Church of St Michael (1890)
24 Church Road, 30300 Ipoh, Perak
T: 05-2540176
F: 05-2415437
email: smcipoh@gmail.com
Parish Priest : Msgr Stephen Liew
Assistant Parish Priest: Rev Anthony Chong
Sat. Sunset Mass : 7.00 pm (English)
Sunday Masses :
8.00 am English
10.00 am Mandarin
5.30 pm English
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Learning to care for the sick, aged and dying |
| Posted by Diocese of Penang (pgdiocese) on May 14 2007 |
IPOH: Committing oneself to pastoral care is humbly allowing God to work through us. He corrects us and teaches us what we ought to know, and how to love others in a Christ-like way.
By esteeming what is valuable in God's sight, namely the sick, the aged and the dying, we are doing what is most pleasing to God by walking with Him in our lives, every day.
Sr Geraldine Tan, of the Canossian Daughters of Charity in Singapore, gave an inspiring fomation session on Pastoral care for the Sick at St Michael's Church.
Those who attended came away enlightened, motivated and deeply grateful to the pint-sized nun for her invaluable sharing of her experiences in pastoral care in Singapore.
They were parishioners from Our Mother of Perpetual Help Church, and St Michael's Church including members of the SMC Padre Pio's group which is a support group for the very sick irrespective of race and religion.
Sr Geraldine's humour and light-hearted presentation made the sessions so enjoyable, that it left the participants wanting to know more so much so, she was kept busy during break time.
There was also group activities such as peeling oranges (picture), or writing with the left hand, to show how patients feel the difficulty of using only one hand.
"Essentially pastoral care is reaching out and going out with an identity of the church and it is very challenging. Even with modern technology now, the personal touch is best." she said.
It was interesting to see how she related pastoral care to passages in the bible.The passage of the Pastoral Journey in LK24:13-35 has many messages for us. From the soft approach of Jesus, the response, and listening, then recognition (bringing the person to God) and proclamation (sharing of testimony).
"The sick are powerful teachers. Look at positive things with the sick. Guilt can imprison us, if we are not careful, so we always ask the Lord to help us. In true love, we always give the best of everything. Before going out, see what is in our hearts. Then say a healing prayer, asking God to touch our heart that is guilty." she said.
The last part touched on the very sick and how to be helping hands for them. The dying process is like a see-saw with mood swings of the patient, so we have to be positive listeners. Respect their dignity, allow the patient to do things his/her own way if he/she is able. Find out his/her timing if you want to visit him/her. Be the friend you have always been.
The need to keep hope alive does not mean hope for healing or cure. Hope takes on a different dimension to that of cure. Involve the family in hospice care. Pastoral carers should refrain from telling the patient about specific food or medicine to take or recommend doctors. Local superstitions in our culture should be set aside. It is also important not to write anything concerning will/ last testament, for a patient.
There is a misconception that suffering is punishment from God. This is untrue, because it contradicts Jesus' healing ministry. Although many have goodwill to make the sick better, permission should always be sought first.
What is our mission as pastoral carers? It is sharing hope, care of the sick, care of the outcast, the poor, for people of other races and religion, and speaking out against injustices.
Having said that, we must always keep in mind the church and the importance of trinity as our source of strength and goal. We should also know the difference between a social and pastoral visit. The purpose of the pastoral visit is to bring the person back to God and this has to be done slowly.
It is best if we are able to go into a deeper part of ourselves, with our hopes fears and prayers. Now where or what is your strength, and focus on it. Reflect with the person these important parts of ourselves. Pastoral visits will show us a way through, and how to handle the situation.?
There are three aspects to pastoral work. Firstly, compassion with a willingness to reach out even if it is difficult (LK 1:39-56). Secondly, hospitality, meaning a welcoming openness to all, to the mystery of self, people, ideas, events, nature and God
Lastly, respect of the dignity of the person, as taught in the beatitudes, Blessed are the gentle for they shall possess the earth (MT5:5). This respect also includes respect of human love, as depicted by the anointing of Jesus by the woman at Bethany (Mt26:6-13}
In a nutshell, one must always remember that human life is sacred (from womb to tomb). Hence one of the important qualities of a pastoral worker is to have humility, to listen to what Jesus is telling and provide effective and positive listening for the person being cared for.
Last changed: May 14 2007 at 12:25 PM
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