Explore both practices of how to care for one another in times of crisis and challenge, but also how the care itself must change because of these times. For Religious Professionals, Lay-Leaders, and Congregation Members who are involved in the congregation’s ministries of caring.

In order to create a memorial service that is meaningful, you will want to spend "slow time" with those who were closest to the deceased. Your gift of listening is an important part of spiritual care for the bereaved.

How can we adapt something we usually do in person—memorial services and celebrations of life—to happen online over videoconference? It’s a question that many of our congregations are facing as we contend with COVID-19 and restrictions on gathering. Some of the challenges are identical to...

When restrictions on gathering are lifted, many congregations will have several memorial services they will need to schedule and hold. This page offers tips for planning services smoothly, so that the focus can be on pastoral care and grief support.

When authorities limit in-person gatherings to 25 or 10 or even fewer people, it necessarily affects our capacity to hold funerals and memorial services....

When physical presence is not possible, we can still do our best to create time and space to gather in virtual space until such time that a physical gathering is possible.

Our purpose as a religious community has become more clear as it’s simplified. As one of our ministers instructs her staff, board, and key volunteers, “If it’s not about caring or community, let it go”.

In a time of physical distancing, how might we respond to deaths that cannot yet be marked by gathering in person? You may want to create Grief Kits that can be delivered to the backdoors or porches of congregants.

As this health crisis reaches all corners of our global family of faith, we in the International U/U Joint Working Group wish to offer our heartfelt prayers, thoughts, and blessings to you and your communities. Our diverse faith, strong and united offers us the reminder that we are better and more resilient together.

Back when zombies were new again and watching post-apocalyptic dramas seemed like entertaining escapism, I convinced my husband Mat that it would be fun to take a class through Salt Lake continuing education called “In Case of Zombies: Plans, Provisions and Preparedness for Darker Days.” Living...

Back when zombies were new again and watching post-apocalyptic dramas seemed like entertaining escapism, I convinced my husband Mat that it would be fun to take a class through Salt Lake continuing education called “In Case of Zombies: Plans, Provisions and Preparedness for Darker Days.” Living...

When you're building up a team of lay pastoral caregivers in your congregation, it's important to ask good questions. Their answers will help you determine whether a prospective caregiver has the appropriate boundaries and skills for the role....

The COVID-19 pandemic has arrived, and you can barely keep up with the emotional, spiritual, and health needs of your community. Either you didn’t have a strong network of lay pastoral care in place before, or the core of your network is over 60 and self-isolating… Suddenly, you find you have to...

Physical isolation doesn't have to mean social isolation. Here are a collection of resources to help your members and friends feel connected and cared for.

Physical distancing doesn't have to mean social isolation. Here are some creative ways to provide pastoral care in a time of physical distancing.

I’m thinking of so many Unitarian Universalists I know who live alone. I'm remembering the times I lived alone and really feeling a lot of compassion for everyone for whom "physical distancing" means being without the physical presence of other humans. I see you. I care about you. I love you. I...

Emily McKinney, hospice chaplain and music director, shares the pastoral needs of health care providers during this time of coronavirus pandemic.

Community, including intimate, deep, and spiritually supportive versions thereof, can be created and sustained in online spaces, including covenant groups, ritual, pastoral care, and community interactions.

If you are a leader or have a strong following, you have great power in this situation to help people navigate it with grace. Using what we know about neurobiology and trauma, here are some pro-tips from a professional in the field of helping communities navigate great change and challenge.

Rev. Erika Hewitt guides participants through a basic understanding of pastoral skills needed to respond to a death and loss; and the liturgical work of creating and leading memorial services.