Gestalt Pastoral Care Autumn Newsletter 2016 integrating gestalt work, spiritual companioning & healing prayer A Message from Tilda By Rev. Tilda Norberg, Founder I spent the summer at PennHouse, our place in Dingmans Ferry, PA with no particular schedule, with no reason to get up before I was ready, and with no commitments to lead or lecture or listen. I slept and then slept some more and gleefully accepted that I had morphed into a bedbug. I reveled in the extraordinary luxury of being able, for a time, to do exactly what I felt like doing. Here s what I felt like doing: hanging out with my kids and grandkids, cooking a little and eating a little too much, attending my glorious 75 th birthday party organized by GPC friends, walking in the woods, cooling off in the many woodland streams around here, attending a
few concerts, talking with George or being easy together without words, praying and writing in the middle of the night, and playing with Sophie the dog. It was glorious! But last week I felt a shift. I m rested now and have new energy for work. I realized again that I love to work with GPC! Actually, I can t imagine doing anything else. I m humbled and astonished all over again when I m with someone who chooses to explore her depths, and sometimes finds God waiting there. Although mini-sabbaticals are wonderful, I need to be engaged in the ministry of GPC to be who I am. Good Shift Is Happening By Rev. Deb Jameson, Transitional Administrator Just as Tilda wrote about shift happening to her this summer, GPC continues to shift through the layers that come with building a structure to strengthen its work and vision ( Rooted in the healing ministry of Jesus, GPC uses Gestalt perspectives to support persons as they discover and respond to God s vision for their wholeness from GPC mission statement). Many of you have been apart of this shift with your suggestions from the discernment exercise at GPC at 30 Conference in 2014. A Visioning Committee, also the same year, invited Consultant Phil Bergey of Design Group International to walk with them and provide coaching as the beginnings of a new structure began to emerge. Where are we in this great transition? This God-with-us shift? Lots of pieces are being woven together by many dedicated and amazing people and I m blessed to be a part of this as your GPC transitional administrator. So what s been happening? A visioning committee
(currently acting as the Board of Trustees) is faithfully weaving the values and DNA of Gestalt Pastoral Care into a structure that will be true to and supportive of the work of this healing ministry. A nomination committee is preparing a slate of potential nominees to serve on the 2017 Board of Trustees; a bylaws committee is refining the rules for governance; the Grow GPC committee is cultivating donors, planning special events, and ensuring the broader community stays up to date with all things GPC via social media; GPC Trainers are planning a host of opportunities including courses (in person and online), internships, retreats, and trainings; and, an executive committee is tending to financial compliances, coordination of an online office, and oversight of all the important minutia that comes along. The acting Board of Trustees is working diligently to discern the best form of governance for GPC and they realize that it is not a science but an art shaped by the presence and movement of God among us. Dan Hotchkiss captures it in his book Rethinking Board Leadership - when he states leaders must continually balance the conserving function of an (organization) with the expectation of disruptive, change-inducing creativity that comes when individuals peek past the temple veil and catch fresh visions of the Holy. Good shifts are indeed happening. Scholarship Fund Did you know you can receive training in GPC through our scholarship program? Generous donors make it possible for those in need to begin
coursework with GPC faculty. For more information, please visit: www.gestaltpastoralcare.org Take This, All of You By Rhoda S. Glick, GPC Minister Take this, all of you. Not just all of you as in everyone present. No. Today as I hear these words of invitation at mass they speak to me directly. Jesus is inviting me to receive his redeeming, healing love into every part of myself, not just the parts that I may approve of and maybe even be proud of. Rather, Jesus is gently inviting me to open up the hidden and wounded parts of myself and to there receive his transforming love. Nothing, no part of myself needs to be excluded from that Love. Jesus loves every part of me. Even the parts I find difficult to accept and love. In the spirit of christ, the Gestalt Pastoral Care minister gently invites participants to say yes and to open up to where it hurts, to where there might be shame or blame or any type of brokenness. The GPC minister reverently accompanies the participant in the oftentimes painful process of accessing that which is hidden. In so doing we become persona Christi, the Jesus with skin, for the other. Because we have unveiled that which was hidden, because we are actively in the process of receiving the Living Christ into all of us in loving assurance without fear, we can journey with the participant needing support. Today, as we sit with each other, let us above all else hear Jesus invitation to receive his healing love in all of you, into the places that we often tend to hide or deny, specifically all the sins of the larger
pool of humanity of which I am part. And yet, in some way I participate in all this ancestral and communal brokenness. Therefore, when I by faith, love and gratitude receive the body of Christ into my body, this marvelous, mystical, sacrificial Gift of love is healing and transforming for me, my ancestral line and all of humanity. This is an ongoing Process. In Gestalt Pastoral Care we also affirm the importance of the body. We are aware that the body communicates what is happening in the mind, in our ways of thinking and believing about ourselves, others and God. We believe that unresolved emotions are stored in the musculature of the body, not just in the psyche. As we say yes to the healing God yearns to give us, every cell in the physical body is touched. We experience the Living Christ in the body. Gestalt Pastoral Care rests on the belief that God's grace is constantly at work in each person. Although we can't predict just how you will be healed, you can expect to be touched in body, mind, spirit, emotions and social/relational context in a process unique to you alone. GPC is rooted in the Christian ministry of healing, and integrates Gestalt growth work, spiritual companioning and prayer for healing. We are greatly enriched by the wide diversity of theology and worship styles of our participants.
