The Church's Healing Ministry. David Atkinson

      The Church’s Healing Ministry

      David Atkinson is a pastoral theologian and ethicist. A research chemist before he was ordained, he taught ethics and psychology of religion at the University of Oxford. His most recent book is Renewing the Face of the Earth: A Theological and Pastoral Response to Climate Change (Canterbury Press, 2008).

      Prior to his retirement he was Bishop of Thetford.

      Also by the same author and available

       from Canterbury Press

      Renewing the Face of the Earth: A Theological and Pastoral Response to Climate Change

      978 1 85311 898 2

      ‘The range of topics to which David Atkinson refers, the sources from which he draws, and the challenge of its practical conclusions, make this book of particular interest and value.’

      Bulletin of the Society of Ordained Scientists

      The Church’s

       Healing Ministry

      Practical and pastoral reflections

      David Atkinson

      © David Atkinson 2011

      First published in 2011 by the Canterbury Press Norwich

       Editorial office

       13–17 Long Lane,

       London, ec1a 9pn, UK

      Canterbury Press is an imprint of Hymns Ancient and Modern Ltd

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       www.scm-canterburypress.co.uk

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       stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted,

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       the publisher, Canterbury Press.

      The Author has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs

       and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the Author of this Work

      Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

      British Library Cataloguing in Publication data

      A catalogue record for this book is available

       from the British Library

      978 1 84825 077 2

      Originated by the Manila Typesetting Company

       Printed and bound in Great Britain by

       CPI Antony Rowe, Chippenham, Wiltshire

      Contents

       1 The Church’s ministry of healing

      What is health?

      Disease, illness and sickness

      A whole person

      Shalom

      Healing in the New Testament

      The healing ministry of Jesus

      Historical sketch

      Pastoral care today

      Proclamation and teaching model

      Nurture model

      Service model

      Therapy model

      Charismatic/Pentecostal model

      Sacramental model

       2 The pain that heals

      The story of Job

      Job’s three friends

      Two interludes

      Is there a suffering that heals?

       3 Emotional health: Christians and counselling

      ‘Christian counselling’?

      Fully alive

      Some history of pastoral care

      The conversation between theology and psychology

      Four models of this relationship

      Pastoral counselling

      Assumptions

      Assumptions about human nature

      Assumptions about values

      Processes of change

      Love casts out fear

      The truth that sets free

      Pastoral counselling in a church context

       4 Standing with the vulnerable: justice and forgiveness

      Justice

      A Christian concept of justice

      Shalom: peace with justice

      Forgiveness

      The meaning of forgiveness

      The tears of God

      Social forgiveness?

      Healing for the Church?

      Justice, forgiveness and the healing ministry

      of the Church

       5 Healing and the kingdom of God

      The story of salvation

      Abraham and Moses

      Prophets

      The New Testament

      The suffering creation and hope

      The kingdom fulfilled

      The Church’s ministry of healing

      Two frequent questions . . .

      Disease, suffering and sin

      Miracles of the kingdom

      Humanity, the priest of creation

      Healing and the Church’s sacramental ministry

      Creation healed

      Penitence

      Ministry of the word

      Intercessory prayer

      Holy Communion

       Index

      For Sue,

      and for Kate and Roger,

      with gratitude

      1

      The Church’s ministry of healing

      The Church’s ministry of healing covers a very wide range of activities, not all compatible with one another. ‘Healing Service at 6.30 p.m. Come and experience a miracle’ says the poster outside a rather shabby corrugated-iron evangelical tabernacle in the inner city. People with back pain come and receive prayer. It is all very informal and rather noisy. One or two go away saying the pain has