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Lent: At the Base of Golgatha

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Which Sacrifice is Better: Self Imposed or Inflicted?

Lent begins next week for the Eastern Catholic Church on Monday and for the Western Church as a whole on Wednesday.  While there are many regulations and ideas regarding fasting, days of abstinence and sacrifice, we will focus on a deeper spiritual idea today.  If you are interested in regulatory issues, please review blogs from last year that are archived, but this year I would rather focus on a deeper mystical issues.   Issues that Christian Counseling should look at as true methods for spiritual growth instead of merely giving something up and “grumbling about it for forty days”.
The first concept lies in obedience.  So many times, in Lent, we choose our own “demise”.  We pick to give up chocolate, television, or radio as our means of sacrifice.  While this has merit and is not discouraged, it should not be our primary and sole purpose of Lenten sacrifice.  Instead, let us focus on the small and trivial things that come before us without our consent.  The annoying individual or the small ache can all be utilized as sacrifice to God.  In obedience we accept what God gives us and then offer it up to the Lord.  In fact, we offer all our pains and irritations up to Christ at the foot of Golgatha, as he prepares to carry our crosses.  When we unite our pains with Christ, he gains merit for us and others.
So yes, voluntary sacrifice is important, as well as mandatory fasting, but the biggest impact may be in the unexpected and unwanted sacrifice that comes our way.  In obedience and charity we can make these things the biggest sacrifices for this Lent.
Tied to this obedience will grow a closer union with God.  This is the purpose of Lent!  The great mystics, St. Teresa of Avilla and St. John of the Cross all emphasized in their mystical theologies, the importance of union with God.  Obedience was always central in their teaching.  Through Lent, we exercise the first step of that union via purgation.  Sacrifice enables the soul to purge itself of the false idols of this world and enter into a state where the soul becomes pure and more able to receive illumination, which then leads to unity.
This Lent, let us purge ourselves, but not only by our chosen end but by whatever God may send us.  This is truly the heavy cross–and much heavier than self imposed penance.  If we wish to emulate Christ, we must realize his sacrifice was not his choice but one he accepted via obedience.  Christ was not able to pick or choose a way he would redeem us but was ultimately given only one choice and he accepted that cross.  Let our Lenten sacrifices also include the unexpected cross that God may give us.
If you are interested in learning more about Christian Counseling, then please review the program.

Mark Moran, MA

Learning More About Christian Counseling: Solitude and Silence in Christian Life

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling: The Life of Solitude in Christian Thought

Christians Counselors and Mystics understand the value of solitude and peace.  St. Teresa of Avila found it essential in contemplative formation.  Solitude is in many ways, the spiritual fortress Christians retreat to in order to heal and reconvene with their master, Christ.  As St. Teresa learned though, Christian solitude while necessary for formation is only temporary, for the Gospel of Christ is a social Gospel to spread and care for one’s brothers and sisters.  Christ recreates us with his grace and utilizes us for his purpose.  Solitude and peace is only temporary for it is the forging period of one’s soul to later make disciples of all nations.

How Does Solitude Help

Solitude frees one from the occasions of sin and the noises of the world.  It removes the social character of our human nature and forces one to look deep within.  The spiritual mirror of our soul does not lie or offer excuses, it reflects what we truly are.  In contemplation of solitude, our soul wears no mask or pretends to be something it is not, for we are confronted with what we truly are.  We  are stripped of our colors and fronts and exposed for all our weakness.  In this solittude, we discover truth and in truth we discover humility.
In this stricken moment, the soul in solitude can only look one place for comfort and peace; Christ.  Christ acknowledges what we are but through his grace elevates us and transforms us.  As a sword being forged, in solitude, Christ forges us.  He speaks to us, elevates us and transforms us into his disciples.
Without solitude and peace, we cannot find ourselves.  We will always be distracted by the world and its lies.  We will not find who we truly are because we will be too busy trying to be someone else.  Solitude gives us that opportunity to find ourselves.
Christian Counselors should recommend retreats for their spiritual children.  At  retreat, a person has time to fall back from the world and focus on one’s spiritual and true self.  They can see what wrong turns they may have made and correct these faults.  Most importantly, people can reconnect with Christ and truly see what matters most.
If you are interested in learning more about Christian counseling, please review the program.

