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25 pages, 325 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Tradition and Transformation: Spirituality in Church-Related Caring Communities in a Pluralistic Society

by Annette Daniela Haussmann, Olivia Lea Odrasil, Stefanie Wiloth, Esther Hinz, Patricia Kerl, Jonathan Mylius and Kathrin Ackermann

Religions 2024, 15(3), 363; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15030363 - 18 Mar 2024

Viewed by 719

Abstract

Demographic change in aging societies makes it urgent to ask how care can be understood as a social task. This is where the concept of caring communities comes in, which understands care as a task of many, indeed, of society as a whole, [...] Read more.

Demographic change in aging societies makes it urgent to ask how care can be understood as a social task. This is where the concept of caring communities comes in, which understands care as a task of many, indeed, of society as a whole, and aims to offer mutual care in communities. While the concept has been described in theory many times, empirical studies are rare. In pluralistic Western societies, the church as an institution is becoming less important while spirituality and spiritual needs are increasing in prominence. These processes of secularization run parallel to a growing interest in spirituality and an individualization of religion. Nonetheless, church congregations have always offered a place of mutual care and lived religion that functions as a network and social resource. So far, the role of spirituality in church-related caring communities has not been sufficiently addressed. In an exploratory qualitative study of three church-related caring communities in Germany, we focus on the target group of caring relatives, of whom we interviewed nine. The results show that church-related caring communities provide important spiritual resources and rely on the basis of shared values that are closely connected to Christian convictions. However, the different understandings of care and spirituality point to the relevance of discussing the often preliminary motives and values of care. Especially in plural societies, the discourse on plural values for mutual care is important and can form a basis for caring practices such as spiritual and pastoral care. Opportunities and places to discuss and debate different and shared values underlining care practices are necessary. The potential of spiritual and pastoral care in church-related caring communities is important and needs to be further strengthened. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

12 pages, 185 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Navigating Religious Difference in Spiritual Care

by Daniel S. Schipani

Religions 2024, 15(1), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15010041 - 27 Dec 2023

Viewed by 822

Abstract

During the last two decades there has been growing research on intercultural and, more recently, interreligious care in the face of increased, global pluralization. Representatives of various traditions are making substantial contributions beyond the pioneering work of Christian clinicians and theoreticians. This essay [...] Read more.

During the last two decades there has been growing research on intercultural and, more recently, interreligious care in the face of increased, global pluralization. Representatives of various traditions are making substantial contributions beyond the pioneering work of Christian clinicians and theoreticians. This essay addresses one of the challenges and opportunities associated with multi-faith contexts: the methodological and clinical question of how spiritual caregivers can effectively engage significant difference in interreligious caregiving situations. Therefore, the twofold goal of the article is to understand and to foster competent practice by counselors, psychotherapists, chaplains, pastors and other spiritual caregivers. The body of the text describes and illustrates five strategies that caregivers can employ plus a review of seven categories of therapeutic interventions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

15 pages, 317 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“Faith-Sensitive” Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Pluralistic Settings: A Spiritual Care Perspective

by Fabian Winiger and Ellen Goodwin

Religions 2023, 14(10), 1321; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14101321 - 20 Oct 2023

Viewed by 1388

Abstract

Over the past two decades, in response to a growing awareness of the impacts of humanitarian crises on mental health and psychosocial well-being, leading UN agencies and international aid organisations have developed a comprehensive framework for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS). In [...] Read more.

Over the past two decades, in response to a growing awareness of the impacts of humanitarian crises on mental health and psychosocial well-being, leading UN agencies and international aid organisations have developed a comprehensive framework for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS). In more recent years, aid workers have further begun to consider religious life as a central factor in mental health and psychosocial well-being, viewing “faith” as an important, but often neglected, component of empowering and “locally appropriate” MHPSS. However, the attempt to deliver “faith-sensitive” MHPSS across the highly pluralistic settings of international humanitarian intervention has entailed protracted ethical and practical challenges. In this article, we argue that these challenges may be usefully understood in terms of three areas of concern: the lack of evidence on effective interventions; the risk of reproducing problematic power dynamics between MHPSS providers and receivers; and the challenge of articulating a cross-culturally relevant paradigm of “faith-sensitivity” comprehensible across a wide range of religiously diverse settings. This article contributes to these challenges by drawing on the field of professional spiritual care to suggest areas of potential contribution and interdisciplinary dialogue. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

