"As news of outbreaks of disease continues to swirl around the world, I keep being reminded of the bravery of the caregivers who bring comfort and aid to the sick and the dying. In the Middle Ages, this would have been local healers, but very often priests, who would have been called to visit people near death in order to hear their confessions, and to administer their last rites."
"The public demanded an explanation for the plague all around them, and while there was a sense it might be punishment for sin, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to it. Confidence in the power of shrines and talismans that had brought comfort for decades was shattered, and fearful priests who shirked their duties were held up as examples of the clergy's failings as a whole."
Priests frequently risked and often lost their lives while ministering to the sick during the Black Death, entering infected homes to hear confessions and administer last rites. Mortality among priests reached approximately 42–45 percent. Many local priests continued to offer spiritual solace despite fear and institutional collapse. Public faith in the Church and in shrines and talismans eroded as explanations for the plague proved inadequate. Some clergy shirked duties, fueling criticism of the Church, while cloistered communities and entire monasteries were decimated. The sacrificial care of priests during the epidemic parallels the courage of modern caregivers who comfort the dying.
Read at Medievalists.net
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