Entwistle Review

Summary

The author of Integrative Approaches to Psychology and Christianity, David Entwistle (2010), states that the premise of the book is to help us understand human nature by “weaving together perspectives from psychology and Christian theology” (Entwistle, 2010, p. 13). His goal is to prove that, when used wisely, psychology and Christian theology can provide a more accurate picture of the physical and spiritual man “because both of them are concerned with truths revealed by God in nature and in His Word” (Entwistle, 2010, p. 221). The book discusses how the integration of Psychology and Christian Theology can be integrated, into Christian counseling, through our understanding of worldviews, counseling models, etc.

Entwistle (2010) begins

I grew up in a fundamentalist church environment that Entwistle (2010) would describe as a group that is “typically opposed the entire field of psychology…and [is] critical of those who did not share their distrust of psychology” (Entwistle, 2010, p. 47). For the last fifteen years, I have fellowshipped at non-denominational churches but must admit that, whenever I felt theologically challenged, I always fell back on my fundamental Bible training. As a result of Entwistle’s book, I learned that I have a monotheistic Christian worldview that affects how I interpret and evaluate people, places, and things. Even though I believe that coaching and counseling share some of the same goals (behavior correction and change), I had not thought about the implications of embracing other disciplines, in my Christ-centered, Christian coaching model.

It turns out that, after reviewing Entwistle’s (2010) integration models, I would be a cross between the Enemies (Christian Combatant) and Colonists models. It is true that I am suspicious of philosophies developed by man versus God’s divine inspiration. My major concern was that Positive Psychology might influence clients to seek answers, only from within themselves, rather than from prayer and spiritual disciples. However, I would now favorably consider the fact that “Psychology…can be useful to illustrate what Scripture tell us” (Entwistle, 2010, p.