Practice & Presence: A Gathering for Christians in Health Care

The Sabbath commandment in Deuteronomy’s version of the Ten Commandments takes its origin in the narrative of the divine commitment to enslaved migrants in Egypt (Deut. 5:12-15). It inscribes the memory of being a vulnerable migrant on the believer’s identity and prescribes a practice of mercy and compassion toward those who are now as vulnerable as the Israelites once were. Thus, the divine commitment undergirds the divine commandment. The non-exploitation that the divine commitment demands, serves as the conceptual foundation of a financial approach to healthcare service - where margin is a fruit of mission, not its aim.  In this context, there is general contentment with available resources rather than a constant drive toward avarice. Sabbath observance commits care for one's employees as well as one’s patients, and leads to measurable improvements in employment metrics, but most importantly from the perspective of divine commitment, it leads to improved employee wellness. It ties together Old and New Testament as Deuteronomy says that God “will raise up a prophet like me from among your own people” (Deut. 18:15, 18) who will deepen the earlier revelation. This tie between Deuteronomy and John’s gospel imbues the Sabbath healings of Jesus as described in the Gospel of John with deep significance for the Christian healthcare administrator and practitioner as divine commitment and calling made real at the bedside of the vulnerable and marginalized (John 5:1-19; 9:1-41).    

Presenters: 

Sigve K. Tonstad, MD, PhD is research professor of biblical interpretation and assistant professor of medicine at Loma Linda University. He is the author of The Lost Meaning of the Seventh Day (2009) and several books on the problem of suffering and God's apparent absence.  

Angela Lalas, CPA, MBA serves as executive vice president for finance and chief financial officer at Loma Linda University Health. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration at Pepperdine University while living her passion to integrate principles of faith, stewardship, justice, and compassion in healthcare financial leadership.

Paul C. Herrmann, MD, PhD is professor and chair of the department of pathology and human anatomy at Loma Linda University School of Medicine where he also serves as vice-dean for academic affairs. He became interested in non-exploitative financial models of clinical practice while serving as CFO of the School of Medicine Faculty Practice from 2012 through 2018.

“The Lord replied, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.'” Exodus 33:14. Embodying Presence is a coming home, a communion with wholeness, and a reunion with the fullness of who we were before the world told us who we are.  Journey through an hour of breath, movement, and scripture meditation to engage presence heart, soul, mind, and body. This experiential workshop invites participants to experience the fullness of being present through a bio-psycho-social-spiritual practice.

Presenter:

Kristin Gibowicz. E-RYT 500, is founder and lead trainer of Living Soul Yoga Leadership Institute, Spiritual Director, and Motions of the Soul Enneagram practitioner. A trauma-informed yoga teacher of 23 years, she certifies yoga teachers through a holistic, Christ-centered, and science-based training programs. She has lead yearly yoga and spiritual formation retreats for the past 12 years.

Through this workshop, we aim to illustrate the principle that how a story is told relates to what story is actually conveyed, and whose voice is forefronted. We will demonstrate this through a gospel healing narrative told in different “voices,” through the use of various genres, ranging from a “flash fiction” portrayal of the account, to poetry, to an ethics case study, and then lead participants in a discussion of the various “meanings” and “stories” that emerge from these tellings. After offering a brief didactic on the field of narrative medicine, we will guide participants through a writing activity in which small breakout groups will formulate their own narrative pieces, retelling another gospel story through the lens of various genres, then conclude the session by sharing these pieces with the larger group and reflecting on them together.

Presenters:

Rebecca McAteer Martin, M.D., F.A.A.F.P., joined Westchester Medical Center in March 2023 as a Palliative Medicine consultant and Clinical Associate Professor at New York Medical College. She is a board-certified family physician, and serves as an Advisory Dean at New York Medical College. She completed a faculty development fellowship in Medical Humanities at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington DC, and a Hospice & Palliative Medicine fellowship at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. 

Madeline Erwich is a second-year TMC Fellow and MDiv student at Duke Divinity School. She is in between her third and fourth years of medical school at the University of South Florida. Through her love for narrative medicine, Madeline hopes to cultivate spaces where stories can be shared in pursuit of hope, healing, and transformation.

