Pastoral Formation of Counselors in Intercultural Societies

Abstract

SUMMARY Pastoral formation and counseling in intercultural contexts takes a different form from that of the West. Intercultural or indigenous contexts refer to traditional societies, formally colonized. Pastoral formation in these contexts refers to the processes by which a pastoral person acquires an identity and authority to practice as a counselor in the context of an indigenous faith community. Some aspects important to consider in training are: the historical and traditional religio-culture of the intercultural contexts; the impact of colonialism and Christianity; and the lack of contextualized written material relevant for the education and training of pastoral counselors. The training of pastoral counselors must be pragmatic, have a global focus, and force counselors to go beyond the four walls of their offices and be advocates.