Religion and Theology

Ever since man came into being he has been in search for answers to the questions How was I created What is my purpose in life Who is my provider In the quest for these answers, man created religion and as intellects and individualities grew more diversified and defined, religions and answers grew more varied and distinct. First it was what seemed out of reach, high above and shining that is the sun, the giver of light, who was worshipped as God. Then as ideas grew abstract, it was Mother Nature, who provided and sustained all mankind.

As culture developed, there was need for rules and regulations that Mother Nature could not provide. Prophets descended with the revealed books that stated that God is One.

Then came the dawn of science, with disregard for any concept abstract and proof less. No one could scientifically prove the existence of God. He cannot be seen by the naked eye, or heard by the, well, naked ear. With Darwins theory of evolution, the very story of Adam and Eve was questioned. Thus came the rise of atheism the product of a practical-minded generation, which did not have much time for religion anyway. With the increase in the pace of life, it became difficult to hang on to rituals and religious holidays. Politicians described religion as the opium of the people. The educated and rich noticed that throughout history it was only the poor who needed religion since they did not have much else. The age of enlightenment questioned why God did not prevent evil and suffering if he is able to. Thus active disbelief in God started gaining an active stronghold in the Western mindset.

However, if we just close our eyes and imagine the world every butterfly has two identical wings every insect has 6 pairs of legs and spiders eight eyelids were created to protect the eyes, as Socrates noticed there is a water system-glaciers melt into rivers, rivers flow into seas, seas into oceans the design of a snail shell is distinctly different from the trunk of an elephant and how can one forget the hidden g-spot. Every newborn has a distinct personality and yet is programmed to suckle and grasp.  A honeybee dies when it stings and a preying mantis eats up her partner after sex. The kangaroo has a pouch to protect her fragile young and male penguins space above their feet to house their egg in a warm ensconce. There seems to be an intelligence working here instead of random sprouting of shapeless, non-creative living objects. Every living thing on the Earth seems to have been designed with a will, with time and with love. Maybe we have become so busy that we cannot believe that anybody will have the time to pay such close attention to detail.

So there is a design. There is also a plan The glaciers melted at the end of the ice age, the Earth is getting nearer to the sun, the sun is getting bigger. The race for oil is tying up with religious philosophies of the Armageddon, with nations vying for the gold lying near the Caspian Sea. The Bible states that near the end of time all purchases will be done with the number of the devil, and the bar code does bear three sets of two thin double lines which is the code for six. These historical events do lend some credibility to the existence of theism and God. And if there is a plan, there is a will and a mind.

This is the mind that produces nature. This is the Creator, the Sustainer, (Holy Quran).
It is said in the Holy Quran that God only needs to say Be And it is. (Yasin, Holy Quran). Why is it that a cuckoo has the intellect to leaver her eggs in another birds nest Why does the owl turn his head three-sixty degrees How can ants be programmed to slave for their queen And sometimes somebody does paint the sky in the most amazing hues of peach, pink and mauve. Thus there is a mind producing nature and creating history, and that mind is God.

According to the ontological argument by St. Anselm, the Catholic archbishop of Canterbury and a Doctor of the Church, God must exist simply because the idea of God exists so conveniently in our minds. It bears no internal contradictions, we understand God to exist and if we believe in God, we also automatically attribute to him perfection and power. So if he exists so perfectly and powerfully in our imagination, then he must also be existing in reality.

The cosmological argument takes a more scientific approach. According to the law of physics, one thing cannot be put in motion without the help of another. Thus if things in to world are in motion, there must have been an originator of the first motion. Similarly, nothing can come into existence on its own, everything is dependant on something else for its existence, for example, a tree comes from a seed, the moon causes the waves, coal becomes diamond. So all things must trace themselves to a being that was originally existent, and is self-existent, that is, God.

