Integrating Christian Spirituality into Contemporary Therapy Practice

Dear Colleagues,

We are seeking submissions of theoretical and/or research articles that integrate Christian spiritual practices into contemporary practices. Emerging research Christian Devotion Meditation (CDM), the broad category of Christian contemplative practices, suggests that CDM practices are associated with decreased anxiety (Garzon, 2013). Existing research has focused on incorporating Christian spiritual practices like the Jesus Prayer, the Ignatian Examen, and lectio divina into therapy (See Knabb, Frederick, Cummings, 2017; Knabb & Vasquez, 2018). While the empirical evidence is positive, it is only in the beginning phases. This Special Issue of Religions seeks to add to this body of literature.

This Special Issue aims to (1) add to the emerging literature on incorporating Christian Devotion Meditation and other Christian spiritual practices into contemporary psychotherapy practices. These contributions may focus on (2) the Christian worldview and theoretical frameworks, ensuring that these practices honor the spiritual traditions of Christian clients. That is, articles incorporating Christian spiritual practices focus on the emic perspective of Christians seeking psychotherapy. A concern among some Christian groups entails the alignment of psychotherapy practices, especially spiritually oriented or informed approaches, for Christians seeking these services. This honoring of the Christian tradition allows for the incorporation and inclusion of these practices alongside contemporary spiritually informed clinical practice. Articles submitted to this Special Issue may also provide empirical evidence that supports the use of CDM practices in psychotherapy.

Garzon (2013) identifies three different types of CDM practices. The first, scriptural truth meditation (STM), focuses on a specific aspect of God’s character or a short passage from the Bible. The second type of CDM defined by Garzon (2013) focuses on scriptural drama meditation (SDM). This type of CDM encourages the individual to engage their imagination and visualize being part of a specific scriptural scene. The final type of CDM described by Garzon (2013) details Christ-centered present moment awareness (Christian mindfulness practices). In light of these distinctions, articles may focus on one or more of the specific types of CDM practices and their use in therapy. Articles may be theoretical or empirical in nature. That is, we will consider articles that provide theoretical support for specific CDM practices and their alignment with specific clinical practices like Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), or other third-wave cognitive behavioral approaches. Articles discussing the relationships between CDM, Christian accommodative practices, and spiritually oriented or informed therapy will also be considered. Finally, we are seeking empirical articles that demonstrate the effectiveness of specific CDM practices for the amelioration of psychological distress (depression, anxiety, rumination, stress, burnout, etc.).

Original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research topics may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Research area A: articles discussing the worldview and theoretical integration of STM in contemporary clinical practice.
• Research area B: articles discussing the worldview and theoretical integration of SDM in contemporary clinical practice.
• Research area C: articles discussing the worldview and theoretical integration of Christian mindfulness in contemporary clinical practice.
• Research area D: empirical articles demonstrating the effectiveness of CDM on psychological distress (depression, anxiety, rumination, stress, burnout, etc.).

We hope that this Special Issue will accomplish two goals. Firstly, we aim to provide a resource for practitioners seeking to incorporate Christian spiritual practices into psychotherapy. This Special Issue will act as a repository of theoretical and empirical work that will be useful for various types of psychotherapists who are interested in incorporating CDM into their clinical work. Secondly, this Special Issue will serve as a collection of cutting-edge research allowing scholars to build on existing research.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200-300 words summarizing their intended contribution and send it to the Guest Editor, or to the Assistant Editor (Chelsey Chen, chelsey.chen@mdpi.com) of Religions. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Reference:

Garzon, F. (2013). Christian devotional meditation for anxiety. In E. Worthington, E. Johnson, J. Hook & J. Aten (Eds.), Evidence-based practices for Christian counseling and psychotherapy (pp. 59–80). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Knabb, J. J., Frederick, T. V., & Cumming, G., III (2017). Surrendering to God’s providence: A three-part study on Providence-Focused Therapy for Recurrent Worry (PFT-RW). Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 9, 180-196. https://doi.org/10.1037/rel0000081.

Knabb, J. J., & Vazquez, V. (2018). A randomized controlled trial of a 2-week internet-based contemplative prayer program for Christians with daily stress. Spirituality in Clinical Practice, 5, 37-53. https://doi.org/10.1037/scp0000154.

Prof. Dr. Thomas Frederick
Prof. Dr. Susan Purrington
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Christian devotion meditation
• MBCT
• ACT
• Christian contemplative practices
• psychotherapy