Category Archives: Uncategorized

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.

Drug Surrenderer Program

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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.

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:

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B.  January 2018. The Grimes, Relationship Trainers and Consultants will join the Lide-Walker Bible Conference, at Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary, Baguio City.

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These are partnerships between Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary and Bukal Life Care

 

Vulnerability: Letting Others See What Is Hard to Look at Ourselves

I recently wrote about Steve Saint’s travels with Mincaye, when Steve—the son of martyred missionary Nate Saint—was logging thousands of miles on his way to speak to thousands. But that was b…

Source: Vulnerability: Letting Others See What Is Hard to Look at Ourselves

Congratulations

Four Clinical Pastoral Education Supervisors-in-Training (SIT) with CPSP-Philippines have, with the agreement of the General Secretary of CPSP, been promoted to “Diplomate in Supervision of Clinical Pastoral Education/Training” (Or “CPE Supervisor”). All four have been active in Clinical Pastoral Education as both trainees and SITs for years– two of them for decades. Of these four, three of them have a direct relationship with Bukal Life Care. The fourth, Dr. Cal Sodoy, a fellow colleague through CPSP-Philippines and head of Clinical Pastoral and Spiritual Care Training Center, we congratulate as well for this accomplishment.

The three are Ms. Celia Munson, Dr. Paul Tabon, and Dr. Sim Dang-Awan Jr.  Celia was a founding member of Bukal Life Care and CPSP-Philippines, and an SIT since 2011. Doc Paul, a founding member of CPSP-Philippines, presently serves as its Board President. Both Celia and Paul are now CPE supervisors with Bukal Life Care. Doc Sim is the founder of New Heights Coaching and Development Center, and is presently serving as the head chaplain at Mary Johnston Hospital in Manila. Doc Sim also is on the Board of Trustees of Bukal Life Care.

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(From Left to Right:  Dr. Cal Sodoy, Dr. Sim Dang-Awan, Dr. Paul Tabon, Ms. Celia Munson)

 

 

Stuff for Sale

We do have a few items for sale at our office:

  1.  Book.  Nine Clinical Cases: The Soul of Pastoral Care and Counseling. by Raymond Lawrence. We have several copies of this book from Dr. Lawrence, General Secretary of the College of Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy. Cost:  P200.
  2. Book.  The Art of Pastoral Care. by Bob and Celia Munson. We also have several copies of this book, written by staff of Bukal Life Care.  Cost:  P200
  3. Shirts.  We have T-shirts available in lavender or orange with the Bukal Life Care logo on it. Cost: P150.

The normal online cost for the above books is about $9 or $10, so this is quite a savings. The shirts are unavailable online, but they are still a good savings regardless.

 

Hospital Ministry Orientation

Held Hospital Ministry Orientation at Christ Life Church on July 2nd… with 10 trainees. It was led by Bob, Celia, and German. Part 2 will be on July 9th, joined also by the trainees from Ministry Heartlink.

FAQs and Clarifications

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We have been getting an increase number of inquiries  regarding what we do, and what we don’t do.  Here are a few that may be of help

—Do we provide Residential service treatments?

No.  We do have some clients who come and stay for a few days. We are on the beautiful campus of Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary, and they have nice, reasonably priced rooms for a short visit. However, that is to be arranged with the seminary, and we do not provide care services outside of the normal pastoral care sessions.  For example, for those who need 24 hour care in the treatment of addiction, we lack the facilities, personnel, and program to address this.

—Do we treat major psychoemotional problems?

Generally no. It depends on what one considers “major.” However, we are trained in historical pastoral care and clinical pastoral care. Psychotherapy, as practiced by psychologists and psychiatrists to treat major DSM-V problems, we leave to these experts. Generally, we hold to the 4-fold model of historical pastoral care as defined by Clebsch & Jaekle. We involve ourselves in:

  •       Sustaining those who are suffering grief and loss
  •        Healing (especially psychospiritually) those who are hurting
  •       Guiding, eductively, those who have lost their way
  •       Reconciling those who are relationally disconnected

<Note:  It is true that we do periodically evaluate clients and refer them to professional psychotherapy specialists. On occasion we assist the psychologist in the treatment… but that is not normally the case.>

—Do we do “Biblical Counseling”?

It depends what one means by this. If one means nouthetic counseling, or the counseling in the tradition of Jay Adams, the answer is No. We draw heavily from theological insights, but are comfortable to intentionally accept insight from psychological insights. As such, our care is more in line with the following “schools” of care:

  • Integrationist view of psychology and theology
  • Christian Counseling movement
  • Historical Pastoral Care
  • Clinical Pastoral Care Movement

That being said, some problems point to treatments that are more in line with the Biblical Counseling Movement, and we will use those methods (such as for unresolved sin, and issues regarding grace and forgiveness) when appropriate.

—Do we do “Delivierance Ministry”?

While having a number of meanings, this commonly relates to issues regarding demon oppression and seeking miraculous healings of various sorts.Acknowledging the various controversies in this particular form of ministry, we choose generally to leave this form of care to those who feel they are gifted in it.

However, we certainly recognize the power of God as the “Great Physician” and will commonly join the client in prayer, if that is his or her desire.

—Are we Counselors or Psychotherapists? 

In terms of Philippine Law, the answer is No.  While we work with counselors and psychotherapists (as defined by the Professional Regulatory Commission of the Philippines), as a group, our care is pastoral care, also known by some as spiritual care. Our certification for our care providers is via CPSP, an international pastoral care, pastoral supervision, and clinical chaplaincy certifier.  Their website is HERE

<We do at times have team members who are also certified by the PRC in guidance and counseling, but our focus is in pastoral care.>

—Do we charge for services?

We do not charge for pastoral care services. Donations are certainly welcomed, but they are neither expected, nor encouraged. We do charge for some trainings, especially Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) and Clinical Pastoral Orientation (CPO).

—What are our Office Hours?

To be honest, we don’t hold consistent office hours. We are a group of volunteers. Our office is commonly open during certain periods of time— especially during CPE training periods, but still prefer to be contacted to arrange an appointment. If you just decide to drop in, there is a good chance our doors will be closed, or if open, we may be busy with training or counseling sessions.