Arguing the existence of God is actually a case of theism versus atheism. So let us look at some facts that religions have revealed to us in eras of technological backwardness and which have just been proven true now. We will study the last of the revealed books, the most recent communication from God the Holy Quran. For example, Islam states that God has created a sea in which salty and sweet water do not mix and such a body of water has been found in the Red Sea. God created man from a seed, from a piece of flesh, at the time the Quran was revealed, medical science was not as evolved to have know the state of the embryo in the womb as we know today. Islam also states that for every disease there is a cure, for example we know that the cure for a snake bite comes from a snake itself, leaves of a neem tree relieve itching from chicken pox, the banana controls daihorrea, ginger is anti-bacterial, burning a clove of garlic in mustard oil and the applying the warm oil on a childs chest melts congestion, and maybe we will even find a cure for AIDS from beneath the depths of the sea.

Leave everything aside when we lie, we feel bad. Our conscience does not allow us to eat a juicy burger in front of a hungry child. Because there is an All-Seer all knower. Islam states that when God created us, he put a bit of Himself in each one of us, and that bit is what we call conscience, that bit may very well be the soul.

Conclusion
Those who refute all these theories rely on the scientific explanation of the Big Bang for the creation and existence of all that is living. The Big Bang may well be how the universe came into existence but can the theory explain why it did There is an intrinsic fault in the Big Bang theory where did it occur There must have been a place, who created that place Where did the singular matter that created the explosion come from again the Big Bang was dependant on something else, something unknown, for its occurrence. Why is it that for Dolly, the clone sheep, you still need a DNA from the original sheep Why have they never been able to inject life into robots They always need a cell to make a clone and cannot make it from scratch, without using any seed or input whatsoever from nature.

However, those who disbelieve can be saved. According to Islam you get rewarded for good thoughts instantly but you do not get punished for bad thoughts until you manage to put them into action
Also it is always good to have a God to turn to, if your child is ill. And there is no harm in believing in God anyway, just in case one day you find yourself face to face with Him.

A Christ figure usually represents someone who demonstrates the pleasant qualities - kindness, patience, and morality - that Jesus exhibits. Moreover, one who is a Christ figure has to unjustly suffer as Jesus did. As such, a Christ figures experiences and mannerisms closely mirror those of Jesus. Similarly, through his 1954 Lord of the Flies novel, author William Golding depicts the character named Simon as a Christ figure based on Simons mannerisms and experiences.   

For example, Simon takes the initiative of feeding the littuns in his group, thus demonstrating kindness like Jesus did towards young children. For example, Simon finds for them the fruit they can not reach (1). He thus confirms his Christ figure status. 

Moreover, through faith, Simon realizes that the beast is not literal rather it represents the boys innate inclination to savagery, thus demonstrating Christ-like wisdom. He later goes to inform his colleagues of this truth just like Jesus did by conducting evangelizing missions. In referring to the beast, Simon says maybe its only us (1). Such revelation and evangelizing denotes Simon as an all-knowing Christ figure.

Afterwards, Simon is tempted by a vision related to the fly-covered pigs head whereby the beast assures Simon that even Simon is the beasts victim, thus reflecting Jesus temptation by Satan in the wilderness. For instance, the beat says to Simon Im part of you (1). Having been tempted like Jesus, Simon effectively becomes a Christ figure.

Finally, the instance when his fellow boys mistakenly descend on him, thus killing him, delineates Simon as a Christ figure, thus resembling Jesus who was unjustifiably crucified. Moreover, Simons killers afterwards regret their act just like some of Jesus crucifiers did.

In conclusion, through the Lord of the Flies novel, Golding presents Simon as a Christ figure based on Simons experiences and behaviors that resemble Jesus.               

Zen group can be identified with the Japanese form of the heart sutra. They are known to chant it when there is a meditation sitting. This is supposed to be done either before or after the sitting. One thing that makes the heart sutra easy to chant and ideal for the meditation sitting is because it is very concise and has only 300 syllables. This makes it easy to memorize and at the same time encapsulating the most important teachings of Buddhism (May, par 1). One can only experience the benefits of heart sutra by chanting. This happens because one loses himself or herself in the chanting process which is the main message expressed in the heart sutra (May, par 1). Heart Sutra is fundamental in Buddhism religion and its analysis is of essence.

