I don't want to scotch the countertransference argument, but...he could also just be being a jerk. I wouldn't rule it out. Just sayin'.

Countertransference gets used a lot on here to describe behaviors in our therapists we don't like for whatever reason, but we're trying to convince ourselves that things are OK in the relationship anyway. (And I don't think that's the clinical definition--countertransference is a reaction to the client's transference and transference-caused behavior.) Sometimes they are just being themselves. I mean, in real life when someone is a jerk to you, there is very little tendency to say "oh, they're really worried about me."

Also, although I do think anyone should know what reassurance and comfort means, some people just don't. Or their idea of it is radically different from others'. Or they're the type of person who finds reassurance and comfort vague.