Low-threshold services
Pastoral Care
What is Pastoral Care?
- What is Pastoral Care for?
- An open, confidential conversation and companionship
- Is Pastoral Care legally regulated?
- Offered by church and non-profit organisations, open to everyone, with trained volunteers and professionals.
- Does Pastoral Care treat illnesses?
- No, listening companionship, not treatment
Pastoral care offers an open, confidential conversation for people facing strain, loneliness or crisis. It is open to everyone regardless of faith or denomination, free of charge and anonymous on request.
Best known is the telephone helpline (Telefonseelsorge) on 142, available around the clock. There is also pastoral care in hospitals, in emergency support and in many other places.
Pastoral care is not therapy. It listens, accompanies and stands by, and it refers to further help when needed.
What is allowed
- Listen and accompany in strain, loneliness and crisis
- Be available around the clock, anonymously, by phone on 142
- Stand by people in hospital, in emergencies and in everyday life
Where are the limits?
- No diagnosis, no therapy, no medication
- No substitute for treatment of mental illness
- Refers to crisis services or emergency numbers in acute danger
How to recognise quality
- A recognised organisation, e.g. telephone or hospital pastoral care
- Trained conversation companions
- Confidentiality and voluntariness
- Refers on when treatment is needed
How it works
- Contactcall or approach someone locally
- Conversationtalk openly about what weighs on you
- Companionshipas long as it helps, without pressure
- Referralto further help if needed
Costs & insurance
Telephone helpline 142free and anonymous
In-person pastoral carefree
Insuranceno billing