Martha Carlough, M.D., M.P.H., M.A. is family physician and Ignatian-trained spiritual director and is the director of spiritual formation for the Theology, Medicine and Culture Initiative, as well as consulting faculty at Duke Divinity School. Carlough is also affiliate faculty in the Duke Global Health Initiative (DGHI) and has more than 30 years of experience in clinical and public aspects of maternal and child health, including a decade of work in Nepal. She is professor emeritus at UNC-Chapel Hill, where she was on clinical faculty for many years and founded and directed the Office of Global Health Education. Carlough continues to care for patients and work in community health through Samaritan Health Center in Durham. 

This workshop invites participants to consider how their identity and faith formation invites them to love their neighbor as themselves. This talk may invoke a broader understanding of neighbor, leaning on the works of Jurgen Moltmann, Norman Wirzba, Wendell Berry, and various womanist authors. If the smallest unit of health is the community, then we must consider all that is there, not simply humans. What if we asked these questions: “What’s the nature of this place?…What will nature permit me to do here without damage to herself or to me [or to health of the community]?…How can I make my work [in healthcare/as a Christian] harmonize with the nature of the place?” 

Presenter: 

Hope Gehle, MD, is a resident physician at Virginia Mason Franciscan Health in Seattle, WA and an alumna of the Theology, Medicine, and Culture Fellowship at Duke Divinity School. The revelation of the Creator through creation has inspired her reading, writings, and wonderings of the gift to serve patients through loving the earth and pursuing justice for all creatures.

This paper argues that language is a theological and relational medium through which human dignity is either upheld or denied in clinical care. Drawing on Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Act and Being, it contends that language must be oriented toward the Other and, when misused, becomes a tool of marginalization rather than mutual understanding. Through a case study of medical miscommunication, it explores how proper use of language can embody both human rights and Christian witness.

Presenter:

Jackson McNeece is a Ph.D. student in theology and ethics at Baylor University, with a particular focus on bioethics. He earned his master’s degree from Duke University in 2024 and returned to his alma mater, Baylor, to pursue further study in theological bioethics and disability ethics. Outside of academics, Jackson enjoys running, playing racquetball, eating ice cream, and cheering on the Baylor Bears.

This paper explores the ways that faith communities, clergy, and chaplains can respectfully engage the journeys of individuals who have severe mental health challenges at the end of life. Drawing on case studies  and theological reflection, participants will discuss how mental health challenges confront some accounts of Christianity, and how theology can foster respect for God's presence amid struggles.

Presenter: 

Aaron Klink is chaplain at Pruitt Hospice in Durham, North Carolina. He received his B.A. in religion at Emory University and M.Div. from Yale Divinity School and a Th.M. from Duke Divinity School where he was the Westbrook Fellow in the Program in Theology and Medicine.  An ordained pastor he has served congregations in New York and North Carolina.  His work and research on theology and end-of-life care have been supported by grants from the Duke Institute for Care at the End of Life, the Louisville Institute the Collegeville Institute and the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

In this presentation, Dr. Leslie L. Bostick will draw from her experience as a practicing clinician to explore how faith and medicine can work in harmony within the private practice setting. She will share practical approaches to educating patients on God’s purpose for the physician, foundational nutritional principles, and guidelines for achieving and sustaining good health.

Far from being at odds, faith and medicine are presented as complementary pathways to healing—benefiting both patients and providers. Through engagement with scripture from both the Old and New Testaments, Dr. Bostick will highlight the spiritual, medical, and nutritional dimensions of a holistic Christian approach to health and wellness.

Presenter:

Leslie L. Bostick, MD is a pediatrician and a graduate of Stanford University, and UCLA School of Medicine. Since currently practices in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and has lent her talents and medical expertise to local communities with regard to disseminating preventive medicine techniques. Leslie, along with her husband, Dr. Peter Bostick, a surgical oncologist, founded "The Medical Team, Inc.," a non-profit Christian organization, whose purpose is to provide both medical care and the gospel to the indigent. They travel annually overseas with teams of doctors, nurses, and other professionals since 1991. The Bostick's have one son, Gabriel Joshua Bostick, who is a senior at Duke University, majoring in Neuroscience, Class of 2026.

In this session, three TMC alums will reflect on their individual experiences volunteering at medical student-run free clinics, as well as in global medical mission work, focusing on the ethical tensions that arise when serving underserved and marginalized communities. This session will explore the interplay between the Catholic principle of the preferential option for the poor and student-run free clinics, with particular attention to the ethical implications of practicing clinical skills on uninsured and disenfranchised patients. By sharing personal perspectives, we hope to spark critical conversations about justice, dignity, and the ethics of medical training in settings that serve marginalized communities, inviting fellow trainees to consider how we might approach service opportunities with humility, accountability, and a deeper awareness of the power dynamics at play.

