1
: a clergyman in charge of a chapel
2
: a clergyman officially attached to a branch of the military, to an institution, or to a family or court
3
: a person chosen to conduct religious exercises (as at a meeting of a club or society)
4
: a clergyman appointed to assist a bishop (as at a liturgical function)
Again, I’m not sure how an atheist can fulfill a position that is defined as a “clergyman.” If the army wants to hire counselors to give advice and comfort to people with personal problems, great. And in that case, I don’t care whether the person is religious or an atheist. But to the extent that a “chaplain” is defined as a “clergyman,” the term “atheist chaplain” strikes me as an oxymoron, akin to “atheist priest” or “atheist rabbi.”
My earlier comment (which perhaps came across as a bit more snarky than it should have) was aimed at this concept, and at the inconsistency that I perceive that many atheist groups engage in by claiming status as a “religion” when it is convenient (for example, in seeking tax exemptions for their organizations or equal status with other religions in the public square) but then in other circumstances - when it suits their purposes for argumentation - claiming their position to be one of simple lack of belief.
Maybe what’s bothering me is mostly the terminology. A chaplain is a religiously oriented position. An unbeliever who wants to fulfill some functions of that position (though clearly not all of them, since the atheist is unlikely to conduct religious services or perform religious rituals) should probably be called something else.
I can imagine that a person who sincerely wanted to fulfil the position of a military chaplain may be the sort who can show respect for the beliefs of others, even if he does not share those beliefs himself. Not all atheists are actively hostile to religions, despite our local examples.
What’s at stake here? Suppose you find the idea of an atheist chaplain nonsenseful or distasteful. Suppose they are allowed anyway. Is there anything at stake here other than your feelings of distaste or amazement at nonsense?
In my experience, some chaplains are very good at counseling, and at giving their clients practical, useful advice tailored to that particular client’s needs. Other chaplains are totally inflexible, and if you have a problem, you should turn to God with it. Even if you’re an atheist. Perhaps especially if you’re an atheist.
I happen to know a couple of military chaplains very well - it’s my impression from this and from other sources that their ministry is primarily one of support and counselling anyway - there to support the emotional and psychological well-being of everyone, including supporting the faith of those who have it, and desire such support - not to spread the faith.
Both of the Anglican chaplains I know work closely and co-operatively with their fellow chaplains of other faiths, and again, it’s my impression that this is absolutely mandated of them.
I think an atheist chaplain could fit very well into that regime - it’s a support role, not an evangelistic one.
[QUOTE=Sicks Ate;16534893
Atheists and humanists can tend towards the philosophical, and a fellow non-believer will be able to ‘pastor’ them in a way that a believing couselor wouldn’t, secular practice or no.
[/QUOTE]
I don’t see how. A counseling session is about the client, not the counselor. The counselor has a set of therapeutic tools to help people who come to him. They tend to be existential or behavioral in nature and it would be unethical for any counselor to bring his religion into a counseling session. A Chaplain doesn’t have to refrain from becoming a friend to his charges, as Bryan Ekers notes. But a mental health professional needs to maintain firm boundaries.
If this were true I think we’d be hearing about law-suits willy-nilly.
As far as worrying about a record of visits for mental health assistance, perhaps there is still a lot of work to be done with regards to discrimination against people with issues. Pretty bizarre considering the amount of cases of PTSD and brain damage which are currently coming out of our military services. It’s medical in nature.
Mutters: I can’t believe I still hear this stuff.
It seems to me that establishing this early, before discharge, would assist in obtaining help as a civilian and perhaps also help in prevention of more difficult future problems.
IMO, a decent Chaplain would talk to you for a while, and soon come to the understanding that his first answer wasn’t right for you. If he was patient and sympathetic, he’d probably zero in, fairly quickly, on what you do want and need. And, since that answer doesn’t contradict his religion, he’d be able to give it.
