CHRISTIAN VALUES IN SOCIAL WORK PROFESSIONAL NEUTRALITY IN THE FIELD OF TENSION BETWEEN PERSONAL BELIEFS AND THEIR EFFECT ON THE CLIENT RELATIONSHIP

Social work moves between professional neutrality and the personal values of professionals. Tensions arise especially among Christian social workers when values such as charity or mercy flow into practice. The article examines this tension theoretically and analytically and shows that Christian values can strengthen the client relationship if they are used reflexively and in a client-oriented manner, but carry the risk of paternalistic influence if they appear unreflective. Neutrality is not understood as value-free, but as a regulative principle for the protection of self-determination and plurality.