When parishioners come to their pastors with mention of marital discord, pastors need to have plan about how to respond. In a culture where divorce rates approach 50 per cent and many other couples experience grave difficulties in their marriages, the need for pastors to respond with confidence is all the greater. Pastors will find in this book a plan for short-term counseling with married couples that will allow pastors to implement a plan quickly at the first signs of marital problems. Because the plan for short-term counseling is simple, straightforward, and focused, it allows both the pastor and the married couple to concentrate on the problems with confidence. Rassieur presents a detailed outline for short-term counseling that focuses quickly on the issues that are at the core of most troubled marriages. With a few sessions, the pastor will be ready to recommend appropriate next steps for the couple. The book contains copies of a covenant for pastoral marriage counseling as well as questionnaires for use in analyzing marital situations, as well as step-by-step plans for the short-term counseling of troubled marriages.
