Chaplaincy – A Trinitarian Prayer

Kate Bradford
December 2015

The day began for John Stott, (1921 – 2011) Anglican minister and theologian, at 5 a.m. Each day he swung his legs over the side of his bed and started the day in prayer:

Good morning, heavenly Father;
good morning, Lord Jesus;
good morning, Holy Spirit.
Heavenly Father, I worship you as the Creator and Sustainer of the universe.
Lord Jesus, I worship you, Saviour and Lord of the world.
Holy Spirit, I worship you, Sanctifier of the people of God.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Heavenly Father, I pray that I may live this day in your presence and please you more and more.
Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.
Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity, three persons in one God, have mercy upon me. Amen.

For decades, Stott began each day with a version of this Trinitarian prayer.[i]

―◊―◊―◊―

John Stott was a man of prayer, of scholarship and practice. Stott was committed to alleviating physical and emotional pain of temporal loss, and the deeper spiritual pain of eternal lost-ness. His Christian faith was lived out though his head, heart and hands― in thought word and deed.

Stott’s prayer encompasses and frames the whole ministry of Chaplaincy.

He begins with creator and creation; there is nowhere and no one beyond the Heavenly Father’s creation: no prison, no hospital, no war zone, no mental illness, not crisis that can remove someone from God’s concern. There is no heartbeat, no breath, no sunrise, no season. All are provided and sustained by our Heavenly Father.

Yet for all its beauty, creation is a fallen and broken place, a place inhabited by suffering, illness, evil and death. It is a deeply sin-sick world. It was into this world that the Lord Jesus came. His glory hidden, he experienced suffering, brokenness. He was subjected to evil and a suffering, tortuous death.

It was not a pointless death. He lay down his mortality so that he was able to offer a life beyond, eternity, to others. Though the outward body is wasting away, the possibility now exists for the renewing of the inward spirit.

Stott anchored his prayer firmly into the three persons of the Trinity. He had a particular way of viewing reality. In the way he broke it into segments or perspectives, he saw his faith and the world in relationship to the separate ministries of the three persons of the Trinity.

John Frame (also working from a Trinitarian perspective) observed that we could view events from several perspectives: the normative, situational and existential. For example, the normative looks back to the doctrinal elements (i.e. what does God’s word say?). The situational takes account of the particular present events at this time in this place to these people etc. The existential perspective takes account of the subjective experience of those involved in the events.[ii]

Situations can be complex and ever changing in which each person responds differently. Chaplaincy ministry requires the chaplain to be internally thinking and praying trinitarianly, and to be thinking theologically, observing situations and hearing deeply the existential experience of another, in order to take us closer to the truth of an event.

What does this look like on an ordinary day in ordinary language?

A chaplaincy visit is a chat that takes the form of a reflective discussion where the chaplain listens deeply to the sufferer. When I visit, I am listening particularly for points of 'heat' or emotion that might lead the discussion to a deeper level - getting closer to areas which give a clearer idea of the sufferer’s meaning, belonging and significance.

I am also interested as to whether the perceived events function at a more horizontal (i.e. social/ cultural/ emotional) level or whether there is a vertical (i.e. transcendent/ spiritual/ faith) dimension. Further to this I ask the question, “is the presenting vertical dimension leading to consolation or desolation?”

I am also trying to be aware of my own ‘stuff’ so I am also engaging in personal ‘conversation’ with my own feelings, beliefs and 'agendas'.

As I listen deeply to the other (and myself), I work very hard to consciously listen to God.[iii] It is out of this process that I form my theological evaluation, taking into account Biblical norms, the circumstances of the particular situation and the emotional state of the sufferer, and this consciously suggests a suitable course of ministry/care.

As we minister, we abide in the Father’s presence. We pray that our fear and anxiety will be taken away, allowing us to rest in his deep joy and peace, allowing us to carry other’s burdens without being overwhelmed.

None of us is perfect. Chaplaincy is difficult mentally and spiritually. So therefore we pray for patience, that we might be able to sit still and listen and to be able to give concentrated mental energy to the other’s story and needs. Patience to hear the same story over and over if need be. We pray for kindness, gentleness and self-control to care without favour, that we might love both those who are lovely, and the unlovely. We also ask for forgiveness and greater insight into others and ourselves on those occasions when a visit does not go so well.

We pray also for faithfulness, that we might present each person to our Heavenly Father in prayer, that we see their eternal horizons, that we might variously hear their deep concerns and lament with them, hear confession, intercede, make supplications and give thanks and praise to the Lord.[iv]

---

[i] John W. Yates III, ‘Pottering and Prayer’ http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/april2/4.60.html

[ii] John Frame, ‘Primer on Perspectivalism’  http://www.frame-poythress.org/a-primer-on-perspectivalism/

[iii] Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger, Pray without Ceasing: Revitalising Spiritual Care, Eerdmans 2006.  Listening to God, others and self is a theme throughout the book.

[iv] This final list is also drawn from Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger’s book Pray without Ceasing.

Powerful Words

Chaplaincy is Christian ministry in hard places, bringing a Christian voice to the public sphere. Chaplains do this in partnership with Churches which may not have a voice in these places.

Chaplains are equipped with theological and pastoral care training. They are skilled in speaking with people who would not necessarily identify as Christian but find themselves in difficult life circumstances.  They bring Christ’s compassion to people experiencing distress or trauma. In times of anxiety and uncertainty Chaplains offer the message of the hope, peace and forgiveness found in Jesus Christ.

Anglicare Centre for Pastoral Development (ACPD) and CASE magazine recently co-hosted a conference on chaplaincy in the Public Space called 'Powerful Words" convened at New College, The University of New South Wales.   New College has kindly made the sessions available to the public. An outline of the session is listed below together with a llnk to audio files..



