Pastoral care is not the sole responsibility of the ministers. What can it accomplish and what are its limits? What is permitted and what is not? A module on nac.academy provides some answers.
nac.academy is the e-learning platform of the New Apostolic Church International. It is available in over ten languages and can be accessed by anyone interested. The content is structured in modules that can be completed in approximately 30 to 75 minutes. Texts, audio files, videos, and self-assessments facilitate learning. All materials have been reviewed and approved by the Church’s leaders.
The model of care
“Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ.” The “Pastoral Care” module begins with this quote from Galatians 6: 2. After all: “Pastoral care is a task for the entire congregation,” states the Catechism (CNAC 12.4).
This is where the model for pastoral care is mentioned: Jesus Christ. “Without regard for the person, He turned to sinners and allowed them to feel His love. He listened, helped, comforted, counselled, admonished, strengthened, prayed, and taught.”
Building confidence through dialogue
nac.academy makes it clear that pastoral care creates peace and supports people. Pastoral care focuses on what really matters and encourages people to pray. Pastoral care does not judge; it supports.
A pastoral visit is not a sermon, but a conversation. The point of such a conversation is not to give a lot of explanations, but to arrive at a common view of the situation. To this end, the module identifies both conversation facilitators and conversation disruptors.
It is helpful to ask open questions, to inquire further, to paraphrase or summarise, and to signal understanding and react positively. On the other hand, reproaches, generalisations, downplaying a situation, interrogating, evaluating, or lecturing have no place in such a conversation.
Guidance rather than revealing the future
Care and consideration are required when using the Bible in a pastoral conversation. “The wish for a message from Holy Scripture in a pastoral visit is certainly a respectable tradition that is quite understandable,” the module states. And: “The Bible contains wonderful words of comfort from which we can draw strength and inner peace.”
However: “Opening the Bible to a random passage in a pastoral visit can cause harm.” There is no doubt that God can also grant divine signs. The problem is how human beings interpret them. “A Bible verse should never be understood as the sole sign for or against a decision.”
“The task of the ministers is not to reveal the future to those in their care, but rather to strengthen them in their faith and trust in God,” emphasises Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider, offering an alternative: “Wouldn’t it be better if ministers prepared for the visit by asking God to awaken a Bible verse that could serve as a guide during the pastoral visit?”
Thinking ahead and continuing to learn
The topics mentioned so far are explored in much greater depth on nac.academy. And they account for just three of a total of ten chapters of the module. Other topics include guidelines for ministers, proximity and distance, pastoral care in specific situations of life, pastoral care for the bereaved, and pastoral care for the mentally ill.
The module on pastoral care, which includes texts, audio files, and videos, takes about 55 minutes to complete. The resources on nac.academy are freely accessible, so anyone with an interest is invited to explore and be inspired.
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