Creating a Lay Ministry Team to Care for Those Who Are Grieving at Southside Church of Christ, Dresden, Tennessee

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to create a non-professional "lay-member-team" of Christian caregivers at Southside Church of Christ, Dresden, Tennessee, to help individuals and families process grief after the funeral. Southside was an eleven year old, small rural church in West Tennessee, that had experienced fifty-eight deaths. Unprocessed grief bent the congregation in the direction of becoming a sanctuary church and a survivor church. Death hit this church hard and grief overload was experienced. Something had to be done beyond the Three Cs--cards, cutflowers, and casseroles. A biblical, theological, and pastoral care investigation of death and grief (recovery) led the minister of the congregation to select a Focus Group; to train them; and, to utilize their talents as a lay-team of caregivers to bring healing, closure, and hope to God's people.