     David Pettett             Peter Ellem               Rhys Bezzant                Peter Frith             Kate Bradford

Keynote Address: 'Our Days and God’s Years: Pastoral Care in Times of Change' Dr Rhys Bezzant

 

Seminar 1 ‘A Captive Audience - Christian Ministry to people in prison’  Rev'd David Pettett

Seminar 2 ‘Chaplaincy at the Crossroads’   Rev'd Peter Ellem

Seminar 3 ‘Chaplains in the firing line: The Lindt Café siege’  Rev'd Peter Frith

 

Radio-Play Part 1  ‘The Job Verbatim: What not to say’  Kate Bradford & actors

Seminar 4 ‘Responding to Job’   Kate Bradford

Access to all the sessions is available here: http://www.newcollege.unsw.edu.au/audios/audio-archives

Notes on the International Prison Chaplains' Conference, Sept 2015

By Colin Sheehan.

I was pleasantly surprised by the recent International Prison Chaplains Association (IPCA) Conference held in Sydney, Australia in September 2015 at St Ignatius College, Riverview. The Association holds an international conference only once every five years. Here are my rough notes as I took them.

For me – apart from the pleasure of personal fellowship with Chaplains from far afield - Hong Kong, Germany, Sweden, Congo, New Zealand, New Guinea etc. – there was also good thinking on other matters by two gifted speakers, namely:
Rev. Dr Ulrica Fritzon (ordained minister, Church of Sweden, currently on study leave from placement as Prison Chaplain in Malmo, Sweden; has worked in the Restorative Justice program, Pollsmoor Prison, Cape Town SA, and
Rev Hennie Human (National Director, Spiritual Care, Correctional Services, South Africa).

1. Rev Dr Ulrica led the 90 minute plenary session on Monday morning
   
   Her topic: Restorative justice and reconciliation - (supporting her were two Chaplains from Pollsmoor Prison - Jenni and Jonathan)
   
   Matters covered included – terminologies, such as …
   
   Restitution – the return of something to its original state (e.g. of dignity or of power) made necessary because …
   
   Crime creates irreparable damage; trauma and guilt.
   
   Living and time merely preserves the trauma does nothing to return something towards its original state.
   
   Restorative justice - allows the victim to find from the perpetrator some language to describe the event
   
   Sharing the story and painful experience - victim and perpetrator are benefited ...
   
   See John de Gruchy - reconciliation and restorative justice: the art of R~
   http://www.restorativejustice.org/articlesdb/articles/4385/view?searchterm=reconciliation
   
   Punitive systems - do not recognise the language of trauma or of guilt
   
   Whereas the experience of listening - depending on God and his ways makes reconciliation a possibility
   
   Reconciliation begins by being reconciled in the grace of God
   
   Hope is generated in the face of (and despite) the trauma of extraction (the taking away by force) & of evil
   
   
   Dr Fritzon's session looked in some detail at the Restorative Justice Program run by Chaplaincy in the Pollsmoor Prison
   
   It is: a confronting outspoken and faith based program run over 6 days with a further ten weeks of follow up –
   
   'The program is one that is not natural to the ways of Sweden (where confrontation is avoided)'
   
   The program - 3-4 offenders together with facilitator / supporter
   
   Day 1 intro - damage caused by crime, families share their experience
   
   Day 2 damage caused by crime and reality of the crisis - offenders back ground Victims share their experience
   
   Day 3 core values
   
   Day 4 responsibility accountability and confession
   
   Day 5 repentance forgiveness and reconciliation
   
   Day 6 closing function – with the voluntary involvement of the offender family - a very NB aspect
   
   The follows - Min 10 weeks follow up in preparation for the 'victim-offender dialogue' – with studies in:-

• lying (pathological lying perpetuates the hurting of the victim);
• habit formation (can be both good and bad);
• reconciliation and forgiveness (we will never forgive you ... that's okay - I'm not here for your forgiveness I'm here to listen to you);
• Anger – all given in preparation for the meeting with victim, family and community.
  
  NOTE: at the end - has anything changed? (the victims loss remains) - But they (the offender and the victim) have touched each other in a safe environment and there has been conversation
  
  Why do it if you are an offender?
  
  Participation arises out of a desire 'to become a better person'
  
  Many think they are too hopeless.
  
  They think it is not possible.
  
  Hurt people hurt more people… but the program is premised on the idea that:

• Offenders are not evil - almost always they are very hurt ... it is a very releasing (liberating) truth to discover as an offender that they have responsibility (even when their parents failed them in their parental responsibility).
• They are encouraged to not stop at this painful connection or insight but to go onto take personal responsibility for offending (they don't have responsibility for what their parents failed to do for them)
  
  Confession - gospel –
  
  But there's no common absolution or forgiveness in this program – there is however individual, personal and public confession in the front of other inmates. This is done in preparation for their meeting with the victim(s) and their families – this is where offenders practice personal confession.

Restorative justice (RJ) is 'asymmetrical' – i.e. this is not mediation; this is not aimed at sharing blame. There's none to share.
This understanding helps when approaching the meeting between the victim and the offender –
RJ isn't mediation - there isn't a shared moral inventory (or playing-field) crime is a violation - it should be recognised and the offender must take responsibility for the offence.
Change-focus-paradox – when an offender shifts from self to 'the other' and seeks to answer Qns … as a result of my behaviour

• Who has been hurt?
• What are their needs?
• Whose obligations are these?
  