Mark Moran, MA

PreLenten Sundays and Preparation for the Great Fast

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling: Preparation for Lent from the Perspective of the East

Prior to the start of the Great Fast, the Eastern Church in particular prepares itself through four Pre-Lenten Sunday themes.  These themes are associated with fasting, forgiveness and judgment and are also Sundays that celebrate items that will be denied during the Fast.  Christian Counselors who have knowledge of Eastern ideals can also help you understand these celebrations.
The first Sunday is the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee.  In this story, Eastern Catholics and Orthodox Christians are shown the importance of humility in fasting.  God rejects pride and one’s ego and will only accept sacrifices in humility.
The second Sunday is the Sunday of the Prodigal Son.  This biblical parable tells of how the irresponsible son returned to his father after years of neglect.  It emphasizes God’s forgiveness but also entices us to realize that God’s love is always there but it is us through our own fall nature that keeps that love out of our life.  Our exile is self imposed and all we need to do is return to God and he will accept us and shower us with his love.
The third Sunday is the Sunday of the Last Judgment.  This Sunday emphasizes how those who refuse to love their fellow neighbor will face damnation.  Christ in this classic story prophesies how he will ask everyone how they treated their fellow neighbor and when they did or did not, they did or did not to him.  This Sunday also celebrates Meatfare Sunday as the last day before the great Fast in which they can eat meat.
The final Sunday is the Sunday of Forgiveness.  This Sunday illustrates how we must fast in private and not advertise the world our suffering.  Instead Christ teaches that we should clean ourselves and hide our fasting for only the Father needs to know of our good deeds.  Christ also emphasizes in the Gospel during that week how if we forgive others how we will also receive forgiveness.  This Sunday also celebrates Cheesefare Sunday where the last day of dairy consumption is permitted before the start of the Great Fast.
These four Sundays prepare Eastern Christians for Clean Monday or the first day of Lent, which is a complete day of Abstinence from dairy and meat.  Of course, Latin or Western Catholic do not begin their Lenten journey, two days later on Ash Wednesday.  While the Eastern Catholics and Orthodox Christians share the same feasts, they fall on different days as well since the Eastern Catholics share the Gregorian Calendar unlike the Orthodox who follow the Julian calendar.
If you are interested in learning more about Christian Counseling or Lenten themes, please review the site and also keep in mind, there is a library of resources on Lent from last year, just merely go to February and March of 2012 to find other related articles.
If you would like to learn where to take Christian Counseling Courses, then please also review our program.

Mark Moran, MA

Christian Counseling: Christ in Marriage

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling:  Is Christ in Your Marriage?

Christ’s presence at the marriage in Cana saved the day, is Christ invited to your marriage to possibly saves yours? Also, if you are interested in Christian Counseling courses, then please review Recently a homily on the Wedding Feast of Cana caught my ear.  The priest emphasized the importance of Christ in one’s marriage.  Christian Counseling must also emphasize this invitation to Christ to young married couples.  With divorce rates sky rocketing and marriage becoming merely a legal title, the secular idea of marriage has failed society.  It has led to broken homes which have led to broken people.  Without the stability of the first cell of society, how can society thrive?
By inviting Christ into your marriage, you increase your chance to preserve your marriage.  With Christ comes many blessings but also the idea that marriage is a bond and forever.  When people understand that life is not easy and if something breaks, you do not replace it merely to replace it, then a new paradigm emerges.  A paradigm that looks for fortitude when times become tough.  While financial and personal issues can tear apart people, Christians who face these things have Christ at their side.  Why?  Because they have welcomed him into their marriage.
Before Christ, there was marriage.  Marriage existed as a contract between a man and woman for centuries.   Yet at the Wedding Feast of Cana, Christ for the first time made marriage sacred.  He enhanced it and elevated it to a sacred and sacramental state.  Christ’s presence at Cana did not only in general make marriage sacred but it also made a huge difference for the couple who invited him.  If they had not invited him they would have ran out of wine.  Yet because of Christ’s presence, his first public miracle was observed.  He turned water into wine and saved the bride and groom from a disgraceful celebration.  Yet symbolically, through his presence, water was turned into wine.  He hence enhanced it.  He also enhances any union spiritually by his mere presence, but we must first invite him–as did the couple at Cana.
Do married couples invite Christ into their marriage to make a difference?  It starts from the beginning.  Before marriage, the couple should dedicate their marriage to Christ and follow the proper religious ceremonies.  It should not be a secular event at the court house but a religious and sacred ceremony conducted by a priest or minister.
If Christ is truly invited and accepted into one’s marriage, then one’s marriage will manifest his fruits.  The couple will understand the sacred nature of their covenant to one another and allow the grace of Christ and his presence to bring forth the holiness of their union.  Christ like at Cana can make a difference, but he needs invited first?
If you are interested in Christian Counseling Courses, then please review the program

