Journeying on the Margins

Abstract

Abstract This article is written from the perspective of marginal people and places in the inner city of Pretoria, South Africa. Using a narrative-contextual approach to pastoral care and counselling, this chapter describes the socio-cultural context of ministry, and the story of a changing inner city community. The stories of the authors, their story of journeying with Siena-a young woman at-risk, and the emerging story of an ecumenical pastoral community, defining itself in relation to people and situations on the margins, form the soil for reflection. Based on the different but overlapping stories, the nature and identity of pastoral care and counselling are described within a postmodern paradigm, proposing the pastoral worker as a facilitator, companion, or co-participant in a pastoral journey. It calls for a humbler approach to care and counselling, acknowledging the limitations of the pastoral worker, and that knowledge and meaning are co-constructed through relational conversations, and in communities of concern.