  To do so the offender must change the focus from ego (me myself and I) ... The paradox is that this shift also does something for the offender
  
  By helping 'the other' he discovers that – he's actually helping himself

• I have been enabled to say I am so sorry - CAPABILITY ACT
• Victim has received admission of responsibility from the offender - CONFIRMATIVE ACT
  
  Truth - in this process - will not be pleasant
  
  But it is far better than glossing over the results and effects of the offending behaviour and pretending that things are okay
• Offenders may fear the confrontation - what the victim might say / what he (as offender) might be expected to say
• RJ is: stop pretending that things are not as bad as they really area real RJ reveals the detestable reality
  
  The address concluded with

1. An analogy - The Spiders web – Dr Ulrica insisted that these truths bear on us as humans in community …
• We humans live together (closest persons are interconnected)
• We are born in relationship and we continue to grow into and out of relationship
• When we violate each other we also violate ourselves.
• The spider mends the broken connections.
• If the broken connections are not mended the spider will die – is that the truth for humanity also?
• Our lives (all lives) are dependent on mending the broken connections.
2. Martin Huber - philosopher theologian argued that an offender must addresses guilt in three spheres OR fail

legal sphere - where he atones for his legal guilt by serving a prison sentence
In front of God
Between you and me
If we imagine that we are guilty only towards ourself ... then we never remove or have guilt 'covered' / 'remedied'

In very simple yet profound terms – this touches the direction of guilt – for the offender who has taken a life …

FOR it was not the Judge's husband that I killed it was her husband that I killed

Confession - expresses a relief – uncovers the guilt shame and sorrow


3. The movie: Railway Man – a true story of POW Eric Lomax who harboured bitterness and hatred towards his wartime captors who cruelly and heartlessly tortured him in captivity – the final reconciliation scene is a moving testimony to the power of reconciliation to make restitution and build genuine lifelong friendship in the place of bitterness, anger and hatred.

4. Then finally a 20 minute Q&A

• An offender should never go into this RJ program with a requirement to get forgiveness.
1. It's about taking responsibility.
2. Some victims may never want to meet the offender

Offenders need to take on responsibility despite what a parent or other person in the family that he grew up in may have done to cause him harm.
Sitting with the family (has its own challenges).

1. Prepare the family - guide them, they aren't used to speaking to each other, the family may not even know whether or not their offending family member was guilty or not.... The Family has opportunity to take their own responsibility.
   
   My own personal take-away? A sense of shame at the NSW Service for taking a recent U-turn towards retributive justice inspired by the raw legitimate pain of victims of serious crime stirred by certain very unhelpful radio shock jocks and newspaper tabloids who promote the theory that violence must be met by violence. Nothing is ever easy. Trust in a system that celebrates the culture of violence and is devoid of hope is a stark contradiction to the benefits espoused at this conference arising from restorative justice. My prayer? – That the NSW Upper House inquiry into current practices for classifying Serious Offenders will reject retributive justice and embrace principles consistent with restoration and reconciliation.
   
   2. Rev. Hennie Human took our second plenary session - Wednesday 23rd September – he also spent 90 minutes with us
   
   His topic: Transformational Correctional Ministry (he deliberately did not use the phrase 'prison ministry' – chaplaincy is not in isolation
   
   He argued that we must challenge and interrogate our Role of spiritual care or chaplaincy in the correctional environments?
   
   Our Relevance?
   
   Our Impact?
   
   Show us? Anecdotes? What statistical data is there in support of our role in the system?
   
   What is our contribution towards rehabilitation?
   
   What value is added for the many services (including Chaplaincy) that work in the system?
   
   We are & must be evaluated against other services (welfare, psychology, education, training, work)
   
   Chaplaincy is subject to Influences (internal and externally) on the environment ... We are not 'stand-alone-people'
   
   e.g. the White paper on the South African correctional service – set goals for the entire service …

• Moved from punitive to rehabilitation
• Individual needs based programs
• Programs to address criminal behaviour
• (Raised the question as to what is to be the Involvement of faith based organisations?)
• Demilitarisation of the system
• Multi-faith demands recognition - making room for others
• Offender rehab path
  
  Dinosaur phenomenon - do we still need you? Must we still have chaplaincy? Or are you dinosaurs?
  
  Has the Chaplain kept track of what is happening in the environment? Are we complaining …
  
  They (the department / the inmates) are not hearing us?
  
  They aren't making room for us? ... We may be denying that we have not been moving with the times
  
  See Diagram ... Exploration in the face of change internally and externally
  
  Perhaps we aren't relevant?
  
  Maybe we do need to change?
  
  We must not stay in the past,
  
  We can't survive on the past,
  
  Offender behaviour has change dramatically since 80's 90's in South Africa
  
  Previously it was easy to get inmates to work – they needed compensation, they needed respite from boredom,
  
  BUT Violence has risen; there is more gangsterism in the community and in the gaol
  
  Has Chaplaincy adapted: does it continue to show its relevance
  
  'People do not resist change but resist to being changed' Peter Senge[1]
  
  Transformation: A process that never stops in chaplaincy; continue good research, listen to needs of the system, - change in
• form
• appearance
• Nature or character.
  
  Correctional ministry transformation is like a grub becoming a chrysalis becoming a butterfly
  
  Concluding remarks  / challenges from Rev Human
  
  1. What are the elements of transformational change?

• Redefine our goal - role of spiritual care
• Redesign our services
• Redefine the role of the church and church (faith) communities in this process
• Impact measurement...
• Monitoring and evaluation process.
• Training of staff
• Care of caregiver
  
  Redefining the role of the chaplain?
  
  Relational - for Identifying with:
  * God;
  * Inmates;
  * Victims;
  * Family of victim and inmate;
  * Correctional services: the officials, Mgt, the systems; the conditions ... With a view to Influencing the Community
  
  2. What is the purpose of correctional ministry - what is the prison chaplain come to do?
  
  Assist with redesigning and adopting positive lifestyles
  
  Restoring relationships
  
  Healing emotional wounds anxiety guilt feelings Low self esteem
  
  Develop ...Hope
  
  Professor Swanepoel - Uni. SA ... What are the spiritual needs? What do they want us to be for them?
  * Moral development
  * Restorative forgiveness programs
  * Self-development programs
  * Family relationships programs
  * Pre-release programs
  
  3. Impact of programs
  
  Quality assurance by correctional services for the programs ... Is it assisting
  
  Measurement instrument
  
  Spiritual care progress report
  
  4. What is the role of the churches and their faith groups (the grace community)?
  
  Forgiveness
  
  Grace
  
  Acceptance
  
  Restoration
  
  Reconciliation
  
  Care
  
  Support
  
  Prevention
  
   
  
  Towards the victim, offender, and their families – it is an integrated ministry
  
  Requiring ongoing Training
  
  Retraining
  
  Facilitator skill development
  
  Spiritual assessment
  
  Report writing
  
  
  
  Quotables:

• No one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens but the lowest ones, (1994) Nelson Mandela, Former President of South Africa
• Aim to influence humane conditions and dignity ... Human rights...
• By Talking, influencing and bringing about change – for example, doing so in such a way that palliative care in a prison ward for the dying looks feels and expresses humanity towards a dying inmate.
  
  
  People will try to tell you that all the great opportunities have been satisfied
  
  In reality the world changes every second blowing new opportunities in all directions including yours - Ken Hakuta[2].

[1] Peter Michael Senge, American systems scientist who is a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management, co-faculty at the New England Complex Systems Institute, and the founder of the Society for Organizational Learning
[2] "Dr. Fad" since 1983, is an American inventor and television personality. Hakuta, as Dr. Fad, was the host of the popular kids invention TV show, The Dr. Fad Show, which ran from 1988 to 1994. The show featured kids' inventions, and promoted creativity and inventiveness in children.

Warp and Weft of Chaplaincy

Kate Bradford
Oct 2015

Warp and weft are weaving terms for threads in fabric production. The warp threads are the longitudinal threads that run the length of a roll of cloth. Weft threads are the latitudinal threads that cross from side to side, passing above and below the long warp threads. Weft is an old English word meaning ‘that which is woven’. The weft threads create patterns by weaving above and below the warp threads.

As a metaphor, warp and weft refers to the entire fabric of something. When chaplains minister they are working with the fabric of another’s life.

In the fabric of people’s lives, the lengthwise warp threads run from eternity to eternity carrying the deep structure of universe and beyond. Christian care aligns with the great themes of scripture and the way in which God is reaching out to people with his message of hope. These long threads carry doctrines, narrative theologies, systematisations of themes and overarching narratives.  

The weft are threads of life woven through the eternal longitudinal threads. These threads move across, in and out, in front and behind of unseen realities that delineate all that is both seen, and unseen. Warp threads are tied to human history. They are situated within culture; language; society; geography; families; worshipping communities; and places of work and recreation. The social sciences provide insights into the objective facts of the warp threads; however, the fields of psychology and spirituality provide us with insights into the subjective experiences of lived realities. 

The Bible itself is a book of warp and weft. It is woven along the eternal threads of the grand themes of salvation and redemption, yet in many places these themes are told through the rich deposits of lived lives ─ situated in history, culture, language and events ─ many of which are told through the personal responses of individuals. The ‘law’ correlates to the warp and the ‘prophets’ and ‘writings’ contain the residue of lives threaded through eternal structures.  The narratives and wisdom writings of Scripture illuminate the weft threads of Israel and the infant church and individual experience as in the Psalms.

As chaplains minister, they help people align their weaving around and along the deep structures of the universe, working deftly with eternal truths, observable objective facts and subjective realities of individual experience and existence.

At the heart of chaplaincy formation and training is the art of working with the weft threads of another’s life, in the God-created reality of the world. The chaplain is listening to God, attuning to the warp threads, which set times, limits and boundaries. They are also listening deeply to the sufferer, to their situational and emotional worlds while being mindful of their own thoughts and reactions.

The chaplain’s only access to knowledge of the warp threads is through revelation from God himself, ultimately in Jesus Christ as revealed in scripture, illuminating the deep structure of the reality we see and responded to, and experienced through a rich personal devotional life embedded in Scripture and prayer.  It is the chaplain’s own understanding of the revealed Biblical themes of creation, fall, sin, brokenness, sacrifice, grace, repentance, forgiveness, redemption, image, light, life, love, hospitality and self-giving service that will chart the course of care and support.

The weft threads are guided by a well-informed understanding of situations. This understanding is gained from a firm grasp of situational understandings from scripture: how do societies, families and relationships work? What does it look like when things are intact, and what is it like when these structure breakdown?

The social sciences of anthropology, geography and sociology can give insight into the external data of a situation of the weft through studies of religious phenomena, cross-cultural studies and family systems theories. The more subjective fields of psychology and spirituality give insight into people’s emotion and experience. Particularly helpful are insights gained from studies such as Bowlby’s attachment theory or Fowler’s stages of faith.

In chaplaincy training, the purpose of writing up and presenting Verbatim case studies is to methodically review actual pastoral practice.

The introduction of the case study catches general sociological information and the conversation captures emotions, feelings and further facts that illuminate the state of the weft. As the conversation unfolds, the sufferer reveals more of themselves and their specific situation or crisis, and the chaplain helps the sufferer weave their weft according to deep eternal truths, concrete realities of the situation and individual emotional responses to which are tied even deeper needs.

