Encouraging mission and ministry across the diocese of York Unit 2: Pastoral Care Session 7 ~ Parish Visiting Tutor’s Notes Outline & timings Refreshments from 6.45pm Welcome and notices Our Purpose Who do we visit? Parish Visiting Scheme Structure 7pm prompt start . 2 minutes 30 minutes xx minutes Break approx. 8.15pm (cold drinks for speed) 10 minutes max. Supervision issues The Visit Final Prayer xx minutes xx minutes 5 minutes : Please note: Most of this session does not currently have timings (to be addressed shortly). It is advised that the break is kept at 8.15pm. What you will need: Flipchart, paper & pens Blu-tack Bible Our Purpose (2 minutes) To consider the likely ingredients for a structured parish visiting scheme To explore the practicalities of the visit Who do we visit? (30 Minutes) Using a flipchart compile a list of visiting that currently takes place in parishes represented, see how far it is possible to distinguish between ‘pastoral’ and ‘evangelistic’: Sick, hospital, community, occasional office especially baptism, lapsed, absentees, house bound, children’s organization, Eucharistic, prayer visiting, new incomer visiting etc… Leave discussion of how these types of visiting might vary to the next exercise. Find out what is familiar to the group and what may be new. Use a large sheet with concentric circles (as in the Participant’s notes) to describe the various groups within a church and how the circles vary from parish to parish. Add to the diagram the different groups (from those just discussed) that require visiting within the parishes represented, noting where they focus on York Diocese RPA Scheme Unit 2 Pastoral Session 7 – Parish Visiting Page 1 Encouraging mission and ministry across the diocese of York the concentric circles. Note other groups that might be considered as well. Compare and contrast the different styles and emphases especially between ‘pastoral’ and ‘evangelistic’. 1. Leadership – clergy, Readers, RPA’s 2. Core members – deeply committed, often very busy in the church, usually regarded as leaders in the church. The irreducible minimum of the Core is the formal leadership of the church, the PCC or DCC or other leadership body. 3. Congregation – regular committed attenders who are involved in worship, participate in church activities like house groups, and may have a formal role outside of the PCC. 4. Fringe – people who have just started coming to church or who come occasionally, maybe through links with their children’s activities or involvement in church community events. The fringe members are those who worship with varying degrees of regularity but are not necessarily members of the church. Alternatively or as well as… ask members to map the different kinds of parish visiting on a diagram of their own. Discuss the different aims and objectives of the different types of visiting. Parish Visiting Scheme Structure Discuss each of the following aspects of setting up a structured pastoral visiting scheme. Some participants may already be part of such an approach or not. Either set this out as an exercise for small groups by asking them to draw up a series of proposals to present to a PCC exploring such a scheme, OR discuss from the flipchart using the following as 1. Aim. The importance of knowing your ‘target’ group and their likely profile. ‘Who are we visiting? 2. Purpose: The importance of knowing what motivates the visiting team and its members. ‘Why are we visiting?’ ‘What is our hoped for ‘outcome?’ for: a. the scheme b. each visit. 3. Visiting Team Members: The importance of having suitable visitors, what criteria for a visitor would the team have? What life experience and/or training should be expected? Is there to be a team ‘ethos’ shared by its members? How does the team come to understand and own the aims and purposes? What training have the visitors had and what do they need? Key principles such as confidentiality and offering prayer may be examples of ‘ethos’. 4. Organization: The importance of good organization including clear lines of leadership and accountability. ‘Who is visiting who and how often?’ A shape for the way the team operates could be agreed in terms of frequency of visit, respecting boundaries and either individual or collective feedback. Should someone keep a record in case of visitors moving on, going away etc? What is the role of the priest? 5. Supervision: The importance of collective feedback to ensure good practice, organization and wellbeing of the visitors. The need to agree frequency of sharing together about how the visiting is going, what practicalities need to be known by the priest/rest of team. Is an outside person a good and practical idea for facilitating the York Diocese RPA Scheme Unit 2 Pastoral Session 7 – Parish Visiting Page 2 Encouraging mission and ministry across the diocese of York team’s supervision? There needs to be recognition of the personal support visitors might need given the pressures of keeping confidentiality, of visiting and listening, of needing pastoral care and support themselves (receivers and well as givers). Supervision also monitors potential over involvement and the maintenance of the ‘ethos’. Also to maintain the parish perspective in what can become an overly personal ministry. Supervision Issues It is rare of parish visiting schemes to give supervision a proper role. Why?! What benefits should it bring? Discuss using flipchart but be aware some of these issues may have been discussed already in this session or session 6. 1. Keeps us humble and focused on the aims. 2. Situations that are hard to handle: It is important to have a culture of talking and praying about the cases each pastoral visitor may have. Situations may get difficult for a range of reasons: beyond the visitor’s experience or expertise; beyond the visitor’s emotional strength or resources to handle; over dependence; difficulties in the visitors own life etc. Make a list and discuss how to address such circumstances. 3. Boundaries: physical (male/female, lifting, housekeeping, personal hygiene….) ; emotional (too close to visitor’s own difficulties, too distressing, repetitive; spiritual (respecting different views, aim of visiting and what it’s not); time (self-discipline, saying ‘no’); family (keeping own life separate and not consumed by needy people); friendship (as family)…. 4. Role of Priest: Needs discussing what is appropriate for the priest to do or have handed on, and what is not. Will depend on circumstances of priest time available, gifts etc. 5. Confidentiality: i.e. working out what issues arise from this; and how to keep the confidence of the people being visited. Having a skilled supervisor visiting the team from time to time may be a benefit. The visit. Depending on how you have organized this session so far consider either giving small groups an exercise to consider a typical visit and all the practical issues of good practice and avoiding things going wrong; OR discuss using the flipchart! The way you do the small things says a great deal about the big things! 1. Preparation: prayer, time and timing, transport, weather, knowing the person you are visiting their daily routine and their environment, 2. Time: when to call and when not to call, being aware of other regular visitors e.g. family, home helps, daily routine and habits of the person to be visited especially with serious medical conditions, avoiding favourite TV slots! 3. On spec or by arrangement? 'What are the merits of each?’ 4. The conversation/listening accepting hospitality, having conversational ‘props’, discerning when listening method is appropriate. York Diocese RPA Scheme Unit 2 Pastoral Session 7 – Parish Visiting Page 3 Encouraging mission and ministry across the diocese of York 5. Use of prayer is there a team ethos? Ex tempore or pre-prepared? General, blessing type or healing prayer? The possible effects of prayer e.g. for the bereaved may require time afterwards. Listening, reflecting back in prayer. 6. Physical practicalities especially for Eucharistic visiting which requires certain furniture and positioning. Dealing with pets, hygiene issues, not being a nurse (don’t move or lift a person). 7. Having an exit strategy! York Diocese RPA Scheme Unit 2 Pastoral Session 7 – Parish Visiting Page 4