Fall 2002

The INNERLIFE
A Publication of the
Pastoral Counseling Centers of Tennessee, Inc.

Partners in Caring Since 1985

By James R. Coffman

WHEN THE CRISIS COMES
Pastoral Care and Counseling Week is October 20-27. It
is the religious community’s opportunity to celebrate the
education for and practice of spiritual care through
professional chaplaincy and pastoral counseling. The theme
this year is “Valuing a Growing Spirit.”

No one passes from birth to death without facing
crises and possibly growing through them. Our crises are
multifaceted and are not easily contained by any external
descriptive category. Whether we are physically diseased,
mentally diseased, or relationally diseased, our need is for a
restoration of well-being. Counselees sometimes refer to a
chemical imbalance that presents them with a mood disorder.
There is extraordinary anxiety for some about the next medical
procedure. And there can be immeasurable difficulty when
one is working through a great loss.

But human beings are not easily “treated” without our
understanding that we are more than a sick body, more than a
chronically angry employee, and more than an alienated
spouse. That which gives and sustains life is spirit. In the
Hebrew scripture, one is a “nefesh” of which “ruah” is the
manifestation. That is, the self is animated by the spirit. While
the spirit is associated with breath, the faithful observer
understands that breath is life, and that we can miss life
because of challenges to the body, the mind, relationships, and
numerous other crises. All of us were formed in the divine
image. The spirit animates the body, the spirit animates the
mind, and the spirit animates relationships.

I recently listened to a wonderful couple describe how
their marriage had been brought to life by the awareness of
their long-term emotional distance and a decision to begin to
be honest in their communication with each other. Was it by
chance their journey began in a worship service? Probably not.
They had many concerns that in some ways did not appear to
be “spiritual,” but they understood that there was a unity to life
and this unity was permeated by a spiritual presence. This
opened them to reviewing their relationships to their physical
beings, to others, and to the world. Spirit causes us to consider
the multidimensionality of one’s self-in-relationship. What looks
like many problems may be a core spiritual or relational
problem that has many symptoms.

Chaplains and pastoral counselors are sensitive to
narratives of lives and know that our living in the physical
world has reflections of our living in the spiritual world. When
we understand that God is in the world, we tend to watch for
that which binds life together., that which gives a difficult
event meaning, and that which delivers one beyond the crisis.
Are these “accidents”? Are they events of destiny? The couple
above did not understand their discovery of personal deficit as
an accident. To them their pastoral encounter was perfect
timing for their bereft spirits.

Chaplains, pastoral counselors, and other pastoral
persons are bearing witness of the work of God in a world of
difficult problems and during periods of great crisis. Please
remember them this month and offer a thank you for their
ministries. While God need cause no particular crisis, every
crisis can be an occasion for God’s help in living(ruah). May
God encourage chaplains and pastoral counselors in their good
ministries.

James R. Coffman
Executive Director

CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

OCTOBER
Clergy Appreciation Month

6-12 MENTAL ILLNESS AWARENESS WEEK

7 DEPRESSION SCREENING, CLARKSVILLE CENTER, NOON-2:00

9 DEPRESSION SCREENING, VINE STREET CENTER, 11:00-1:00

10 DEPRESSION SCREENING, BRENTWOOD CENTER, 10:00-2:00

10 NASHVILLE CPE BOARD MEETING, 8:30 A.M.

11 2002 FOUNDERS BANQUET, 6:00 P.M.
Franklin Marriott, Cool Springs
Honorees-Dr. David Garth, Murfreesboro
Mr. Robert E. Parker, Nashville
Special tributes to Mary Jane Bailey and Dr. Liston Mills

17 Board of Directors

22 CPE COMMISSIONING SERVICE, 7:00 P.M., Vine Street Church

20-26 PASTORAL CARE AND COUNSELING WEEK
Theme-Valuing the Growing Spirit
Visit http://www.pastoralcareweek.org for more information on this year’s theme

25-27-AAPC Southeast Region Annual Fall Conference

NOVEMBER
4 Clarksville Advisory Council

13 Franklin Advisory Council

13 CARE IN CONGREGATIONS EVENT, 11:30-1:00
Westminister Presbyterian Church
WHEN AND HOW TO MAKE A REFERRAL -Jon Knight, facilitator - RSVP Required

14 NASHVILLE CPE BOARD MEETING, 8:30 A.M.

19 Murfreesboro Advisory Council

21 Rivergate Advisory Council

22 STUDY GROUP-UNDERSTANDING ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER
Dr. Gilbert Roth, Dan McRight, facilitators
9:00-12:00 Vine Street Center, Reservations Required

DECEMBER
19 BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING, 5:00 P.M.

CPE RESIDENTS 2002-2003

Rev. Jimmy D. Smith is a graduate of American Baptist Bible
College, Johnson C. Smith at Interdenominational Theological
Center in Atlanta. He has studied at Vanderbilt Divinity School
and has an M.A. in Christian Education frim Scarritt College.
Born in Belleview, he resides in Nashville with his wife. He is a
Presbyterian Church USA minister serving a church in
Columbia. He is working at Vanderbilt University Medical
Center.