Summary of the heart sutra
The Holy Lord, who was called Avalokita together with Bodhisattva, was looking for wisdom. In this process, while on high, he looked down and he could see five heaps. For him, he could perceive them as empty beings. He called upon Sariputra to express the emptiness of the beings and he said that, form can be regarded as empty and the vice versa is also true(Conze, par 1-10). Emptiness and form is the same thing. All the feelings, consciousness, impulses and perceptions are all characterized by emptiness including all dharmas. This is because the latter are never produced nor defied. They lack in deficiency and cannot be stopped. Hence, emptiness can be regarded to be with no form (eye, nose, body etc), perception, impulse, feeling (smells, tastes etc) and even consciousness (ignorance, cognition). Emptiness can also be characterized by lack of suffering with no death and decay of the body which at the same time cannot be done away with. Since emptiness has to do with non-attainments, this is why Bodhisattva has to do without thought coverings (Conze, par 1-10). This is because he chose to rely on wisdom perfection. Without these thought coverings he could never tremble. This has made him strong to overcome all the upsets, and be able to attain Nirvana in the end. So all Buddhists who have gone through periods, three times, achieve enlightenment. This is as a result of them choosing to rely on wisdom perfection. It is recommended that one should know the great spell Prajnaparamita which is associated with great knowledge and can never be equaled with another one. The heart Sutra ends with hailing the awakening that comes with it (Conze, par 1-10).

The meaning of emptiness in the heart sutra
One of the key concepts in Buddhism religion is the concept of emptiness. The expression, Form is emptiness emptiness is form can be regarded as one of the most important phrases in the religion (The Big View, par 1). While trying to understand his concept, it may be better to look at it from a philosophical point of view. This may require looking at a simple object like a cup. When a cup is said to be empty, it means that it does not contain any liquid or solid matter. This can be given as the real meaning of emptiness in regards to the cup. In actual sense, the cup may not be empty. When a cup does not contain any liquid matter or solid, is usually filled with air. When the cup is placed in a vacuum, it will still contain space even though the air will not be there. In a nut shell, the cup is always filled with something. This is from a physical point of view. However, for a Buddhist, the cup will always appear as empty. Buddhists view of emptiness does not coincide with the physical view of the same. When they say that, the cup is empty, they are saying that, it depends on other phenomena to exist and this applies to everything in the world. Nothing exists on its own (The Big View, par 3-14). Properties of the cup do not make it to be called a cup its shape, function among others and neither do these properties be called cups. In other words, all these properties must be combined together to form a cup. The same applies o everything in the world. Nothing exists by itself the existence depends on other phenomena. (The Big View, par 15).

According to the heart sutra, emptiness applies to five things the body, perceptions, mental formations, sensations and consciousness. These five elements make up a human being. These elements can also be separated like objects (The Big View, par 8). By regarding these five things as empty helps human beings by saving them from sufferings. Suffering characterizes the lives of human beings and the world at large. There is so much distress in the world, human beings running after love or struggle to get some material things. Man is always after things that, he thinks will make his life complete or even looking to be recognized by fellow men. Although sometimes we get what we want, at the end of the day, we lose them because we cannot keep them. This is what leads to sufferings. This means that suffering originates from our minds but the moment we realize this, that suffering does not exist independently, then human beings will not go through suffering again (Sahn, par 5).

The five elements that make up a person usually change from time to time but the problem is, human beings are attached to them so much and that is why they suffer a lot. However, the heart sutra teaches that, these five elements are empty and thus, there is no need of suffering. This is why the concept of emptiness is very important. When one uses this perspective to view suffering, then it will save him or her from suffering and distress (Sahn, par 6-7).

