Why CPE Matters

It is nearing the end of May which means that I am nearing the end of my first year of itinerant ministry within the United Methodist Church.  I have been reflecting on this past year, and all of the first encounters I have had along the way.  First baptisms, church meetings, weddings, and funerals run through my mind like a
carousel. This first year of ministry just so happened to coincide with my first year as a husband, and all of the joys and challenges that are included in marriage as a young adult. 

Like I said, I have had many first encounters.  Some more than others...

I have, as of now, officiated twenty one funerals.  Funerals, though beautiful and a time of celebrating the life of those who have passed on, are also filled with many demands along with the emotional and spiritual effects of grief and loss for the family and friends of the deceased as well as the pastor.

My first funeral occurred during my first week as pastor.  I did not know the deceased individual or their family, but I was being asked to form a service that would celebrate the life lived and the love shared by this person.  My office was still in boxes, and the first book I needed was the Book of Worship. 


I had no idea how to prepare for this service, how to engage in dialogue with the family, or how to work with a funeral home director.

I was lost.

Then I remembered CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education).

As I began to prepare for the funeral (while unpacking boxes at the house and the office) I found myself asking these questions," What would I do at CPE?  How did I prepare for those initial introductory visits with patients I had never met before, nor would see again after their stay?  What would my CPE mentor say?  What would my peer group, who encouraged and supported me through verbatims and group dialogue, say?"

Over time, I began to comb over notes, verbatims, journal entries, and books from my CPE experience.  I quickly was reminded that I was equipped to handle these new challenges because of my CPE experience.  I also quickly became very grateful for the transformation that occurred during those seven months.  

I learned to embrace the gift of listening to people's stories.  Whether I heard stories of personal battles with cancer, chronic illness or pain, or the coming to acceptance of a loved one's condition, I was given the gift to look into a window of people's lives that many are not able to see. I was able to peer into the stories of a person's soul.  I learned to give God glory and thanks for those moments and stories as they began to shape my faith, and how God used the telling of the stories as vehicles to healing for those sharing the stories.

I give God thanks and praise for CPE.  It shaped my ministry in powerful ways.  It equipped this young pastor to exist in a season of death for a church and community, and made me aware of my own need for grief and sabbath.  It gave me the tools and skills to lead a congregation through the dark valley of despair and doubt towards the transforming ministries that are seeking to change the world through the love of God.

Seminarians often complain about having the requirement of doing a unit of CPE.  I know because I initially saw it as another hoop for me to jump through for ordained ministry.  However,  after a year of ministry in a local church I feel compelled to shatter the myth that CPE is a hoop to jump through.  CPE is rather a door that opens you to a transformed faith, an increased knowledge of self, and an equipping for ministry that is unmatched.