Trauma Informed Christian Counseling

Program Overview

The Doctor of Christian Counseling in Trauma Informed Christian Counseling prepares counselors to walk with people whose lives have been broken by abuse, violence, war, and disaster — and to do so in a way that heals rather than repeats the harm. Survivors often bring their wounds to the church first, and the church's response can be one of the most healing or the most damaging experiences of their lives. Students study how trauma affects the body, the mind, relationships, and faith; the diagnostic picture of posttraumatic stress and complex trauma; and the phases of recovery Judith Herman described: establishing safety, remembrance and mourning, and reconnection. Counseling courses teach stabilization and grounding, working within the window of tolerance, and the trauma-informed principles of safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration, and empowerment, together with the specialized trauma therapies that have the strongest evidence and when to refer to them. The Christian dimension is treated with depth and honesty: lament in the Psalms, a theology of suffering and the cross, the community trauma-healing work pioneered for churches around the world, Diane Langberg's teaching on trauma and the abuse of power, and spiritual abuse within churches themselves. The doctoral project builds or evaluates a trauma-informed ministry — a survivor support program, a church safeguarding system, a network of trauma-healing groups. Graduates direct trauma care ministries, train churches to respond well to abuse, and counsel survivors with skill and humility. The degree is formation in Christian counseling and does not by itself license anyone to practise trauma therapy.

Core Courses

• TCC 801 — Trauma, the Body, and the Soul (6 credits)
• TCC 812 — Safety, Stabilization, and the Phases of Recovery (6 credits)
• TCC 824 — Trauma-Informed Counseling Practice (6 credits)
• TCC 836 — Lament, Suffering, and the Theology of the Cross (6 credits)
• TCC 848 — Abuse, Power, and the Church (5 credits)
• TCC 860 — Research Methods in Trauma Care (4 credits)
• TCC 899 — Doctoral Project in Trauma Informed Christian Counseling (24 credits)

Admission Requirements

• Master's degree in counseling, pastoral care, ministry, psychology, or a related field
• Experience in counseling, pastoral care, chaplaincy, or lay care ministry
• Statement of purpose describing the people you care for and the question you want to pursue
• Current resume or ministry profile
• Official transcripts from prior institutions when available
• Signed acknowledgment that the degree does not by itself confer a license to practise counseling in any jurisdiction