Pastoral Psychology, Vol. 49, No. 4, 2001
Wounds of Dislocation and the Yearning for Home: Re-Imagining Pastoral Theology Sharon G. Thornton1
This article contributes to current conversations concerning the role pastoral care and theology can play in the renewal of public life. KEY WORDS: pastoral care; healing; theology; public life.
There is a homesickness that is palpable in our life at the beginning of this new century. People are hungry for meaning, a sense of identity and community wellbeing, perhaps with greater intensity than we normally recognize. There is a longing for something old, something new, something familiar and secure that some call “home.” But this idea of home includes more than the idea of our individual households; it also takes account of that sense of place that has a geographical location, historical roots, and community pride and commitment. There is a genuine desire for the renewal of our personal and communal life. The central questions facing pastoral theology today, then, will involve engaging the pervasive issues of dislocation in our personal and common life and seeking new ways to address this deep longing for a homecoming for all people. This means that pastoral theology will become more involved in the renewal of public life as it continues to keep the face of that vulnerable other clearly in mind. In order to do this an increasing number of pastoral theologians are saying that pastoral theology needs to reclaim its faith heritage and ecclesial identity as it seeks new partners of knowledge to address the needs of contemporary people. Seward Hiltner, known to some as the “father” of modern pastoral theology, began to talk about the recovery of theology for pastoral care back in 1958. Since the middle 1970s Don Browning has been insisting that pastoral theology become a more vocal partner in the moral discussions taking place within the church and 1 Sharon G. Thornton is Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology and Pastoral Care at Andover Newton
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