In 2008, CareNet, Inc. received a grant from The Duke Endowment to “develop and implement a counseling and professional services program for clergy and congregations to address issues that impact mental health.” From that initial grant support, CareNet now provides wellness opportunities, education, and counseling services to clergy and congregations across the state of North Carolina. During the next 12 months, we will provide approximately 40,000 hours of counseling services to people of faith in our state. We have developed formal and cooperative relationships as faith-integrated behavioral health providers with 5 denominations and countless local congregations across the state.
CareNet is also embedded in the Division of FaithHealth at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and actively connects congregations to the medical center and local hospitals to improve the health of congregants and communities.
This resource is one of the results of our collaborations with The Duke Endowment and FaithHealth. It is our third edition of Congregational Mental Health Literacy and is designed to provide clergy and congregational leaders with resources to use in worship/preaching, education, spiritual practices, and pastoral care in and through congregations.
The foundational scripture, 2 Timothy 1:7, used by our writers for this version align with our Million Acts of Kindness campaign, which began with a large community rally last fall and has been continued through the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools as a way to reduce incidents of bullying among youth and children in our community.
We invite you to read the resources, find creative ways to utilize them in your congregations and communicate with us about the conversations that are created. You can email us through carenet@wakehealth.edu.
Table of Contents
- Educational Resource by Lori Walke
- Pastoral Care by Samuel Stevenson
- Spiritual Practices by Jane Litzinger
- Preaching Resource by Rosa Miranda
Contributors
- Lori Walke is the associate minister of Christian education at Mayflower Congregational UCC in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
- Dr. Samuel Stevenson is the interim pastor of Logan Presbyterian Church in Scotts, North Carolina.
- Jane Litzinger, M.A., B.C.C., is a retired chaplain and ACPE supervisor at Wake Forest University, Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
- Rosa Miranda is the organizing pastor at El Buen Pastor, Iglesia Presbiteriana in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
“God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7
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