Accomodation:

Abel Tasman Hotel 169 Willis St, Wellington

Speakers:

Richard Egan and Julia Mendelssohn.

"Ministering to a Spiritually Pluralistic Society"

"This ward is like the United Nations." How often have you heard that said in your hospital, either in reference to the staff or the patients? Our society is increasingly diverse and we chaplains minister in a society which has changed greatly over the past generation and will be very much more diverse by the time of the next. Working in the public hospitals, healing institutions of a secular government, we chaplains need to understand these changes and look at models for working in this changing environment.

The next Healthcare Chaplains' national conference will be held in Wellington from Sunday 31 August through to Thursday 4 September. Our keynote speakers will be Richard Eagan and Julia Mendelssohn. Richard is currently a PhD student working out of the Otago Medical School's General Practice Department and the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine. His long-term interest and research background is in the area of spiritual well-being. He will begin by examining spirituality in the context of the New Zealand health models and Government strategies and will look at the evolution of spirituality and its intersection with, and distinction from, religion.

Julia is currently working as an independent scholar on a comprehensive interdisciplinary re-examination of why we find ourselves in such a state of profound personal and universal despair in spite of our degree of technological advancement. She has a Master's degree in social work and social policy and has worked extensively in both these areas. She will lead a workshop programme which will help us to develop our own "personal character map" and then help us to develop a "generic toolbox" to ensure that we offer an appropriately targeted service within the often very short-term time frame we have as chaplains working with patients.

We will also have a series of Bible Studies conducted by Brother Kieran Fenn who has an M.A. (Hons) and Diplomas in pastoral ministry and teaching and has been teaching Old and New Testament for more than thirty years. Trained in the U.S. and the Philippines Brother Kieran taught for seven years in the Catholic Institute of Theology in Auckland and now teaches and takes courses in the Philippines, Fiji and Rome as well as Wellington. To give a sound biblical undergirding to our work with Richard and Julia, Brother Kieran will also act as Conference chaplain. Daily worship will also be offered in three inner city churches - Saint Mary's Catholic Church, Saint Peter's Anglican Church and Saint John's Presbyterian Church, all of which are within very close walking distance of our meeting and accommodation centres.

But there's more yet. Outings are planned to the Buddhist Centre in Stoke's Valley, the Muslim Centre and Mosque in Kilbirnie and the Jewish Synagogue in the central city. Accommodation has been arranged in one of the central city hotels with single or double rooms available and evening meals will be arranged in groups at some of the various ethnic restaurants in the city. Our sessions will be held at the Saint John's Conference Centre in the city, just opposite the hotel.

This will be a different conference from previous ones. We have planned a good mixture of head, heart and experiential learning in an area of increasing importance to healthcare chaplaincy. We also trust that you will enjoy being part of Wellington's vibrant inner city.

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