14 pages, 251 KiB

Open AccessArticle

On the Concepts of Religion and Confessionality for Pastoral Care and Spiritual Care in Interreligious and Intercultural Contexts: Clarifications with the Help of Religious Education and Systematic Theology

by Sabine Joy Ihben-Bahl and Traugott Roser

Religions 2023, 14(10), 1319; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14101319 - 20 Oct 2023

Viewed by 849

Abstract

According to current consensus definitions in healthcare, religious aspects can be part of ”spirituality” but ”spirituality” is open to non-religious traditions as well. Nevertheless, spiritual care is often provided by theologically trained pastoral caregivers belonging to religious groups and institutional bodies. How, then, [...] Read more.

According to current consensus definitions in healthcare, religious aspects can be part of ”spirituality” but ”spirituality” is open to non-religious traditions as well. Nevertheless, spiritual care is often provided by theologically trained pastoral caregivers belonging to religious groups and institutional bodies. How, then, do we take “religion(s)” into account when pastoral and spiritual care finds itself within a context of a diversity of religions and religious and non-religious biographies? What function does “confessionality” have—except for the fact that spiritual care professions can also be educated at a theological faculty and thus graduates are familiar with confessional premises of the respective denomination institutions? What significance do these premises have as a basis or a target for research and the fields of action and for the self-understanding of chaplains or spiritual caregivers? Our contribution draws attention to the potential for the reflection on “religion” to inform an understanding of its role in healthcare. In this regard, the term “spirituality” needs some reflection as well. When investing in such clarification, we understand that “religion” and “confessionality” need to be considered with the idea of inherent principles or even as a principle and, thus, are valuable in view of the practice of pastoral and spiritual care. These theoretical reflections are developed on the one hand by comparison with confessional religious education in pluralistic contexts, and on the other hand from systematic theology, specifically with Paul Tillich’s idea of a “Protestant principle” as an open-minded way to bring together pluralistic challenges and the religious identity in pastoral or spiritual care encounters. Preoccupation with these terms as concepts is not only necessary but valuable to encounter the other individual with respect and sincere interest and thus opens up his or her individual access to the world and life and the inherent principles in a resource-building way. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

11 pages, 219 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Nonreligious Chaplains and Spiritual Care

by Amy Lawton, Adah Anderson and Wendy Cadge

Religions 2023, 14(9), 1166; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14091166 - 13 Sep 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3088

Abstract

Spiritual care in a religiously plural society necessarily includes care for the nonreligious. However, little is known about the nonreligious people who themselves work to provide spiritual care. Today, spiritual care providers, better known in the United States context as chaplains, come from [...] Read more.

Spiritual care in a religiously plural society necessarily includes care for the nonreligious. However, little is known about the nonreligious people who themselves work to provide spiritual care. Today, spiritual care providers, better known in the United States context as chaplains, come from a wide variety of religious backgrounds, including nonreligious or unaffiliated with religious tradition. While nonreligious chaplains have robust pluralistic skillsets—a professional strength and a benefit to spiritual care work—they nonetheless encounter training and workplace challenges specific to their religious identities. The theoretical framework of Christian normativity could account for these challenges. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

22 pages, 345 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Forgiving Others: Pastoral Care of Forgiveness in Post-Secular Societies

by Mikkel Gabriel Christoffersen

Religions 2023, 14(9), 1106; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14091106 - 26 Aug 2023

Viewed by 943

Abstract

This article argues that pastoral insights into the dynamics of forgiveness are also relevant for pastoral care in post-secular society. While receiving forgiveness has been the raison d’etre of the sacrament of penance (a historical precursor to modern pastoral care), contemporary post-secular societies [...] Read more.

