What does a hospital chaplain actually do?

What can you possibly say to a mother sitting beside her critically ill child? To a family facing an impossible medical decision? To someone who has just received devastating news?

Rabbanit Alissa Thomas-Newborn, BCC is a board-certified Jewish chaplain who has been there for people during some of the most painful and frightening moments of their lives. And often, she says, her job isn't to have the right answer. It's to know how to be there when there isn't an answer.

In this episode, Alissa takes us inside the world of hospital chaplaincy and shares what she has learned about suffering, grief, faith, hope, and simply being present.

We talk about what families actually need when they're in crisis, why listening can sometimes be far more powerful than talking, and the things well-meaning people say that may hurt instead of help. Alissa also discusses the unique needs of Orthodox Jewish families in the hospital, the role of halacha and rabbanim in difficult medical decisions, and how a chaplain can help bridge the gap between families and medical teams.

And perhaps most importantly: when someone you care about is going through something terrible and you have absolutely no idea what to say or do—what do they really need from you?

NAJC thanks Mayrim for allowing this episode to be shared with the NeshamaCast audience. Check out other episodes of The Grief Journey Podcast.

About our host:

Rabbi Edward Bernstein, BCC, is the executive producer and host of NeshamaCast. He serves as Chaplain at Boca Raton Regional Hospital of Baptist Health South Florida. He is a member of the Board of Neshama: Association of Jewish Chaplains. Prior to his chaplain career, he served as a pulpit rabbi in congregations in New Rochelle, NY; Beachwood, OH; and Boynton Beach, FL. He is also the host and producer of My Teacher Podcast: A Celebration of the People Who Shape Our Lives.

NeshamaCast contributor Chaplain David Balto is a volunteer chaplain at Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C. and Western Correctional Insitution, Maryland’s maximum security prison. He coordinated the annual National Jewish Healing Conference.

Support NeshamaCast and NAJC with a tax deductible donation to NAJC. For sponsorship opportunities as either an individual or institution, please write to Rabbi Ed Bernstein at NeshamaCast@gmail.com

Thank you to Steve Lubetkin and Lubetkin Media Companies for producing this episode.

Transcripts for this episode and other episodes of NeshamaCast are available at NeshamaCast.simplecast.com and are typically posted one week after an episode first airs.

Theme Music is “A Niggun For Ki Anu Amecha,” written and performed by Reb-Cantor Lisa Levine.

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Opinions expressed on NeshamaCast reflect those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect official positions of NAJC.

We welcome comments and suggestions for future programming at NeshamaCast@gmail.com. And be sure to follow NAJC on Facebook to learn more about Jewish spiritual care happening in our communities.