A. Keith Ethridge "The art of pastoral conversation depends upon the minister's ability to recognize and appropriately respond to the pastoral opportunities, or 'doors to ministry,' that present themselves in dialogue with parishioners during any given moment.”

-- ABSTRACT OF ARTICLE -- Doors to Ministry In Pastoral Conversations by Chaplain A. Keith Ethridge, M.Div. Verbatim by Chaplain (LCDR) David C. Cromer, USN The art of pastoral visitation or pastoral conversation is one of the most neglected topics in theological education. This is tragically ironic since hardly a day passes in our lives as ministers that we do not find ourselves sitting face-to-face with a hurting soul, praying to find the best way to be helpful. The art of pastoral conversation depends upon the minister's ability to recognize and appropriately respond to the pastoral opportunities, or "doors to ministry," that present themselves in dialogue with parishioners during any given moment in time. Doors to ministry appear and are gone in an instant. Many factors influence a minister's ability to see these "doors to ministry" and to respond in helpful ways that are experienced as pastoral care. More often, the restraining factors or barriers that prevent the minister from moving through these doors to ministry exist within his/her own unconscious self. So, how can we better prepare ourselves to see these doors to ministry in the midst of our pastoral visitation? What process can we use to discover the barriers within our unconscious and transform or convert them from barriers to resources for ministry? It must involve an intensive self-reflective process. It must involve our willingness to look at unresolved issues from our past, particularly our relationships within our family of origin. We must look at our own personal development and family of origin within the larger context of what we know about family systems, human personality development, and social behavior. We must integrate this with what we theologically know about what it means to be created in the image of God; what it means to "be" in this world with other human beings; and what it means to live with law and grace. This article demonstrates this process through the use of a verbatim account of a ministry encounter. Chaplain A. Keith Ethridge is Commandant of Chaplain Education and Development Center for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs Chaplain Service.

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