Embodying Integration – A Fresh Look at Christianity in the Therapy Room

Discussing spirituality and religion in the therapy room is increasingly accepted, some even forgetting that integration of psychology and Christianity was once a rare thing. Yet even as the decades-long integration movement has been so effective, the counselor's lived context in which integration happens grows increasingly complex, and the movement has reached a new turning point. Christian practitioners need a fresh look at integration in a postmodern world.In Embodying Integration, Megan Anna Neff and Mark McMinn provide an essential guide to becoming integrators today. Representing two generations of counselor education and practice, they model how to engage hard questions and consider how different theological views, gendered perspectives, and cultures integrate with psychology and counseling. "Many students," they write, "don't want models and views that tend to simplify complexity into categories. They are looking for conversation that helps them dive into the complexity, to ponder the nuances and messiness of integration." More than focusing on resolving issues, Neff and McMinn help situate wisdom through personally engaging, diverse views and narratives.Arising from conversations between an up-and-coming practitioner and her veteran integrator father, this book considers practical implications for the day-to-day realities of counseling and psychotherapy. Personal stories, dialogues between the coauthors, and discussion questions throughout help students, teachers, mental health professionals, and anyone interested in psychology and faith to enter—and continue—the conversation.Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.

"In Embodying Integration, Neff and McMinn wonderfully accomplish the goal stated in their subtitle-A Fresh Look at Christianity in the Therapy Room. Their transparent and conversational writing style is enlivening and consistent with their stated values, yet their perspectives remain richly informed by psychological research, theological reflection, and clinical wisdom. The opening chapter on lament is worth the price of the book and takes us deep into their personal commitments to integrating spirituality, honesty, and compassion. At a time when many of us are weary of overly cognitive or idealistic discussions of 'integration, ' this book can help us sense the rhythms of a more relational and fully embodied approach to both clinical practice and our lived theologies and psychologies."Steven J. Sandage, Danielsen Professor of Psychology of Religion and Theology, Boston University"I expected a great book from Neff and McMinn, but I didn't expect to be so moved, and challenged, and changed. This book wrestles with the ultimate questions of living, not just for my patients or students but for me. The authors share personal stories and experiences that literally put flesh on a totally new way of integrating faith and psychology. God is doing something new here."Jennifer Ripley, Hughes Endowed Chair of Christian Thought in Mental Health Practice, Regent University

Megan Anna Neff (MDiv, Princeton Theological Seminary) is currently pursuing her doctorate in clinical psychology at George Fox University. She has also done research and worked with nonprofits and churches in Malawi and Ghana. Mark R. McMinn (PhD, Vanderbilt University) is professor of psychology at George Fox University, where he serves as the director of faith integration in the Graduate Department of Clinical Psychology. His books include Integrative Psychotherapy, Care for the Soul, and Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling.