Building Faith in the Power of The Conversation

by Rev. Rosemary LloydWhen the senior minister of Old South Church in Boston, Massachusetts, Rev. Dr. Nancy Taylor, began her sermon one Sunday morning she raised a lot of eyebrows.“Mary,” she began, “you are going to die.” She started pointing out people in the church and telling them that they are going to die. Young and old, men and women, she called out congregants by name and reminded them that death is not a dirty secret; it’s a fact of life. Her sermon continu ed, weaving in humor to diffuse the tension and ultimately generating chuckles and nods of understanding from the crowd.“These days, people often don’t have an extended family, or grandchildren who live nearby to care for them,” says Taylor. “To fill that gap, we try to be each other’s family and help them formulate a plan. I am there to guide ‘my family’ through baptisms, confirmations and weddings, so it’s also my duty to help them transition to the next life.”The idea for this sermon was inspired by The Conversation Project, a nonprofit organization with the mission to ensure that everyone ’s wishes for end-of-life care are expressed and respected. Founded by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, Ellen Goodman, The Conversation Project reaches out to people where they live, work, pray and gather, to encourage values-led conversations about a topic that touches every human life: how we want to be cared for in our final days. While 90 percent of Americans say they believe they should t...
Source: Pallimed: A Hospice and Palliative Medicine Blog - Category: Palliative Care Tags: chaplain communication community conversation project lloyd spirituality spirituality/religion Source Type: blogs