Duke Clergy Health Collaborative

This Lenten season, we have journeyed together toward a resurrected life by distancing ourselves from unnecessary shame, which so often creates a barrier to healthy ministry. As we move into the joy of Easter, let’s carry forward the practices of self-compassion and distanced self-talk (speaking to oneself as a fierce friend would).

Our website hosts these resources (and many more!) to support you in the season ahead. Grace and peace to you this Easter.

How to Have a Shameless Lent | Clergy & Religion Research Collaborative This Lent we’re focusing on shame—that sneaky barrier to healthy ministry—and how the practice of "distanced self-talk" can help soothe it. Image Want to experience less

This Lent, we have been reflecting on shame and how the practice of distanced self-talk can help soothe it. However, distanced self-talk only works if you are channeling the voice of a “fierce friend.” (Talking to yourself as a critical parent or disinterested partner only compounds shame.)

In her guided meditation, researcher Kristin Neff describes the voice of a fierce friend as someone who combines “strength with love,” who is “wise and all-knowing,” and who “sees you—your history, your patterns—clearly.”

Hop over to our website to explore the practice of distanced self-talk and Neff’s meditation.

https://clergyreligionresearch.duke.edu/blog-post/how-have-shameless-lent/

What are the most common challenges faced by women in ministry, and how can the church prevent or effectively navigate harm when it occurs?

Join us for a presentation by RaSCL Postdoc Associate Dr. Elizabeth Johnson, who will share findings from her research on clergywomen in the Episcopal Church and Mennonite Church USA. This conversation will explore the experiences of women in congregational ministry and how we can contribute to a world where clergy of all genders thrive.

Open to the Duke Divinity School community and students! See you there.

How do we resist shame and gain more self-compassion this Lent? Allow us to share with you the (free and habit-forming!) evidence-based practice of “distanced self-talk.”

Distanced self-talk is a practice in which you address yourself as you would another person. In his TED Talk, psychologist Ethan Kross describes how the practice can serve as a helpful remedy to Solomon’s Paradox—the phenomenon of giving great advice to other people but stumbling mightily to take our own!

To dive deeper into distanced self-talk and watch Ethan’s TED Talk, visit our website.

clergyreligionresearch.duke.edu/how-have-shameless-lent