WHAT IS A CHAPLAIN?

Chaplains are usually pastors with specialized training called by the church to extend the ministry of Christ to persons in institutional and specialized settings, places where the church often has little or no access. Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister, such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, imam or lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, school, police department, fire department, university, or private chapel. Though originally the word “chaplain” referred to representatives of the Christian faith, it is now also applied to people of other religions such as the case of chaplains serving with military forces and an increasing number of chaplaincies at hospitals, businesses, and corporations. Chaplains serve as an extension of the local church in places that other members and church staff sometimes cannot go. You won’t believe the places we go with the gospel!