The 'Now' and 'Then' of CTR Rings

The CTR rings symbolize faith and belief and are used by the Latter Days Saints (LDS) of the Church of the Jesus Christ to spread the message to do the right and act righteously. CTR stands for "Choose The Right" which is written on a green shield. It is a motto or a saying which is used to teach the young children to choose the right path. Children and even elders succumb to their desires and temptations easily and are likely to forget the teachings they are preached with. The CTR rings are worn by these children with the purpose of reminding them to follow and do the right and keep away from their temptations.

There is an interesting and a very profound history of the existence of these rings. A CTR ring was recommended to be introduced as an official teaching substance for the young. This process of introduction of the CTR rings was governed by a team of eight women belonging to the Latter Day Saints church. The reason for introducing a ring that symbolizes faith and belief of the LDS church was to make something that even the boys could wear. This ring was introduced in the early 1960s when the trend of wearing necklaces by boys was non-existent. They wanted some jewelry that even the boys could wear without any hesitation and at the same time symbolize their belief. Thus, these classic rings were introduced as an insignia of belief of the Latter Days Saints (LDS) people.

They used a green shield over which they wrote CTR for the rings. This green shield was used to symbolize the 'evergreen tree'. The 'evergreen tree' has a religious presence and is known to remain the same or 'evergreen' as per the name suggests, in all the seasons. It was unaffected by any severities of the weather and thus was chosen to be included in the art work of the ring to teach the same to the people wearing these classic rings. The governing board signed a contract with a jewelry company based out of Salt Lake and got the art work of the CTR rings designed by Joel Izzat.

Over a period of time, these classic rings gained immense popularity because of its uniqueness and amazing designs. The symbol of these rings itself got a lot of recognition by the top notch brands which was used on various products. The symbol is so popular that one would now even find numerous products like t - shirts, stationary items, earrings, bookmarks, ties, bracelets and on a lot of designs of the other rings. However as this symbol belongs to the Latter Days Saints (LDS) Church, the manufacturers who use the CTR symbol, pay some royalty to use it on their products.

CTR rings are sold in a large number every year as it is extremely easy to avail it. There are hundreds of unique designs of these classic rings that one can choose from. One can either purchase it from a retail store near to one's location or can easily choose and order it online.

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Getting the Best From Pastoral Counselling

Retirement gave me the opportunity to look back and see more clearly what worked and what didn't. Busy with the everyday comings and goings of running the show, The priorities was usually fixing what was going wrong, or looked as if it was about to go off the rails. As for the rest the dictum "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" was my guiding rule.

My own work had two streams in it, laid down by the Bishop when appointing me. The theoretical base was what differentiated the two tasks. One was theological at base, the other medical, therapeutic. The difficulty was blending the two.

I needed to be very clear about what I was doing. Counselling parishioners had very different nuances when compared to working the private practice which resulted from the Bishop's commission. "Freelance your own way" was what he wanted and what I strove to provide.

This was not helped by the emphasis by BAC (the British Association for Counselling, noe the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy) which regarded office-based counselling, as in some ways definitive for everyone. In parish life, as in life in the workplace, it was not possible always to accept the insistence of BAC that there be only formal relationships between counsellor and those being counselled, anything informal being regarded as a "no-go area". To their credit, it was probably necessary as BAC sought to establish a full-time, paid, counselling profession

Pastoral counselling, the work of the parish priest or minister as against "centre-based" or "office-based" counselling derives from both the traditional church stream and the psychological insights of the period from the late 19th century to the mid-twentieth century. Its root is described in the Book of Common Prayer as "the ministry of God's holy Word" which with the benefit of absolution, together with ghostly counsel and advice" leads "to the quieting of... conscience, and avoiding of all scruple and doubtfulness" - here in the precise context of worthiness to receive the Holy Communion.

It is set also within the social context of establishing a healthy congregation. In his or her priestly formation the Church of England minister is "to forsake and set aside (as much as you may) all worldly cares and studies!" This places limits on the study of present-day counselling methods and skills for the pastoral counsellor. It suggests that the politically correct must be subsumed under the theologically correct and be compatible with the teaching of Holy Scripture.

Ministers need to take care and to make this distinction. Counselling parishioners has a different context to office based counselling. Many clergy undertake training with BAC accredited organisations. Having done so, it is very important to be clear as to whether you are operating as a pastor, with its social context, or an independent counsellor with no social context.

God Sees All and Knows All, Especially Our Hunger   Do Not Worry   What Is the Soul?   Christmas the Religious Day Observed By Both Christians and Non-Christians   Shuffled Priorities