Dear Kari:

I applaud your desire to model your counseling practice upon the principles of the Church.

I would encourage you not only to conform your practice to Catholic values and worldview in general, but to specifically base your therapeutic approach upon what is sometimes called Nouthetic Counseling.

The word "Nouthetic" comes from the Greek word nouthesia, which is often translated "admonition, exhortation, instruction." It implies a kind of  "directive" counseling that, for a Catholic Counselor, is based upon the principles and teachings of the Bible and Sacred Tradition, the teachings of the Magisterium, and the insights of the Saints.

In terms using the word "Catholic" in the name of your practice, Canon Law (cic 216, 300) forbids the use of the word "Catholic" in the name of an association or apostolate without ecclesiastic permission. Not being a canon lawyer I do not know for sure if that restriction applies to a secular business.

But, the principle of the matter is that placing the word "Catholic" in the name of the practice could imply that your practice has the approval of the Church or some other official connection with the Church. Thus, regardless whether or not those canons apply to you, I would avoid the word "Catholic" in the name of your practice.

That restriction, by the way, applies only to the name of the association or apostolate and not to a description of your practice.

For example, it is permissible for me to refer to my counseling apostolate as the St. Padre Pio Center for Deliverance Counseling, a Catholic apostolate. The phrase "a Catholic apostolate" is not part of the name of the agency but a descriptor.

Now with all that said, I would encourage you to name your practice after one of the saints. In fact, there are a number of saints who are patrons of difficult marriages that would be perfect. Follow that link for a list. Having a saint in the name will not automatically deter non-Catholic clients.

As to accepting non-Catholic Clients, if you wish, in the description of your practice, (e.g., website, brochure, Yellow pages ad), you can mention that you are a Catholic-based service but do accept clients from all faith backgrounds.

I think you will find, however, that non-Catholics will seek out your services anyway from time to time because the choices of Christian counselors out there are few--especially are few the Christian counselors who are not just the same-o, same-o as the secular counselors.

When one does find a counselor who really approaches things from a Christian point-of-view they tend to be evangelical or fundamentalist in orientation. Thus, there is a great need for counselors who are solidly Christian and who approach their practices with a solid Christian worldview that is consistent with the fullness of the Faith.

Speaking of that, while the Truth and the principles of Truth apply to all people, even to non-Catholics, you may have to present that Truth in slightly different terminology if a client is not Catholic.

In some instances, the values of a non-Catholic client (or with some Catholic clients for that matter) may be at odds with Catholic teaching. The usual ethical standards of the profession prohibit interfering with a client's personal religious values. This is why I prefer offering services as a Catholic apostolate, rather than as an ordinary business. As such, in literature and in the client services contract I have client sign, I state that services offered are based upon the principles and values of Christianity as defined by the Catholic Church. This way your covered and there is no reason for misunderstandings.

This is important, I think, when you come up against typical issues in marriage counseling such as the use of contraception, openness to life in sexual practices in the marriage bed (I get questions on this on all the time), abortion, divorce, raising the kids, etc.

As for the monetary end of things, unless you do not need income from your practice to make a living, the issue of counseling fees must be addressed. This is not just an issue of trusting God to provide and thus to inspire clients to donate. This involves therapeutic issues of importance to the therapeutic process.

Twenty-Five years ago when I was young and idealistic I started a counseling practice based upon the notion that no one should be turned away for lack of money. I still feel that way, but what I did back then was develop a sliding-scale fee schedule with a minimum possible fee of Zero. Most sliding-scale systems maintain a minimum fee -- mine was zero.

But, what I found out is that the clients I had who qualified for zero fees would not accept that. They wanted to pay something, even if only $5 per session.

Charging a fee can be important therapeutically as a measure of commitment the client has to the counseling process. It can also be an encouragement for the client to take responsibility for their own themselves (a major problem with many clients). If they get something for nothing it can feed into a behavioral or attitudinal laxity of the client holding himself responsible and accountable for his own life.

At the same time one does not want to over-burden the client with fees that will damage or put undue pressure on their family finances just to get the counseling fee paid. And, of course one does not want to price themselves out of reach of the needy client's ability to pay. But, a counselor also needs to pay the bills.

This is a delicate balance.

I think one solution is to charge a fee that will be mid-range to the demographics of your clients. In other words, do not charge the "going rate" for your area, which can be as high as $60-$110+ per hour for a Masters Degree Level Counselor. Instead, set a lower fee that will be in range of more people without having to negotiate or use a sliding-scale. Of course this may mean that you cannot vacation in the Bahamas or drive a Porche :)

Then, for those clients who cannot afford the regular fee, you can either negotiate (ask them what they can afford) or develop a sliding-scale, but have a minimum fee set to something other than zero (even $5 per session could work as a minimum).

In particular hardship cases you can offer service pro bono (without any fee whatsoever), but be aware that even then there may be a value therapeutically of the client contributing to their own counseling by some sort of monetary commitment.

Because of the therapeutic issues involved, I think this is a better approach than offering services solely on a donation basis.

But, as Mary said to the men at the marriage feast in Cana, go ask Him and do as He tells you.

By the way, the counseling I do now is offered without charge or expectation of donation. But that is because the counseling I do now is deliverance counseling. I cannot charge or expect donations to help people find freedom from demonic harassment or oppression. Our ministry is supported by donations from the general public.

On the issue of standing up for the Faith personally and in your practice, this is something that you will have to settle in your own mind. You may have clients walk out the door because you will not counsel them to have an abortion, or will not counsel them to use contraceptives. You will have to allow them to walk out the door. This can be a hard thing to do.

Clients most often want to do what they want to do and are looking for validation from the counselor. This is a general truism anyway, it can be even moreso when we are talking about issues of Church teaching. You will have to stand firm and that may be hard for you to do, but you must do it.

By the way, one of the things you might want to do is to familiarize yourself with the totality of Church teaching (at least from the Catechism) so that you have a clear picture in your mind as to how to approach various issues in your practice from a Catholic worldview.

There will be issues in your practice, however, that cannot be answered by the Catechism. For example, some details about sexual practices in the marriage bed will not be found in the Catechism or in any other Church document. If you are unsure of anything, feel free to ask me. You do not have to ask on this forum, but may email me or call me on the phone. Consider it a professional courtesy.

We will be praying for you and for your success as a "Catholic" marriage and family counselor.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary