For Rabbi James Michaels, sometimes the most profound moments occur unexpectedly.
Once, the Rockville resident encountered a woman in an elevator who was in tears. He introduced himself as a chaplain and offered to speak with her. They found a quiet spot and had a long and revelatory conversation about her complicated grief in response to a dying parent.
“This conversation was a window into what was bothering her — she was already grieving not just the loss of a parent, but a relationship she never had” with that parent. This conversation only occurred because Michaels, 76, a chaplain at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, happened to be in the right place at the right moment and took the initiative to reach out to someone in need.
Michaels split his career between work as a congregational rabbi and what he sees as his true calling — service as a chaplain.
In 2003, Rabbi Michaels was appointed director of pastoral care at the Hebrew Home of Greater Washington in Rockville, which is now known as the Charles E. Smith Life Communities.
His most important role as chaplain, he said, is listening. Particularly in a hospital setting, sometimes patients share issues with him that they would be reluctant to share with their congregational rabbi or clergy.
“My job is to be sensitive, willing to listen and to share words of encouragement,” he said. Some of those secrets might be relationship issues within a family, financial issues or issues related to religious belief and practice.
Whether he sees Jews or non-Jews, he always offers a relevant prayer for healing. When he prays with non-Jews, he noted, “I will not pray in the name of Jesus … I offer a generic prayer that is suitable.”
The demands of chaplaincy include one-on-one counseling for patients, families and staff, often dealing with difficult end-of-life issues and grief.
“I have the ability to listen and see all sorts of issues and the need to talk about making a [life] transition as much as the person and family are able,” he said.
Over the years, Michaels has mentored dozens of Jewish chaplains across Jewish denominations. While he was ordained as a Reform rabbi in 1974, he identifies and practices as a Conservative rabbi. While serving the Hebrew Home, Michaels considered that his home congregation. He led Shabbat, daily and holiday services there. Now he attends B’nai Israel Congregation and Ezras Israel Congregation, both in Rockville.
Looking to the future of Jewish chaplaincy, Michaels said, “We have to offer pastoral care for the growing number of seniors who are not living in institutions, but in NORCs — naturally occurring retirement communities…. We need to find a way to provide pastoral care to those who are not affiliated and who are aging in place.”
He concluded, “I hope that the Jewish community will recognize the importance of what chaplains do and will be willing to support the expansion of our work to [segments of the community] where it’s not provided now.” ■
Lisa Traiger is Washington Jewish Week’s arts correspondent.