In writing up a verbatim the data is evaluated through several lenses. One such lens is commonly known as ‘Spiritual Assessment’, which is both a horizontal and vertical assessment. The horizontal review collects sociological and emotional data, which gives some insight in to the patient’s underlying meaning, belonging/relationships and desires and fears; the vertical review assesses the sufferer’s transcendent faith system, loves and hopes.

Another lens, often referred to as a ‘Theological Reflection’, reviews the situation from the point of view of the chaplain. The first part is a personal assessment which involves an activity of ‘free thought association’ to see what images, feelings, thoughts, scripture verses etc. come to mind, and to check if  biases or prejudices in the chaplain’s thinking emerge, and then review  any hunches or possible ways forward that come to mind.

The second part involves theological assessment which identifies which warp threads or theological themes or issues are defining the sufferer’s case, and then thinking creatively for possible ways forward given the actual situation on view, and the sufferer’s personal experience and resources to weave a new weft pattern in and around the warp threads in place.

The ministry is always a ministry of working warp and weft of fabric that bears God’s image and seeks to see the fabric align with its eternal weaver.

End of Life Management- a Chaplain’s Role within an Holistic Approach

Rev Lindsay Johnstone, Chaplain at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital Sydney

 

Recently I took part in a seminar at Balmain Hospital, on end of life management, organised by Tracy Greer, Sydney Local Health District End of Life Project Officer. Two scenarios were presented and input was provided by a geriatrics medical officer, a nursing unit manager, a palliative care clinical nurse consultant, a social worker and a chaplain (myself).

 

This reflection focuses only on the chaplaincy response. A chaplain might not be aware of the interactions between a patient and the others in the medical team, and in my case this is mostly as it is.

 

The first scenario was to do with a 76 year old male, Bill, who has been offered pastoral care. He says he “never goes to church”, but it wouldn’t hurt to see someone now. His only daughter Barbara also says she “isn’t religious, but it would be good to talk”. I am asked, “Chaplain, what can you do for this family?”

 

1              First, I would enquire if they would like my support as a chaplain. If they would, then how may I help?

I would then listen and run with what they say.

In my innermost being I am at the same time listening spiritually to God, silently praying that he will help me respond appropriately to what they are saying.

 

2              While either or both are talking I shall be making some spiritual assessment as to what they are saying discerning any pastoral or spiritual concerns that they may have. Through brief discussion they may affirm or correct any impression I may share.  Here this (imaginary) circle (which I draw in the air) represents what Bill or Barbara is saying. A second circle represents what I perceive God is saying. It is wherever those circles intersect that I can operate with them.

 

3              I am there to facilitate emotional and spiritual wellness. In that process I shall not try to argue or persuade, but to be guided by how they supervise in the dialogue.

 

4              From what we know, it is possible that Bill may be thinking about eternity and accountability. He may be concerned about how God might view the key performance indicators in his life. In this case he might be in need of reconciliation or peace with God. If this is how Bill sees it all, I shall aim to help him receive spiritually, drawing on my faith understanding which focuses on what Christ has achieved for Bill by dying on the cross.

 

On the other hand, his presenting concern might be about receiving pastoral care to cope with the process of dying, or concern about how his daughter will cope with his passing.

 

Barbara may have spiritual concerns that are different to those of Bill, and I shall aim to listen for these and to respond to them. She may be seeking reassurance.

 

5              Either or both Bill and Barbara might just want me to listen and respond. Either or both may want me to pray aloud, in which case I shall check if there is some specific way in which they want me to pray. Prayer is not something I shall do to manipulate or control.

 

6              In summary – I want to listen, stay with where they want me to go, and have the freedom to take some initiative in making suggestions, whilst staying within the boundaries that they allow.

The second scenario was to do with a 70 year old female, Glenda, who is likely to die in the next week. In this case the need for a chaplain is raised after she dies, with regard to her nurse. When Glenda passes away peacefully, the nurse looking after Glenda is having emotional difficulties looking after other patients who are dying. She tells a colleague that her faith is something that usually helps. I am asked, “What can you do for the nurse and who else can the nurse speak to about bereavement issues?”

                                 

I mention that the local health district has a Bereavement Counselling Centre, and produce a brochure.

When it comes to talking with the nurse:

1              First I would enquire how the nurse would like me to help. The fact that someone else said she might like spiritual help does not necessarily mean that she wants it. She can decide if she want to give me a “contract”. If so, I want to help her to express what is on their mind.

 

2              Meanwhile, I am silently and inwardly asking the Lord to guide our discussion.

 

3              Inwardly make a spiritual assessment. Discussion may lead me to adjust this.

 

It may be that the nurse has new questions about her faith, or perhaps she is traumatised about the processes of the palliative care. She may be wrestling with exhaustion, or inappropriate guilt feelings. “Did I do enough?” “Did I do too much?”  “Did I make the right decisions?” “Am I just worn out by it all?”

 

It seems that faith may, possibly, be her issue and she may feel her faith has let her down. Does the evidence in what happened support her faith? Is faith evidence-based in Christian understanding? Does she now have a crisis over the righteousness of God, or even his existence?

 

4              In summary, listening and sensitive responses will be the key. The use of prayer cannot be presumed in advance, just because she told someone her faith usually helps. It will again depend on how the conversation goes and what she wishes.

