We are holding it together.
Everyone can give care. Everyone needs care. You are not alone.
Care (sometimes known as “pastoral care” in Christian and Christian adjacent contexts) is a central mission of First Universalist Church, as it is for all communities of faith.
To access any of our caring resources or to offer care, please contact Rev. Arif at arif [at] firstuniv.org.
Congregational Care at First Universalist encompasses emotional, spiritual, and social care, and here at First Universalist, we believe that care is everyone’s job and everyone’s opportunity. We believe that care happens on a spectrum, from the “small” gestures of welcome, kindness, and human presence that happen in the pews on Sunday and throughout the week, to a minister sitting at your bedside as you take your final breaths – and everything in between.
Emotional, spiritual, and social care are often intertwined. One way to understand their distinctions might be this: emotional care tends to be needed when we experience a life event that brings strong emotion with it. It might be tragedy or loss, it might be joy and elation. In all of these cases, witness, presence, and where appropriate and desired, counseling with a minister can help us move through these experiences. We can fully feel what arises, and integrate the experience into our beings in ways that allow us to more make meaning of the event in the service of our flourishing. Which naturally blends into spiritual care.
Spiritual care in Unitarian Universalism speaks to the need we have to make meaning of our lives and the circumstances we find ourselves in. Spiritual care might happen in a support group, a theme based small group, in a spiritual direction meeting with a minister or trained lay-person, or in the friendships formed in the pews and in service to the church and wider world. As Unitarian Universalists, we understand that truth is always unfolding, and that our work is to remain ever more awake to the world as it is, so that we can fully participate in making the world as it could be: one where all have what they need to grow into the fullness of who they can be, and where all beings are afforded the opportunity to thrive.
All of this implies and relies upon a vibrant network of social care. Social care takes many forms in the church, from support via a relationship with a trained lay-person (Care Companion), to receiving financial support from the church in times of hardship, to congregants preparing and delivering meals when help is needed. It includes giving and receiving rides for folks who have mobility challenges to the many more and less formal networks of mutual care and support that form when we gather in community.
If there’s a form of care you need, there’s a good chance the church provides it, and if there’s a form of care you’d like to give, there’s a good chance the congregation wants to receive it.
Everyone can give care, and everyone needs care. Here a few concrete ways you can give, receive and grow with care at First Universalist Church.
Contact Rev. Arif to receive or offer care: arif [at] firstuniv.org.
Care Companions
Care Companions are members of the congregation who’ve been oriented toward the art and practice listening with a caring and confidential ear, and a loving and kind heart. We call and check in on folks in the congregation and are here to accompany you longer term if you’re living with a chronic illness or could use some ongoing support. You can request a care companion or join the care companion team.
Worship
Each week, individuals and families who are going through a life transition, experiencing a joy, or a time of difficulty, are included in our Cycle of Life meditation during worship when we practice releasing our aloneness and “holding it together.” You can speak your own words in worship, type them in the chat if you are joining online, or send them to us to include.
Meals
Provide: Join the team of people who help to cook for and deliver meals to folks in the congregation. This is an “as available” opportunity. You’ll receive an email in your inbox letting you know that there’s a request, and if you can help fill it, you sign up. Easy, flexible, and deeply meaningful.
Receive: Sick? Recovering from surgery or an illness? Caring for a family member or welcoming a new child? Something else? Sometimes, what helps more than anything is having church members bring healthy nourishing meals to your home for a short period of time. As one of our members recently said “it was such a gift to receive meals when my mom was sick. I could focus on taking care of her and when I wasn’t, I could just be with my family without worrying about getting dinner on the table.”
Comfort Shawls
Receive: Are you going through a time of transition or loss when you a concrete reminder that you are not alone? We have a “comfort shawls” that are always available. Just reach out.
Give: Help extend the care of the congregation by knitting and crocheting “comfort shawls” that are given to congregants who’re experiencing a challenging time. These are often taken by minister or other members of the care team to church members in hospital, recovering from illness at home, or congregants who’ve entered hospice. It is a tangible way the church wraps people in love, and an important way we demonstrate that none of us is ever alone.
Memorial Service Support
Memorial services are larger and more complicated undertakings than you might imagine, and at First Universalist, they happen with an exceptional level of care, compassion, and kindness, via the ministry of congregants who make up our Memorial Service Team. Working with one of our ministers, Memorial Service Team members help with all the “behind the scenes” aspects of services, including ushering and greeting, helping families coordinate food for receptions, and supporting families in setting up photo and flower displays in the sanctuary and social hall. There are many roles available and the schedule is flexible and based on your availability, so if you think this might be a role for you, reach out and let us know.
Rides
The church has a limited capacity to help with rides. Often, this means seeking to connect the person needing a ride with members who live in their neighborhood and are able to help with rides on an occasional or ongoing basis. The church generally needs at least one week’s notice in order to provide support with rides. For more urgent matters, the church can provide limited support with taxis and/or other on-demand transportation options.
To access any of our caring resources or to offer care, please contact Rev. Arif at arif [at] firstuniv.org.