BY Bill Reagan
Every October Valley Baptist Medical Center hosts a Pastor Appreciation Breakfast. This year’s event was this past Tuesday.
Clergy from all over Cameron and Willacy Counties join the staff of the Chaplain’s Department for a hot breakfast and an update from CEO Manny Vela and Vice-President for Chaplain Services Joe Perez.
We need chaplains.
Chaplains are a very important part of healthcare and vital to the wellness of any community. Chaplains see us at our most vulnerable moments, when we are afraid, sick, nearly naked and lying in a hospital bed. They step into our rooms gently, tenderly ministering to people they have never met and may never see again. For many patients, the chaplain’s visit is like a visit from God. In those vulnerable, nearly naked moments we connect with God in ways we never have before and share with these strangers our intimate fears and hopes.
And we need pastors.
Because we go home from the hospital.
Most people do not know what the life of a pastor is like. They see him or her for an hour on Sunday morning, at a wedding or a baptism, or officiating a funeral. Your pastor cares for your soul, not just the eternal destination of your soul, but the wellness of your soul every day.
The chaplain’s tools are the attentive ear, the gentle touch, a prayer and a calming presence.
A pastor has similar tools, and a relationship with you that lasts. He or she knows where you sit in church, and notices when you are missing. Your pastor sees your subtle signs of stress or spiritual progress. Pastors pray as well as preach, and the prayers are more important than the preaching.
At the end of our breakfast Chaplain Perez invited the group to form a circle, hold hands and pray. That circle of prayer represents the partnership of chaplain and clergy, the unity of faith and the hope for our community.
Tell your pastor you love him – or her.
Bill Reagan is executive director of Loaves & Fishes of the Rio Grande Valley.
