: A brain scientist’s personal journey. New York: Viking.
Calvin, J. (1960). Institutes of the Christian religion. J.T. McNeill (Ed.) & F.L. Battles (Trans.). Louisville: Westminster John Knox
Coffman, S. J., Dimidjian, S., & Baer, R. A. (2006). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for prevention of depressive relapse. In R. A. Baer (Ed.), Mindfulness- based treatment approaches (pp. 31–50). New York: Academic.
Davidson, R. J. (2012). The emotional life of your brain: How its unique patterns affect the way you think, feel, and live - and how you can change them. New York: Plume.
Eifert, G., & Forsyth, J. (2005). Acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety disorders: A practitioner’s treatment guide to using mindfulness, acceptance, and values-based behavior change strategies. Oakland: New Harbinger.
Gerig, M. (2014). Foundations for clinical mental health counseling. Upper Saddle River: Pearson.
Hayes, S., Strosahl, K., & Wilson, K. (2012). Acceptance and commitment therapy: The process and practice of mindful change. New York: Guilford.
Herbert, J., & Forman, E. (2011). Acceptance and mindfulness in cognitive behavior therapy: Understanding and applying the new therapies. Hoboken: Wiley.
Kabat-Zinn, J. (2011). Some clinical applications of mindfulness meditation in medicine and psychiatry: The case of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). In J. Kabat-Zinn & R. Davidson (Eds.), The mind’s own physician: A scientific dialogue with the Dalai Lama on the healing power of meditation (pp. 35–47). Oakland: New Harbinger.
Kabat-Zinn, J., & Davidson, R. (2011). Advances in basic and clinical research on meditation in the five years following Mind and Life XIII: 2006–2011. In J. Kabat-Zinn & R. Davidson (Eds.), The mind’s own physician: A scientific dialogue with the Dalai Lama on the healing power of meditation (pp. 207–221). Oakland: New Harbinger.
Kandel, E. (2006). In search of memory: The emergence of a new science of mind. New York: W.W. Norton.
Keating, T. (2006). Open heart, open mind: The contemplative dimension of the gospel. New York: Continuum.
Lazar, S. W. (2013). The neurobiology of mindfulness. In C. Germer, R. Siegel, & P. Fulton (Eds.), Mindfulness and psychotherapy (pp. 282–294). New York: Guilford.
Martin, S. J. J. (2010). The Jesuit guide to (almost) everything: A spirituality for real life. New York: Harper.
Merton, T. (2007). New seeds of contemplation. New York: New Directions.
Newberg, A. (2009). How God changes your brain: Breakthrough findings from a leading neuroscientist. New York: Ballantine.
Roemer, L., & Orsillo, S. (2009). Mindfulness- and acceptance-based behavioral therapies in practice. New York: Guilford.
Roemer, L., Fuchs, C., & Orsillo, S. (2006). Incorporating mindfulness- and acceptance-based strategies in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder. In R. A. Baer (Ed.), Mindfulness- based treatment approaches (pp. 51–74). New York: Academic.
Segal, Z. (2011). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy and the prevention of relapse in recurrent depression. In J. Kabat-Zinn & R. Davidson (Eds.), The mind’s own physician: A scientific dialogue with the Dalai Lama on the healing power of meditation (pp. 102–110). Oakland, CA: New Harbinger.
Segal, Z., Williams, J. M. G., & Teasdale, J. (2013). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression. New York: Guilford.
Siegel, D. (2010). The mindful therapist: A clinician’s guide to mindsight and neural integration. New York: W.W. Norton.
Siegel, D. (2011). Mindsight: The new science of personal transformation. New York: Bantam.
Tillich, P. (1975). Systematic theology: Vol. 2. Existence and the Christ. Chicago: University of Chicago.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (2005). The lord of the rings. New York: Mariner/Houghton Mifflin.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bingaman, K.A. When Acceptance is the Road to Growth and Healing: Incorporating the Third Wave of Cognitive Therapies into Pastoral Care and Counseling. Pastoral Psychol 64, 567–579 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-015-0641-9
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-015-0641-9