Emotional clusters and spiritual clusters in chaplaincy

Emotional clusters and spiritual clusters in chaplaincy.

By Stuart Adamson (Healthcare Chaplain with Anglicare and Associate Dean, Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care, at Morling College.)

In the last article, we looked at how empathy leads to the identification of the felt need of the person we are caring for, and informs a pastoral response.

Along the way, we considered briefly the notion of what I call “emotional clusters”.

In this article, I want to drill down a bit more on the idea of emotional clusters, and suggest another possible category that is emerging from reflection on my pastoral practice as a chaplain, that of what I call “spiritual clusters”.  

Firstly, to emotional clusters. As we respond empathically to what the people we care for tell us, a range of different emotions can come to the surface for them. But often, on reflection, we can discern a narrow range of more finely nuanced emotions that together combine to suggest the very same pastoral need. 

In the case of Joe, the patient I was caring for in ICU mentioned in the last article, these emotions included the feeling that everything was a huge struggle, a profound sense of physical, emotional and spiritual weakness, and a sense of feeling exhausted, overwhelmed and doubtful about his capacity to persevere.

My visit with Joe is an example of how a number of finely nuanced emotions that are expressed by a person in even a relatively short pastoral encounter can combine to form an emotional cluster. In this case, the cluster pointed me to Joe’s primary felt need of sustenance. The identification of this felt need informed my pastoral response in ways that Joe told me were life-giving for him.

Experience tells me that this idea of clusters has applicability across the full range of needs felt by people who are facing trials. This is not limited to just six functions of pastoral care, but includes all those described with clarity in the gospel accounts of Jesus’ interactions with people he encountered in the course of his ministry.

In many respects, Christian chaplaincy in its various forms and expressions more closely approximates the travelling ministry of Jesus as he makes his way to Jerusalem than any ministry of pastoral care that is centred on caring for a community of Christians associated with a particular church. Chaplains tend to meet people in an unplanned way in the course of their travels.

As Christians in the service of our Lord and Saviour, despite the fact that in our roles we can often feel lonely, it is good and right to remind ourselves that we are not alone. Also, we are amply equipped for the task that the Lord has called us to.

We have his very great promises by which we participate in the divine nature. We have the Spirit of God within us, to guide us into all truth and remind us of the teachings of Jesus. We have his Word which is a lamp to our feet. We have the gift of prayer which we can use at any time and in any circumstance we like. We also have the support of the prayers of the faithful via our support churches, and we have at times the sweetest of fellowship with Christians whom the Lord brings across our path in the public spaces in which we serve.

Our service is kingdom service. Obviously there is a deeply spiritual dimension to our service that involves and centres on bearing witness to the cross, resurrection and the current rule and reign of Jesus, in the power of the Spirit and to the glory of the Father.

Often the people amongst whom we serve have been suffering as a result of human fallenness, or the inevitable consequences of their own choices, or the choices of others, in ways that combine to reinforce the truths of Scripture.

From time to time as I witness in word and deed to the love of Christ in pastoral conversations with people who have been suffering in a variety of ways, I have noticed in the responses of people I am caring for words that have been used by dark forces to undermine the work of the Spirit in the encounter and block my own witness.

 

These words may not have been intended by the person to wound me or undermine my witness. In many cases they have been uttered unwittingly and without any malice towards me personally. But the fruit of these words is clear. They are opposed to God‘s very purposes for that person to find wholeness and assurance of God‘s love for them in Christ. And sometimes, I experience them as a personal attack on my own faith and assurance in Christ.

Let me provide you with an example from my chaplaincy in the context of people living with a mental illness.

Jack, not his real name, is an outgoing personality who has struggled with bipolar disorder coupled with auditory and visual hallucinations for many years. He has a generous spirit and professes a belief in Jesus which I know is genuine. He has many other health issues. He often talks about seeing things in the spirit world, and the things he sees intrude into our conversations in ways that he often finds frightening. 

 

From time to time he will call me at the office out of the blue and describe to me in detail the nature of the things that he has been seeing and hearing. I won’t describe them here. But suffice it to say, there seems to be a deeply spiritual dimension to what he is seeing and hearing. I say this simply because these things rock his faith to the core. 

 

In many circumstances he will only calm down when I am in focussed prayer, thanking and praising the Lord for his victory over sin and death at the cross and resurrection.

 

In addition, at times, Jack will mention things that have direct relevance to my private life that strike at the heart of a faith issue I may be wrestling with. He could have no way of knowing the power of his words to wound me in the moment because he knows nothing of the details. So I take it that this is either coincidence, which is possible, or spiritual attack, which given the immediate context, and what we know from Scripture (See Ephesians 6:11-20), is not only possible, but likely. Indeed the apostle Paul tells us to expect it and prepare for it by checking our spiritual armour.

The expressions and fruit of these conversations with Jack include spiritual anguish, fear, a sense of darkness and threat by evil spirits that are visible to him and speak to him in ways that cause him to doubt both his salvation and the Lordship of Christ. 

 

My instinct is to identify these expressions as a spiritual cluster that points to a need for specific spiritual assurance, and a signal to me to intentionally and more self-consciously check my spiritual armour and keep the Word and prayer close. 

When it first happened, I was rattled. I am not a "demons under the bed" kind of chaplain. But more experience and encounters with others who are going through spiritual suffering have been helpful to me to sharpen my thinking.

I find it helpful to reflect on my pastoral practice and identify learning issues that can be informed and resourced by the Word.

I’d be interested to hear what you think of the above.