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7 Rules of Pastoral Conversation
Theologian Max Warren (1904-1977) came up with 7 Rules for Interreligious Dialogue (IRD). Each of these are quite valuable. But each of them seem also to provide the basis for an equivalent rule for Pastoral Conversation. So we will list each rule both for IRD and for Pastoral Conversation (PC).
Rule #1: Acceptance of our Common Humanity
IRD. Dialogue is not between two ideologies or religions, but between two people… created in the image of God.
PC. The client is not a label or a category of person. The client is a human being created in God’s image… fearfully and wonderfully made.
Rule #2: Divine Omnipresence
IRD. Entering into a dialogue, one is not entering alone. God is there, and has prepared the situation long before one arrived.
PC. Expect that God is present in every pastoral conversation and before every conversation.
Rule #3: Accepting the best in the other
IRD. Don’t focus on what is bad about other religions… also freely acknowledge their good points. Be open to admit failings in one’s own faith as well.
PC. Enter the conversation non-judgmentally. The client is not defined by his or her weaknesses and failures. Acknowledge you have weaknesses as well… as a ‘wounded healer.’
Rule #4: Identification
IRD. Attempt to understand them as if you were one of them. Think incarnationally. Imaginatively “walk in their shoes” to understand what they believe, why they believe it, and why it makes sense to them.
PC. Try to understand the client’s situation through the eyes of the client. Seek, as much as possible, to understand what he/she is going through.
Rule #5: Courtesy
IRD. Dialogue with identifiable respect– identifiable by the other in ones words, demeanor, and actions.
PC. Respect your client, and demonstrate that respect in word and deed.
Rule #6: Interpretation
IRD. Sharing one’s faith to another is not one of proclamation or didactics. Rather it is one of interpretation… contextualization… translation. Attempting to make one’s faith understandable within the symbol structure of the other, NOT one’s own structure.
PC. Demonstrate God’s love and message for the client in a manner that the client can identify with and respond to. This means focusing on how he/she thinks and feels rather than how you think and feel.
Rule #7. Expectation
IRD. God is at work in the dialogue, and one should be expectant that this work will ultimately bear fruit in one way or another… in the other AND in oneself.
PC. God ultimately is the great healer. As such, recognize that God is the one who is at work and will continue to work long after the conversation is over.
While it is certain that these are not all the rules associated with pastoral conversation (for example, a good 8th rule is that one should listen more and talk less), these 7 still are a good starting place —both in interreligious dialogue, and pastoral conversation.
April Updates
Busy Summer here in Baguio. Here are a few things.
Weekly Schedule:
Sundays: 5:30PM Drug Surrenderer Group A
CPE Supervisor Celia, with Supervisors-in-Training Vo and JM
Tuesdays: CPE Summer Group 1
1PM Drug Surrenderer Group B
Wednesdays: CPE Summer Group 2
Thursdays: CPE Combined Didactic
Calendar of Events:
April 8: Ministry Project at Helping Hands.
April 23: AACPE Pastoral Care Convention, Manila
April 24-25: “DAD” Pastoral Conference at PBTS, Baguio City. Led by Dr. Doug Dickens
May 5-6: PFI Jail Ministry Training Course
June 1: Ministry Project for CSBCM Youth Camp
Pastoral Care Conference Schedule
Current and Upcoming Activities
Sunday Afternoons: Drug Surrenderer Care Team A. Location “A”
Monday Mornings: Jail Counseling. BJMP
Monday Afternoons: CPE Group A
Tuesdays: Community Service Chaplaincy Training
Tuesday Afternoons: Drug Surrenderer Care Team A. Location “B”
Thursdays: Community Service Chaplaincy Training
March 4. Graduation for CPE Group B
March 20. Start of CPE Intensive
April 23-25 PC Seminar with Dr. Doug Dickens
Drug Surrenderer Program
Above is a collage of photos of our Drug Surrender Care Team from Bukal. The above team is our Sunday team of Celia, Les, Huey, and Rica. The person with the blocked out face is one of the those seeking treatment. We don’t really show faces of counselees (without express written consent).
We also have another team the ministers on Tuesdays at another location. This program is still new, and we are still working out some issues… especially coordination between our group, barangay officials, city social welfare, and the those seeking counseling. But we are already getting some good (although early) feedback.
We are using the “Celebrate Recovery” materials as the primary guide, with some additional guidance from Colombo Plan UTS.
Creativity Workshop
David and Cathereina Kinder joined us on Monday, January 30, to lead a Creativity Workshop. It had two parts. Part 1 was Creative Worship, while the other part was Art for pastoral evaluation and healing. We had a great time, and are inspired to use some of the methods in our future ministry work.
Training Seminar, January 30, 2017
Creative Workshop: Let My People Go
Releasing God’s love and freedom through music and art
Join us for a hands-on session on how we can use creative expressions to lead others to experience breakthroughs and walk in greater wholeness.
When: January 30, Monday, 1-6pm
Where: Bukal Life
Schedule
1-2.30pm: Let Freedom Reign
Various stations are arranged around the room during a worship set for participants to encounter the Lord. Followed by Q&A.
“Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
2:30pm-3pm: Break
3-6pm: Let Healing Flow
Participants will be led to create a series of art pieces designed to unlock their emotions and draw them deeper into the heart of God.
“From his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.”
About David & Cathereina Kinder
Radically transformed by the love of God years ago, David has given his life to bringing the Gospel to the most overlooked people of the world. As a worship leader, he takes people into the heart of God where they experience freedom and wholeness. Cathereina has spent almost two decades in the advertising industry. Her love for storytelling and creativity has paved the way for her to bring the message of God’s love to over 30 nations.
Annual Board Meeting 2017
CPSP-Philippines had its annual Board of Trustees meeting on January 14, 2017, at the Munsons residence with 9 in attendance, inclusive of 4 out of the 5 trustees. A few major items from the meetin…
Source: Annual Board Meeting 2017
Pastoral Care Conferences
There are a couple of major Pastoral Care Conferences in Baguio City, in the next few months.
A. April, 2017. Information below:
B. January 2018. The Grimes, Relationship Trainers and Consultants will join the Lide-Walker Bible Conference, at Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary, Baguio City.
These are partnerships between Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary and Bukal Life Care
Bukal Life Care 