Date of Award

2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

First Advisor

Edward Donalson III

Second Advisor

Rebecca Jeney Park-Hearn

Third Advisor

David Hahn

Comments

Eurocentric theological anthropological language is implicitly racist, otherizes Blacks, and colorblind models of spiritual care reinforce White supremacist status quo in support of dehumanizing hegemony, centering privilege and marginalization. This explanatory qualitative case study research seeks to uncover the lived experiences of Black healthcare chaplains from across the diaspora who provide trauma-informed care to Black care-seekers in response to race-based trauma. Explanatory case study research was used to gather details about how healthcare chaplains across different social locations interpret and experience trauma-informed care in spiritual care practice. Data were collected through informal interviews with chaplains to capture a direct window into their lived experiences. After data were collected, the interviews were transcribed and coded for recurring themes to focus and make sense and meaning of the data. Sacred dignity and well-being of persons, imago Dei, self-care, cura personalis, rejection of colorblind care, and attending to impacts of racialized trauma were the six themes that emerged from the data. In their own words, the lived experiences of these chaplains across their distinctive social locations reveal consistent voices, emotions, motivations, values, attitudes, and philosophical beliefs about trauma-informed care and treating racialized trauma in Blacks. The results offer a prophetic critique of Eurocentric models of spiritual care and posits a theo-praxis of trauma-informed care alongside a reimagined imago Dei in response to race-based trauma.

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