1972 on June 15 at 8 a.m. the first call came in at the Würzburg telephone counseling service. And even then there was someone on the pastoral phone who was doing this service on a voluntary basis. That’s how it is to this day. The following information is taken from a press release by the Würzburg professorship.
The ecumenical telephone counseling service in Würzburg/Main-Rhön, as it is now officially called, celebrated its 50th anniversary on June 24th with a service in the Augustinian Church and a ceremony in the Burkardushaus. “Jesus Christ gives our hope firm ground,” said Ruth Belzner, head of the Würzburg telephone counseling service, at the beginning of the service. That’s why the 50th anniversary is being celebrated – despite the pandemic and the Ukraine war.
Love as a principle of telephone counseling
Using the letters of the word “love”, Joachim Schroeter, deputy head of the Würzburg telephone counseling service, explained how love as an attitude and a kind of fundamental decision is reflected in the setting of the work of the telephone counseling service. So it is important to let go and not try to convince callers of an opinion. It is also important to know your own limits and to consciously end a conversation if necessary. Interest is also central, even if you speak to a person again who calls regularly and with a recurring request. E as in remembering means that it often helps to show someone what strengths they have.
In addition, people often come with the desire to pray with them or to bless them. And it is not uncommon for the people at the other end of the line to be encouraged to go to a counseling center, for example. As Endres attested, through this attitude of telephone counseling demonstrated by Schroeter, God becomes tangible for many people without God being explicitly named – for example for those who are lonely and in despair.
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Over 563,000 counseling sessions
Christine Endres, Head of the Diaconal Pastoral Department of the Diocese of Würzburg, thanked the approximately 550 people who have volunteered as telephone counselors for more than 563,000 counseling calls since the beginning five decades ago for this service.
“Whoever appears in the daily topics is really important. And the telephone pastoral care was only recently named as an important facility because anyone in Germany can call there,” explained regional bishop Bornowski. Not least during the pandemic, the women and men of the telephone counseling have proven that they are competent, empathetic and heartfelt. “They accept people without prejudice and around the clock.”
History of telephone counseling
On November 2, 1953, the Anglican pastor Chad Varah made the first telephone offer in London: “Before you commit suicide, ring me up!” (English: “Before you decide to kill yourself, call me!”) Varah received a flood of calls and was soon joined by many volunteers. Today he is regarded as the founding father of telephone counseling.
In Germany, in October 1956, a private telephone number for “medical care for tired people” was published in the press for the first time. Today there are 108 positions nationwide with more than 8,000 volunteers. Around two million calls are made every year.
Around 90 volunteers are currently active at the Würzburg/Main-Rhön telephone counseling service, and twelve people are currently in the process of qualifying for this task. The ecumenical institution is supported by the Diocese of Würzburg, the Evangelical Deanery of Würzburg, the Caritas Association and the Diakonisches Werk.
further information can be found on the Internet at telefonseelsorge-wuerzburg.de. The telephone counseling service can be reached free of charge around the clock on Tel.: (0800) 1110111 or Tel.: (0800) 1110222.
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