Should Biblical Counselors Ever Refer a Counselee to a Psychiatrist?

A Current Discussion… 

There’s been some discussion of late in the modern biblical counseling world about whether or not it might be legitimate, at times, for a biblical counselor to refer a person to a psychiatrist. For one such discussion, you can see this Twitter/X thread:

A Personal Open Letter for ACBC Members.

An Historical Analysis… 

If you’ve ever read my writings, then you know that I love church history. And, you also know that I love to collate church history—to see how it speaks into current discussions/debates.

So…here are four examples from the history of the modern biblical counseling movement where prominent leaders—such as David Powlison, Mike Emlet, and others—address whether biblical counselors should ever refer counselees to psychiatrists.

History Lesson #1: David Powlison on the Biblical Counseling Movement Always Having Affirmed Psychiatry

In A Letter to the Editor, in the Journal of Biblical Counseling 16:2, 1998, Powlison writes:

“Those ways where psychiatry is the most medical-scientific or the most custodial have always been affirmed as relative goods by biblical counselors; here psychiatry is an honorable profession.”

History Lesson #2: Mike Emlet on When Should a Pastor Recommend a Psychiatrist? 

In an April 17, 2016 CCEF video, Mike Emlet

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