Congregation’s addiction recovery ministry builds relationships, fights stigma beyond the pews

 

[Episcopal News Service] Many medical agencies, organizations and facilities recognize substance and alcohol addictions as chronic diseases, but stigma keeps many people from seeking treatment.

St. Mary Anne’s Episcopal Church in North East, Maryland, is working to reduce the stigma through its recovery ministry. Like many churches, St. Mary Anne’s, which is in the Diocese of Easton, hosts several recovery support group meetings, including Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon and Narcotics Anonymous, throughout the week.

The heart of St. Mary Anne’s ministry, though, is its monthly Bridging the Gap Faith and Recovery Service. A special evening Eucharist is held the second Sunday of each month for people in recovery and their loved ones.

“The challenge with churches who host any kind of 12-step group is getting them from, as I like to call it, the church basement into the church proper itself,” the Rev. John Schaeffer, St. Mary Anne’s rector, told Episcopal News Service. “It can be difficult establishing a deeper relationship with these groups and extending welcome into the church. We want them to know they have a whole congregation supporting their recovery process.”

For Schaeffer, who’s been rector of St. Mary Anne’s since 2016, building connections with people in recovery, and helping them along their journey, is personal. When his father, an alcoholic, was alive, Schaeffer accompanied him to weekly AA meetings.

“That’s where I learned so many of the stories of these people, and they truly wanted to get better and to be able to get their lives back in order again,” Schaeffer said. “They really benefit from community support.”

The recovery worship service is informal and simpler than a traditional Eucharist. Schaeffer wears street clothes rather than vestments, and he uses a card table in the nave’s aisle instead of the altar. Communion is offered with grape juice instead of wine.

The liturgy incorporates the 12 steps, the roadmap to recovery in AA and NA, into the Kenyan Eucharist Rite II. The Anglican Church of Kenya’s Eucharist emphasizes joy and community over atonement.

The service’s highlight, though, is that Schaeffer doesn’t preach. Instead, individuals in recovery share their stories and reflect on their recovery journey, with no time limit.

“Everyone’s journey is different – and some people’s stories are horrific – but what comes out of it is the light when they realize that they can overcome things with help and with guidance and with counselors and with true faith in themselves,” Schaeffer said. “From the first step all the way to the last step, recovery is a roller coaster. … It’s truly a wonderful thing to see someone persevere.”

After every recovery service, the community shares a meal in the parish hall, a time for fellowship. Some people stay for the nightly NA meeting.

Since the church offered its first recovery worship service in 2018, many attendees have been baptized and begun joining regular weekly worship services. Some couples have gotten married at a recovery service.

Beyond the monthly service, some have turned to Schaeffer for individual pastoral care. Families have trusted him to hold funeral services for their loved ones who died by addiction.

“The recovery community is a true part of our wider church community,” Schaeffer said. “We’re all equally part of God’s family and the body of Christ – his hands and feet.”

Many of the people who regularly attend the recovery service and voluntarily serve St. Mary Anne’s other outreach ministries, including its food pantry, are guests and alumni of the church’s partner recovery houses; Dexter House for men and Charlotte House for women. The houses offer peer support, family support and living spaces for up to eight residents per house. 

“When [Schaeffer] came up with the idea to do the recovery service, it connected us to the church in a way that I don’t think would have ever happened,” Tricia Jones, co-manager of Dexter and Charlotte Houses, told ENS. “It helped us in our mission to show people that recovery works. The parishioners started to interact with our people, and we saw relationships start to form where it just would have never happened under any other circumstances.”

St. Mary Anne’s parishioners and the recovery house residents and alumni are now friends outside of church and volunteering environments, including on social media, Jones said. If someone is moving into a new home, for example, help is a call away. Many people in the recovery community also look forward to volunteering at St. Mary Anne’s annual Garden Market, a two-day garden and arts and crafts festival that attracts thousands of visitors.

The mutual relationship and support are never-ending, even for those who’ve been clean or sober for many years.

“We’re seeing a lot more support and encouragement on both sides,” Jones said. “The congregation is older and the recovery community skews younger, but this unusual partnership started to tie more people to the church. They may or may not believe in God, and some are maybe angry with God, and the most difficult part of recovery, I think, is the spiritual piece.

“It’s very difficult to overcome some of the barriers in recovery because there’s a lot of trauma that happens with addiction. … Giving the recovery community an extra place – the church – where they know they will never be judged is a very positive thing.”

Schaeffer will retire at the end of June and move to Pennsylvania. He and Jones both stressed, however, that the church’s recovery ministry and relationship with Dexter and Charlotte House and North East’s recovery community will continue “as long as possible.”

“Everyone at St. Mary Anne’s has really embraced this ministry, and I hope it serves as a role model for other churches to begin an active relationship with their recovery communities,” Schaeffer. “It can physically and spiritually be lifesaving.” 

If you are struggling with drug or alcohol addiction, call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s free and confidential helpline at any time at 1-800-662-4357, or text 435748 for support and resource information. Health insurance isn’t required. The Diocese of Easton’s Recovery Ministry and the Recovery Ministries of The Episcopal Church also offer addiction recovery resources.

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.