'n Verbondgefundeerde paradigma vir die pastorale begeleiding van die egpaar met fertiliteitsuitdagings

[摘要] English: There is a frame larger that the frame infertility puts on a person's life. It is the frame of grace, trust and promise. There is a frame within which a person can praise and worship, obediently yield and trustingly assert him/herself - the frame ofthe covenant. This study wants to renew the inner strength of the person with fertility challenges by calling attention to the special bond between the believer and the Lord - the bond of the covenant. This study wants to help believers rediscover the bond oflove with their fellow covenantmembers and to interweave the story of their life with the story of the covenant through all the ages. The person with fertility challenges is equiped by the pastoral counselor to interpret the story of their life in terms of a covenantal framework. This is done by using five narrative themes found in the paradigm for pastoral care, special focus is placed upon these four elements: Images of God, anthropology, covenant community and covenantal communicator. Theses focus elements assists the pastor and client to colour the narrative themes of the story of his/her life with covenantal contents. The empirical research of this study showed that often for the believer the pastor does not play an important role in coping with their fertility challenge. However, their relationship with the Lord does play in important role. Being an intermediary covenant communicator, the pastor has an effective method to become involved in the lives of people with fertility challenges. Believers will experience that pastoral counseling within a covenantal framework will be of immense worth in coping with the challenges of infertility. The study also refers to other models used in pastoral care to people with fertility challenges. The past decade has seen many pastoral models and basis theories for pastoral care. This study does not want to add yet another particular model, but a paradigm so comprehensive that the good elements in other models can be enriched and put in the broader framework of the covenant. The hermeneutical mode of pastoral care, enriched from a covenantal perspective, is very useful within this paradigm for pastoral care.

[发布机构] University of the Free State