All retreats and training programs of Gestalt Pastoral Care are open and inclusive. NYC Cultivation Event: Happy Birthday, Tilda!
Dear GPC Community, It's back to School time again. What memories that brings... the sense of waiting for the harness of 'getting back into the groove'. Grow GPC is still glowing from the wonderful time we had at the Gala for Tilda's Birthday in July - what an amazing event! Thank you all for the support: your prayers, time, talents and finances - we have used every bit to further the ministry of GPC. We are so excited about what happened that dreams are arising for these kinds of gatherings in our other parts of the country - in the Western PA Community, in Goshen IN, in Virginia, and in other places where GPC is on the move. We have a large and far flung community and we want to connect with all of you. As my Irish granny would have said, "time to get your sturdy walking boots" and get back into the rhythm of this new set of lessons. Let us know what you are thinking, any suggestions or ideas...we are listening, and we need your input! Shalom, Alexandra MacCracken Chair, GROW GPC GROW GPC Team:
Alexandra MacCracken, Chair ( ajm328@me.com ) Susan Vande Kappelle ( susanv.gpc@gmail.com ) George McClain ( georgedmcclain@gmail.com ) Alison Lucabaugh ( alisonslgpc@gmail.com ) Kathryn Dickinson ( whitebirdprods@gmail.com ) GPC Bash -- Better than a Prom By Kathryn Dickinson On Sunday, July 17 about 70 people from around the country came to celebrate Rev. Tilda Norberg s 75th birthday and healing ministry with Gestalt Pastoral Care. The Social Hall at Tilda s alma mater, Union Theological Seminary in New York City, was transformed into a festive, music-filled, laughter-resounding reunion of those who have known and loved Tilda. The celebration included children, grandchildren, GPC community, United Methodist peers, and long-cherished friends. It was heart-warming to see participants from an early Foundational Class reconnect and to witness hugs between Tilda and those she hasn t seen for some time. Grow GPC Chair Alexandra MacCracken began our program with music and a message about GPC s growth. Kathryn Dickinson chronicled a bit of Tilda s history as a child, focusing on three central and influential people in her life -- her Granny Matilda (frontier woman & midwife), her mother Louisa (fiercely independent, a rebel and school teacher) and her father Lawrence (a beloved dad who taught Tilda to love star-gazing ). GPC s Sara Goold, UMC Bishop Jane Middleton, and George (Tilda s husband) shared thoughts, history, and memories of their time with Tilda and GPC. Interspersed with our speakers music was played and sung by Alexandra and Pamela Vining, the Free Spirits (violin and piano), Martha Miller (premiere of new song) and it was a thrill to have Helen Gabrielson, Dau Oppussunggu and Nick Heller join me from Park Slope UMC to sing several songs, including an original I composed in honor of
Tilda -- I Have Seen the Lord. Daughter Shanna Norberg prepared and served a three-tier, beautiful celebration cake. We are thankful for those of you who were not able to be present in person, but were present in spirit with your prayers, your donations, your notes, your encouragement and your love. The best line of the day was when Tilda came to the microphone and in all her glory, clothed in a beautiful royal blue cocktail dress said: I feel like I've finally been asked to go to the prom. Tilda was, on this day, surely the queen of the prom! Aren t we grateful to feel invited into the life and work of Tilda Norberg! gestaltpastoralcare.org Please remember to "Like" us and Share us on Facebook. If you would like to make a Donation to GPC, please visit our website and click on the Donate button. All donations help to ensure the future of this vital ministry.
Upcoming Retreats & Trainings Opening to Grace Retreats: October 13-15 --Opening to Grace, led by Tilda Norberg, Dingman's Ferry, PA. (Registration is open). For more information please contact Tilda at Tildanorberg@yahoo.com October 20-22 --Opening to Grace, led by Tilda Norberg, Vienna, VA (registration is open). For more information please contact Alexandra MacCracken at ajm328@me.com November 17-19 --Opening to Grace, led by Tilda Norberg, Bergton, VA (registration is open). For more information please contact Pat at patearl@aol.com
Foundational Training Class : September 2016 -Foundational Training Group, taught by Tilda Norberg, Dingman's Ferry, PA. *Class is full. Contact TildaNorberg@yahoo.com to be added to the wait list. October 2016 -Foundational Training Group, taught by Wanda Craner, Reading, PA. For more information or to register please contact Wanda at Wandac.gpc@gmail.com. November 2016 - Third year training (advanced class) forming now, taught by Sara Goold. For more details please contact Sara at: Sarag.gpc@gmail.com. (Note class is limited to 8 students). November 2016 -Foundational Training Group, taught by David Janvier, Waynesburg, PA. For more information or to register please contact Dave at david@janviercounseling.com. *In progress-not accepting participants. Foundational Training Group, taught by Betty Voigt, Sycamore, PA.
Where is GPC? Check out these websites of fellow GPC ministers and see who s in your area! Holy Ground Hermitage (Betty Voigt, GPC Minister) - holygroundhermitage.net Sycamore, PA Pathways Retreat Center (Linda Lehman Thomas, GPC Minister)- pathwaysretreat.org Goshen, IN