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| Elizabeth Ministry International Chapter Headquarters – Retreat & Resource Center – Life & Loss Institute – KinCommunity Association 120 W. 8th Street Kaukauna, WI 54130 Fax: 920-766-1221 Phone: 920-766-9380 E-mail: info@elizabethministry.com Website: www.elizabethministry.com |
SERVICES & SCOPE OF ELIZABETH MINISTRY
Elizabeth Ministry is not a single ministry, but a cluster of ministries. These ministries continue to develop as more
and more women offer to share their various experiences of motherhood. These women then mentor other women in
similar situations with encouragement and support. As women mentor women there is bond of companionship formed
and a spirit of community created. This mentoring occurs through visitation in person, by mail, and by phone. Prayer
and family support along with resources are also available for men, siblings and grandparents.
Areas of Service in Elizabeth Ministry Chapters include, but are not limited to:
Each of these areas is developed so that women can minister with One another in a personal and caring manner.
Elizabeth Ministers are not counselors, or experts. They are women who are willing to share their presence, stories,
and experiences, in the hope that these will support, encourage, console, and at times bring healing. They offer the
greatest gift they possess, namely themselves. Elizabeth Ministers are representatives of the parish community.
Their baptismal call gives them the right to share in the prophetic, priestly, and kingly mission of Jesus. They need no
other credentials to minister in a compassionate, caring and loving manner, thus proclaiming the Good News of God’s
unconditional and faithful love. The people serving as Elizabeth Ministers are sent out to visit on behalf of their faith
community with the blessings of their pastor. Each chapter of Elizabeth Ministry is autonomous and under the
direction of the pastor.
Elizabeth Ministry is not a new ministry, it is just a fresh format for woman to woman mentoring. Women have been
sharing their experiences about childbearing throughout the generations. In the distant and not so distant past women
had many informal opportunities to be with each other which we don’t have today. Women would gather at the well
when getting their family’s daily water supply; today we stand alone at the sink and open the facet. Women gathered
at quilting bees to make blankets; today we shop alone for them in department stores. Women would interact daily
across the fence as they hung up the wash; today we put clothes in our dryers. With so many women needing to work
outside the home, few are left for the neighborhood conversations around coffee cups. Details of childbearing and child
rearing were not sought after in books or in classes, but observed firsthand by watching and sharing with One another
in these informal settings.
Such casual support systems are too few, and are even lost completely in many neighborhoods. Many of us live in
neighborhoods with strangers. Our extended families and childhood friends may live across the country instead of
across the street. Our time commitments keep us from gathering informally as women to nurture One another. This
change in society has taken away the forum for our visiting, but it has not taken away the need. Elizabeth Ministry is
a way to enable women to reach out to One another in a spirit of inclusiveness and sisterhood.
As women share their stories and experiences, they engender confidence, overcome fears, and help each other to
become open to the wonder of new life with trust. They unite their joys and trials gaining strength from a mutually
shared faith in which their stories mingle with and are linked to the story of Jesus. Their sharing empowers them to
become instruments of celebration and healing for other women.
Elizabeth Ministry is not a single ministry, but a cluster of ministries. These ministries continue to develop as more
and more women offer to share their various experiences of motherhood. These women then mentor other women in
similar situations with encouragement and support. As women mentor women there is bond of companionship formed
and a spirit of community created. This mentoring occurs through visitation in person, by mail, and by phone. Prayer
and family support along with resources are also available for men, siblings and grandparents.
Areas of Service in Elizabeth Ministry Chapters include, but are not limited to:
Each of these areas is developed so that women can minister with One another in a personal and caring manner.
Elizabeth Ministers are not counselors, or experts. They are women who are willing to share their presence, stories,
and experiences, in the hope that these will support, encourage, console, and at times bring healing. They offer the
greatest gift they possess, namely themselves. Elizabeth Ministers are representatives of the parish community.
Their baptismal call gives them the right to share in the prophetic, priestly, and kingly mission of Jesus. They need no
other credentials to minister in a compassionate, caring and loving manner, thus proclaiming the Good News of God’s
unconditional and faithful love. The people serving as Elizabeth Ministers are sent out to visit on behalf of their faith
community with the blessings of their pastor. Each chapter of Elizabeth Ministry is autonomous and under the
direction of the pastor.
Elizabeth Ministry is not a new ministry, it is just a fresh format for woman to woman mentoring. Women have been
sharing their experiences about childbearing throughout the generations. In the distant and not so distant past women
had many informal opportunities to be with each other which we don’t have today. Women would gather at the well
when getting their family’s daily water supply; today we stand alone at the sink and open the facet. Women gathered
at quilting bees to make blankets; today we shop alone for them in department stores. Women would interact daily
across the fence as they hung up the wash; today we put clothes in our dryers. With so many women needing to work
outside the home, few are left for the neighborhood conversations around coffee cups. Details of childbearing and child
rearing were not sought after in books or in classes, but observed firsthand by watching and sharing with One another
in these informal settings.
Such casual support systems are too few, and are even lost completely in many neighborhoods. Many of us live in
neighborhoods with strangers. Our extended families and childhood friends may live across the country instead of
across the street. Our time commitments keep us from gathering informally as women to nurture One another. This
change in society has taken away the forum for our visiting, but it has not taken away the need. Elizabeth Ministry is
a way to enable women to reach out to One another in a spirit of inclusiveness and sisterhood.
As women share their stories and experiences, they engender confidence, overcome fears, and help each other to
become open to the wonder of new life with trust. They unite their joys and trials gaining strength from a mutually
shared faith in which their stories mingle with and are linked to the story of Jesus. Their sharing empowers them to
become instruments of celebration and healing for other women.
 | Chastity & Sexuality | |
| Healing Sexual Sins | |
| Healthy Living & Holy Relationships | |
| Fertility & Infertility | |
| Natural Family Planning | |
| Pregnancy, Birth, & Adoption | |
| Marriage & Parenting | |
| Prenatal, Infant or Child Crisis, Illness or Special Need | |
| Prenatal Bereavement | |
| Regretted Abortion | |
| Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Infant or Child Death | |
| We honor all life, cherish children, encourage families, uplift marriages, and build community. |
| Our outreach is supported by generous donors and volunteers. As a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, tax-deductible donations and purchases from our on-line store are appreciated. “This website should not be interpreted as soliciting donations from persons in the following states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, D.C., Florida, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, N. Carolina, N. Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, S. Carolina, Utah, Virginia, W. Virginia, and Washington. If you have questions, please feel free to contact us.” |
| Elizabeth Ministry™ name and logo are trademarked. All Elizabeth Ministry resources are copyrighted. © 1996-2010, Elizabeth Ministry International. All rights reserved. Limited permission to use the name Elizabeth Ministry is granted when Elizabeth Ministry International Headquarters receives a signed registration form. (Chapter Registration Form is in the Leader’s Manual of the Elizabeth Ministry Starter Program.) © 2010 Elizabeth Ministry International. All rights reserved. |