Pastoral Care is Fellowship with Christ

David Pettett
July, 2015

In her book on revitalising pastoral care, Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger says that Christ’s presence determines the pastoral conversation.[1] If this is true, Christian pastoral care is never carer focused. Yet the surprising conclusion is that it is also never client focussed. In Christian pastoral care it is not the chaplain who brings an agenda of their own. And yet it is also not the client who sets the direction which the chaplain responds to. It is Christ who sets the agenda and to whom both the chaplain and the client respond.

Consider three scenarios:

1.       The chaplain who brings their own agenda.

Most pastoral care practitioners agree that this is the worst form of pastoral care. This chaplain will approach the unsuspecting client with a clear purpose such as evangelism at one extreme. This chaplain does not feel they have done a good days ‘chaplaining’ unless they have told someone about the wonderful saving work of Christ. At another extreme, and equally inappropriate, is the desire within the chaplain to ‘make the patient feel calm’. This assumes the patient wants to be calm. What if she wants to ball her eyes out in grief or scream at God in anger?

Bringing your own agenda as a chaplain or pastoral carer says more about your own needs than it does about the work of pastoral care. It is something to be avoided but too often observed even in people who have been acting as chaplains for a number of years.

2.       The chaplain who is determined to respond to the patient’s agenda.

Too often in pastoral care this approach is promoted as the proper way for a chaplain to act. This approach encourages the chaplain to listen and reflect. Not a bad idea, and often very helpful for the patient especially when this chaplain is the first person who has bothered to hear and to be a fellow human being who is present. But this style of pastoral care most often stops at this point when it should go further. Click through to this YouTube video to see how frustrating for the patient this approach can be.

3.       The chaplain who follows Christ’s agenda.

This does not mean simply being biblically correct. Yet, again, being biblically correct is not a bad idea. Neither does it mean waiting for a personal, audible voice from Jesus to know what to do next. As Hunsinger styles it, Christ’s mediation reconfigures every human encounter, desire and aspiration. His mediation is effective because Christ himself is present in the pastoral encounter. His presence will be apparent primarily to the chaplain because he or she has entered the pastoral space in prayer, asking that Christ himself be present, asking that Christ will mediate between the chaplain and the patient. Asking that Christ’s wisdom will be to the fore when human wisdom fails. Believing that Christ’s strength will be present when human strength is inadequate. Knowing that Christ’s suffering stands between suffering and the sufferer themselves. In prayer the chaplain entrusts the pastoral encounter to Christ. In this style of pastoral encounter the client will also ultimately become aware of the presence of Christ.

The ministry of Christian pastoral care is a difficult privilege. It goes beyond compassion and empathy. It does more than listen and reflect. It is more than drawing alongside a fellow human being with empathy. It is more than two people in conversation. In Christian pastoral care three people are always present. Three human beings. One of them is truly human in a way the other two have never been and can only ever aspire to be.

If the chaplain tries to be the well trained expert who moves to their own agenda, they will fail. If the chaplain tries to be the empathic listener, responding to the patient’s agenda they, and sometimes the patient, will feel good. But neither of these approaches has deliberately invited Christ into the encounter. In both, there is human interaction and there may be some level of pastoral care, one for the other. It is hard, however, to see how these methodologies can be truly called Christian pastoral care because Christ is not acknowledged.

Hunsinger believes that because psychotherapy has so dominated pastoral care many practitioners see themselves as agents of change. The pastoral care encounter is thought to be part of the treatment plan. Contra this Hunsinger makes the bold statement that ‘Koinonia is the central purpose of Christian pastoral care.’ She believes that being present, listening with care and praying are ends in themselves. They are not a means to see the patient made well.

Christian pastoral care will see the chaplain enter into koinonia firstly with Christ and then with the patient. Christian pastoral care will take place when all three acknowledge each other’s presence. Christian pastoral care will take place when two of the three recognise that the one true human ‘stands between’ themselves and their human experience. This is why the major activity of the chaplain in pastoral care is prayer; to invite, to experience, to respond to and to encounter the fellowship of Christ in the fellowship of human life.

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[1] Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger. Pray without ceasing: Revitalising Pastoral Care. Grand Rapids. Eerdmans. 2006

Distinctives of Paediatric Hospital Chaplaincy

Kate Bradford
June 2015

Paediatric chaplaincy is not for everyone. It meets child-patients and families at times of greatest loses and needs. Nevertheless, for chaplains who have found their vocational home within Paediatric hospitals, few would swap their difficult privilege for any other ministry.

Is paediatric hospital chaplaincy different for any other form of chaplaincy? Are not all chaplains trained to minister to vulnerable people ─ suffering with loss and various major life issues? The first and major difference in paediatric chaplaincy is the differing, contradictory or even competing needs of the child-patient themselves and those needs of the child-patient’s family.

The UK NHS Chaplaincy Guidelines[1] highlight two areas that require specialised focus when working with children. The first area is concerned with the particular spiritual needs of younger people and children. This requires highly skilled and imaginative care. Related to this, and of paramount importance, will be ethical and safeguarding considerations for care in specialist paediatric units. Chaplains working in such areas will require enhanced training tailored to their context.

The second area of particular consideration is the concerns families and friends of younger people and children face which pose particular challenges to faith, belief and spirituality. Chaplains in paediatric settings will need to be equipped to support those facing these challenges and will require support and supervision.

Listed below are some ‘distinctives’ around paediatric chaplaincy:

1.       Children have different spiritual needs to adults; children and adolescents are at different development stages: physically, cognitively, emotionally and spiritually depending on their age and experience of life.

2.       Children have a greater vulnerability and require greater safeguards around their care.

3.        Paediatric chaplains very often visit parents and relatives who have been traumatically impacted by serious illness or disability of their child. In this case chaplains must ask, “Who is the actual patient?”

