Brother, sister, let me serve you

1
Brother, sister, let me serve you

• Faith based volunteering in the pews
• Greg Morgan

2
Volunteering outside the square

• Lorraine Kerr and Deidre Tedmanson
• in
• Australian Journal on Volunteering, (2003) 8/1,
  p.23ff.
• When is volunteering not volunteering?

3
Respondents said

• We are Catholic and its part of our religion
• you can only get what you give out - it's the
  Buddhist way
• you feel you belong to a bigger family - you gain
  a sense of belonging when otherwise you'd be
  isolated

4
Volunteering within my culture

• social concern and a sense of responsibility
• religious and/or spiritual beliefs
• to do something worthwhile for others
• to maintain culture
• to do things that need to be done
• a sense of duty and obligation
• to give something back to the community
• to be useful and active
• to gain skills and experience

5
The church context

• Family and social life
• Parish council, committees
• Mission outreach
• Learning and development
• How has the experience of church changed?

6
Freely given

• Report by Nicky Lee to the Christchurch Cathedral
  Chapter and the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust,
  June 2009
• welcomers info desk staff tour guides
  event stewards sidesmen gardeners room
  guides education programme vols shop
  assistants cafe staff holy dusters and tomb
  cleaners calligraphers

7
Methodist law book

• Lay Worker means and includes any person not a
  Presbyter or Deacon employed for any purpose of
  the Church, and includes all or any full or part
  time staff employed (including unpaid and
  voluntary workers) by any entity responsible to
  Conference.

8
Good practice volunteering

• What now motivates people to build community
  through their church?
• What about the digital space?
• What is is the status of unpaid leaders?
• Volunteer reimbursements?
• Recognition how?
• Local shared ministries in fact, a volunteer
  element?

9
Blended learning options
10
The call to responsibility

• Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
• Religions reach their highest levels when they
  stop worrying about other peoples souls and
  care, instead, for the needs of their bodies
• If we listen carefully enough we will hear the
  voice of God in the human heart telling us that
  there is work to do and that God needs us