Mapping with Care: Constructing a Christian Theology of Pastoral Care in a Postcolonial, Interfaith World

Abstract

ABSTRACT How do theological beliefs matter in pastoral care practices? This article introduces students of pastoral care to theological beliefs that have consequences for care practices. The article connects six foundational questions about pastoral care, six Christian doctrines, and six basic pastoral care skills, to argue that careful mapping of theologies of care is important in a postcolonial, interfaith world. When neoliberalism threatens to reduce care to transactional answers, it is important to linger in transformational practices attentive to the searching questions of healing and well-being in a world of suffering.