Beatrice Panne

Lecturer for Pastoral Care

M. Th., M.S.Sc. Counselling, Prof. Cert. Fam. Ther.

Tel: 8416 8423

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Over the past thirty years I have met many people from different faiths: main stream, indigenous, Hindu, Zen, New Age, liberal, evangelical, charismatic, reformed, Lutheran, Baptist ... These encounters have left deep imprints on my spirit, my soul, my sense of self and belonging and they have given me a profound sense of the vastness and diversity of the Church, which is God's home on earth and ours. I am most comfortable understanding God as a communion of divine beings indwelling one another in love calling us and drawing us into participation by receiving and sharing love, forgiveness, compassion and justice to all realms of our life and the whole of creation.

I have been involved in teaching pastoral care for Parkin-Wesley College for the past eleven years. My research interests include spiritual discernment in community (PhD) ; pastoral care for victims of clergy sexual abuse; mastering pastoral conversation skills;  developing depth in faith and theology; growing healthy and thriving faith communities; developing new approaches to caring for aged parents.

Pastoral Care
My approach to teaching pastoral care is undergirded by the belief that it is a ministry of the whole faith community. Gifted or not, each member of the Body of Christ is called to care, to build up one another and to realise God's love and care for all of creation. I notice that many people are moved by the Spirit as individuals and communities to care for people in need: those who experience poverty, mental illness, incarceration, homelessness, addiction and dependency, being cast away, and disregarded by our society. Being with them, hearing their voices, sharing in their suffering, advocating for change, feeding and clothing, loving and comforting them, offering them a family of God and sense of belonging - these are the things pastoral carers are called to do. I find great personal satisfaction and joy sharing in the equipping of those called to this ministry. But I also want to encourage those who see themselves as poor pastoral carers to discover their contribution to this vital ministry. There is so much to learn about the numerous and complex needs that we face in this ministry ... I like to remind faith communities that their pastoral carers need to be sustained in their service by a continuing process of nurture by the whole community.