New guide to forming Pastoral Care Teams in Churches
The Protestant Reformation, particularly in England, marked a major change in how pastoral care was done in churches. Up to that time, clergy in the Roman Catholic church focused their efforts on the sacraments: the worship service, confession, marriage, extreme unction and so forth. The priest was not the active component to such ministry, it was chiefly based on the grace bestowed by the ceremonies themselves that the priest conducted.
Richard Baxter’s book on pastoral ministry, The Reformed Pastor (published in 1656), outlined the Protestant minister’s role rather as an interpersonal one of teaching and counselling, relying heavily on the example set by the regenerated godliness of clergyman. The minister was to visit all of his flock, instructing and encouraging them and building up the local church community.
But Baxter was a giant in Christian history. It was amazing that he could keep up such a relentless pace in his pastoral ministry while being the author of countless books. The average minister needs help to accomplish this demanding pastoral task!
Establishing pastoral care teams, led and staffed by trained lay volunteers, is an effective way to lighten the burden on clergy and to fulfill the Biblical call for Christians to love one another within their fellowships.
But how to do this? The advisory board of the Ottawa Pastoral Care Training Program, of which I am a member, could not find a suitable book on the subject and so I undertook to write a brief manual about the principles and functions of pastoral care teams in churches.
The 72-page book deals with the five W’s of the subject in its first four chapters: why, who, what, where and when? The final two chapters outline how to establish and to administer a team. Interspersed among the chapters are short meditations on pastoral themes such as active listening, dementia and grief, and two testimonies by experienced care team leaders Marian Archibald and Heather Dixon of St. Paul’s PC, Ottawa. Several appendices follow, including a reprint of Roy Bell’s 10-question “A Check-up on Your Five-Minute Conversational Skills,” and an annotated list of written and audio resources that generally follow a non-directive, community-based approach to pastoral care.
Pastoral Care Teams in Churches does not advocate for a lay ministry that would serve as anything more than a supplement to the professional care provided by clergy in urgent care situations and in counselling. Its model is one of non-directive care that offers empathetic, active listening and a comforting presence to those in need in a congregation. Emergency visits and advice-giving counselling are left to clergy and their associates. Working together, ministers and trained volunteers can build up their church communities in the love they were meant to express.
Book Excerpts
CHAPTER 2: Who Serves on a Pastoral Care Team?
As is stressed in basic training courses for pastoral care, lay visitors must first be people who are empathetic and are good listeners. For some, these qualities come naturally, and they would be welcome members on a pastoral care team should nothing else disqualify them. For others, a training course (see Appendix 1) can explain and offer practice and coaching in being empathetic and in active listening.
Exercising empathy and being a good listener are not as difficult as they may seem at first. Much of what is taught in a training course is how to avoid the things that get in the way of fruitful personal interactions. Many students develop into valued care team members once they understand what impediments to steer clear of, thereby allowing them to be attentive to the feelings of the one visited. Habits or dispositions such as “fixing,” or not allowing the person visited to set the agenda for the interaction can inhibit the caring impulse of lay visitors. Once these obstructive patterns are recognized and shunned, pastoral care conversations can thrive. Bottom line: one does not have to first be a saint to exercise a loving ministry of pastoral care. Listening and caring skills can be learned through training and enhanced by experience.
The New Testament places a high value on certain traits of the Christian character, attributing many of them to the inward work of the Holy Spirit in the believer. Paul writes that “. . . the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control . . .” (Galatians 5:22–23). Those are also qualities that make for an outstanding lay visitor. Thankfully, it is the Spirit, and not just our own strength of character, that provides the energy and endurance to sustain these qualities over a lifetime. As “ordinary” believers, we can rely on the power of God to assist us while we develop the fruit of the Spirit in our ministry of pastoral care.
In the early church, the process of choosing the first deacons recognized the need for the blessing of the Spirit, along with other qualities, in those to be appointed for ministry: “Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty” (Acts 6:3). A solid reputation, a spiritual lifestyle, and a proven ability to act wisely are just as important today for lay members of pastoral care teams.
Reputation: When talking about certain ministry appointments, the New Testament lists several things that would disqualify a person from consideration. Addiction to alcohol, an argumentative temperament, gossiping and acting as a busybody, and seeking personal gain are among them. Today, we could add having a police record, expressing political and social opinions inappropriately, crossing boundaries of personal familiarity, and not respecting personal privacy. It is essential that a care team be known for its gentle and helpful attitudes and actions…
CHAPTER 6: Administering the Team
…Accountability to Church Authority: Because it is a lay ministry conducted by unpaid volunteers, the operational and legal oversight of the care team rests with the leadership of the local church. No external professional body regulates the team’s members, as is usually the case with counsellors and clergy.
Church oversight is a plus in that it provides protection for team members in the course of their work from sanctions that might be levied by governmental and regulatory bodies. The church carries this burden of liability. On the other hand, it means that the pastoral care team must take care not to engage in activities or behaviours that are out of step with the church’s official rules, code of conduct, and policies. In its ministry, the team represents the church and is therefore expected to work within the framework of the church’s leadership and guidelines. Team leadership should be familiar with any documents that outline church policies and also monitor team members for compliance.
Matters of church policy with which every member of the team may not agree must be respected. Some churches, for example, take a strong stand against medical practices involving abortion, gender change, or medical assistance in dying. While it would not be a problem for team members to minister care to those in such situations before and after their medical procedures, accompanying a person to the procedure might be viewed by the church as affirming it, which would violate its policy. The church should also clearly authorize lay visitors to celebrate the Eucharist or to anoint a person visited prior to their performing such acts.
In order not to invalidate the team’s protection from legal and financial liability, it is important that it must not act on its own in contravention of or in ignorance of church rules and policies. Where there is any doubt, be especially careful. For instance, offering transportation to medical appointments on behalf of the team should be avoided unless it is clearly stated in writing by church leadership that the church’s liability insurance will cover this activity. Often, it is not covered. The church, for its part, must be able to demonstrate that it exercises effective oversight of the care team to ensure that it acts in compliance with its guidelines.
Breaches of confidentiality and boundary-crossing issues can initially be addressed within the team. If needed, further resolution can then be pursued through church leadership, in accordance with the established disciplinary procedures. The key to avoiding many problems of this sort is to seek permission. The visitor should ask for consent prior to a visit, touching the person visited, praying or reading the Bible during a visit, anointing or celebrating the Eucharist, revealing personal information, or passing on the person’s name to the prayer team.
It may happen that property damage that creates a financial liability occurs during a visit. The church’s liability insurance should cover it as an incident occurring during an authorized activity of the church. The church would then handle any claim through its insurer. It is prudent to check with church leadership to make sure that liability coverage for lay pastoral visits is in place.
Lay visitors act on behalf of the church in a nonprofessional capacity, and normally visit only those who are members of the congregation. As a result, they should not be subject to outside professional codes of conduct and obligations imposed by law. However, each jurisdiction has its own rules. Seek guidance from the church leadership and their legal counsel in such matters. Matters that come to light during visits and are covered by legislation calling for disclosure should be reported to the team’s leaders.
TEAM DISCUSSION
Have you found that receiving an unexpected card or small recognition from your church was meaningful and welcome? How can breaches of policy or behaviour be dealt with by your team?
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Pastoral Care Teams in Churches, by Robert K. MacKenzie, is available in print from the publisher, Friesen Press, and Amazon.ca, and in e-format for Kindle and Kobo. A short sample is available on Amazon.ca.
