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We completed training in April 2016.
We will announce new Core Training dates in the future. If you are interested in taking Core Training, please contact our Registrar. This will help determine the next location.
By Anne Pirie
It started with a conversation.
My friend, Elsie MacDonald, shared her hope of maintaining meaningful connections with seniors who could no longer attend worship. I talked of offering Godly Play for adults. What could be done? We read about Lois Howard’s ministry with elderly persons in a nursing home. A phrase leapt out: “to be a loving, accepting presence to often forgotten people”*. Elsie described aspects of her pastoral visits with seniors: remembering their names, physical touch, speaking tenderly, listening, hugs, giving attention.
Godly Play at the Drew Nursing Home
Hmmm…a loving presence: that is what we wanted to be. Godly Play offered a way.
Getting ready: I wonder how a nursing home is like a parable.
What is Godly Play?
… is a creative and imaginative approach to faith formation and spiritual development
… uses symbols, objects, silence, and words to explore biblical stories and Christian practices
… encourages people to make meaning for themselves
… values process, openness, and discovery
… is based on long-established, tried and tested approaches
… invites participants into stories and encourages them to connect the stories with personal experience
Although it was originally developed as a resource for children, Godly Play is now being used with a wide range of age groups in diverse settings.
Godly Play is one of several variations of the Montessori tradition of religious education; it has been developed in the United States by the Rev. Dr. Jerome Berryman and is now used around the world by many denominations.
Please visit the Godly Play Canada site for more information. Godly Play Canada.