This article argues that pastoral insights into the dynamics of forgiveness are also relevant for pastoral care in post-secular society. While receiving forgiveness has been the raison d’etre of the sacrament of penance (a historical precursor to modern pastoral care), contemporary post-secular societies accentuate the problem of forgiving others. This article explores several paths for forgiving others that care seekers can walk, guided by pastors who provide maps and signposts. Methodologically, this article analyzes two pastoral care conversations about forgiving others, published in a Danish podcast series on the official homepage of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark. These two conversations present a highway of unconditional forgiveness, in contrast to the dead end of not being able to forgive. This article explores how pastors can care for care seekers along these diametric roads, and along several byways, through surveys of relevant (theological) philosophy, systematic theology, and theology of pastoral care. The two care seekers are neither religious nor simply secular; they are post-secular, moving in and out of secular and religious discourses as appears relevant. The article concludes with reflections on pastoral care in different intercultural settings, specifically in post-secular societies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

16 pages, 313 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Garbage Care as a Way for Eco-Spiritual Care in a Multifaith Society in Indonesia

by Andang Binawan

Religions 2023, 14(4), 509; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14040509 - 06 Apr 2023

Viewed by 1198

Abstract

This article will explain how garbage care can be a way of realizing eco-spiritual care in the multifaith context of Indonesia. In Indonesia, the environment is a common concern, and waste is also a common problem. With a qualitative reflective method, the activities [...] Read more.

This article will explain how garbage care can be a way of realizing eco-spiritual care in the multifaith context of Indonesia. In Indonesia, the environment is a common concern, and waste is also a common problem. With a qualitative reflective method, the activities in garbage care are reflected in an eco-spiritual care perspective. Eco-spiritual care is an effort to assist human beings to find themselves in their environment. This reflection concludes that with a phenomenological approach, garbage care will make people find their ‘oneness’. This will underlie the renewal of attitudes toward their lives in a deeper, more positive way. In addition, this reflection on the eco-spiritual will broaden the understanding of pastoral care that has existed so far, because eco-spiritual care is not only for people who are sick, but those who want to find their natural selves. This also means that the meaning of eco-spiritual care is much broader than pastoral care because it means giving ‘good food’, not just shepherding and merely giving spiritual food. Indeed, it must be a good and healthy spiritual food to let people grow better spiritually. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

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Jump to: Research

11 pages, 249 KiB

Open AccessPerspective

Positioning Chaplaincy in the Pluralistic and Multidisciplinary Dutch Care Context

by Anja Visser, Hetty Zock and Hanneke Muthert

Religions 2023, 14(9), 1173; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14091173 - 14 Sep 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 641

Abstract

The professional identity of chaplains is under question because of societal trends of disaffiliation from and pluralization of religion, and of deinstitutionalization of care. Chaplaincy in the Netherlands looks to discourse around “meaning” to navigate these challenges. The use of the term “meaning” [...] Read more.

The professional identity of chaplains is under question because of societal trends of disaffiliation from and pluralization of religion, and of deinstitutionalization of care. Chaplaincy in the Netherlands looks to discourse around “meaning” to navigate these challenges. The use of the term “meaning” as the central concept in the professional identity of chaplaincy (and, by extension, spiritual care) is not undisputed, however. There are three related critiques: 1. Meaning and meaning-making have a strong cognitive and intentional connotation, which does not do justice to the lived experience of meaning and might lead to a medicalization of meaning. 2. The term meaning places the professional identity of chaplaincy in the instrumental discourse of other professions, which might lead to “abuse” of spiritual care toward external objectives such as health, (hedonistic) well-being, and/or economic gain, instead of internal objectives such as faith and spirituality. 3. A focus on meaning leads to a marginalization of religion, both societally and within chaplaincy, which might negatively affect chaplaincy’s core competence of hermeneutic understanding and worldview counseling. We conclude that finding one language to present the discipline might not be feasible and desirable. Instead, we advocate for the revitalization of the hermeneutic competency of chaplains. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pastoral and Spiritual Care in Pluralistic Societies)

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