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Since its founding in 1870, ECS has offered pastoral care in institutions that ‘have not recognized pastors.' This ministry still provides trained clergy and lay volunteers who offer spiritual help and comfort in hospitals, prisons and nursing homes.
Have you ever wondered how you could provide others with pastoral care? Have you wondered where you could volunteer, how you could improve your skills as a caregiver, or to whom you could offer your service?
The ECS Chaplaincy Program trains and supports Episcopal clergy and lay volunteers who provide pastoral care in hospitals, nursing homes, prisons and in congregational settings. Individuals can learn to become more effective pastoral caregivers through basic training courses which ECS offers throughout the year. Technical assistance and additional resources are also available. |
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BASIC TRAINING FOR PASTORAL CARE
Basic Training for Pastoral Care is designed to assist, equip, support and inspire Christians to fulfill the baptismal covenant and the Gospel imperative to be Christ's ministers in the world through prayer, skilled and compassionate listening, godly presence, the use of scripture and the sacraments, and a variety of other practical means. It addresses the pastoral needs of people in a range of settings (e.g., congregation, home, and institutions).
The course includes six two-hour sessions and a practicum over a seven-week period. Learning and growth of understanding and skill are promoted through didactic teaching, direct experience and reection, peer consultation and support, and prayerful discernment of the Church's and one's own vocation to pastoral care ministry. Also featured are the effective use of referrals, other resources, and ongoing supervision, as well as assistance in deployment and gaining further training.
Examples of those who enroll in the course:
- people who want to offer pastoral care more skillfully or in a different venue leaders of hospitality, inreach and outreach committees for their church
- adult advisors to youth groups and church school teachers
- active and prospective Lay Eucharistic Ministers
- active and prospective Deacons and Priests of the Church
- people who deliver altar flowers, meals, or provide telephone support
- those who currently visit people who are confined at home, to hospitals and prisons, or who might feel called to do so
- caring and compassionate Christians who want more skill, satisfaction and support in Christ's ministry for themselves and their congregation or deanery.
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Have you ever wondered how you can provide spiritual comfort to those who need it?
Pastoral Care training from ECS can prepare you for work in hospitals, senior centers, and around your community.
To receive more information on future Pastoral Care training, please contact Caroline Dunleavy at carolined@ecs1870.org or 215.351.1451. |
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