Category: Ministry/Chaplaincy

Reframing Forgiveness

A Q&A with Matthew Ichihashi Potts on his latest book, Forgiveness: An Alternative Account. By Suzie Greco

The Man in the Tree

A psychiatric chaplain dwells in the silences that follow difficult questions, responding to Chris Berlin’s “A Jewel in the Lotus.” By Duncan Gasson-Gardner

‘Chaplain, Can You Do an Exorcism?’

To accompany people struggling with command auditory hallucinations, the author uses a metaphorical approach and works within each patient’s own religious framework. By Jeremy D. Sher

Chanting through the Spring Surge

An interview with Sarah Byrne-Martelli, a chaplain at Massachusetts General Hospital, on the quiet camaraderie and unnamed grief among hospital staff during the pandemic. By Wendy McDowell

A Minister Cultivates Abiding

The current pandemic provides a context to learn what it means to bear witness while impotent to reverse human suffering. By Emily Click

Doing by Not-Knowing

A hospital chaplain reflects on the wonder and intimacy of not-knowing, responding to Chris Berlin’s “A Jewel in the Lotus.” By Jill R. Gaulding

Chaplaincy as ‘Tragic Improv’

Erica Rose Long describes the honest conversations about race taking place at Massachusetts General Hospital and discusses the unique challenges and joys of chaplaincy. By Wendy McDowell

Can a Buddhist Monk Become a Chaplain?

A Buddhist monastic reflects on his chaplaincy training through the lens of Theravada Buddhism, responding to Chris Berlin’s “A Jewel in the Lotus.” By Bhante Kusala

A Jewel in the Lotus

The Buddha’s life, teachings, and response to human suffering inform practices of spiritual care in the hospital, and also in the classroom. By Chris Berlin

The Urgency of Now

Excerpts from the introduction and four essays in One Nation, Indivisible exemplify that “in order to build together, govern together, live together, we must make the effort to know one another.” By Celene Ibrahim, Taymullah Abdur-Rahman, Matthew Blair Holt, Lauren Seganos Cohen, and Nora Zaki

The Politics of Preaching

To tell a congregation the truth, to condemn our world while admitting that we cannot see our way clear of it, is a political and prophetic act. By Matthew L. Potts

Practicing Entanglement

The work of justice cannot succeed without deep, authentic relationships. By Elizabeth Aeschlimann

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