NYT article: lowering burnout among priests

[chronarchy]

An interesting article popped up in the New York Times not too long ago: "Taking a Break From the Lord's Work". The article talks about a rise in obesity, hypertension, and depression among clergypersons in America, and a lowering of life expectancy. In addition, they apparently have "significantly higher rates of arthritis, diabetes, high blood

Comments

[anivair]

That is really an amazing idea. And it's not just pagan circles. I'm in a few gaming orgs (or have been) and it's the same there. Any sufficiently large group that people can turn into their social circle becomes that.

And I think that having your faith group be a part of your social circle is certainly healthy, but it's important that people understand that there's a life outside that and that being on ADF chat or at their computer 24/7 is not making them any better. It doesn't make you a better pagan, really. (I need to learn that lesson myself from time to time).

[chronarchy]

Oh, faith and social interaction certainly must co-exist. They really can't be pulled apart, as religion is clearly a community experience.

But yes, like the gaming group, if you only have friends in the gaming group, then you cannot separate from the gaming group. And it's important (and healthy) to separate from any group for at least some time.

Having more than one social circle is, I think, pretty important. And having others recognize that they're not your only social circle is equally important :)

I've often found myself getting frustrated with being disconnected (for instance, I'd love to spend the entire day on ADF's chat rooms, but I simply can't), but my religious response to being disconnected is less often to get on to the ADF lists or the chats, and more often to go to my altar and light a fire.

Official Friends of the Grove?

[rfunk]

What makes someone an Official Friend of the Grove? How is that different from a Member?

Re: Official Friends of the Grove?

[chronarchy]

Well, specifically:

Friends of the Grove don't have any sort of attendance requirement or the ability to vote in Grove elections. They also don't have to be ADF members (but they can be, we just won't pay their dues). Becoming a Friend of the Grove means that you get access to the e-mail list (if desired), and Friends have an open invitation to our Druid Moon rites (though occasionally we'll close a rite to Friends, too, but that's really rare).

We still do the voting thing (because Friends get on the list and see potentially personal information like e-mail addresses and names), and you pay a yearly dues (currently $30).

It's sort of like a "supporting" membership, really.

[wishesofastar]

Your earlier posts about a physical discipline regimen seem perfect, particularly for obesity and related health concerns. I know that when I attended church as a kid, physical activity was *not* a priority for the clergy. Also, eating was considered the one "sin" you could get away with (yes, I know that's not a concern for ADF).

[wishesofastar]

That should be eating to excess. As far as I know, clergy still need to process food. :)

[chronarchy]

Third circle secret: living on sunlight!

[chronarchy]

*nods* Physical activity as spiritual discipline can do some of that. It has, after all, lowered my own body fat.

The article tends to tie the higher levels of obesity (I am assuming that they're using a BMI scale, so opinions on how useful the measurement might be are likely related to the use of that index) to stress. Speaking for myself, I think that any discipline that reduces stress (and really, any discipline will, whether it's jogging or praying on a set schedule) is likely to reduce my weight by reducing the amount of food I stress eat :)

I'm trying to think of the last time I was in a jazzed-up disciplinary mood from prayer and meditation and had a sudden craving for Skittles (my current go-to stress candy here at work), and I'm drawing a blank.

But yeah, an active life style will help the average priest achieve a BMI at least as average as the average person, so point well taken. :)

[wcm]

I heard about this on NPR a few weeks ago. It was noted that it's experienced across all religions, but the only people calling in were Christians. I kept hoping an ADFer would call. :P I was genuinely curious what any of the ADF priests would have to say about it.

[chronarchy]

Must have missed the story when it ran. Darn

[wcm]

I can imagine it being hard. And don't feel bad about the chats. I would love to make more too, but meat world beckons... lol

[chronarchy]

Indeed. Stupid meat world :)