The Limits of Care: Burnout as an Ecclesial Issue

Stanley Hauerwas, William Willimon

Article Type: Article

Publication Date: 7/1/1990

Paired Article (Face to Face): The Limits of Care: Burnout as an Ecclesial Issue

Issue: Church Talk: Slogans and Shibboleths (Vol. 10, No 3, Summer, 1990)

Doctors, social workers and therapists are giving a new name to a syndrome they say is draining their ranks: “compassion fatigue.” It strikes people who take on too heavy a load of other people’s burdens, leaving little time or energy for themselves. Victims become disillusioned and depressed, and often start to show cracks in their professional veneer Compassion fatigue is gaining recognition. ” It seems that the minister is asked to be too caring, too compassionate, too concerned with other people’s lives and, as a result, simply burns out.

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