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Dr. Clifford and Joyce Penner are sexual therapists, educators, and authors. They work together as a team:
• counseling individuals and couples,
• leading sexual enhancement seminars for couples,
• teaching sex-education for pre-teens and their parents,
• speaking with men’s and women’s groups,
• lecturing at universities, and
• Training fellow professionals throughout the world.
• writing books on sexuality for the religious community
In addition to Canada, Mexico and the U.S., they have taught in Jamaica, Kenya, the Philippines, Singapore, Bali, Indonesia, Australia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and France.
Joyce is a clinical nurse specialist who holds a B.S. in nursing from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in psychosomatic nursing and nursing education from UCLA.
Cliff is a clinical psychologist who holds a B.A. from Bethel College, St. Paul, Minnesota, a M.A. in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Fuller’s Graduate School of Psychology.
The Penners are best known for their pioneer work in encouraging people to connect their sexuality with their belief system—helping them embrace sex as good and of God—and opening the topic of sexuality within churches of many denominations. Becoming faith-based “sexperts” was never their intention. As a young psychologist, Cliff was asked to talk to a young mothers’ group on teaching kids about sex. At that time, Cliff had a private practice as a clinical psychologist and Joyce had been teaching nursing at California State University Los Angeles and was in charge of curriculum development for the new nursing program at Azusa Pacific University.
A woman who attended Cliff ’s talk asked him to teach a ten-week class on sexual adjustment in marriage for a group of 60 women. He told her he had said all he knew in forty-five minutes. She prevailed, Cliff insisted that Joyce join him, and they prepared and presented the classes in the spring of 1975. The information made a significant difference in those women’s sexual relationships with their husbands. The Penners pursued training to keep up with the requests they received to teach, write, and provide sex therapy.
They continue to work as certified sexual therapists with couples and individuals, lead couples’ seminars for sexual enhancement in marriage, and train other therapists and counselors around the world. Working together in this specialty continues to be a most rewarding journey and is a great way to spend this stage of their lives—traveling and training others to “do what we do”—to use the words of Cliff ’s mother, who could never use the “s” word.
The Penners work with a group in Pasadena, California. You may reach them at 626.449.2525 or penners@attglobal.net, and learn more about them and their associates through their website:
www.passionatecommitment.com.
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