Many human beings are closely connected to form and even name which also leads to a lot of suffering. So, if we aim to rid the world of these sufferings, then we must present names and forms as non existent they are temporary and not real. This means that, they change from time to time. If one gets rich, then he must perceive that richness as empty. If one is famous or recognized in the world, he should not hold that with high esteem but he should regard all that fame as empty things (Sahn, par. 9-10). Some people spend so much on their bodies, to make themselves beautiful and strong but one day, they end up dying. This is because no one keeps this empty body that is treasured most. The minds of human beings usually go through a lot of abuse because human beings are thinking so much on how they are going to keep these empty things. This teaching on emptiness is very crucial since it teaches that, the most important thing in life is what one wants in his or her life time. Whatever one wants, make up ones mind and this will determine ones lifetime. By viewing everything as empty, it will help one to put all things down and concentrate on how one wants to live devoid of any suffering (Sahn, par. 9-10).

The concept of emptiness in the heart sutra is said to be a reality in the world. Everything in the world is regarded as empty. This ranges from all objects, people, all feelings and thoughts including even the outer space. When it is said that something is empty, it is not out rightly saying that it is out of existence. Of course, things exist but not according to how people think about their existence. However, nothing can exist by itself, it must depend on others. This includes even the human beings (Fischer, par 2-3). They are all empty and this should make every human being happy. This means that, one is not responsible for his or her own life. Therefore all human beings should not feel pressurized by life or feel lonely because at the end of the day, the weight of bearing responsibilities has been lifted off their shoulders. Most of the time, human beings bear the burden of trying to prove who they are which is sometimes, a cumbersome task but the good news is that, one should not worry at all about it. Why should one try to prove that he or she is a particular kind of a person when actually he is not that kind of a person Furthermore, it is not the responsibility of human beings to prove that (Fischer, par 2-3).

Buddhism and Christianity on the idea of God
There is an area that Buddhism and Christianity differ in regard to their teachings and one of them is on the idea of God. Many are the times when Buddhists have been called atheists since their religion denies that, there is God or the head of gods who is the creator of the world. For them, the idea of God is treated like other ideas that man has come up with in his attempts to explain the origin of man and the world and thus it does not hold water in Buddhism (Thera, par 6- 8). According to them, these ideas are destructive. In other words, people are trying to create an external phenomenon, given a form of permanence and this out rightly goes against the belief of Karma. However, Buddhism agrees with other religions on the fact that true happiness is elusive in this world but in contrast with other religions, it believes that, it can never be found anywhere, even in the so called heaven or hell. This is because for Buddhism, the so called heaven and hell are empty and thus they cannot be permanent (Thera, par 6- 8).

However, Christians believe in the existence of a supernatural being called God and He is the one who created the world and everything in it. Christians also believe that, the same God has a son called Jesus Christ (Konig, par. 1-7). The son came into the world to bring salvation. Jesus was conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit and the mother was called Mary who was a virgin at the time Jesus was being born. Jesus was crucified and died because of the sins of man. He was later buried and after three days he resurrected. This was followed by His ascending to heaven where He resides at the right hand of the father. This means that all those who believe in Jesus will join the father and the son one day thus Christians believe in the existence of heaven. These are the differences between Buddhism religion and Christian one in regards to the idea of God (Konig, par. 1-7).

Religious belief according to me may refer to the idea expressed in a religion and it is accepted by a group of people as true. For example, an idea expressed in Buddhism religion that the purpose of human beings on this earth is to end suffering is a religious belief because it is accepted by Buddhists as true. Another idea is that complete happiness can never be found in the world. This idea is expressed in almost all religions and is accepted as true by some people hence it is a religious belief
Buddhism is a very interesting religion since it is very different from other religions right from its teachings to the practices. Meditation is one of the practices and it is ingrained in the Buddhas teachings and that is where the heart sutra comes in. The heart sutra is a very fundamental religious practice among Buddhists as it has been seen.  The religions teaching on the idea of God also contradicts so many other religions especially Christianity. Even though there are so many contradictions, it all comes down to what one believes in.

