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About Us

About The Ottawa Pastoral Care Training Program

Our Mission Statement

To Encourage, Enable and Educate those who have a calling to a Ministry of Care nurtured by the love of God, to share their gifts of compassion, understanding, and presence as they journey with those whom they serve.

Who We Are

The Ottawa Pastoral Care Training Program is an inter-denominational program affiliated with The Christian Council of the Capital Area.

An Advisory Committee of clergy and lay people representing participating faith communities oversees the planning, administration and evaluation of the Program. See our 2022 Annual Report, available as a pdf file here: OPCTP Annual Report-2022

Since 1978, the OPCTP has delivered in-town and out-of-town basic and advanced courses, information sessions, coordinators’ events, continuing education events and workshops. We began keeping attendance statistics in 1990. Since that time, as of Spring 2022, over 5000 people in Ottawa and the surrounding area have taken the Basic Course in Pastoral Care.

The Basic Course runs every spring and fall; Continuing Education Events are twice yearly. Coordinators’ Events and Advanced Courses are once every year and other in-town and out-of-town Workshops, Events and Information Sessions are provided upon request.

Our History

The Ottawa Pastoral Care Training Program (OPCTP) had its origin in 1975 when All Saints Anglican Church Westboro engaged Reverend Doctor John Swift, Chaplain at Queensway Carleton Hospital, to train a team of clergy and lay members for hospital and parish visiting.

A lay pastoral care team training program was established within the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa in 1977 and was made available to other denominations in 1978. In 1990, we began providing training to nearby communities outside of Ottawa.

The Christian Council of the Capital Area has recognized the Program as an inter-denominational entity under its general sponsorship since 1979.

Annual Reports from Previous Years 

OPCTP Annual Report – 2021