Pastoral care in the time of COVID

Taking Care

Pastoral care is different during the pandemic— but no less important

By Cate Anthony

But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing. I THESSALONIANS 5:8-11

So the Apostle Paul wrote to the early church in Thessalonica, a community begun by disciples of Christ and anxious about its future flourishing. In response to this anxiety, Paul commends the people of the church in Thessalonica to strengthen one another in their life together—for this is how the church flourishes even and especially in the face of an uncertain future.

As we continue to navigate the Covid-19 pandemic, we too find ourselves living in anxious and uncertain times. The parameters of physical distancing leave many of us feeling isolated from our communities of faith and our sources of support, and as the pandemic continues, this isolation can breed a difficult loneliness that is hard to bear.

In this time, then, we at St. Stephen’s take more seriously than ever the work of pastoral care. While the primary way we offer pastoral care—in-person visits—is not possible at this time, we have been cultivating new means of caregiving that overcome the physical distance between us. At the start of the pandemic, our vicar, the Rev. Will Stanley, and our senior warden, Allison Koschak, piloted a calling program. Members of the congregation joined teams to call over 1,000 parishioners simply to “check in,” asking how the pandemic was re-shaping their lives and offering encouragement and support. We plan to launch the second round of this calling program soon; if you are interested in joining as a volunteer, please contact Will Stanley or Cate Anthony.

In addition to this new calling program, we continue to update and publish the parish prayer list each Sunday. Clergy and lay pastoral caregivers continue to call those in need each week, offering support and prayer over the phone. We send handwritten notes for a variety of occasions, and also keep in touch by email and Zoom. These are new media for an ancient practice of mutual care, and while it is not the same as pre-pandemic times, we are so grateful for the ways in which technology allows us to continue the work of pastoral care in this time.

Dear friends, this work is not for the clergy and staff of St. Stephen’s alone. Now more than ever, we are each called to strengthen one another in mutual love. If you would like to join the work of pastoral care at St. Stephen’s–writing notes, making phone calls, delivering food, making visits when it’s safe to do so–please let us know. If you are struggling in this time, let us know that, too–we are still here for you. We are still and always community, destined to live with God and one another in the sure hope of salvation. ✤

GOOD TO KNOW

Staff members, primarily Liz Bartenstein and Becky Lehman, answer the parish phone Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Often they are answering remotely; since most staff are working from home, Liz or Becky will not be able to transfer your call to another staff member, but they’ll take a message and the person you’re calling will return the call as soon as possible. At other times, you may call the parish office and leave voice mail, 804.288.2867.

You may request prayer for yourself or someone else by calling the parish office, or going to ststephensRVA.org/prayer-request to fill out an online request. Be sure to let us know, by phone or by online request, if you’d like the prayer concern included in the weekly parish prayer list. This list is emailed on Sunday mornings to parishioners who have requested it. (If you want someone other than yourself included in the printed/distributed prayer list, it’s important that you get the person’s consent first.)