From Revd Dr. Mark Cheetham
Dear Friends,
Pastoral care is so important to the life of the church. The word ‘pastoral’ comes from a Latin word that means ‘of shepherds’. It refers to the life of shepherds grazing flocks in pastures and became extended to refer to life in the countryside as a whole. It is largely because at its heart the word ‘pastoral’ refers to the care of shepherds that it later became used to refer to the way Christian people care for each other.
Jesus often used the image of shepherds in his teaching about how God cares for each person and how they should care for each other. This is why we have a pastoral care system in the church.
I draw your attention to this because on Feb 8th we shall commission a number of people in roles within church life, and the pastoral roles are one of them. If you are relatively new to the church, you might not yet know how much a part of us this work is.
When John Wesley began to preach in the open air wherever ordinary people gathered: in farms, near mines, in marketplaces, he encountered lots of people who were deeply affected by the message he was preaching. For the first time they were hearing that God’s grace and forgiveness were real for them personally. John Wesley soon realised that they needed somewhere to go with this new-found faith.
So, Wesley organised them into small groups which he called classes. They would meet together regularly in order to support each other, to discuss the implications of their faith on their lives, to read scripture and to pray together. Each class would have a class leader who was trained and equipped for their role.
This was a way the growing movement, and eventually church, could ensure that every person connected to the ‘church’ could explore their faith, have someone to be around when help was needed, and help them to develop in their Christian discipleship.
Later many Methodist churches separated the study and fellowship part of the class system from the pastoral care element. They would have house groups that were not necessarily the same group of people as the classes had been. The role of the class leader essentially became that of a pastoral visitor.
At Salisbury Methodist Church (SMC) every member and interested explorer has a pastoral link person. This means that there is a very clear system to provide care for each person. Their role is to keep in touch with all of those assigned to their list, to pray for them and to support them if they have any particular needs.
The pastoral leaders report to the ministers if anyone in their group has a need for a minister to visit. Ministers of course will visit the church community at other times as well.
If you do not know who your pastoral leader is, please contact Monica Gillings in the first instance. If you would like to speak with your pastoral leader, please do contact them.
If you are not sure whether you are listed as a member of the church or not, please speak to one of the team. Those who are members are those who have been confirmed either at SMC or elsewhere and received as members at SMC.
If you have not done that but would like to do so, please contact either Monica or Rev Mark.
Making a Christian commitment is a personal thing, but you become part of a pastoral group before you become a member of the church.
This pastoral system does not bring people together in their groups as the old class system did. So, would you benefit from meeting with others for fellowship, support, study and prayer?
Your pastoral leader might be able to bring some of the members of the group together. Or it may be that you know that other members of the church live quite close to you. Perhaps you can talk to them about meeting on a regular basis, seek out or support and do ask if you need a hand getting going.
So, in the shortest month of the year we pray for, honour and recommit to the work of a lifetime: caring for each other both in an organised way as well as a sometimes more needs-based, short-term way.
Every Blessing
Rev Mark