Have you thought about providing pastoral care?

Have you have ever found yourself adrift in life, or struggling somehow, not quite sure of where you are going, or perhaps, how you got here. At those times it may have been your experience that a friend came alongside and listened, perhaps offered to pray, and maybe you found yourself in a better place as a result of the company.

The clergy team are putting on a course to help those who feel that they would like to offer that ministry of walking alongside others, who will listen much, say little and pray silently and sometimes aloud. It is a wonderful gift to offer time to another who finds themselves in distress, and so it may be that this brief course will help you to develop those pastoral skills that you have already been using, or it may be a first foray into the world of pastoral care.

The course will run for an hour and a half every other week and will cover both the practicalities and some theory of pastoral care. There will be sessions on effective listening, on how to help in times of bereavement and how to be with those suffering from mental illness. The course will start on the 21st  January and end on the 15th April. The six weeks will offer stand-alone sessions, but we would like to invite you to make as many sessions as possible.

Session 1 – 21st Jan 2015: What is Pastoral Ministry?
Session 2 – 4th Feb 2015: What is Mental Wellbeing?
Session 3 – 11th Feb 2015: Listening Skills
Session 4 – 4th March 2015: Visiting – Some do’s and don’ts
Session 5 – 18th March 2015: Bereavement – Coping with Loss
Session 6 – 15th April 2015: Principles of Good Practice

Each session will be hosted or led by Revs Gabrielle Smith and Wendy Bull. Please do contact Wendy for further details and to register interest at wendybull@marlowanglican.org or on 07450 737438