Rector’s Reflections Thursday 6th June 2024
Chaplaincy in the 21st Century
Over the last few days I have been sharing some reflections on the value of Chaplaincy as a model of ministry. Chaplaincy is one of the three main models of ministry in the contemporary Church. One model is ministry based on a geographical parish; this is the traditional model found in the Church of England, but it is a model which is increasingly under strain. A second model is the congregational model, which focuses ministry on the congregation gathered in a particular church building. The Church of England is gradually moving towards this model of ministry, at least in practice if not in theory. And then there is the chaplaincy model, in which ministry is based around serving a particular community, such as a hospital or school. The Church of England has increasingly recognised the value of chaplaincy, but, curiously, it has not been prepared to fund this type of ministry to any significant degree. The Church of England remains focussed on resourcing ministry based on geographical parishes.
Each of these models of ministry have their strengths but also their weaknesses. One of the strengths of the chaplaincy model is that it is outward focussed : it goes to where the people are. Chaplaincy seeks to share the love of God through friendship and practical assistance, and it is able to reach people who would never go near a traditional church service. However, the chaplaincy model is not without its weaknesses. Some might argue that it is not sufficiently Christian, because it does n’t seek to get people to come to Church and become disciples of Jesus Christ. On the other hand, others might argue that it is too Christian a concept for our modern world, whose values are often secular or multi-faith. Contemporary institutions and organisations might well be expected to provide services promoting welfare and well-being, but there is no need for such services to provided by someone described as a “Chaplain”. In such a context, it seems decidedly old-fashioned to call your welfare officer a “chaplain”. Furthermore, we are in a world where financial realities tend to determine what we do, and how we do it . The necessary focus on finance involves the monetization of value : we measure what something is worth by expressing its value in monetary terms. But it is hard to put a value on chaplaincy in monetary terms. So chaplaincy becomes relegated to the category of things which are a ”nice to have”, but not essential. This would n’t matter when organisations have lots of spare money. But are there any such organisations in today’s world? Everyone is strapped for cash. Many organisations don’t even have enough resources to pay for the essentials, let alone the things are merely “nice to have”. Chaplaincy never quite makes the financial cut.
So what might one say about the role of chaplaincy in the 21st Century? Should it remain marginal to the way the Church of England goes about doing its mission and ministry? Or is there an argument that the advantages of chaplaincy far outweigh its disadvantages? Has the time come for the Church to start making a serious commitment to chaplaincy?
It is my person opinion that the advantages of the Chaplaincy model do indeed outweigh the disadvantages, and so the Church should do much more to promote this model of ministry. I will explain my reasons in tomorrow’s reflections.