Geoffrey W. Sutton PhD, Psychology and Culture

Investigating Spiritual Harassment and Abuse  WP Post Article In an exclusive article, Ian Shapira reported on problems within the US Anglican Church (2025, October 24). Two leaders in the Anglican church are identified early in the WP report.    [Ruch, who has been a bishop for 12 years, is one of two top leaders in the continent’s Anglican denomination confronting allegations of wrongdoing. The other is its senior-most official, Archbishop Stephen Wood. A married father of four sons, Wood, 62, has been accused by a former employee of trying to kiss her last year inside his church office in South Carolina, according to a new church presentment, which The Washington Post obtained in advance of its Monday submission. The accusations, which include plagiarizing sermons and demeaning colleagues, could prompt an ecclesiastical trial against Wood and his removal from ministry, according to the denomination’s laws. (Shapira, 2025).] ***** My concern is for people who have exper...

  Demons, Spirits, and Scary Spirituality Evangelical Christians are warned against activities that invite Satan or evil spirits into their lives. “Don’t read Harry Potter.” Stay away from the Ouija board.” “Yoga is a pathway to spiritual evil.”  Christians who read the Bible in a literal or near literal way have plenty of texts to give them reasons to believe they are in the midst of millennia-old spiritual warfare and the battle is getting more intense as some see the end of the world in sight. In 2020, I completed writing a textbook on Counseling and Psychotherapy with Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians . One topic that struck me as unique is the subject of Chapter 14, “ Devils, Demons, and Deliverance. ”  When I looked at books that offer approaches to Christian Counseling, I noticed a gaping hole when it came to helping Christians troubled by what they understand as demonic influence or the work of the devil in their lives. 12 Things to Know About Christian...

  Oral Roberts University/Google images On a hot and humid 1950s Sunday afternoon, I sat amongst the crowd of white-shirted, perspiration-soaked men and paper-fan waving Sunday-hat-covered women at a tent crusade in Southeastern Pennsylvania. After preaching salvation, the dark suit jacket came off. Holy hands touched one after another. I watched a line of broken people approach a healing stage and leave with a testimony. Everywhere, white and black hands reached upward as organ tones bolstered songs of praise. (Sutton, 2021, p. 79)   As I was writing Counseling and Psychotherapy with Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians , I was struck by the transitional figure of Oral Roberts who blended faith healing and a nascent Pentecostal theology, which eventually led to a grand attempt to integrate medical science and faith.   Oral Roberts   Oral Roberts was born 24 January 1918. The next month, four waves of a flu pandemic killed off about as many as died i...

Jesus commands the sea Have you heard the phrase, “God is in Control?” I have.  You can see the posts on social media. "It's in God's hands," some say. You would think this is a reasonable belief by Christians who believe in an almighty God who is able to protect His family better than the best earthly father. But when bodies pile up, hospital beds are full, and millions of people just lost their jobs, you might think  everything is out of control . They reported their findings to the Angel of God in the birch grove: “We have looked over the whole earth and all is well. Everything’s under control.” Zechariah 1:11 Governments and public health officials were unprepared for the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020. The virus raged out of control for months. This post is not about blame. I am writing about the belief, "God is in control," which is not evident. Some opine that God works through leaders —even through those whose mora...