The Institute for the Support of Pastoral Ministries

Providing resources and support to clergy
in parish and specialized ministry settings.

Rev. Dr. Christie Cozad Neuger
Founding Director and the seminary’s
Distinguished Senior Scholar in Pastoral Care

A Consultation Opportunity for Practicing Clergy
in Pastoral Care and Counseling

2009-2010 Offerings

• Pastoral Consultation Groups

Pastoral Care Consultation Groups
The Pastoral Care Consultation Groups are offered for pastors who seek to improve their knowledge and skill in pastoral care and counseling. Each group is limited to eight (8) participants and meets for a four-hour block, once a month for ten months. Each session will engage in collaborative consultation around case studies from the ministries of group members and around focused readings relevant to the work of the group. Meetings will be scheduled to fit the needs of participants. The groups are facilitated by Christie Neuger, a world-renowned leader in the field of pastoral care and counseling.

During the year, periodic one-day courses on special topics such as grief care, couple counseling, narrative theory for pastoral counseling, crisis care, etc., will be offered. The courses, when taken together with participation in a Consultation Group, will enable participants who complete a total of 50 contact hours (30 in case consultation and 20 in the short course) to apply for members in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors as "Pastoral Care Specialists." Courses are priced individually at typical continuing education rates. Click here for more information about the Institute's Special Topics Courses.

The cost of the 10-month Support and Supervision Group is $500 per person. Clergy in the United Church of Christ and the United Methodist Church may be able to obtain scholarship funds from their conference setting or annual conference. This may also apply to ministers in other denominations.

Pastoral Care Consultation Groups are currently full. New groups will be starting in fall 2010. For more information about Pastoral Care Consultation Groups, please contact Christie Neuger by email at cneuger@unitedseminary.edu or call 651.255.6150.

Special Topics Courses

During the year, periodic ½- to 1-day courses on special topics such as grief care, couple counseling, narrative theory for pastoral counseling, crisis care, etc., will be offered. The courses, when taken together with participation in a Consultation Group, will enable participants who complete a total of 50 contact hours (30 in case consultation and 20 in the short courses) to apply for membership in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors as “Pastoral Care Specialists.” Courses are priced individually at typical continuing education rates. They are open to any religious leaders and are not limited to persons enrolled in the Institute.

Mission

The mission of the Institute is to promote continuing growth in pastoral excellence beyond the years of formal theological education by providing resources and support for ministers serving in both parish and specialized settings. The focus will be on deepening reflection on and practice of the arts of ministry.

The Instructor

Christie Cozad Neuger has served as a pastor, chaplain, pastoral counselor, and professor. An ordained United Methodist elder, she received her Master of Divinity from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities and her Ph.D. from Claremont School of Theology.

Over the past 22 years, Christie has been a professor of pastoral counseling at Princeton Theological Seminary, United Theological Seminary, and Brite Divinity School, where she remains a distinguished visiting professor. She is a Diplomate in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and is an active member in the Society for Pastoral Theology. With her appointment as the Institute’s founding director, United also has appointed her as its distinguished senior scholar in pastoral care.

Besides numerous articles and chapters, Christie has published four books, Counseling Women: A Narrative Pastoral Approach; The Arts of Ministry:A Feminist-Womanist Approach (edited); The Care of Men (co-edited with James Poling); and Men’s Work in Preventing Violence Against Women (co-edited with James Poling).

Courses offered in the past

CRISIS CARE, ASSESSMENT, AND REFERRAL
MONDAY, DECEMBER 7
9:00 AM-3:00 PM
Strobel Room - McMillan 209

According to a Gallup poll, clergy are among the most trusted professionals in society. A University of Michigan study found that approximately, 40 % of people, when experiencing significant trouble in their lives seek help from clergy.  Among people who attend religious services, the number is over 50%. Pastors are often the first people to notice that a crisis is brewing for a person or family as subtle signs begin to emerge. In this course we will explore three different kinds of crises - mental illness, addiction, and domestic abuse - and the potential role of the pastor in assessment, crisis intervention, referral, and ongoing supportive care. The course is designed with parish pastors particularly in mind but is also appropriate for chaplains and specialist pastoral counselors. Instructor: Christie Neuger

NARRATIVE THEORY RESOURCES FOR PASTORAL CARE AND COUNSELING  
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 13
9:00 AM-3:00 PM
Strobel Room - McMillan 209

This course focuses on Narrative Counseling theory and the effective and empowering resources it offers to pastoral caregivers. The Narrative Counseling approach, highly influenced by various liberation theories, reflects an attentiveness to both culture and person. It is deeply respectful, relies on a consultative rather than expert model, and is elegant in both its simplicity and thoroughness. It is a theory based on hope and on the foundational reality that human beings are meaning-making at their deepest core and that reality is constructed as we make meaning out of our experience. Narrative theory's efficient and effective qualities, as well as the de-centering of the counselor in the counseling process, make this approach particularly well suited both to parish pastors and to specialist pastoral counselors and chaplains. Instructor: Christie Neuger

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