Presenters:

Kayal Parthiban is a third-year medical student at UMass Chan medical school and a graduate of the Theology, Medicine, and Culture program at Duke Divinity School. 

Hannah Hittson is a third-year medical student at University of Texas Southwestern medical school and a graduate of the Theology, Medicine, and Culture program at Duke Divinity School. 

Grip Gilbert is a third-year medical student at UNC School of Medicine and a graduate of the Theology, Medicine, and Culture program at Duke Divinity School.

Presenters:

Mannes Matous, MS is a Dominican friar and Catholic priest. He has a master's degree in neuroscience and is currently a doctoral student in theology at Duke Divinity. His primary research focuses on Christianity and mental health. 

Patty Van Cappellen, PhD is an associate research professor in the Social Science Research Institute and Psychology and Neuroscience Department at Duke University. She holds a doctoral degree in Social Psychology and a master's degree in Biblical Studies. Her research uses psychological theories and methods to study religion, emotions, and flourishing. See: https://sites.duke.edu/bablab/

Megan Edwards, PhD is a postdoctoral scholar in the Social Science Research Institute at Duke University. She holds a doctoral degree in Social and Personality Psychology. Her primary research focuses on the study of emotions with an existential lens.

This workshop invites healthcare practitioners to reflect on how they can continue to live out their God-given calling within a rapidly shifting political and cultural environment. Presenters will explore the ethical and spiritual challenges Christian clinicians face today, including diminishing support for vulnerable populations, shifting institutional priorities, and increasing pressure to disengage from advocacy and prophetic witness.

Participants will consider the importance of listening with conviction to marginalized voices and amplifying them, even when doing so feels costly. The workshop will also highlight the role of contemplative practices in sustaining individual and collective well-being, helping practitioners stay rooted in their faith and vocation over the long term.

Framed by the example of Jesus and the prophets, this session will engage questions of how professional and Christian ethics intersect to guide faithful responses to injustice. Together, participants will explore how to preserve environments of hospitality, compassion, and service while nurturing their own spiritual lives and communities for the work ahead.

Presenters:

Karon Johnson, MACM, MSW, LCSW, CCTP is a faculty member at the UNC School of Social Work, where she designs and teaches direct practice courses on ethics, trauma, and the integration of religion and spirituality in practice. She is a Doctor of Ministry student at Vanderbilt University Divinity School, where she focuses on interprofessional education and training between social workers and chaplains. Karon is a bilingual clinician who maintains a small practice in Durham, N.C., focusing on somatic approaches to trauma, grief, and loss, and supporting individuals for whom religion or spirituality are systems of importance. 

Luke Smith is the founder, executive director, and medical director of El Futuro, Inc., which provides services to hundreds of Spanish-speaking children and families each year. He is double board-certified in both adult psychiatry and in child and adolescent psychiatry. In addition to being active with direct services and shaping policy at the local and state level, Dr. Smith leads the organization in research efforts through projects funded by the NIMH and PCORI with a focus on creating evidence-based practices that are especially targeted to help the North Carolina Latino Community. Both Karon and Luke are members of the Cole Mill Road church of Christ in Durham, NC.

Through the language of poetry and perspective of theology, healthcare practitioners can venture beyond a solely biomedical model towards a more grounded, empathic, and holistic approach to patient care. This workshop will spark curiosity and confidence in participants, who may further explore poetry as a vehicle for growth and healing in their personal and professional lives. Together, we will discuss how poetry has been used in medical and theological spaces, collaborate on a poetry exercise, and spend time writing and sharing poetry together.

Presenter: 

Jennifer Tu, MD, MTS is a graduate of the Theology, Medicine, and Culture fellowship and is currently a child psychiatry fellow at UCLA Semel Institute. She is committed to promoting mental health and wellness, preventing suicide, and advocating for antiracism particularly among minoritized communities through her vocation as a physician and identities as a Chinese American and a Christian. Jennifer’s professional interests also include caring and advocating for people experiencing homelessness, exploring the intersections between theology and mental healthcare, and addressing family systems for patients across the lifespan.