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My colleague, Dennis Coday, blogged yesterday on an article by David Gibson about clergy health. (See Gibson's No Rest For the Holy: Clergy Burnout a Growing Concern and Coday's Keeping priests holy and healthy
Coday said some good advice came at the end of Gibson's piece: "Experts also say the solutions have to start at the congregational level."
As it happens NPR's Talk of the Nation program did a segment on the same topic yesterday. (Clergy Members Suffer From Burnout, Poor Health)
Here's on tiny bit of the exchange:
Robin Swift (director of health programs at the Clergy Health Initiative, Duke University Divinity School): Oh, I think there are lots of ways churches can do that, and we have a few suggestions. One is they can be the first to encourage their pastor to take a vacation. They can consider making non-urgent phone calls during business hours. And instead of finding fault, they can voice support every time they get a chance. They can create healthy food offerings when they gather together, have walking versus sitting meetings, share the workload, and realize that this is a calling for all people of faith, to honor their bodies and their health, and figure out how they can do that.
TONY COX, host: Interesting that you should say that. Excuse me for interrupting, but we got an email that I was going to share with you. And it says simply: Cut out the free fried chicken, grits and gravy.
(Soundbite of laughter)