Based on the Bible, worship to God is obeying His commandment, and one of His commandments is praying. For a prayer to be acceptable to God one must have a pure heart and heshe must offer hisher whole being as a living sacrifice, which is certainly a complete act of worship. As it is written in Romans Chapter 12 verse 1, Saint Paul said I appeal to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of all the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies presenting all your members and faculties as a living sacrifice, holy   (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship. (NASB) Offering ones person is the true essence of worship unto God. But as the verse says, worship includes not just merely offering but a persons whole being must be cleansed from all iniquities - body, mind and heart - to be able to worship God. Part of worshipping is the ritual of praying, which is present in almost all religious denominations. Although common to most religion, the manner by which it is delivered or executed differs.

The first century Christians whom the Bible speaks of, prayed in silence because they believed that prayer is a private communication with God. They justify this manner with the verse in Matthew 66. They are free to speak the supplications of their hearts on their own words without repeating and memorizing which proves the intent of the heart. Referred today as Abrahamic religions, the early Christians have various forms of prayer, commonly petition, thanksgiving and worship. King Davids Book of Psalms is the largest book in the Bible composed of 150 religious songs regarded as prayers. Judaism, on the other hand, prays the siddur or the prayerbook that contains a set of daily prayers they recite three times a day, especially during Shabbat and other Jewish holidays. The CatholicOrthodox Church (which is the most widespread religion in the West and in almost all parts of the world) are repetitive, with which the Catholic has string of beads called the rosary.  There are different variations of the Catholic prayer - each is unique of a specific group.

Religion is an integral part of human life. Over the years various religions have laid principles with which their followers can easily be identified. Each one of the religions has specific traditions which define them. This discussion looks at three main religions in the west namely Judaism, Christianity and Islam and the traditions that identify each one of these religions.

Judaism is one of the oldest religions in the world. Some of the core characteristics of this religion include the belief in one Holy and Supernatural being. This religion does not believe in the existences of many gods but instead they believe that there is only one God who is the creator of the heavens and earth and all that is contained therein. In addition, this religion believes that God who created mankind has concern for the welfare of all human beings.

Christianity is equally a monotheistic religion whereby followers believe in the existence of one God. This religion is bended on the life and times of Jesus Christ who is the son of God and who was sent by his Father so as to save mankind. Just like in Judaism, Christianity has principles which act as guidelines. Christians believe in the Holy Trinity. The Holy Trinity comprises of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. They believe that the Holy trinity works in unison. Christians also believe in death of human beings and life after death. They believe that when a person dies he or she will either go to hell or heaven depending on a persons deeds while on earth. Another pillar or tenet of the Christian faith is the Church which they equate to the body of Christ. Christians also have faith that Jesus Christ will come again to judge those who will be alive and those who will be dead.

Islam also believes in the worship of one God. This religion has five main pillars. They include the shahadah. This is the basic tenet in the religion and it involves the confession that Allah is the only true God who deserves to be worshipped by all mankind. Salah is also one of the Islam pillars and it involves praying five times a day while facing a particular direction. Zakat involves giving a part of wealth to the needy people in the society. Sawm refers to the period of fasting where the Muslims fast for a period of one month during the Holy Month of Ramadhan. This is a period when Muslims refrain from pleasures of the world to reflect on God. Hajj is also a pillar of the Muslim faith where faithful walk all the way to Mecca. This is done once in a lifetime.

In conclusion, every religion has its core tenets with which it is identified with. For a person to be considered a faithful of a particular religion, they must concur with the laid down principles of the religion. Any person who wishes to join a particular religion must be well aware of the tenets of that particular religion and follow them to the letter. Of these three religions, one common aspect is that they believe in the existence of only one God. This is what is known as monotheistic religion where there is only one God who is to be adored and worshipped.

The first and second Letters to the Thessalonians were written by the Apostle Paul during the years 50 and 51 A.D., respectively.  Here, Paul addresses the newly-formed church in Thessalonica, of which became the focus of his ministry after the Jews in this Macedonian province rioted against their teachings the first letter being of gratitude and blessings after Timothy reported a progressive and dynamic Christian church, and the second being a letter of warning to the Thessalonians and its religious leaders who seemed to have been practicing a faith that is contradictory to his teachings.  Perhaps more important than the literary and historical significance of these books in the New Testament, its real essentiality lies in the knowledge that I was able to gain from these readings, and its being able to effect a change in my persona based on the divinity of these writings as well as its implications on my very existence. 

