Diversity & Spiritual Care in the Pandemic

ABSTRACT Disenfranchised grief is the experience of grief where the loss, the style of grieving, or the griever is not or cannot be sufficiently recognized. It describes well what a great many underrepresented spiritual care providers experience at times during their clinical pastoral education – feeling as if one is a stranger – racially, socially, and culturally – in the exchange of care. This paper discusses this experience in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, ultimately endeavoring to stress the importance of being both seen and recognized.