The Future of Spiritual Care
In December 2019, the Fetzer Institute hosted a small meeting for the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab. They met to talk about the present and future of spiritual care in many places. Together, we explored how we might move into a future with better spiritual care. We recognized that all have a right to care for their human spirit, no matter who or where they are. For three days, we focused on a few key parts of today’s sacred landscape. We talked about how these parts might inform the future of chaplaincy.
American religious life, along with many of the ways people find and create meaning, is changing. In many cases, it will continue to do so, largely away from traditional churches, mosques, and synagogues and into newer forms. Many traditional institutions have powerful ideas. But, their "delivery systems" are out of date in today’s spiritual and religious world.
Chaplains, on the other hand, have always maintained their own “delivery system.” They meet people where they are, as they are, and chaplains journey with them through different points in their lives. The Lab conducted a survey which found that 20% of Americans had had contact with a chaplain in the last two years. If one in five Americans has come across a chaplain, that tells us that chaplains are uniquely positioned to be the voices and vessels of love and compassion. They quietly connect with more people across the country than we might think.
We suspect that one in five number is only going to grow, and as we think about the work of chaplains, we must start with demand. And if we can identify demand, we have to figure out how to supply it. Where are the skills of deep listening, presence, and community bridging needed today? Where are improvisational rituals and others needed?
These vital tools of chaplaincy are necessary in so many places right now. They are needed by socially isolated elders and others. They are needed by individuals facing the end of their lives and those journeying with them. They are needed by individuals detained in immigration facilities or prisons without access to spiritual care.
The need for chaplains is not shrinking, so how can we better meet that need?
Finally, a word on words. Even the term chaplain carries more meaning than its dictionary definition. It works for some people and institutions, opening up opportunities in places like the military, healthcare, and corrections that have long had chaplains and understand who they are and what they do. In other settings, the language of chaplaincy feels old-fashioned. It shuts down possibilities rather than creating them.
But we have to acknowledge the limits of what we can do, realizing that we likely will never find a perfect vocabulary for this crucial work. Instead, we must be able to code-switch, describing this work in different ways to different audiences. The best chaplains know this isn't a new idea. They had to do it every day in their work providing what Winnifred Sullivan (a professor at Indiana University) has called a "ministry of presence."
We are thrilled to partner with the Fetzer Institute in this work, which is needed now more than ever. Equally rewarding is the deep alignment of the Lab’s mission and the future that the Institute envisions through its commitment to “transformed communities and societies in which all people can flourish.” No one can flourish without enough care for their inmost spirit. This is true regardless of their spiritual tradition (or lack thereof). The Chaplaincy Innovation Lab shares that commitment. They see the next generation of spiritual care leaders, ideas, and movements as vital for building those communities. We will continue to collaborate with Fetzer, strengthening the spiritual foundation for a loving world. After all, everyone deserves spiritual care, no matter who or where they are. It is the Lab’s vision that in the not-so-distant future, the profession can help ensure that all who want it receive that care and come away the better for it.
Michael Skaggs is executive director of the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab.
