PASTORAL CARE

A note about our Pastoral Care Program and Pastoral Carers

We have the vision of a church that in reality cares for every member - and visitor - a church that allows no-one to "slip between the floorboards" and the Pastoral Care Program developed and implemented during 2002 - 2003 continues to provide an opportunity to realise this vision.

We believe it is the closest thing we have discovered in terms of obeying as a church Christ's command for us to love one another. Our definition is one of pastoral care as "caring for one another by giving one's self in Christian love to a relationship in times of weakness and in times of strength".

GOALS

• To develop a model of loving care that encompasses every member of the church so that all people within the church are cared for.
  
• To recognise, and expand upon, the gifts of the members of our church in caring for one another.
  
• To care for people entering into the fellowship of the church and to help and support them as they grow to become members of our church family.

A total of 26 people have now been commissioned as Pastoral Carers within our church. They are operating alongside our eight elders to care for you and your brothers and sisters in Christ.

The goal of this program is to establish and build friendships throughout the congregation.

Your Pastoral Carer will make contact with you once every two weeks. This might be a brief phone call or even a conversation at church. On occasions your Pastoral Carer will visit you.

The reason for the contact is to show loving care for you. In the course of the conversation you might be asked how you and your family are. The detail of your response will probably change as your friendship develops over time. But basically the approach is to determine if you have any need that we as a church can meet.

We want to care for you. We want to show selfless Christian love towards you.

At some point your Pastoral Carer will arrange to visit you and your family, or maybe invite your family to their place, or go together on a picnic or an outing.

Please remember that at any time you are encouraged to contact your Pastoral Carer, your Elder of myself as minister about any matter of concern.

If your Pastoral Carer goes away on an extended holiday, or steps down from this position, the elders will arrange for some other qualified person to care for you.

Towards the end of the year the elders will review the program, and we would value any comments you would like to make. It may be that you can see ways in which we can do things even better. Please let us know.

~ William
On behalf of the Session