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Pinata Pinata; Cirma Nalika Datu Linggi; Jafriyani Parammangan

Jurnal Pendidikan Agama dan Teologi 2026 International Forum of Researchers and Lecturers

Divorce is an increasing social reality within Christian congregations, including in Indonesia, bringing profound psychological, social, and spiritual impacts while simultaneously presenting serious challenges for the church's pastoral ministry. This article examines the theological foundation and practical approaches in pastoral accompaniment for congregation members experiencing divorce, employing library research methodology within a pastoral theology framework. The study reveals that the church is called to be present not as a judge, but as a healing, supportive, and restoring community. Effective pastoral accompaniment encompasses empathetic pastoral counseling, a compassionate congregational community, intentional attention to affected children, and a long-term restoration commitment rooted in Gospel grace. The church is called to move beyond stigmatization toward genuine acceptance of wounded individuals, reflecting the redemptive love of Christ. This article concludes that the church's response to divorce must balance biblical integrity with deep compassion, affirming both the sanctity of marriage and the dignity of broken individuals. Thus, the church can become a safe space for every congregation member to experience genuine restoration and rediscover hope in Christ.

Donny Charles Chandra; Mie Lia; Yogi Mahendra

International Perspectives in Christian Education and Philosophy 2024 Asosiasi Riset Ilmu Pendidkan Agama dan Filsafat Indonesia

Fear of divine punishment is a spiritually charged form of distress that appears in ordinary religious struggle, moral injury, shame-based faith formation, and, in some cases, scrupulosity. This article examines pastoral accompaniment for Christian congregants who interpret suffering, intrusive thoughts, moral imperfection, or ordinary uncertainty as evidence that God is angry and punitive. The study addresses a constructive problem: many pastoral responses either normalize fear as evidence of seriousness before God or dismiss it as irrational anxiety, yet both responses can intensify spiritual distress. Using a conceptual qualitative design, the article synthesizes peer-reviewed studies on religious and spiritual struggles, scrupulosity, spiritually integrated care, moral injury, and practical theology. The analysis proposes that pastoral care should neither dilute theological seriousness nor reinforce punitive images of God. Its main synthesis is a threefold pastoral framework, differentiated assessment, grace-oriented theological reframing, and collaborative accompaniment that includes referral when symptoms suggest obsessive-compulsive disorder, trauma, depression, or suicidal risk. The article concludes that effective pastoral accompaniment moves congregants from retributive anxiety toward secure attachment to God, morally responsible agency, and communal practices of confession, assurance, lament, and restoration. The contribution is a constructive model for churches that treats fear of divine punishment as a theological-psychological struggle requiring discernment, doctrinal care, ethical boundaries, and interdisciplinary cooperation.

Donny Charles Chandra; Sabar Parlindungan Nababan; Naftali Untung

International Journal of Christian Education and Philosophical Inquiry 2024 Asosiasi Riset Ilmu Pendidkan Agama dan Filsafat Indonesia

Toxic leadership in church contexts is not merely an organizational problem; it can become a psychospiritual wound when pastoral authority is used to shame, silence, manipulate, or control congregants in the name of God. This article examines pastoral counseling for congregants who experience inner wounds caused by toxic leadership in the church. The study addresses a gap in previous research: leadership studies have clarified the concepts of abusive supervision and destructive leadership. In contrast, religious trauma research has described spiritual abuse, yet fewer works have developed a constructive pastoral counseling synthesis that integrates both fields. Using a conceptual and integrative literature review design, this article draws on peer-reviewed studies on toxic leadership, spiritual abuse, institutional betrayal, moral injury, trauma-informed care, and spiritually integrated psychotherapy. The synthesis proposes that pastoral counseling in this context must be trauma-informed, spiritually competent, ecclesially accountable, and clinically humble. Three findings are advanced: toxic church leadership wounds identity, agency, and God-image; pastoral counseling must begin with safety, validation, narrative reconstruction, and protection of conscience; and recovery requires individual care and institutional repair through accountability, referral pathways, and anti-retaliatory church culture. The article concludes that pastoral counseling is most constructive when it becomes a ministry of truth-telling, non-coercive accompaniment, and communal restoration rather than a tool for preserving abusive systems.