James Parks, a native of Iowa, is a graduate of Iowa Wesleyan
College with an M. Div. from Asbury Theological Seminary. His
wife is a Deacon in a United Methodist Church in Hermitage
and James is working at McKendree Village Retirement
Community.

Ms. Tamara Broeckelmann-Frattarelli is a second-year M. Div.
Student at Vanderbilt Divinity School. Originally from New
Jersey, she is a graduate of Colgate University and lives with her
husband, a United Methodist pastor in Clarksville. Tamara is
working at Saint Thomas Hospital.

Rev. Mark C. Russell is a Southern Baptist minister and a
graduate of Samford University in Birmingham and
Southwestern Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth. Before coming to
Baptist Hospital, Mark just completed two units of Clinical
Pastoral Education at Saint Francis Hospital in Columbus, GA.
Balahabra Bruce Costain, Ph.D., is a graduate of York University,
Toronto, Canada and completed his Ph.D. in Moral Philosophy
at the University of Toronto. He is an active member of the Jain
community. Bruce is working at Saint Thomas Hospital.

We are delighted with this group of Chaplain Residents of the
Nashville CPE Partnership who began work in September and
will work through August 2003 as our initial Chaplain Residents.
They bring a wide range of diversity and experience as well as
commitment to our program.

CLINICAL PASTORAL THERAPIST
RESIDENTS 2002-2003

Ms. Lee Miller, a native of Texas, is a graduate of Rhodes College and received her M. Div. from Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, VA.

Kennard Murray, M.S.T. is currently serving as the pastor for Seay Hubbard United Methodust Church after having recently retired from the State Government after 30 years of service.
He and his wife Pamela have 4 children.

Ray Edwards, M. Div., is the pastor of the United Community
Church in Waverly, TN. Originally from Massachusetts he and
his wife, Laura, reside happily in Nashville. Ray also serves as a
Chaplain at the VA.

The Extended Unit of Clinical Pastoral Education begins
Monday, January 6, 2003 and continues through Monday, May
26, 2003. Designed for those who cannot study full-time due to
other commitments, it requires a total of 20 hours per week plus
some on-call time. The group will meet for group supervision.
The group meeting time will be set, tentatively Mondays 8:00am
to 12 noon, but there is some flexibility in scheduling visitation
times. This will offer one unit of Clinical Pastoral Education
certified by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education. This
unit is very suitable for pastors, parish nurses, Stephen ministers
and other lay persons interested in further intensive training.
Individual tuition is $500 per unit. If you are interested, please
talk with Dan McRight, Director of the Nashville CPE
Partnership at (615) 383-4138, e-mail:
DanMcRight@PastoralCounselingCtrs.org or check our website
for more information and an application form:
www.PastoralCounselingCtrs.org. Additional information about
ACPE-CPE may be obtained from: www.acpe.edu or
www.seracpe.org. If you are interested, please apply by
November 30, 2003.

We will also be offering an Intensive Summer Unit Monday,
June 2 - August 15, 2003.

Development Doings
The newly renovated Vine Street Center held an Open House, Sunday, September 15, 2002. Many partners and volunteers joined us for a tour and dedication to God for the work provided by the center. Pictured here is one of our loyal volunteers, Karen Dahlinger, who came out to help us greet the guests. We invite you to call and come see the Vine Street Counseling Center located at 100 Vine Court in Nashville. Again, we thank Mary Jane Bailey for her coordination of the renovations made possible by grants from the Memorial Foundation, The HCA Foundation and the Nashville Predators Founsation.

Group Therapy for Clergy
Jim Coffman will begin an open-ended therapy group for clergy and other helping professionals in January 2003. The Group Therapy will be conducted at the Vine Street Center on Tuesday afternoons for 11/2 hours beginning January 7,2003. Group members should contact Dr. Coffman for a telephone interview and information about this therapeutic experience.
Call Jim Coffman at (615) 383-0792.

Care in Congregations Event
Knowing when and how to refer someone who has come to the pastor for help is not always easy. This presentation will focus on the timing, as well as, the process of referring parishioners. There will also be time for theological reflection and open dialogue. Westminister Presbyterian Church in Nashville, will host this event, Navember 13, 11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m. with a light lunch provided. Please call Caroline for reservations @ 615-383-2115.

Archived Issues:
Summer 2004
Winter 2003: Nuturing the Institution
Fall 2002
Winter 2002: Ethics In The Workplace
Fall 2001: Room for Laughter
Spring 2001: Suicide - A Loss of Hope
Winter 2001: Helping a Child Through Loss
Fall 2000: Adolescence and Substance Abuse
Summer 2000: Hospitality, A Context for Care and Healing
Spring 2000: The Cry of Anguish