4.       Decisions are being made by parents, guardians, and medical staff on behalf of patients who cannot speak for themselves.

5.       There is heightened intensity around childhood illness triggering precipitation of anticipatory losses of hopes and dreams of the parents, family and wider community.

6.       Childhood illness, disability and death alter family systems forever, indelibly changing lives of siblings.

7.       When a young life does not reach its potential, there is a widespread belief that this is not fair and there are related issues of injustice, blame, guilt and shame.

8.       Our culture perceives serious childhood illness, disability and death as a ‘reversal of natural order’ and consequently does not cope well with these situations.

9.       There is a responsibility on all practitioners to be aware of self and the way in which their actions affect the plasticity of the family system.

Ministering as a chaplain in a paediatric environment does require an additional skill set, and not all generally trained chaplains will be equipped for ministry in a paediatric setting. The US Pediatric (sic) Chaplains Network has published a list of demonstrated competencies of a paediatric chaplain. [2] 

General competencies for a paediatric chaplain are knowledge, skills and maturity around self-awareness, theology, pastoral care, and leadership ability.

Chaplains in a paediatric setting will often find childhood memories triggered. These may be of the chaplain’s own childhood illnesses or disability but can also have to do with issues experienced second hand such as stillbirth, cot death, cancer, neglect, abuse, accidents or a myriad of other losses of hopes and dreams buried deep in the subconscious. These are psychological issues of transference, projection and countertransference that need to be addressed in order to understand whose needs are really being addressed in the pastoral situation; the child inside the chaplain, or the child in the hospital bed.

It is important that chaplains demonstrate emotional and mental stability. This stability is held together with the ability to relate to and connect with people over a wide range of ages and varieties of people. The chaplain also needs to display a non-anxious compassionate and kind presence in stressful situations, while being aware of, and maintaining clear professional boundaries.

Paediatric illness triggers a cultural outrage about the unfairness of innocent suffering; a God who could have prevented it; a notion that the pain of the loss of a child is pain unbearable, unendurable and to even speak of the possibility is to tempt fate.

A paediatric chaplain needs to have personally a well-integrated faith and practice that incorporates well-developed theological perspectives of suffering, prayer, forgiveness, religious faith, community and hope while remaining respectful of the vulnerability of the patient and family. In addition to working with positive aspects of faith the chaplain needs to be able to recognise issues of perceived absence of God, guilt, shame, blame, punishment, theodicies, and instances of distorted or destructive religious beliefs and practices.  When working with children and adults across a variety of ages, stages, faith and cultures it is important to have a working knowledge of stages of faith in order to communicate in the helpful categories, and to clarity issues around the difference between spirituality and religious faith systems. There needs to great clarity around the difference between responding to the patients’ needs and enquiries and proselytization which employs coercion.

Families are never a theological problem to be solved. They are complex evolving social systems and these systems function according to observed trends and patterns and when we apply spiritual intervention we also tweak the social systems. The maxim ‘to do no harm’ applies in spiritual care too.

A paediatric chaplain needs a good understanding of Family Systems and an acquaintance with Attachment Theory as well as various coping styles and grief models. Skills in active, attentive and reflective listening are equally significant. It is important for the chaplain to have the ability to differentiate the various needs of people in the system: the child-patient, parents, family, medical staff and the wider community.

In a paediatric setting compassion, empathy and kindness need to be accompanied by good leadership ability for time when advocacy is needed within a family system, the hospital setting, or the wider community. The chaplain needs to have the ability to develop training resources for church communities and in-services for the hospital community. Well rounded chaplaincy includes planning in conducting services of blessings as well as baptisms, funerals and memorials.

Chaplains care for child-patients and their families as they search for meaning, belonging and significance in the midst of illness and hospitalization. The chaplain accompanies families across a vast terrain of faith, love and hope, moving from immediate horizons out towards eternal horizons.

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[1] http://healthcarechaplains.org/news/documents/nhs_chaplaincy_guidelines_2014_v5.pdf accessed 28/6/15

[2] These are extensive and can be accessed at http://media.wix.com/ugd/bbe2bd_173f63d2cc994d3fb99895105a2ad943.pdf These competencies fall into four main categories: A. Self-knowledge and Personal maturity. B. Knowledge and Skills in Theology. C. Knowledge and Skills in Pastoral Care. D. Leadership Ability.

 

Roger Williams … Patron Saint of Chaplaincy?

Kate Bradford
Feb 2015

Roger Williams (1603 -1683) was a 17^th Century Puritan reformer who lobbied for the end of religious persecution, freedom of conscience, land rights for First Nation Peoples, and a separating wall between church and state, in order to protect the church. Williams established Rhode Island State as a safe haven for refugees fleeing religious persecution. Williams believed all people, no matter which race, tribe or religion, bore the image of God and expressed God-given difference. Therefore, cross-cultural ministry and proselytization must be neither coercive nor accompanied by penalisation or withdrawal of social goods or services.

Roger Williams lived a life that expressed life-long obedience to God in the same direction.[1] Roger Williams saw no separation between our public and private Christian life. For Williams the whole of life was an expression of faith (or lack thereof) in Christ, and was lived out through every relationship and activity of life.

Why do I wish to nominate a puritan reformer as a patron saint of anything? In addition, I do not really think that RW would approve of my plan!  I do wish, however, to introduce and highlight the extraordinary achievements of someone who single-handedly laid out the relationship for Christian ministry and engagement in the public space (in the English speaking world) four centuries ago and has a great deal to offer chaplaincy.  I simply cannot think of any other historical figure who more deeply ploughed a theological furrow for our chaplaincy plough-disk to follow, which draws us inevitably forward into secular intuitions in the public space.

