A nice
article by Barbara Mahany appears this morning in the
Chicago Tribune on the role of one hospital unsung hero: the hospital chaplain:
"There are so many metaphors with children and nighttime. We give them a night light. We give them milk and cookies, security blankets, bedtime prayers. Those things are amplified when a child is in a hospital, taken away from everything they know. It's a great entry point for the spirituality of a child, creating a place of security amid all the unknown"
-Wes
I'd like to raise up nursing home chaplains as well.
ReplyDeleteWe attend services with our aged relative every week at her home and have seen what they do.
For the very old without immediate family they are the hospital visitor.
They bring communion, with thicken liquids for those who can not swallow.
The message they bring is just right for the anger, frustration and fear the people feel.
It isn't a function you would think is essential, but once you see the work they do you know how important it is.