Pastoral Care
Henri J. Nouwen uses the image of “The Wounded Healer” to describe providers of pastoral care. He writes:
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Perhaps the main task of the minister is to prevent people from suffering for the wrong reasons. Many people suffer because of the false supposition on which they have based their lives. That supposition is that there should be no fear or loneliness, no confusion or doubt. But these sufferings can only be dealt with creatively when they are understood as wounds integral to our human condition…
When we become aware that we do not have to escape our pains, but that we can mobilize them into a common search for life, those very pains are transformed from expressions of despair into signs of hope.
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Through this common search, hospitality becomes community.
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- Henri J. Nouwen -
Our pain is part of the human condition that we all share. And so, it can be a bonding agent that calls us together, into community. My ministry is to help build the kind of community that acknowledges and affirms the pain (as well as grief, joy, and gratitude, among other common elements to the human experience), and allows us to have a supportive place (and people) in which healing and growth are not just possible, but encouraged.
And while pastoral care is the work of the whole community, there is certainly a specialized role for the minister. One of the greatest honors of professional ministry is being invited to journey beside folks as they face the highs and lows (and everything in-between) that come with being human.
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If you find yourself facing challenges of the body, mind, or spirit, I want to be there for you. In times of difficulty and discernment, I will do my best to offer you comfort and support through home or hospital visits, or I will gladly set aside some one-on-one time where I can listen and help you process your feelings about whatever you are facing.
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Compassion and love go a long way in getting through the tough stuff, and my approach to spiritual care calls for an abundance of both.