Counseling in the Congo

One year after completing Messiah’s master’s degree in counseling, Marissa Felder, MA ’16 and her husband flew to the Democratic Republic of Congo to serve as missionaries.

“All we could find were horror stories of war and injustice,” she said of her research of the area. “I was not expecting anything remotely pleasant.”

Thanks to Messiah’s program, however, Felder felt trained for the Congo experience. “I wouldn’t have received that type of global perspective, motivation and inspiration from any other institution,” she explained.

The couple served in the city of Bunia. Felder taught at a diocese church and presented at a regional conference on emotional and spiritual health, ministering to families suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

“The people were so gracious in light of everything they lived through,” she said. “They were very friendly and warm.”

Certain convictions fell on her heart after the experience. She said, “We are called to partner alongside people, to help the poor by living out the parable of the Good Samaritan in whatever we do.”

The parable is well known to the Congolese, as the country is 88 percent Christian. “But people don’t see that,” said Felder. “The Congo is one of those places in Africa that you don’t hear much about unless it’s the war. That’s not the Congo I know. The Congo is a place overflowing with God-fearing men and women who wait upon the Lord and expect Him to do great things in and through them.”

Heather Barto, director of the graduate program in counseling said of Felder, “She had a strong desire to learn all she could in order to be the best counselor she could be. She’s also a very gracious person who I am sure is impacting many lives as a counselor.”

After the Congo, Felder returned to the U.S to work as a mental health counselor in Valley Stream, New York.

“I have clients from every culture and every lifestyle, and I love it,” she said. “That is part of what I was exposed to and encouraged to explore at Messiah. You are called to be in service to everyone. If you have a limited view, then that limits you as both a counselor and a Christian.”

Felder plans to return to the Congo this year. “This is just the beginning,” she said. There’s so much to look forward to.”

— Jake Miaczynski ’20