Mark Moran, MA

Christian Counseling:The Theophany and Its Implications

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling and Themes from the Theophany

After celebrating the Theophany or the Baptism of Christ last Sunday on January 6th, we can mediate on many aspects of Christ and St. John the Baptist.  Certified counselors during Christian Counseling should utilize various feast days that surround their sessions, especially if they can help illuminate a particular theme in counseling.  The Baptism of Christ has a variety of themes.
The first theme is the necessity of Baptism and the humility of Christ.  Jesus obviously did not need to be baptized but he lowered himself to teach us the importance of obedience to the law as well as the importance for him as the New Adam to become the first to be baptized.  His presence laid the foundation for the sacramental nature of Baptism and its necessity for future generations.
Christ’s humility manifested his greatness at his Baptism.  The moment John baptized Christ, the manifestation of the Trinity appeared above him.  The Father proclaimed his acceptance of his son and the Holy Spirit shone above in the form of a dove.  The Theophany is considered a major feast in the Eastern Church because of this great manifestation of Christ’s divinity as a sharer of substance in the Trinity.
Another element of humility and discipleship can be seen in the vocation of St. John the Baptist.  He felt justly unworthy to baptize the Lord, but Jesus while knowing this still insisted that John baptize him.  We as disciples of the Lord are all unworthy.  We are all fighting some type of vice.  We are all certainly even less worthy than St. John the Baptist, but still Christ insists we carry on and do what he asks of us.  He chooses among sinners and through the Holy Spirit perfects his children.  Hence, we should never allow our own weaknesses to discourage us from our vocational calling, instead as St. John the Baptist, we must obey Christ and trust in him so that we may carry out our calling.
If you are interested in Christian Counseling Courses, please review our program.  For those who wish to become a certified Christian Counselor, qualified professionals merely must take the required courses.  After completion of these courses, one can become a certified christian counselor.

Mark Moran, MA

New Year Resolutions That Reflect Spiritual Mastery

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling and New Year Resolutions

Secular society confuses true change with superficial change.  Christians realize that true changes stem from the core of one’s being.  Christian Counseling hence urges people to find true meaning in their New Year Resolutions that go beyond the mere breaking of bad habits to true spiritual regeneration.
Yes, to quit smoking, diet, or work out more are great things that Christians should encourage, but when these things are the only things we notice, then we are truly spiritually in danger.  When we look to improve ourselves, we need to look not just at the surface but at the deepest part of our souls.  We need to realize that while quitting smoking may be great, it is even more important that we stop certain vices that are destroying our soul.  Maybe we use the Lord’s name in vain, not attend Sunday service, Mass or Liturgy, or maybe we do not give God enough prayer.  Maybe its a vice of lust, sloth, pride, or envy that dominates our being?  A thorough examination of conscience should be made at New Year to identify the weaknesses in our spiritual armor to work towards cultivating the virtues that contradict those vices!
In addition to inwardly working on ourselves, we may find ourselves in a position to allow our inner spiritual beauty to bloom in the early Winter, as we perform more spiritual and corporal works of mercy.  Have we been sitting on the sideline too long while others suffer?
In this way, we should take each New Year as a chapter in our life to cultivate a particular Christian virtue.  Each year we should attempt to master a different virtue in an attempt to become more Christ like.  While many New Year resolutions fade into the cold month of February, let us remain in prayer with Christ, and continue with fortitude on any spiritual resolutions we may make.
These are the resolutions that matter most for they will follow us into eternity.

If you are interested in Christian Counseling Courses, please review the program.  For those who want to learn how to become a Christian Counselor, one can review our program and discover the various courses that are required for certification.
The process on how to become a Christian Counselor first requires a competent background.  One should have a ministry or pastoral background.  The second element is taking the courses.

Mark Moran. MA

How You Can Grow Your Counseling Business Online!

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Gain A Following For Your Counseling Business With Social Media Marketing

There are many benefits to employing social media marketing strategies. Social media allows you to instantly communicate with a broad customer base, and interact with them to generate interest in your products, services, and overall business. This article provides valuable guidance on utilizing social media marketing strategies successfully. Use these tips to make your counseling business more successful.
Keep in mind that Facebook fan pages are for businesses and personal pages are for individuals. If you mix up the two then you are putting yourself at risk of being deleted. While it is a good idea to be a bit personal on your fan page it is important to separate the two.

A man with a clipboard taking notes
Starting up a counseling business can be hard. Follow these tips to get your name out there!

A certain video does not need to go viral for your counseling company to succeed. On the other side, going viral does not mean your company will have a standing success. The more important thing to focus on is creating a steady, returning customer base that recommends your services on experience. Going viral may seem nice at first, but such things can die out just as quickly and leave you in over your head.
While having various ads on social media sites, you should definitely have a few special deals for your business. This will give your potential buyers incentive to click on your ad. By having specials on your ads, and only on these ads, the customers feel slightly more obligated to go there and see what your business has to offer.
If you are using social media to promote your product and you have written a blog post, have it posted to your Facebook page as well. This way, everyone that is on your friends list has access to your blog post. The same holds true for other social network sites.
The headline above your prepared media should immediately grab the reader’s attention and give them a reason to stay. A proper “reader callout” is a core puzzle piece, and if done incorrectly can cost your counseling company customers and profits. Find a way that touches each reader individually, while also not becoming so complex that it causes them to lose interest in the media.
People primarily use social media sites for fun, and if you can find a way to make buying from you entertaining, they’ll be much more likely to purchase something. For example, offer a discount on your products to anyone who follows your page, but make the discount they get a mystery. Some followers might save only 5%, while others get a huge discount. People will encourage their friends to see what results they get, and you’ll build up followers in no time.
One great idea for the content on your social media pages is to put up some great videos. If you have a video that people find especially funny or informative there is a chance that your viewers may pass these around to other friends which can increase the viewership of your page dramatically.
Some larger companies have helped their employees bond and come together through successful social media marketing. It can link employees from all over the world to one site and help build a team of connected workers even though they may never meet in person. This will also expose you to all your employees’ contacts if they share content from the company social site.
Maintain a positive perspective regardless of what others post on your page when using social media marketing. Being positive is essential to making your customers feel good when they visit your page. If they feel good, they are more likely to share your page or revisit to see what deals or promotions you may have running.
Twitter is a great way to market your company on the world wide web. However, make sure that you don’t just throw out information without saying “please” and “thank you”. Manners are very important so customers don’t feel that you are being pushy or disrespectful. Be polite when talking about your company and giving out information.
As this article has shown, there are many benefits to employing social media marketing strategies, and there are many different ways to use social media. Social media marketing could be the extra push your counseling business needs to obtain the success you have been seeking. Apply the advice in this article, and see what social media marketing can do for you.

Christian Counseling Certification Program: The Epiphany is Little Christmas

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling Certification Program: Christmas Season Has Just Begun!

Secular society begins and ends Christmas season to early.  The corporate greed hopes to bring in sales as soon as the last bit of Turkey is gobbled up and once the spending spree and the last return is complete, closes up shop and all sounds of Christmas.  This backwards mentality is not the true season of Christmas.  A Christian Counseling Certification Program should emphasize that the Christmas season extends well into January.
In the Western Church, the season of Christmas extends to the feast of the Epiphany or the adoration of the wise men.  This feast is usually celebrated on Sunday within the first two weeks of January.  In some traditions, this feast was also known as Little Christmas and family members would again unite and give small gifts to each other.
The reason why was simple, this is the day Christ received the three gifts from the Magi which illustrated to the world that the child Jesus was divine; The manifestation of the divine is the primary principle of this feast.  In the East, this manifestation is known as the Theophany or the Baptism of Christ.  Both are different moments in the life of Christ, but both point to his divine nature.
So while many people rush to take down the Christmas tree and other decorations, Christians understand that the idea of Christmas extends for a few more days to celebrate the Logos becoming flesh.  Let us all acknowledge this and continue to show the same Christmas spirit in the following winter months.
If you are interested in learning more about Christian Counseling Courses, please review the program.
Mark Moran, MA

Christian Counseling Program: Predictions Come and Go, But Christ Remains a Constant

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling Program: Christian Counselors Need to Guide People Away From Secular Prophesies