Admittedly, my knowledge on the Holy Bible prior to this course was very limited, such as with the case of the first and second letters to the Thessalonians.  All I was aware of was that these letters were written by Paul for the Thessalonians, without knowing the exact details for their writing, and the specific purpose for which these books were written for.  Although like other people I have read most of the New Testament, especially the four Gospels, somehow these letters of Paul to the Thessalonians were always excluded from my previous readings.  Thus, gaining insight from Paul, who is generally regarded as one of the pillars of Christianity, had benefit me with the wisdom of how he himself had drawn the lines on subjects that is an enigma to many followers of the Christian faith, such as the resurrection of the dead, the vocation of every Christian, the Anti-Christ, on the proper regard on wives, and of unlawful sex practices, among others.

First among the several insights that I was able to gain from these readings had been Pauls own conviction and faith in the power of prayers.  His vocation that all believers of Christ should unceasingly pray and give thanks to God, is a reiteration of the Christians belief that prayers are indeed heard by God and will be answered in His own time.  Likewise, with regards to the church that he had founded in Thessalonica, it is truly surprising to learn that even during the churchs early existence, there had been religious leaders who were found lacking of the necessary virtues to be regarded as rightful leaders of the church.  This was evident in 2 Thessalonica 311-18, where Paul eventually suggested the members of the faith not to treat them as enemies, but rather to peacefully remind them of their offenses as a brother would his own brother. 

Also, it is remarkable to learn that several Christian denominations during Pauls lifetime had been expecting for the arrival of Jesus second coming, where He will pass judgment on every person, whether presently living or deceased.  Here, it is worth noting that Paul reminded the faithful to disregard such claims, as a man of sin must come first, preceding Jesus second coming.  This man will be the anti-Christ, and he will perform several miracles to justify his own claim of being God-sent, and even of being God himself.  It is especially astounding that the early church already had its own concept of an anti-Christ who will lead an army of unbelievers into a final battle with those who believe in Jesus Christ.  Hence, Paul had been clear that Jesus second coming will not transpire until the reign of the man of sin will first come into completion. 

In 1 Thessalonians 41-8, Paul also lectured on the necessity to be holy in the sight of the Lord by abhorring the practice of unlawful sex.  It is truly saddening, especially in our contemporary times, how the sexual act seemed be disrobed of its sanctity, as evidenced by the general acceptance of sexual promiscuity in our societies, in the mass media, and in the manner that the female gender is being portrayed as objects of sexual pleasures.  Paul intended sex solely for married couples.  His furthering this tenet by reminding husbands to respect their wives, rather to be lead by lust, tells of Gods purpose for sex. Based on this comparison between the society in Pauls era and the present-day scenario, it seemed that humanity had degenerated, particularly on how we perceive women. 

Of all the passages that comprise Pauls first and second letters to the Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians 413-18 was able to affect me in a very personal level.  The very fact that these passages delved on the sorrow that is felt by those who had lost loved ones made the abovementioned passages seem like personal letters written especially for me.  Despite of the remorse, grief, and sadness caused by my recently losing my father, Pauls message has been a great source not only of consolation, but more importantly, of hope.  Through Pauls letter to the Christians of Thessalonica more than two millennia ago, I have been benefited with his comforting words of assurance, that a day will come when I and my father, and all of the others who have believed in Jesus as the Messiah, will be reunited in a world where happiness will be unconditional, complete, and eternal.

Conclusion
It is truly astounding to discover that the true essence of Pauls letters to the Thessalonians can be based on its relevance on the lives of Christians who are faced with a particular dilemma.  Perhaps it would be safe to declare that the influence of the Holy Spirit had manifested in Pauls writings, that they still hold true despite of the passing of millenniums.  As such, it is able to offer guidance as it does comfort, especially to those who are mourning at the loss of their loved ones.  The hope that Paul is able to offer to anyone who believes, particularly on the Lords promise that those who believe in Him will once again live and join Him in paradise, has always been sufficient grounds for Christians to rejoice in anticipation of their own judgments.  If only or this assurance of an after-life of eternity with Jesus Christ and all the other believers, my experiences in this class had truly been worthwhile. 

