Multi-faith Competency Training
In Partnership with Bridges of Canada and St. Stephen's University
Index
About the Course
The Multifaith Competency Training is a collaborative effort by Bridges of Canada and St. Stephen's University (SSU). This course is designed to provide chaplains with the essential skills and knowledge to offer inclusive and respectful spiritual care across diverse faith traditions and cultural backgrounds.
Course Overview
Nationwide Impact: The training will be administered to 150 chaplains across Canada, enhancing their ability to offer compassionate and effective spiritual care in diverse settings.
Delivery Platform: The course will be conducted through Google Classroom, ensuring a user-friendly and accessible learning experience. Chaplains will receive all course materials, including video lectures and reading assignments, through this platform.
Course Structure: The training consists of five modules, each requiring approximately 1.5 to 2 hours to complete. Modules include video lectures, supplemental materials, and reflective assignments.
Final Assessment and Evaluation: After completing the modules, participants will undergo a final assessment and a mandatory course evaluation to provide valuable feedback for future course improvements.
Positive Impact
This course aims to:
Equip chaplains with a multifaith perspective, helping them stay true to their own traditions while being skilled in the spiritual care of clients with different beliefs.
Foster trust and respect in typically polarizing situations.
Address the primary emotional and spiritual needs of clients from various backgrounds.
Develop best practices for engaging with clients of diverse worldviews and cultures.
Encourage chaplains to avoid common pitfalls and ask insightful questions to provide effective spiritual care.
Course Content Highlights
Foundations of Multifaith Competency:
An overview of the needs, gaps, and opportunities in chaplaincy and spiritual care among those of other faiths or no faith, and those of sexual minorities.
Lecture: Dr. Bradley Jersak
Readings: Article by Dr. Safi Kaskas (Muslim scholar)
Anchored with Wings:
Balancing personal faith convictions while accompanying others on their spiritual journeys.
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Lecture: Dr. Peter Fitch
Readings: Passages by Thich Nhat Hanh (Buddhist Master)
Video: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “The Danger of a Single Story”
Brave Space:
Honoring diversity and holding differences with respect.
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Lecture: Dr. Bradley Jersak
Readings: Valarie Kaur (Sikh activist), “Wise Woman Ceremony”; excerpt from Douglas Coupland, Life After God
Video: Valarie Kaur, “Three Lessons of Revolutionary Love.”
Bridges of Compassion:
Learning from those who see the world differently and enhancing fruitful conversations.
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Lecture: Dr. Peter Fitch
Readings: One article by Dr. Fitch and one poem by Rumi (Sufi poet)
Video: Bryan Stevenson, “We Need to Talk About an Injustice”
Spiritual Care for Sexual Minorities: Providing sensitive and inclusive care for clients from the LGBTQ2S+ community.
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Interviews: Stel Raven and others from the queer community
Focus Questions: Emotional grief, daily challenges, spiritual needs, and effective accompanying techniques for LGBQT2S+ clients
Meet the Professors
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Bradley Jersak, PhD: President of St. Stephen's University.
Peter Fitch, DMin: Associate Dean of Theology & Culture at SSU.
For more information on our Multifaith Competency Training, please contact:
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Stephen Lewis: Director of Community Affairs and Public Relations at stephen.lewis@bridgesofcanada.com