Light Our Way - Purpose and Introduction

As an accompaniment to this course, you may find the entire document 'Light Our Way - A Guide for Spiritual Care in Times of Disaster 2018' in the Documents above.

The purpose of this course is to inform, encourage and affirm the hundreds of thousands of disaster responders who put their personal plans and routines on hold in the event of a local or national disaster.

If you are one of those who carries out one or more of the myriad essential functions in the relief and recovery stages of disaster response, this course is for you.

It is the belief of the members of the Emotional and Spiritual Care Committee of the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster that the spiritual nature of humanity inspires the deep compassion and spontaneous generosity that we see demonstrated by individuals and whole communities after great catastrophes.

We believe that all who feel compelled to help can learn more effective and caring ways to be present to those we serve.

It is written for you who sometimes wonder what to do, whether you are doing enough, or whether you are doing the right thing when you encounter a survivor who is in shock. It is written for you if you are concerned when you observe a co-worker behaving in an agitated or dangerous way or when you become overwhelmed with your own fear and sorrow at the sight of massive destruction and loss of life. This course is also for you if you are one who wears the symbols of the religious or the disaster spiritual care provider— your non-anxious presence can be a model for all disaster responders.

Emergency response and disaster relief work are not for everyone. But you have chosen to accept the call to reach out when fellow human beings—and even our furred and feathered friends—are hurting. You, no doubt, belong to an organization— a religious or service organization, community agency or service club—with disaster response as part of its mission. You have been trained and equipped for rapid mobilization to the site of a disaster or to your leadership post when disaster strikes. You are prepared to do your job.

This National VOAD resource on Emotional and Spiritual Care in Disaster is not intended to be one more training manual or another “how to” book for disaster response. Our intention is to encourage standards of best practice for all of us, whether we care for children, give spiritual counsel, help survivors sort through the remains of their home, or answer phones at a call center.

So what has “spiritual” got to do with it? Statistics confirm that 96% of Americans profess to believe in God, over 90% pray, nearly 70% are members of churches, synagogues or mosques and over 40% will have attended a house of worship in any given week. Relating to the spiritual dimension is just as important as addressing the social environment or psychological state of a person impacted by disaster. Further, an October 2001 survey in New York by the International Critical Stress Foundation found that 59% of those impacted by disaster preferred to receive support from a clergy or religious counselor compared to 45% seeking a physician and 40% seeking a mental health professional. This implies that those impacted by disaster desire spiritual care and that the presence of spiritual care can be a useful referral source for other helping professionals.

As responders and providers, we know that tending to our own spiritual, emotional, and physical needs gives us the strength and stamina to give our very best to our tasks and to those who benefit from our work. This is exemplified in the compassionate and caring relationships we nurture with all whom we encounter before, during and after disasters. Each of you is the gift that someone else needs in her or his moments of deepest despair.

We hope this resource is useful to you and we welcome your comments and feedback.

Emotional and Spiritual Care Committee of the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster and the Light Our Way Task Force

Rev. Kevin Massey, Board Certified Chaplain—Writer
Julia Sibley-Jones—Editor 2006
Rev. Dr. Naomi Kohatsu Paget, Board Certified Chaplain—Editor 2018

Are you ready to dive in?