Pastoral care: three key questions What is it? What makes it work? Developing a Pastoral Team

undermining pastoral care  loss of inherited tradition  loss of hierarchy  individualism  growth of secular ‘humanities’  suspicion of control and manipulation

Exploring together What’s involved in pastoral care? Produce a definition of pastoral care (in a phrase or short sentence)

What is pastoral care?  paying loving attention  companionship into wholeness  disciple-making  whole-life coaching/mentoring

Defining pastoral care Forming lives within the church for the purposes of Christian vocation in the world. Faith Development and Pastoral Care: James Fowler, p.10

Defining Pastoral Care The forming of men and women to respond in effective faithfulness to the call of God to partnership with God’s work in the world Faith Development and Pastoral Care: James Fowler, p.21

A working definition … Helping one another to grow in the love of God, likeness to Christ, and fruitful service in the whole of life

What makes it work?  listening

Listening Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost identical. Caring enough to hear and be heard: David Augsburg

Listening How could I have been so blind to what is the indispensable element to loving people – listening? The Emotionally Healthy Church: Peter Scazzero

What makes it work?  spirituality of the ideal or real?  character above circumstances  happy or holy?  meeting people at the point of aspiration  meeting God at turning points  conversation: the primary means  listening

turning points  choosing times  identifying gifts  airing aspirations  exploring vocation  listening exercise

Conversation shape sharing: honestly, appropriately out of our own experience. listening: entering into and drawing out the other’s response to life. exploring: issues raised and the light faith throws on our experience. a time when you experienced pastoral care

Developing a pastoral team  grow  identify  gather

Gather pastoral leaders from…  welcome ministry  nurture groups  home groups  lay/area pastors  mentoring  spiritual directors

Developing a pastoral team  grow  identify  gather  commission  deploy

Our shared calling … Helping one another to grow in the love of God, likeness to Christ, and fruitful service in the whole of life

Spin-offs of good pastoral care  Church life is more relaxed with a focus on being rather than doing  Enquirers are more easily attracted to and draw in by a listening culture Where godly conversations and nurturing relationships are part of church culture…

How can we develop pastoral care?  nurture stretching conversation  be alive to crisis moments

How can we develop pastoral care?  nurture stretching conversation  be alive to crisis moments  gather the pastors together

A costly calling Caring is costly, unsettling, even distasteful at times. The valley of deep shadows in another person’s life frightens us too. Rediscovering Pastoral Care: Alastair Campbell p.1 DLT, 1981

How can we develop pastoral care?  nurture stretching conversation  be alive to crisis moments  gather the pastors together  grow one-to-one relationships