2026 Professional Counsellors Network
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The European Professional Counsellors Network is for professional counsellors and professional counsellors in training. This Network is a unique gathering of people with a Kingdom calling to soul care—specifically the mental, emotional, and spiritual health of others. Our theoretical training may include cognitive, behavioural, attachment, relational, or family systems. It may be within Christian, non-Christian, or even anti-Christian contexts, whether in academic, clinical, residential, or social systems settings.
The programme will feature lectures, small group discussions, and case studies. Each lecture will be followed by a time of questions and answers. Case studies will also offer break-out groups to provide a more participatory style of learning. Prior preparation will be set for all applicants.
What Network Participants Are Saying
- "I have learned so much from the Professional Counselling Network that I have started a mental health Network at the Albanian Leadership Forum, which I have led for the past six years. I keep attending ELF to learn more and to share back in my country."
- Kristi Kola, Psychiatrist, Albania - "I have felt so deeply and fully loved through the teachings the Forum's Professional Counsellors Network has provided. I have felt heard, listened to, and challenged. The Forum has not only better equipped me for my work by making me ask deeper questions about God and sharing it with others in my workplace. It has also enabled me to know and experience and grow a desire to know God’s love in an even deeper way. I am excited and eager to see where the desire and ideas that stirred in my heart lead to in the work done to advance His kingdom in Slovenia and beyond."
- Anja Zevart, Psychiatry Resident Doctor, Slovenia - “Being at the European Leadership Forum is so helpful for me. The Professional Counsellors Network is equipping and enabling me to better approach the struggles that accompany being a counsellor. I’m fed and provided with lots of resources, shared knowledge, and updated and validated approaches in our field. These new resources and knowledge help me to deliver better Christ-centered therapy in order to help my clients in need.”
- Lidia Leahu, Professional Counsellor, Romania
Network members should be working in the field of psychology for a minimum of 10 hours a week or with a minimum of 7 clients. Students and interns may apply if they are full time students. This Network will examine the biblical framework for Christian counselling and will involve daily lectures as well as case study discussions.
Network Leadership
Network Speakers
Eric L. Johnson is professor of Christian Psychology at Houston Baptist University, serving in the Gideon Institute of Christian Psychology & Counseling. He taught psychology for 10 years at University of Northwestern and counseling for 17 years at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. In… Read more
Pablo was a European Leadership Forum Steering Committee member for more than 10 years. He currently works as a psychiatrist at a private practice in Barcelona. He has also developed an extensive itinerant ministry as a… Read more
Dr. Sunil Raheja is a psychiatrist, executive coach, and author of the book "Dancing with Wisdom: A sacred quest to restore meaning, purpose and fun to your life and work". He helps leaders move from success to significance by integrating biblical wisdom with practical psychology. Host of the… Read more
Helen Thorne-Allenson is the Director of Training and Resources at Biblical Counselling UK. She is an experienced speaker and author whose recent books include "Mental Health and Your Church," "Hope in an Anxious World," and "5 Things to Pray for a Suffering Friend.… Read more
Network Programme
Sunday, 17 May
A natural science/medical model dominates the fields of psychiatry and psychotherapy today. In such a context, the personal activity of humans is viewed as an obstacle to overcome in order to understand the only legitimate causes of disorder and cure. Nowhere is this better evident than in what has been termed “the placebo effect.” Rather than assuming this phenomenon is an obstacle to good science, we will explore how to reinterpret it from a human science/Christian therapy perspective as a kind of natural faith, common to all human beings, and the basis of much of human change.
In a world of constant change and complexity, many therapists and practitioners feel torn between compassion and exhaustion. This session explores how biblical wisdom offers a holistic framework for integrating knowledge, character, and discernment—helping us live and lead with clarity and peace. We’ll also reflect on how these principles can be applied sensitively and authentically within secular or spiritually resistant settings.
Monday, 18 May
More treacherous than we imagine. Miry, dark and dangerous. What is it? Depression is a thorn in the flesh. What causes depression? How can clinical depression be recognised? Are there unique sensitivities that lead to depression? Temperaments? Exhaustion? Burnout? Is there a relationship between bitterness and depression? Dr. Pablo Martinez will address these penetrating questions and provide a Biblical framework for depression and in the process, share preventative measures and ways out.
A Christian worldview provides a more comprehensive framework for understanding and treating depression than does the secular, materialistic framework that currently dominates psychiatry and psychotherapy. In addition to taking into account the biological and psychosocial dimensions of depression from a Christian worldview standpoint, attention to personalist, ethical, and spiritual features is also necessary to address depression holistically – as a human disorder. A case study of a person with depression will be presented to illustrate the value of a Christian approach to diagnosis and treatment.
Tuesday, 19 May
Helping the bereaved live through grief with comfort and cry with tears full of hope is the purpose of this session. We will examine the steps of normal grief, what is going on inside, as well as how to help in each of these steps and some mistakes to avoid. We will also consider how the view of mourning as a posthumous expression of love is a balm that mitigates grief, sheds light on the darkness of sorrow, and can help us grow.
Wednesday, 20 May
It is a counsellor's privilege to walk alongside individuals in all seasons of life, but there are particular complexities when clients are facing life-altering or life-limiting conditions. In this session, we will look at how we can seek to love, listen to, and encourage those we meet, helping them to lament what has been lost, find hope in Christ, and learn to relate differently to the people around them whilst facing the limitations of chronic ill health.
The role of narrative in human life and evidence-based therapy has become well-documented. One of the major contributions that the Christian faith offers contemporary psychotherapy and counseling is its rich metanarrative framework. In this session, we will examine a number of the clinically relevant narrative themes of Christianity that help us understand why grief is so important in the therapeutic process.