Pastoral Care to the Sick and Homebound
Ministry of Care to the Sick and Homebound
St. Ignatius Loyola Parish
2010-2011
The face of each person who suffers is a face of Christ. One of the deepest causes of suffering experienced by those whom sickness or aging afflicts is a sense of isolation from the faith community. Because we are members of the Body of Christ, it is Christ who is present to us in our suffering, particularly through our Ministers of Care.
The Ministers of Care of St. Ignatius Loyola Parish are a sign of the community’s presence, bringing the Sacraments of Eucharist, Reconciliation, and Anointing of the Sick, as well as comfort, presence, and prayer to members who are unable to participate because of illness or aging.
Ministers of Care include laity and the ordained. Laity who are Ministers of Care are trained as Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist and Pastoral Visitors. Ministers of Care are living witnesses that the community of faith has not forgotten the absent sick, the invisible elderly, and the unseen sufferers. Their presence draws them into conscious communion with the whole Body of Christ so that they may experience that as “a community of disciples” no one is alone.
St. Ignatius Loyola Ministry to the Sick and Homebound includes:
• Outreach to Lott Residence and DeWitt Nursing Home
• Pastoral Visiting to Homes
• Liturgy of the Anointing of the Sick
• Prayer Shawl Ministry
Compassionate Care Training
Tuesday evenings: 7:30 to 9:00 PM
October 12th - November 2nd
Meeting Room
These four sessions are designed for laity who desire to be Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist and Pastoral Visitors to the sick and homebound. They will help to deepen the awareness of the “Call to the Ministry to the Sick and Homebound.”
Topics include:
• Minister of the Eucharist
• Pastoral Visiting Skills
• Ministers of the Sick as a Praying Community
• Issues in Pastoral Visiting to the Sick
Ongoing Support of Ministers of Compassionate Care
Monday evenings: 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM
September 27th, January 24th, May 16th
Meeting Room
Three evenings of continuing education on the healing ministry of outreach to the sick and homebound give ministers the opportunity to reflect on their experience and support one another in their ministry.
Liturgy of the Anointing of the Sick
Saturday, October 16th at 12:10 PM
Saturday, February 12th at 12:10 PM
The parish provides two opportunities during the year for those who are ill or elderly to receive the healing strength of the Sacrament of the Sick as a community. These liturgies are designed so that the community can support those members who face the suffering of illness or aging.
All those who are chronically or acutely ill or who are aging are invited to participate.
All parishioners are invited to attend.
Prayer Shawl Ministry
Compassion and the love of knitting or crocheting are combined into a prayerful ministry and spiritual practice which reaches out to those in need of comfort. This ministry was originated in 1998 by Janet Bristow and Victoria Galo, two graduates of the 1997 Women’s Leadership Institute at The Hartford Seminary in Connecticut. It was the result of their experience in the program of applied Feminist Spirituality under the direction of Professor Miriam Therese Winter, MMS.
The ministry is open to anyone who enjoys knitting or crocheting, who is willing to pray for the recipient throughout the creation of the shawl, and who is willing to donate the shawl to the ill, particularly at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
For further information on the prayer shawl ministry please click on http://www.shawlministry.com
Parishioners interested in participating in any of the Ministries of Compassion can contact Sr. Kathryn King at the Parish House (212-288-3588) or email: kingk@stignatiusloyola.org