During one point in my life, I moved to change jobs. My wife had to remain behind to get our home ready to be sold, while I forged on to find a rental in a new town, 120 miles away. I had been given the name of a landlord to speak with. When I met with the landlord, I noticed something unique about her. I felt compelled to ask her whether she happened to be a minister. As it happened, she was an ordained reverend who conducted services every Sunday for the campers who frequented the campground she owned. Essentially, she was a chaplain.
Perhaps you’ve experienced something like that yourself. Some individuals feel different. Difficult to pin point exactly what the difference is. On some level though, you found what the answer was. You likely sensed the Divine Mark upon that person.
The guidelines for chaplaincy has been growing and evolving. It continues to be a creative answer to ever-changing conditions. As people change, so does the work of the chaplaincy. People must work and survive. Individuals may move, travel, go to school, get married, get sick, get better â€" they live. A career choice may limit a person’s ability to worship with a community on a consistent basis. Chaplains will be able to help people fill their spiritual void in these situations. A few types of places in which chaplains may likely be in service:
Major truck stops along major highways.
Emergency response teams.
Apartment complexes.
Airports.
Cruise ships.
Shopping malls.
The majority of chaplains, at least in the U.S., have come from the Christian faith. For the 1st part of the twentieth century, the military only recognized three religious groups as chaplains: Catholic, Protestant and/or Jew. Sometimes, Unitarian chaplains could slip by claiming to be Protestant. The military has since widened their standards to involve Wiccans and Muslims as well. Hospitals and hospice centers have also followed suit.
Having clergy, serving as chaplains, making themselves available to businesses and/or schools is another growing trend. With the rise of insane shootings in schools, as well as other violent happenings, that has become far more necessary. One time, I visited Baltimore with a mission team to study the way to create new churches. As part of the program, we had been given a bus tour of Baltimore by the Baltimore Police Department. Driving by one of their schools, we had been told that the Baltimore school district is asking for help from ministers or clergy to help out on the campuses, working as chaplains. They have determined the presence as well as the advice of chaplains did much to lessen school violence.
Change is an inevitable part of life. Modernism has been replaced by a group called “post-modernism.†More and more communities are becoming melting pots of cultures and religions. Growing up, I noticed that individuals congregated based on commonalities. A lot more often than not, one religion dominated. Within the community I now live in, 50 years ago the county is 80 percent Roman Catholic, 10 percent Episcopalian, and the remainder consisted of Protestant, Jewish, and no religion. Now of the county has about 50 percent Catholic of using the remainder filled by Protestant, 2 Jewish congregations, Unitarian, Christian Science, Mormon, Jehovah’s Witnesses, or many new age groups.
Of the chaplain is facing a greater variety of folks together with differing spiritual paths. The chaplain then has got to be a person of great tolerance. And of the chaplain must be much more knowledgeable of other religions as well. Of the ULC Seminary offers an excellent training course on Comparative Religion, which will help get you ready. Knowing in which other people become coming looking at it from is essential if you wish to converse intelligently together with them or minister to them. Note what authors Naomi Paget and Janet McCormack say about this:
The need has been great.
There are hurting people everywhere. There are folks who're sick or dying in hospitals needing comfort. You will find folks, living in communities, who work non-standard shifts and miss sharing fellowship together with other people from the same faith. Police officers and Firefighters get worn down from witnessing ugliness every day and need someone to pray with them or just to lend them an ear and offer gentle counsel.
A chaplain can help come to those who're hurting. A chaplain is there for individuals who have been religiously unattached, but still have a need for help. A prayer, a word of advice, a simple ritual, and the touch of a caring hand does much for individuals who appear alone, detached, or fearful.
A chaplain keeps the sacred by helping others. It truly is our job, as ministers, to care for the spiritual life which has been given us. God â€" The Universe â€" All that is Divine, honors and welcomes a ministry of the heart. It really is ‘Divine Glory’ defined. To learn more about becoming a chaplain, visit the ULC Seminary’s Chaplaincy Program.
If you have an interest to learn the requirements of how to become a chaplain , this is a phenomenal class, showing you the things that are expected of you as a chaplain and the best way to minister to people of different backgrounds.
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