I have to agree with Eddy – your communication skills are impeccable 🙂

Once again I’m enjoying your communication gifts. Your post 44375 was clear, succint, insightful, memorable AND on topic! The kind of post I come here for.

* * * –Pretend they’re stars; pretend they’re gold.

There has been a shift in many christian (conservative christian) churches that are now accepting the reality of global warming. In fact, most of those christinas I socialize with are well aware of and practice lives of less waste, more recycling, more efficient energy sources etc…

I was thinking about this post while working (go figure). Let me give an example that I think the gay community on the whole isn’t getting.

Let’s say I am a religious type and am pregnant out of wedlock. I don’t want to add to my troubles. I am in counseling and my counselor is not a religious person. She says what the law says – it is okay to have an abortion and here are resources for me. But my faith (although I’ve obviously committed some sins here) says that abortion is not right (regardless of the law of the land) and I just cannot do that. But my counselor is frsutrated with me and knows that aborting the child would benefit me financially and otherwise. But my faith is in deep conflict with that. Does she counsel me to accept the abortion? Or does she counsel me to make wiser decisions (without getting an abortion) with the choices I currently have?

Or – can I seek out a conselor who is also in line with the faith concepts and helps me with my predicament because she does have resources within the faith communities. (What got me there and what am I going to do know, with church, child out of wedlock, etc…)

And there have been too many unscupulous people on all sides raking in contributions by whipping up distrust and lurid accusations. Think “secular progressive”.

It’s reached the stage that if science says something, conservative religious folks just assume it isn’t true. A good example of that is global warming. It has become almost a tenat of faith to deny that global warming exists.

Why on earth would denying global warming be a religious issue? Why would churches preach that it isn’t so? Because they distrust science and believe that anything that science has to say is skewed and liberal and humanistic and evil (unless, of course, it confirms what they already believe).

“I for one am very glad that I am allowed to bring relgion into my counseling sessions. God/faith/theology is a HUGE part of my life and thus will be – no matter how the APA tries to remove it.”

I am glad that you are able to incorporate your faith, and I have no problem with that at all. However, I think the APA in some respects just wants to keep “in check,” the individuals who use religion as a means to promote particular theories on “treatment” that are not scientifically viable and could be harmful. Like Richard Cohen. He’s an embarassment on both fronts – religion and the practice of mental health care…and dangerous in this respect.

On the other hand, I think the APA also wants to keep “in check,” psychologists who might attack religion. I realize that having my doctorate in clinical psychology doesn’t necessarily make me a Biblical scholar, equipped to revamp theology.

I have found, as Warren stated that “The APA resolution has a great respect for religion and the different traditions and approaches of religion and spirituality.”

I hope that we can continue the long tradition of intertwining an individual’s spiritual path into their psychological consult, remembering the mistakes of the past, and hoping to create a better future.

Simply saying from my point of view – that a person cannot exclude one from the other. I agree that some people have used religion poorly and tried to skew science from that perspective – but not all people do that. Blanket statments are what cause problems.

I agree – to a point. We should definitely respect both, but we should also understand the limitations and purposes of each. Too often religion tries to do what it is not designed to do, and science does the same thing. Respect both definitely, but respect the limitations of each as well – and don’t get the two mixed up. AND, don’t forget the lessons that history has taught us about religion and science.

And let’s not forget what religion has done to science – tried to silence it, imprison it – etc. Galileo, The Scopes Monkey Trial… History is littered with religion meddling in science and trying to bend it to its will.