Now, if the answer you needed actually did contradict his religion – I dunno. I’d bet that there are at least some Chaplains who would have the courage to do that.
Meanwhile, if the stupid s.o.b. insists on proselytizing, then the system is broken.
I’m not seeing anything in the definition that would indicate that belief is a necessary component of the job.
I am sure that an atheist would be as able to perform religious services as a Christian chaplain would be to perform a Jewish rite or a Rabbi performing rites for a Muslim serviceman.
The chaplain I know who is on active duty (in Afghanistan) does perform Sunday services and religious ministry for those soldiers that desire it, but he also seems to perform the role of BBQ chef, games organiser, radio DJ, etc - essentially, the role is that of morale officer, with additional religious duties for the ‘flock’.
I’ve served in 2 branches of the armed forces and run in to several kinds of chaplains.
I think the ideal chaplain would be a cross between a social worker (helping a GI find his way around the bureaucratic morass of social services the armed forces provide), a psychologist (sometimes you just want to hear a kind or supportive word to combat stuff like Survivor’s Guilt, or reassurance that you’re NOT a murderer because the best decision you could make in a very bad situation wasn’t all that great, etc.), and if wanted, a religious pastor.
My understanding is that Catholic priests have the capability to perform the miracle of transubstantiation. Maybe Lutheran and Episcopalian priests also. So I guess you wouldn’t want a non-priest offering communion or last rites for that matter. But other than that, I’d think most chaplains can fill in for chaplains of other faiths. Well, I suppose a Buddhist, Muslim, or Jewish chaplain might hang back to let someone else lead Christmas Mass or Easter services.
Why not allow Atheists to serve as chaplains? They allow Atheists to serve as soldiers, airmen, sailors, marines, and coastguardsmen, don’t they?
Did you miss “You must obtain an **ecclesiastical **endorsement from your **faith **group”?
I can’t see an atheist ecclesiastical endorsement coming form anywhere
Still, there’s got to be a way to give atheists the sort of moral-but-non-therapeutical help they could need.
I’m an atheist, and I think Jason Heap is being an asshole. It’s not unreasonable for religious servicemembers to want spiritual assistance during their service time, particularly when they are in combat zones; and it is also reasonable for them to want the counselor to believe at least fundamentally as they do. I cannot but think that Heap wishes to undermine the faith of those service members he would be assigned to, and perhaps to undermine the chaplaincy system for his own purposes. He’s being a jackass.
I didn’t notice this posted in the thread, so here goes: US Navy Chaplain Corps Website. It has a few things there that will answer some questions you may have about the role of a military chaplain and how they serve service members.
Here are the qualification requirements listed on that site for a US Navy Chaplain (AFAIK, this applies to the other Services also):
[quote]
Qualifications
To be eligible to become a Navy Chaplain, you must:
[list][li]Be a U.S. citizen at least 21 years of age and be able to complete 20 years of service before age 62[/li][li]Meet certain medical and physical fitness standards[/li][li]Hold a BA or BS degree with not less than 120 semester hours from a qualified educational institution; and hold a post-baccalaureate graduate degree of not less than 72 semester hours in theological or related studies[/li][li]Hold an ecclesiastical endorsement from a religious faith organization registered with the Department of Defense (DOD)[/li][/quote]
It’s not up to the military to decide how someone in any faith group gets to be considered a minister, preacher, rabbi, imam, or congregational leader for that faith group. What is up to the military is determining if the applicant meets the stated requirements for the position. So, nope, ordination isn’t required, but sponsorship from a registered faith group is. Oh, and to address the comment another poster made about Buddhists being atheists: Nope, not all Buddhists sects are atheist groups.
I don’t really see the problem with someone who’s not religious being a member of the Chaplain Corps. As someone mentioned, there are Humanist Chaplains in other military forces. They have to follow the same restrictions as other Chaplains would, of course, including not preaching “God has a plan for you” or preaching “There is no God” to the service member who’s come to them for counseling.