Image
Why are clergy suffering from poor health?
Faithful and Fractured: Responding to the Clergy Health Crisis draws on over a decade of research from the Clergy Health Initiative to provide a comprehensive look at the health challenges facing today’s clergy. Through the lens of both clinical psychology and pastoral theology, the authors illuminate the pressures that contribute to clergy distress and offer evidence-based solutions for improving their well-being.
Most pastors live into their calling so deeply that they place the needs of others above their own. Yet Faithful and Fractured reminds clergy that caring for oneself is part of the sacred work for which they are called. The authors offer concrete, practical guidance on how to live this out: prioritizing sleep, protecting their physical health (no matter the starting point), attending to mental health, fostering positive emotions, and cultivating life outside of ministry.
They also invite clergy to maintain spiritual practices that root them in God and connect them to others: lifting people up in prayer, visiting the vulnerable and marginalized, reading not only scripture but other writings that inspire, and treating their time as a God-given gift to be stewarded rather than forced. In this way, caring for themselves is reframed not as an indulgence, but as a means of grace—sustaining both the pastor and their ministry for the long haul.
While grounded in rigorous research from United Methodist pastors, its findings are sure to speak to readers across denominations wondering how clergy and their congregations can thrive amidst the complexities of ministry. Beyond simply identifying the problem, it is an invitation to imagine a more sustainable path for ministry—one where those called to care for others are also equipped and empowered to care for themselves.
With practical tools and theological grounding, this is an essential read for ministry leaders, seminary educators, and anyone committed to supporting the flourishing of those called to serve.
The strength of this major research initiative lies in its combination of data and narrative, social scientific rigor and theological wisdom, description and practical guidance.
Bishop Ken Carter, Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church
Loading...
Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell, Ph.D.
Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell, Ph.D. (PhD, Arizona State University) is a Research Professor of Duke Global Health Institute and the Director of Duke Center for Health Policy & Inequalities Research. She is co-principal investigator of the Duke Clergy Health Initiative.
Loading...
Rev. Dr. Jason Byassee
Rev. Dr. Jason Byassee (PhD, Duke University) was previously the inaugural holder of the Butler Chair in Homiletics and Biblical Hermeneutics at the Vancouver School of Theology. He serves as a contributing editor to the Christian Century and has written numerous books.