Bhai Sahib Bhai (Dr) Mohinder Singh with the students at the Forgiveness event
Representatives from various faith traditions came together to develop a ( Level 4) ‘Understanding Chaplaincy from a Faith Perspective’ training course. The collaboration was funded by the Urban Church Fund through the Near Neighbours Programme and delivered by experienced project co-ordinator and tutor, Narinder Kaur.
Participants helping in the formation of the course included those from the Buddhist, Christian, Ras Tafari, Islam and Sikh Dharam (way of life), with an objective to inspire, educate, train and empower others to deliver Chaplaincy from the heart of faith.
The Nishkam Centre became the source for the delivery of the training programme, registering 14 chaplains as students from various faith traditions who took a total of 60 voluntary hours each to complete the course.
Abbas Shah an Islam Chaplain from Clifton Road Mosque said: “What has been unique about this course is that it has provided a perspective from various faiths with genuine respect and enquiry”
Father Julian Sampson (speaker) with Narinder Kaur at St Micheal’s Church
Moqapi Selassie Ras Tafari Heritage Chaplain commented: “So the Level 2 Chaplaincy Course came at the right time. I finished the course and in 2015 I started working as a Ras Tafari Prison Chaplain and completing the Level 4 Course to further enhance my knowledge base and experience”
To enhance the training and better understand Chaplaincy in the 21st Century, Chaplains from Organisations and Faith Communities were invited as speakers. Presentations included insight into community, healthcare, police and prison chaplaincy procedures as well as the latest research in values led approaches.
Students had the opportunity to participate in the ‘Forgiveness Charter Reconciliation’ project to further understand and learn about the toolkit and steps to forgive oneself and others to deepen and build on broken relationships.
The key elements of the course were to understand faith and organisational policy, procedure, guidelines, ethos, ethics, mandatory requirements, equality and diversity. Cultivating dignity and respect, customer care and understanding the individual faith requirements of chaplaincy from the life cycle of conception, birth, childhood, middle age and old age through to the end of life cycle including all faith celebrations and solemnizations.
Prayer and Religious Care is the highlight of chaplaincy which go hand in hand with a listening ear, supportive care and kind words of comfort through faith ethos, values and a ‘culture sensitivity’ practice to serve all of humanity along with customer care. In addi
Students at Central Mosque
tion to develop the skillsets of the chaplaincy students they took part in role plays, communication skills, presentation skills and confidence building and an understanding of ‘practice what we preach’, seeing the image of the Divine in all.
The participants visited three local places of worship: St Michael’s Church, Central Lozells Mosque and Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha Gurudwara all in the Lozell’s and East Handsworth Ward, giving students a better understanding on how religious worship contributes in the healing process of the body, mind and soul. This allowed the participants to have a feel of the spiritual aura around the focal point of each place of worship.
A series of personal statements and evaluations where also captured as project evidence.
Mike Anderson verifying the course work with Narinder Kaur
Mike Anderson the Quality Advisor for Open College Network recently examined the student files and was very pleased with the achievements by the students and level of commitment by the Nishkam Centre.
Dayal Kaur presenting on Sikh Dharam and Sikh Rogi Aasra (chaplaincy)
Nishkam Media Centre 