B.C. pastors take training in sexual purity issues

Many people, when confronted by the knowledge of danger, think, “It isn’t going to happen to me.” Tragically, that thought can prove to be wrong. The B.C. conference has given high profile to a course designed to prevent such thinking by giving tools to pastors on how to avoid temptation and trouble in their work, especially in the realm of sexual purity.

Delegates at the B.C. convention affirmed the decision to require all B.C. MB pastors to take a course on clergy trust and betrayal, outlining dangers and sexual temptations in pastoral settings. It provides helpful tools and practical guides for those in authority who are seen as role models. The course addresses attitudes, duties, counselling parameters, and practical ways to keep the trust.

Borrowing from established curricula and adapting concepts from an MB perspective, team teachers Gary Loewen (a former pastor) and conference minister Steve Berg will offer the one-day course on a regular basis. It was part of ChurchWorks in February, and is being offered this spring in north-central B.C.

“The conference felt we couldn’t ignore this subject any longer,” says administrator Marilyn Hiebert. “We need to give pastors the tools – and the confidence – to put boundaries in place in both their pastoral and personal lives.” That’s why the training, previously offered as an option, is now required.

—BM