Joretta L. Marshall - Lay Pastoral Care: A Narrative Approach

Praise for Lay Pastoral Care

In Lay Pastoral Care: A Narrative Approach, Christie Cozad Neuger and Joretta Marshall use the narrative method to offer parish pastors a unique resource for reinvigorating laypeoples participation in congregational pastoral care. Drawing upon the insights of narrative therapy theory and collaborative learning, they create a model for training and overseeing lay caregiver networks that is guaranteed to stimulate and maintain interest and greater participation in the ministry of congregational pastoral care. This approach will be life-giving and sustaining for both care companions and care seekers. As a seminary professor who teaches on lay pastoral care, I believe this book is a must-read.

Raynard D. Smith, associate professor of pastoral care/pastoral theology, New Brunswick Theological Seminary

Joretta Marshall and Christie Cozad Neuger have written a timely book. In consideration of current traumatic experiences and continual grief and loss, they recognize that the work of caring for Gods people cannot be done alone. They write with passion, using the lens of narrative theory and conveying deep understanding of the spiritual significance of community engagement in the care of souls. Consistent with the narrative approach to communal care long used in African American pastoral care, Marshall and Neuger foster new understandings of collaborative learning communities. The authors provide practical tools and rituals that can be used in a variety of congregational and community settings. They recognize that lay spiritual caregiving is at the heart of the church. Partnering is important. Reciprocal involvement with congregational leaders and parishioners is essential. But more important, lay involvement is crucial, and educating and equipping laypersons is vital. This book is indeed neededfor such a time as this.

Beverly R. Wallace, coauthor of African American Grief, associate professor of congregational and community care, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota

After contributing to pastoral care literature over many decades, Marshall and Neuger offer another exciting collaboration. Their new book on narrative lay pastoral care belongs in all pastoral care conversations in seminary classrooms, church lay leader trainings, and communities of faith seeking mutual support in a world that needs healing.

Mindy McGarrah Sharp, associate professor of practical theology and pastoral care, Columbia Theological Seminary, and author of Creating Resistances: Pastoral Care in a Postcolonial World (Brill, 2019) and Misunderstanding Stories: Toward a Postcolonial Pastoral Care (Pickwick, 2013)

In these days of recovery from the unprecedented psychic stress of a global pandemic and the many isolations and adaptations it has required of us all, combined with the spiraling demands for mental health services in a society longing for healing from divisions, the wisdom and experience Marshall and Neuger bring to the conversation about culturally competent and spiritually relevant pastoral care for our time is needed now more than ever. Their reflections speak to our human condition and our need for coherence, connection, and hope.

Deb Patterson, United Church of Christ pastor, member of the Oregon State Senate, and author of The Essential Parish Nurse: ABCs for Congregational Health Ministry (Pilgrim, 2003)

Deeply grounded in the authors experiences developing and nurturing lay pastoral care ministry, Lay Pastoral Care: A Narrative Approach is a must-read book for anyone who is committed to cocreating life-giving networks of care in congregations. The most profound value of this book, which is rich in practical resources and tools, is the clarity of the theological and psychological convictions that situate lay pastoral care in the mission of the church. The text is animated by the authors down-to-earth descriptions of the attitudes and choices that enable diverse expressions of lay pastoral-care networks to grow and thrive. I hope this book will be required reading for all who are responsible to equip the priesthood of all believers for ministries of care in the congregation and in the world.

Kathleen D. (Kadi) Billman, John H. Tietjen Professor of Pastoral Ministry: Pastoral Theology, emerita, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago

Through all the years I have trained laypeople in the skills of pastoral care, this is the training resource Ive been searching for! Rich in narrative theory, yet approachable to anyone wishing to develop their caring abilities, this book promises to transform congregations through a consultative empowerment model of care that relies on the strengths and gifts of every person. It will be a welcomed gift to any community desiring to mobilize its members in skillful, caring response to the many precarities and vulnerabilities we face. I am eager to introduce this book to my own communities!

Cody J. Sanders, American Baptist chaplain to Harvard University and author of A Brief Guide to Ministry with LGBTQIA Youth

A gentle, wise, and generative book. It provides a practical way to nurture and sustain profound connections among congregants and in the broader community. Neuger and Marshall place laypeople at the heart of ministries of care, providing concrete resources for those who value empowering, collaborative relationships. An instant classic.

Duane R. Bidwell, professor of spiritual care and counseling, Claremont School of Theology

J ORETTA L . M ARSHALL

C HRISTIE C OZAD N EUGER

Fortress Press

Minneapolis

LAY PASTORAL CARE

A Narrative Approach

Copyright 2022 Fortress Press, an imprint of 1517 Media. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles and reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Email or write to Permissions, Fortress Press, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1209.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (RSV) are from Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1946, 1952, and 1971 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Cover Design: LUCAS Art & Design, Jenison, MI

Cover Art: Unsplash / Usgs / Daniele Levis Pelusi

Print ISBN: 978-1-5064-7450-2

eBook ISBN: 978-1-5064-7451-9

While the author and 1517 Media have confirmed that all references to website addresses (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing, URLs may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared.

To Win with gratitude for the love, support, and partnership we have shared since we were teenagers and to our children, Dan (Chrissy) and Cathy (Gregg), who have extended our family so beautifully. And to Grace, Thomas, Casey, Gabby, and Kate, who give me such hope for the future. (Christie)

To Joy (my partner), whose love throughout the years has nurtured my spirit and life, and to Dana (my sister), who supported this work by taking care of household details while I focused on writing, editing, and Zoom sessions. (Joretta)