Self-Care in Pastoral Ministry: The Challenge of Personal Experience
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Author
Iwuofor, Phina
Date
2012
Degree
Master of Arts in Pastoral Theology
Abstract
My experiences in life have taught me that it is common practice that pastors and caregivers
rarely take care of themselves in their bid to minister effectively to others. Therefore, 1 chose
this area of my ministerial project because I am seeking a holistic understanding of what and
how we can be truly “humans” and “Christians” in our vocation to life, whether it is a voluntary
ministry or a paid apostolate. It is becoming clear to me that a lot of care givers are so consumed in the love of their ministry that they do an “injustice” to themselves in the sense of neglecting to
stay healthy for the sake of the ministry that they love doing. Christianity is a way of living; it
involves an active life that is all encompassing. When we divorce our lives as Christians in
relation to social, political or economic life, we create a chasm that is not healthy for authentic
living. Jesus insists in John 10.10, “I came that they may have life and have it in full”. That
fullness of life is only possible when we maintain that balance in our lives that leads to
wholeness; that is, when we are able to grow and mature in the community of believers.
So it is this need to nurture that faith and caring through service to others, to seek that growth
through self-care, and to sustain that balance unto wholeness that has motivated me to pursue this
course of study.