Pastoral care for the common good: How the Church can respond better in the next pandemic

Aug 1, 2023 by Jill

by Roger Abbott, Cambridge Papers:

Noting that the UK Church’s response to the Covid pandemic was disappointing when compared with her response to disease-related outbreaks of earlier centuries, this paper reflects on the issue of pastoral care by the Church both for congregations and the general public. Requisite pastoral care should have a common grace focus, where carers accept the risks to their own lives, engage collaboratively with the scientific community, yet are also prepared to think and act prophetically. Finally, the paper calls for a way forward that takes seriously the lessons to be learned from the coronavirus pandemic in order to prepare for a more effective response when the next pandemic arrives. The paper closes with an important call for the Christian Church to be at the national policy-making table.

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