Williams proposed a radical new paradigm for a working relationship between secular agencies and religious institutions whereby the secular agency (magistrate) has no authority to discipline or judge on matters of religion not violating secular law, and religious leaders had authority over only those who have placed themselves under the authority of the minister. 

What Motivated Roger Williams?

Williams’ radical thinking arose out the religious turmoil Europe was experiencing and had experienced through the previous century following the reformation. In Europe, uniformity of religion was enforced and any religious dissent considered treasonous, leading variously to harassment, oppression, persecution or execution. 

Under Catholic rule, Protestants were persecuted and under Protestant rule Catholics were persecuted.  Minority religious groups such as Jews, Anabaptists, Quakers, followers of witchcraft and heathen were subject to persecution by all religious powers.

In 1630, a group of Anglican Puritans left England for Massachusetts Bay Colony, New England, fleeing from King Charles who brutally crushed all political and religious dissent in England. In New England, far from King Charles, the Puritans planned to establish a ‘New Israel’, a city on a hill, a light to the Gentiles. Massachusetts Bay Colony was to be a theocracy, a colony ruled by God’s laws. Roger Williams emigrated with the Puritans in a second wave arriving in New England in Feb 1631.

Roger Williams, the son of a tailor, had been sponsored by one of England’s finest Jurists for his studies at Cambridge and training for the Anglican ministry. He was appointed chaplain to a prominent English Puritan family.  During his voyage however, Williams had become convinced that the pilgrims should break completely with the Church of England. This led to a conflict and he ended up pastoring a Separatist congregation of like-minded parishioners. He came into more conflict with his leaders over several further matters. Firstly, he was incensed that the pilgrims had taken their land from the Native Indians without purchasing it, and secondly, he believed that true worship could not be forced, or commanded by any church or state, as it is a gift given freely from God.

Both issues threatened the authority of the church. As a result, this led to Williams’ banishment from the colony. He spent the winter of early 1636 in the wilderness of New England. Years later he recounted that during this time he was often without ‘bread or bed’. Williams’ life was spared when he found shelter with the Narragansett Indians, leading to lifelong friendship and mutual respect. Williams acquired the Indian language gaining both insights and appreciation into Indian culture. During this time of persecution, alienation and banishment for expressing both ‘secular’ and ‘religious’ views that differed from the religious establishment, his thoughts crystalized into a new way of thinking about the interface of secular and religious principles.

‘[Williams] was a social creature, a man who made friends easily, yet he was now cast adrift emotionally, mentally and physically. But being unmoored in an entirely new world had one benefit: He began exploring, probing, thinking about what kind of society he wanted to create, for he now had…“the country free before me.”’[2]

Williams was both a 17^th century puritan and a radical Christian thinker. Williams’ key principles were securing religious freedom for all people, where charity and civility replaced persecution. He proposed separation of church and state whereby authority of the government lay with the civil power of the people not the church and religion was voluntary, not compelled. People of all faiths were allowed to worship (or not) as they chose.

Touchstones for Williams’ new paradigm

1.       Piety - Williams was a sincere and pious man who depended on God through prayer and study of the Bible.

2.       Humanity – God created all people. No nation or human church acted as his proxy.

3.       Society – Human society was a collection of civil societies. No society, after the coming of Christ, was the New Israel. The New Israel was the invisible community gathered around Christ whose members were drawn from all nations. This demonstrates Williams’ notion of equality.

4.       Sanctity – Each person bore the image of God. People of all tribes, races, cultures and languages were created and sustained by God. Therefore Williams held abolitionist principles, believing that no person could own another.

5.       Legality – There were legal limits and boundaries placed upon all people, the so-called second tablet of the Law. i.e the prohibition against stealing applied to all people.

6.       Liberty - Liberty of conscience; or freedom in matters of religion - worship cannot be compelled.

7.       Generosity - Proclamation of the Gospel of Grace should not be tied to receiving or withdrawal of civic privileges

8.       Charity – Providence. Rhode Island was a refuge for people fleeing religious persecution.

9.       Civility – Civil society where church and state are separate, civic services extended to all members regardless of religion. Each member of the society seeks the common good.

What do these touchstone issues look like in chaplaincy?

Chaplaincy is a Christian ministry. Faithful chaplaincy ministry rests upon faith in Jesus and the prayer and devotional life of the chaplain. A chaplain does not speak for God but rather creates a space to allow a sufferer to explore issues of a spiritual nature while holding out the possibility of discovering the new Community gathered around Christ.

Chaplaincy should be offered to all suffers as a secular institution has no authority to speak on behalf of an individual in matters of religion. Each individual sufferer is a person for whom Christ died and of infinite value to him. Chaplains are empathically concerned about the whole person - physical, social, cultural, political, emotional, psychological and spiritual, yet the sufferer’s boundaries and wishes regarding a conversation on matters of religion are to be respected - a chaplain must seek permission before pursuing a conversation.

Perhaps a good summary of a ‘Roger Williams style chaplaincy’ might be: pray continually, be present in the world, be prepared to given an answer, seek permission, respond respectfully to people not ideas, keep it personal.  (cf 1 Peter 3:13-18)

Beatification for Roger Williams? … Probably not. Saint? … Definitely!!

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[1] An expression used by Eugen Peterson, who quoted the 19th century German philosopher and poet Friedrich Nietzsche, ‘ The essential thing in 'heaven and earth' is that there should be a long obedience in the same direction; there thereby results, and has always resulted in the long run, something which has made life worth living.’

 

[2] http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/god-government-and-roger-williams-big-idea-6291280/#g8O3sxMPszkhRykU.99