Tele-Pastoral Care is a virtual ministry of spiritual accompaniment, compassionate listening, and practical direction. Rooted in historic sacramental traditions and progressive, contemplative soul-care, our work helps individuals, couples, and families process life’s burdens, heal emotional wounds, and align their daily lives with grace and purpose.

Institutional & Non-Clinical Disclaimer: While our pastoral care providers may hold advanced academic degrees or maintain secular professional credentials in their local jurisdictions, all providers serve Ekklesia Iwiga, Inc. exclusively in an uncompensated, volunteer capacity through an autonomous 501(c)(3) religious ministry. Services provided through Ekklesia Iwiga are strictly non-clinical religious pastoral care and spiritual accompaniment, not secular psychotherapy, clinical counseling, or medical mental health treatment.

Tele-Pastoral Care focuses on spiritual accompaniment, emotional processing, relationship balance, and personal growth within a spiritually affirming space. Because our work is strictly non-clinical, we do not conduct psychotherapy, diagnose psychiatric conditions, or manage acute mental health crises or severe addiction.

If during our time together it becomes clear that your needs require licensed clinical care, we will help you identify appropriate mental health or recovery professionals in your local area. With your permission, we are honored to remain part of your support team to provide ongoing spiritual care and non-clinical patient advocacy while you work with your clinical provider.

Yes. Remote spiritual care via telephone or secure video offers convenience, privacy, and accessibility without the stress of commuting. Receiving guidance in a safe, non-judgmental environment that aligns with your personal values fosters deeper reflection, faster emotional grounding, and sustainable personal growth.

We offer individual, couple, and family appointments via secure video calls and telephone through our volunteer pastoral team. While many care seekers enjoy video, many also prefer telephone sessions. Speaking over the phone can reduce visual fatigue and pressure, allowing for greater openness, honest reflection, and emotional ease, much like traditional pastoral conversations behind a screen.

Ekklesia Iwiga does not provide individual pastoral care or one-on-one sessions to children or minors. However, we warmly welcome whole family units. We work with parents, adult individuals, couples, and families together, equipping parents with tools to foster healthy communication, spiritual connection, and peace within the home.

Yes. Tele-Pastoral Care is not appropriate for active psychiatric emergencies, individuals experiencing psychosis or hallucinations, acute substance addiction requiring medical detox, or severe crisis situations involving active thoughts of harming oneself or others. Individuals in these circumstances should immediately call 911 or call/text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for immediate clinical support.

Additionally, because our ministry is centered on spiritual accompaniment, anyone seeking clinical psychotherapy or who is hostile to faith-rooted guidance would not be a good fit. We provide an honest assessment during initial conversations to ensure your needs can be met safely and ethically.

A resounding no. Rooted in Christ’s command of radical love, Ekklesia Iwiga warmly welcomes and affirms all people without exception. Whether you belong to another faith tradition, are spiritually seeking, identify as spiritual but not religious, or hold no religious beliefs at all, our virtual doors are wide open. We embrace every individual across all races, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, backgrounds, and walks of life with complete dignity, respect, and grace.

What you will NEVER find here:

• Lectures, preaching, or moralizing

• Quick "fixes" or unsolicited advice

• Clinical therapy or diagnoses

• Shame, judgment, or pressure

Our name bridges ancient sacred traditions with a deeply personal family heritage. Ekklesia is the original Greek word for an assembly or gathering of people called together. Iwiga comes from the Rarámuri (Tarahumara) Indigenous people of Chihuahua, Mexico. In Rarámuri culture, iwiga represents the soul, the life-breath, and the sustaining presence of the divine.

This name was chosen because our co-founder’s great-grandmother, a Rarámuri woman from the Copper Canyon, passed down the profound concept of iwiga—teaching that no matter how far we wander or how heavy life becomes, the sacred breath of life and healing is always within us. Fusing Greek tradition with Indigenous wisdom of the Americas, Ekklesia Iwiga means "an assembly sustained by the breath of life," or simply a community for the soul. It serves as a reminder that our ministry is a sanctuary without walls, designed to bring spiritual renewal, dignity, and fresh breath to your soul wherever you are.