Health & Well-being

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Workers at Convent Avenue Baptist Church offer free coronavirus testing for people in their West Harlem neighborhood. The five-day effort in May has served as a model for faith-based communities to help close the racial gap in access to testing. Photo courtesy of Convent Avenue Baptist Church

Health & Well-being, Physical health, Congregations

Churches can help stop the spread of the coronavirus by offering free COVID-19 testing

Inspired by the success of a program at Convent Avenue Baptist Church in West Harlem, a national nonprofit hopes to encourage other congregations to get involved in overcoming the logistical, emotional and financial barriers to COVID-19 testing in underserved communities.

iStock / JurgaR

Health & Well-being, Emotional health, Spiritual health

Jessica Young Brown: Who cares for the shepherds? The secondary trauma of faith leaders must be addressed

The toll of the last six months on clergy requires a sustained response, from the seminary and denominational levels as well as congregations, writes an expert on faith and mental health.

St Joseph's Hospital in Syracuse, New York, circa 1870. Photos courtesy of Saint Marianne Cope Archives

Health & Well-being, Physical health, Christian Leadership, Innovation

Driven by her faith, a religious sister set new standards in medical care

St. Marianne Cope, driven by her faith to provide medical care to the most vulnerable, also played a key role in creating hygiene standards.

Acrostics and mesostics are forms of poetry; acrostics intersect the first letter of each line and mesostics intersect in the middle. Illustration by Jessamyn Rubio

Arts & Culture, Health & Well-being, Youth & Children

Amy Peterson: How poetry can help kids -- and all of us -- practice lament

Poetry from the book of Lamentations invites us to find words for our feelings and offers a form to contain that which feels uncontainable and uncontrollable, says a writer.

Mycal X. Brickhouse snuggles with his grandmother, who died in July of COVID-19. Photo courtesy of the author

Theological Reflection, Health & Well-being

Mycal X. Brickhouse: COVID-19 should remind us that life is holy, not disposable

After losing his grandmother to the coronavirus, a pastor and administrator reflects on policies that value money more than American lives.

Unsplash / Ashley Batz

Health & Well-being, Research, Physical health, Emotional health

Matt Bloom: A commitment to personal rituals can sustain clergy, even during a pandemic

Pastors can benefit from adaptable, restorative practices, writes a leading researcher on well-being in the workplace.

iStock / Filadendron

Health & Well-being, Emotional health, Physical health, Spiritual health

Chanequa Walker-Barnes: The fear God gives us

Fear is not the antithesis of faith and truth; nor does it indicate a lack of trust in God, writes a pastoral care professor and licensed clinical psychologist. Indeed, God created us with fear to keep us safe.

The Rev. Alexis Carter Thomas preaching. Photo courtesy of the author

Congregations, Laity, Clergy/lay relationship, Health & Well-being

Alexis Carter Thomas: How can congregations help Black clergywomen flourish?

Intentional self-care, a church’s ethos of care and congregational openness to new approaches are notable factors that contribute to the thriving of Black clergywomen, a researcher has found.

iStock / Igor Alecsander

Theological Reflection, Health & Well-being, Spiritual health

Gabby Cudjoe Wilkes: Taking a lesson from the seed -- find joy

A New York City pastor writes about the tradition of resilience in Black churches and how she finds joy in troubled times.

Green The Church encourages congregations to install solar panels, among other environmentally friendly strategies. Photos courtesy of Green The Church

Environment, Creation care, Activism, Congregations, Health & Well-being

A nonprofit works to 'green' the Black church

Green The Church encourages African American congregations to commit to an environmental theology that promotes sustainable practices and helps build economic and political change.

A learning resource for Christian leaders and their institutions from Leadership Education at Duke Divinity