Revd Professor
Peter Madsen Gubi

Qualifications:

Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) in Ecclesial Pastoral Care (University of Chester)

Doctor of Theology (Th.D.) in Theology and Practice (University of Winchester)

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Counselling Studies (University of Manchester)

Master of Theology (M.Th.) in Applied Theology (University of Liverpool)

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Pastoral Theology [with Distinction] (Anglia Ruskin University)

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Counselling Studies [with commendation] (University of Nottingham)

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Educational Studies (University of Hull)

Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) in Religious Studies/Youth & Community Work (University of Chichester)

Diploma (Dip.) in Spiritual Accompaniment (The Norwich Centre)

PostGraduate Certificate (P.G. Cert.) in Counselling Supervision [with Distinction] (University of Keele)

Certificate (Cert.) in Bereavement Counselling (University of Keele)

Certificate (Cert.) in Counselling (West Sussex Institute of HE)

APSE Senior Accredited Pastoral Supervisor (Association for Pastoral Supervision and Education)

BACP Senior Accredited Counsellor/Psychotherapist (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy)

BACP Senior Accredited Supervisor of Individuals (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy)

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA)

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)

Ordained Deacon in the Moravian Church (British Province)

Consecrated Presbyter in the Moravian Church (British Province)

Experience:

I was born in Barbados (West Indies), and am the son of a Moravian Minister (Rev Peter Gubi, MA) and the grandson of a Moravian Bishop (Bishop Peter Gubi, Ep. Fra.). I was educated at Harrison College in Barbados and moved to England in 1975. I was then educated at Fulneck School between 1975 and 1982, where I became Head Boy (Captain of School) in 1981. When I left school in 1982, I undertook my initial Counsellor Training and Teacher Training together at the University of Chichester, and then I began my working life in 1985 as a teacher, becoming Head of Religious Studies and Head of Pastoral Care. After seven years, I moved more fully into Counselling and have worked as a Counsellor in the contexts of Primary Care, the third sector, education, and private practice for over thirty years.

I have been involved in Counsellor Training since 1993, and was Head of Counsellor Training at South Cheshire College (affiliated to Manchester Metropolitan University) for twelve years before being appointed as Principal Lecturer in Counselling and Psychotherapy, and Head of Counselling and Psychological Therapies, at the University of Central Lancashire. I left the University of Central Lancashire in 2009 to train for stipendiary ministry within the Moravian Church. In 2010, the University of Central Lancashire awarded me the honorary title of Visiting Fellow in recognition of my national and international reputation in the field of Counselling and of my work in the Faculty of Health and Social Care.

After a period of training for the Moravian Ministry at Westminster College, Cambridge, for which I gained an MA in Pastoral Theology (with distinction) and was awarded a research prize from the British and Irish Association for Practical Theology (BIAPT) in 2011, I then had eighteen months in full-time congregational Ministry in Yorkshire, serving two congregations. In 2012, I returned to academia - first to the University of Central Lancashire, and then in 2013, to the University of Chester. I was appointed Professor of Counselling and Spiritual Accompaniment in 2015 at the University of Chester (the first serving Moravian Minister in the British Province to be awarded a personal Chair by a British University). Alongside my academic life, I have remained in congregational Ministry since 2010, and continue to serve the Moravian Church, on a non-stipendiary basis, as Minister of Dukinfield Moravian Church, Manchester. I also serve the Moravian Church as a member of the Provincial Elders' Conference (Provincial Board). I am immediate past Chair (Convenor) of the Provincial Church Service Committee which advises the Provincial Board on the selection and training of candidates for ordained ministry, and the training of Lay Preachers and Lay Workers; and I am Co-ordinator of Pastoral Supervision (since 2020). My training, practical skills and interests also extend to the practice of Counselling Supervision, Pastoral Supervision and Spiritual Direction - and I maintain a practice in all of these disciplines. In 2021, I was appointed as an Honorary Professor of Practical Theology at Teofilo Kisanji University, Mbeya, Tanzania - TEKU's first Honorary Professor. There, I publish with, and mentor, staff.

I now specialise in the spiritual and psychological support and wellbeing of Clergy through my practice, research and publications. I currently work with Clergy from different Christian denominations with varying roles – from Bishops and Priests in the Anglican Church; to District Chairs, Circuit Superintendents and Presbyters in the Methodist Church; from Accredited Pastors in the Baptist Church to Chaplains in the University, Hospice and Healthcare sectors. I also offer pastoral supervision to some principals and staff of theological colleges. I am a Senior Accredited Pastoral Supervisor with the Association for Pastoral Supervision and Education (APSE). Since 2020, I have been elected a Trustee of the Association for Pastoral Supervision and Education, and I am Chair of the Training, Research and Publications Sub-Group. 

Working practically in these areas feeds into my academic life and academic research interests (see publications for details) for which I hold a national and international reputation. I have been described by other academics  as "one of the more prominent Moravian scholars who has published in the fields of Counselling and Mental Health" and 'his work around spirituality in the counselling professions is groundbreaking and he is rightly known as one of the leading voices in that area'.