Episcopal clergy 'very stressed,' but 'very happy'

From ELO-

In early August, New York Times religion writer Paul Vitello touched an ecclesial nerve when he launched a story, "Taking a Break From the Lord's Work," and raised a range of important questions on clergy wellness. His reporting, based on studies of clergy health, cut across the interfaith spectrum and resonates with lay professionals in the church, as well. It concluded that self-care, sabbatical rest and time for re-creation help church leaders lean into rising levels of stress, depression and fatigue.

A week later, Jeffrey MacDonald opined in the Times in "Congregations Gone Wild" on the same clergy propensity for physical and spiritual burnout, yet his conclusions shifted the debate in a different direction. MacDonald nodded to "several new studies" on clergy burnout and offered seemingly anecdotal evidence that demeans the laity as entertainment hounds who hunger for little more than "comforting, amusing fare" and render the clergy the "spiritual equivalents of concierges."

Based upon relevant data gathered and addressed in 12 years of conducting research and hosting more than 200 conferences on wellness in the Episcopal Church, CREDO Institute Inc., an affiliate of the Church Pension Group, comes to a different conclusion.

Through analysis articulated in the Clergy Wellness Report (2006) and the initial findings of the Emotional Health of Clergy Report (2010), we have observed that there is more to the challenge of clergy stress than fickleness of congregations and the cultural pressures of increased consumerism among churchgoers.

More here with links to referenced articles.

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/80050_124048_ENG_HTM.htm

HAITI: Clergy and their families strengthened for the journey ahead

From ELO-

"Kouraj pou vwayaj la -- Ayiti. (Strength for the Journey -- Haiti)," a four-day conference for Episcopal Diocese of Haiti clergy and their families, is underway in Santo Domingo in the neighboring Dominican Republic.

The conference is being conducted and sponsored by the CREDO Institute Inc. and the Church Pension Group, of which CREDO is an affiliate. The Rev. Ron Crocker is leading an 11-person CREDO faculty team and there are 85 participants, including Haiti Bishop Jean Zaché Duracin, 41 clergy, and clergy family members. CREDO Managing Director Bill Craddock is also attending the June 21-25 conference.

"As we start to rebuild our churches, we must rebuild our personal selves to give us the strength to carry on," Duracin said in a CREDO news release. "We now have a deeper understanding of the feelings that come with a disaster and how to cope with the stress and the pain. For many of us, it was the first opportunity to relax in a safe place because we feel the earthquake within us."

CPG's Church Pension Fund is underwriting the cost of the gathering which is meant, the release said, to offer "clergy and lay leaders an opportunity for respite, reflection on the crisis, and rejuvenation for the ongoing recovery in Haiti."

More here-

http://www.episcopal-life.org/81803_123100_ENG_HTM.htm

Credo Institute, Church Pension Group offer 'Strength for the Journey' for reorganizing dioceses

From Episcopal Life Online-

CREDO Institute and the Church Pension Group will launch a series of conferences in May in the four reorganizing Episcopal Church dioceses of Pittsburgh, San Joaquin, Quincy, and Fort Worth.
The first two-day "Strength for the Journey" conference will be held in Pittsburgh May 21-22.

More than 450 Episcopal Church leaders in the Diocese of Pittsburgh -- including all clergy serving in the diocese, parish and diocesan lay employees, elected and appointed diocesan lay leaders, and members of church vestries -- were invited to participate in the gathering that will focus on spiritual renewal and wellness.

A CREDO news release said that in the wake of the departure of the four diocesan bishops and other church leaders to non-geographic Anglican jurisdictions over the past few years, "a new mix of diocesan leaders both lay and ordained, some experienced, others in new positions, has picked up the mantle of leadership."

The goal of the two-day CREDO conferences is not only to provide respite from a long journey still underway, it is also to make space for spiritual renewal and celebration of diocesan life and ministry, the release said.

"We here in the Diocese of Pittsburgh are immensely grateful to CREDO and the Church Pension Fund for their sponsorship of the Strength for the Journey conference. I believe it will be a vital step in our rebuilding process," Bishop Kenneth Price, provisional bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, said in the release. "We have a strong corps of leaders here in this diocese, but knowing that a network of support such as CREDO offers is essential to our work."

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81799_122088_ENG_HTM.htm