wfn.org | New PCT committee focuses on clergy’s physical, emotional health

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

>      Taiwan Church News

>3044 Edition

>June 28~July 4, 2010

New PCT committee focuses on clergy’s physical, emotional  health

>Reported by Lin Yi-ying

>Written by Lydia Ma

PCT General Assembly held its first meeting on creating a clergy  care 
committee on June 24,

2010. Led by PCT General Assembly Moderator Rev. Lai Hsien-chang,  committee 
members

first agreed to encourage all PCT pastors to attend Anselm  Gruen’s upcoming 
nationwide tour

scheduled October 18~25 so that pastors would feel refreshed and  strengthened 
physically,

>emotionally, and spiritually.

The committee also decided to ask all presbyteries to offer  counseling 
services to pastors

and distribute surveys among churches to search for counseling  professionals. 
It hoped these

efforts would prove helpful in meeting the emotional and spiritual  needs of 
pastors.

Because an increasing number of pastors have died from diseases  related to 
exhaustion,

depression, and cancer and some have even died from suicide, PCT  passed a 
motion earlier

this year during its 52nd General Assembly Annual Meeting to  create a 
committee devoted to clergy care.

During the committee meeting, members pointed out that pastors  serving in 
churches across

Taiwan usually hide any physical or psychological illnesses they  may 
experience for fear of

tarnishing their church’s reputation or people’s good  impressions of clergy 
members.

As result, many pastors decide against seeking professional help  and 
eventually crumble

under the pressures of pastoring a church and taking care of their  families.

When pastors don’t take extended holidays and hide their  brokenness because 
they don’t

know if their personal problems can be kept confidential, their  health merely 
worsens at a faster rate.

This trend prompted the committee to agree unanimously on the need  to 
establish various

mechanisms to ensure that clergy members can truly get the help  they need.

The committee also discussed closer partnerships with Christian  hospitals such 
as Mackay

Memorial Hospital, Changhua Christian Hospital, and Sinlau  Hospital in 
reaching out to

>pastors in need of clinical counseling.

It also underscored the importance of strengthening Clinical  Pastoral 
Education (CPE) as a

theological formation component in seminaries across Taiwan.

According to reports, Anselm Gruen will hold seminars in Hualien,  Tainan, 
Chiayi, Taitung,

Kaohsiung, Hsinchu, Taipei, and Taichung. The Committee is  encouraging 
everyone to attend

these seminars and will likely engage in more pastoral outreach in  the future 
through

>workshops for clergy members.

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