Rev. Beth Godfrey

Chaplain-in-Residence (Presbyterian), Darnall Hall
Age: 38
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Time at Georgetown: 4 years

What drew you to your field?
The Holy Spirit, to become a minister! The love of education and small group work drew me to working with the hospital, along with a love for interfaith work.

What drew you to Georgetown in particular?
The excellence and quality of the full-time fellowship program I’m in at the hospital. Though I’m Protestant, I also admire the Jesuits’ view that you can find God in all things, including both science and religion.

How have you seen your Protestant beliefs interact with your work at a Jesuit institution and at a Catholic hospital [Georgetown University Medical Center]?
I really enjoy the ecumenical dialogue that the Jesuits conduct as part of a larger interfaith dialogue that we have here on campus, and at the hospital too. We seek to give patients care in the way of cura personalis, to respect their decisions, their culture, and what their religious tradition is, which may have a different outcome or implication than my own would dictate. We respect and help them heal in the best way possible for their tradition, and I have loved the dialogue the Jesuits have going here, and I feel very free planting my Protestant voice in the midst.

What does Georgetown offer that is unique in the way of residential ministry?
Just having chaplains-in-residence is unique. Most Protestant schools do not have programs like this — they may have a chaplain or two for students to go to, but we have three or four in most halls. I have loved working with fellow chaplains of different religious traditions in the halls on campus. 

How do you see the residential ministry program affecting student experience on campus?
It is a huge part of their support system and a first place for students with concerns to stop by to get free, nonthreatening support and assistance, whether it’s spiritual or otherwise. Students are just trying to navigate the Georgetown system. I think it’s been a wonderful thing for students, and it’s been a real blessing for me to be a part of it.

What is the biggest challenge you face in your position as a chaplain-in-residence or at the hospital?
As a chaplain-in-residence, the biggest challenge is leaving my door opening and remaining present with people. Whether I’m tired, whether the fire alarm went off in the middle of the night, I have to remain present and connected for the students. At the hospital, the biggest challenge is to work productively with a large, interdisciplinary team for the patients’ best interests in the face of competing demands on time and resources. People go so fast, and we have to work to help them slow down.

Are there any benefits or challenges you find living in a freshman residence in particular?
The rewards are huge. First-years here are very bright, and most are very diligent and have a lot of passions for their lives, for Georgetown and for the world. I feel that I get a lot of good energy from the first-years, a lot of curious minds that are always seeking and debating. The challenges are more facilities related. Sometimes, there are fires in the kitchens and other things associated with students learning to do things independently in a way they haven’t experienced before. Occasionally, my tree gets stolen, but it always comes back. It’s disappeared four times now, but it always comes back.

How do you see the residential ministry program at Georgetown interacting with the academic aspects of religion that we teach here?
We are a place to continue the conversation. Whether it’s in our apartments or in the middle of the hall, the conversations for first-years, especially pertaining to “The Problem of God,” can deepen the things they experience or explore. They speak of things both that intrigue them and things they are shaken up by. Even if we’re not formally associated with the academic aspects of theology, I think we still play a role in deepening the conversation.

How do you think students could take greater advantage of the resources offered by residential ministry? Should they?
I think they should reach out to schedule one-on-one meetings sooner than they do. I think students sometimes worry and let things fester, and they could really benefit from talking issues out sooner. We can offer resources to help resolve issues much sooner.

Is there anything you’d like to add?
I just want to say that there are little inconveniences to living in a first-year residence as an adult, but those things are so small compared to the blessings of being in a community and being a part of students’ lives and being at this great institution. They far outweigh the strangeness of telling other adults, “Yeah, I live in a first-year dorm.”

Interview by Alexander Brown