While predictions of the end of world will continue to circulate (even after 12-21-12), the message of Christ remains constant.  While people put their faith in ancient pagan societies, or the prophesies of those whose gift is not from God, Scripture leaves all that is needed.  St. John, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wrote the Book of Revelation.  While the book is full of symbolic meaning, everything a Christian needs to know about the future is recorded in this book.  Christian Counselors need to direct their spiritual children away from anything else not from God.
It is true, God does send prophets to help us understand the Book of Revelation and the end times, but God does not want his children continually worrying about the end.  He wants us to live a holy life today and not worry about tomorrow.  How many Christians, who are urged by sinful curiosity, seek the advice of mediums or other fortune tellers?
Christ is very clear.  He states that only the Father knows the day and the time when the world will end.  So while throughout the centuries we see people expecting Christ to return,, whether in the year 1000 AD or 2000 AD or in the form of some obscure native prophecy, Christians should take heart and not lose sleep over doomsday prophesies.  Instead they should focus on today and try to become better Christians so when the day does ultimately come when Christ returns in all his glory, then we will be prepared and not taken off guard.
If you are interested in learning more about AIHCP’s Christian Counseling Program, then please review it.

Mark Moran, MA

Christian Counseling Education: The Incarnation: Divinity on Earth

Posted on by Dominick Flarey

Christian Counseling Education: The Divine Element of the Incarnation

In the previous blog, we reviewed for Christian Counselors and other members of the faithful the central importance of the Logos becoming fully human.  In this segment, I would like to delve deeper into Christ’s divine nature.  This is the second piece of the puzzle to the central dogma of the Incarnation.  If Christ is only a man and not divine, then our religion is just a social philosophy on life without any true redeeming value.  Christian Counseling must emphasize both the divine and the human elements of Christ.

The Logos Became Man But Retained His Divine Nature

The phrase above is key.  The apostles and early Church emphasized that Christ was also God.  The Apostles and Nicene Creeds all emphatically exclaimed this doctrine.  Unlike the modernists and followers of Bultmann, there is no mythical language in these creeds but concrete statements of faith.
The Incarnation loses all spiritual value if Christ is merely a man born with the spirit of God.  Instead as Scripture and later the Church councils definitively proclaim, Christ retained his divine nature while adding upon a human nature.  Or as St. John so poetically writes, “The Logos became Flesh and Dwelt Among Us”.
Hence Christmas is not just the birth of a holy man or prophet who displayed the spirit of God but actually is the Logos Who has fused his nature with Jesus Christ to become both God and man.  Doubters and those without faith can deny the truth, but Christians are blessed with the gift of faith to see beyond the mere eyes of Jesus.  The believer understands that beyond those eyes is the King and Creator of the universe.

Heresies Against the Divinity of Christ

There are many heresies against the divinity of Christ.  From mere atheism and agnosticism to formal religions such as Islam and Judaism which formally reduce Christ to a mere man.  However, the most alarming heresy against the divinity of Christ and the miracle of the Incarnation stems from within.  Since the late Nineteenth Century, a Modernist movement has swept within the Church.  Amazingly, priests as Alfred Louisy and George Tyrell were among the first Catholics to deny the divinity of Christ.  These early modernists were condemned by St. Pope Pius X in his encyclical, “Pascendi“.  His holiness openly called these priests, wolves in sheep clothing and boldly stated, it is time to show the world who these men truly are, men who are badly disguised.
The modernist movement was far from just a Catholic event, it spilled into every venue of Christianity.  Rudolph Bultmann arrogantly defiled Scripture as he attempted to demytholize it. Obviously, Christ’s divinity was among the first to go in his ungodly enterprise.  Following in this great heretics wake, were supposed scholars who attempted to define what was ‘true’ and what was ‘false’ in the Bible.  This group became known as the Jesus Seminar.  There quest was for the historical Jesus and not the Jesus of faith.  As Christians we all know there is no such division for the Jesus of history is the Jesus of faith–Emmaneul–God is with us!
The current field of Christian theology continues to degrade as Process Theology, Liberation Theology, and various teachings of Paul Tillich continue to corrupt students on college campuses but Christians understand the true nature of the Incarnation and during Christmas, they give adoration to the Godman.
In the meantime, let us all offer up reparations to Christ’s Sacred Heart for these blasphemies, especially as enemies of faith bombard us with sacrilegious billboards that cry to Heaven for justice.  Let us ignore these pagans and focus as the shepherds did on the soon to be born King, who is our God forever and ever.

If you are interested in Christian Counseling Training, please review the program

Mark Moran, MA