Counseling is a very useful part of any given type of therapy. This is realized if we look at the various positive effects that counseling has on the counselee undergoing therapy. Counseling is therefore very effective in formulation of solutions or strategies towards solutions, as well as enabling the counselee to put their life back in order. Counseling should best be interpreted as part of something else, rather than a free-standing activity.  The word preceding the word counseling is the one that gives it specific meaning, like pastoral for instance is unique to a religious Christian concept (Clinton and Ron 2007, 21).

For counseling to be effective, it has to encompass several key issues one of these very core issues being the willingness of participation in counseling on the part of the counselee (Cloud 2004, 34). Willing participation in pastoral counseling is the measure of readiness or ability to engage with the pastoral counselor in therapy (Warner 2007, 14). It also involves evaluation of how able the counselee is to cooperate with the pastoral counselor in therapy. Willing Participation is very important in creating a good platform for the interaction between the counselor and the counselee. A willing participant is able to engage in the counseling by offering the information necessary for problem-solving to the pastoral counselor, while a non-willing participant on the other hand will fail to engage in the counseling, leaving the counselor unable to determine the problem, how to strategize on a solution, or even how to solve it (Benner 2003, 23). This unwillingness wastes a lot of time that if initially addresses, would have made the counselors time easy.

Assumptions of facilitating willing participation
There are several assumptions surrounding the counselors ability in influencing of the counselees attitude, from assuming an attending role to assuming a willing role, in pastoral counseling. The first assumption according to (Litrell 1998, 45-59) is that the counselee has his own resources to solve his problems and therefore he will be able to focus on his positive side so that he can facilitate the desired change necessary to become willing to engage in therapy. The other assumption is that the counselee is willing to get past his attitude towards the counselor or his introvert nature especially in cases where the counselee is unable to share information. The final assumption is that the counselee will be able to see the external influence advocating for him to attend counseling as goodwill and hence develop a positive attitude towards it (Robert 1993, 39).

Determining willing participation What to look out for
It is very easy to determine the willingness of a counselee towards therapy according to (Kollar 2003, 88) who says that an unwilling participant will exhibit the signs of lack of commitment, lack of involvement in the therapy, lack of goals or agenda to discuss with the counselor, or a seemingly negative inclination towards therapy. He also continues to say that this unwillingness may be influenced by many reasons, the major ones being forced into therapy and a negative perception towards the counselor. In being forced to attend counseling, most counselees assume an attending role rather than a willing one.

How to enhance willing participation Encouraging transition to willingness
Encouraging transition to willingness requires adoption of several key strategies on the part of the pastoral counselor. The first format according to (De Jong and Berg 1999, 17) is using the path of solutions which encompasses the counselee looking at his life in both a hypothetical and realistic manner, as shown below.

Solutions model by Kim Berg 1999
Another effective way according to (Stone 1994, 13-56) is formulation of certain sets of questions to enhance his knowledge of the counselees attitude. Examples of these questions are whose idea it was for the counselee to attend therapy, their understanding of the therapy, if the counselee sees the need for the counseling like the external force pushing for it if any, what this external pressure thinks should be changed by the counselee, what steps the counselee is willing to take to make amends, comparison between the counselees life before and after the problem started, the confidence the counselee harbors, how a change will help the counselee and those around him, and how they will determine what to do to stop the problems.

Conclusion
We can therefore gather that willing participation is a very important aspect in counseling scenarios and therefore it should be approached with a lot of prudence. This is because the effective of counseling, realized by the ability of a solution being found for the problem, is only realized through willing participation by the counselee. Pastoral counselors should therefore be advised to assess the willingness of any possible counselee in pre-counseling sessions even before they commence on counseling.