Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian in the early 1900s, wrote about the “God of the gaps” in his Letters and Papers from Prison, describing how humans often go to God when all else fails—when we reach our limitations. In contrast to this human approach to the divine, Bonhoeffer speaks of God not being at the boundary of our lives but at the centre; not where human capacity fails but in its strengths. He describes a God who sits not at humanity’s limitations but at its core—a God who embraces us in all our vulnerability, walking in the midst of life’s toils and pain.

This is exactly what the stories of chaplaincy shared by Dr Stenoy (Steve) Stephenson in this book reveal. As patients and their families turn to God in crisis, they find through the ministry of presence provided by chaplains that God is with them in their grief, pain and distress.

These inspiring stories of solidarity shared between chaplains and those to whom they minister, including patients, their families and members of staff, offer a fresh understanding of the formation of spirituality through challenging and painful paths—paths that culminate in a renewed understanding of the presence of God and the healing of the soul.

Dr Stephenson’s book fills an important gap in our understanding of the role of chaplains. The narratives speak for themselves, pointing to the transformative power of the ministry of the presence. - Siroj Sorajjakool