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Pastoral Care
Toolbox
May 2011 Articles
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Judicatory Care of Pastors and Educators
- How Pastors/Educators Care for Self
Pastoral Care Toolbox
These articles are taken monthly from the ToolBox, By Rev. Steve McCutchan. Click on the link to get access to the complete book online and read an introduction from our General Presbyter, Sam Marshall.
Judicatory Care of Pastors/Educators - Resources for Pastors and Congregations with Veterans
The Sabbath as a Time to Breathe
Section VET-4
As we think about ministry to veterans, remember some aspects of the concept of Sabbath. It is important to move beyond associating Sabbath with simply a time to go to church. When you read the story about creation in Genesis 1, you will note that the only non-animate part of creation that God blesses is that of the Sabbath. (Genesis 2:3) The word “to bless” carries with it the meaning of the power to impregnate. We retain some of that meaning when we refer to a birth as a blessed event. The implication for the meaning of the Sabbath is that the practice of Sabbath has the power to create new life. The rhythm of sabbath suggests that we need to interrupt our productivity on a regular basis to catch our breath and in doing so we can generate new life.
The impact of the trauma in some soldier’s lives is tearing life apart. The image supplied in the Genesis 1:2 is that of a formless void in which chaos reigns supreme. Life can’t exist in chaos. So God speaks a word and begins to bring order out of chaos, light out of darkness. When life begins to fall apart and the enemies of chaos seem to surround us, we need a Sabbath experience to enable us to step back from the chaos and listen for a word from God that can bring renewed order to our lives.
The chaos of life is less threatening if we establish a regular rhythm that causes us to step outside of our efforts to accomplish things in life on a regular basis. You will recall that when Jesus was asked how to summarize the law, he focused on the critical nature of relationships — loving God and loving neighbor as our self. While the Puritans in this country focused on the aspect of ceasing work for their understanding of the Sabbath, the Europeans emphasized that it was a time to focus on relationships. Consider the power of stopping on a regular basis to focus on reconnecting with God and neighbor. When chaos is powerful, that may have to happen for a few minutes several times a day.
Providing some specific guidelines for how to practice Sabbath even in small time slots during a day or week might provide some structure that could nurture a person when their life begins to fall apart. Making them aware that they could use the sanctuary as a way to make use of the symbols of faith could assist in this.
How Pastors/Educators Care for Self
Sabbaths and Sanctuaries
Section E-4
Henri Nouwen once described the sanctuary as a valuable place because it was useless. You don’t earn money, plan business strategies, produce products, etc in a sanctuary. When you enter a sanctuary you leave the world behind and focus on your relationships with God and neighbor.
In a sense, a sanctuary of a church might be considered a physical Sabbath. The Sabbath commandment prohibited all those useful and productive activities that we are always engaged in and redirected our focus on God and neighbor. Jesus’ summary of the commandments as love of God and neighbor has this same emphasis.
In the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7, there is a section in which Jesus cautions us against the draining power of anxiety. “Do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’” (6:31).
The nature of ministry is filled with stress and a good measure of anxiety. For our own emotional health, we need to develop strategies in which we interrupt that stress by entering a sanctuary, whether physical or psychological, and refocus ourselves. Even brief Sabbaths of 10 to 20 minutes, practiced on a regular basis can have both a calming and rejuvenating effect on us.
Try a simple experiment. If you have either a watch or an electronic calendar that has an alarm built in, set it for 10:30 and 3:30 every day for a month. When the alarm goes off, enter a brief Sabbath time in which you offer thanks to God for your life and God’s call in your life. If you are with someone when the alarm goes off, simply zone out for a minute for an interior prayer, or if that is impossible, make a note to do that at the first opportunity. If you are not with someone or can excuse yourself, perhaps for a bathroom break, enter the stall and spend 5 minutes alone with God. The objective is not measured in length of time but the regularity of interrupting your day twice to enter a sanctuary that helps you stay in touch with that which is important.
There are many ways that we can care for our emotional health. It can be as simple as making sure that you interrupt the intensity of your work with occasional experiences of fun. That is why a hobby can be so important. For some people keeping a journal can be a way of caring for their emotional life. Exercise can care not only for the body but the emotions as well.
Taking time to engage in the pleasure of relationships can also help our emotional state. God’s statement in Genesis 2:18 that it is not good for a man to be alone speaks to a major truth that transcends though certainly includes the issue of sexuality. Good relationships are critical for our emotional health.
Stop and make a list of the ways that you interrupt the intensity of your life through some type of Sabbath experience. Add to the list other ways that you might try.
The ToolBox
Dear Members of Salem Presbytery:
All of us can support the purposes of the Presbytery Pastoral Care Network http://www.pastoralcarenetwork.org/ (see below) in fostering healthy
congregations, families, and pastors/staff. Our own Salem member, the Rev. Steve McCutchan, has worked with great creativity and commitment to help
produce the “Pastoral Care Toolbox” – A Resource for Presbytery Committees on Ministry and Pastors.
In addition to CoM and Pastors, I think all of us in Salem need to take a long look at the broad and helpful topics it covers (see the comprehensive subjects
in the Table of Contents below). Some of these are in every sense of the word “life-saving” as they relate to the physical, spiritual, and emotional health
of our congregations, pastors, and church staffs.
Take the time to download and print a copy of this for your church personnel committee or session. It will also help you understand how we may better
support the work of our Committee on Ministry as it seeks to nourish health congregations, healthy families, and healthy leadership! Please read and
put the ideas to work for the sake of our mission together….
Sam Marshall, General Presbyter
Toolbox Table of Contents
- Toolbox Resource
- Toolbox Introduction
- Note to Pastors on Combating Isolation
- Self-Care During Disaster Recovery
- Parenting for Pastors
- Family Evaluation Game
- Mayo Clinic Embody Health
- Nurse Line
- Disease Management Program
- Telephone Coaching Program
- Weight Management Program
- Mayo Clinic Tobacco Quitline
- How Well Do You Know?
- What Pastors Give Up
- Positive Evaluation
- Humor and Staff Bonding
- Congregational Sabbatical Experience
- Caring for the Pastor’s Spouse
- Determining Fair Compensation
- Medical Policy for Churches
- Session Guide for Professionals in Crisis
- Moving Beyond Crisis Management
- Grid to Evaluate COM Pastoral Care
- Presbytery Nurture of the Sense of Call
- Creative Triennial Visits
- Presbytery First Call Pastor Program
- First Call Bibliography
- Relationships with Former Congregation
- Presbytery Sabbatical Policy
- Pastoral Care Guide for Financial Assistance
- COM Pastoral Care During Disasters
- COM Combating Isolation
- Spiritual Direction
- Clergy Heartbreak
- A Lunch of Humor
- Presbytery Gift Weekend
- If You Have Never Felt
- Spouse’s Prayer to God
- God’s Call in Retirement
Click here to open the Toolbox
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