The Changing Landscape of Chaplaincy: Discovering New Models in Times of Challenges and Opportunities

The United States is undergoing paradigmatic demographic, religious, social, and political shifts. One of many resultant trends is the decline in certain historical institutions (religious, educational, etc.) and the rise and growth of others. Chaplaincy is not immune to these realities. A significant number of ACPE-accredited programs have closed, and these closures represent, among other things, fewer options for traditional chaplaincy careers within hospitals and other similar institutions. Though historically linked to institutionally based health and clinical settings (hospitals, hospices, etc.), chaplaincy is quickly growing in new spaces: community, corporate, educational, athletic, etc. These changes have unleashed debates around how to define chaplaincy, how to best train and educate students for chaplaincy, and how to form economically sustainable models for chaplaincy and spiritual care. This roundtable panel will discuss the questions arising from these broad shifts in Chaplaincy in dialogue with individuals from theological educational institutions and Clinical Pastoral Education centers representing differing theological streams to discuss the future of Chaplaincy: Where is the field heading? What realistic and sustainable job opportunities are emerging in the wake of changes in the sector? The panel invites practitioners, trainers, educators, and students to join for a lively discussion on spiritual care in non-traditional spaces. Bringing together insights from ACPE educators, administrators in theological education, and empirical data, this roundtable will explore emerging spaces for spiritual care training and provision toward transformation and social justice. The panel will examine questions arising from these shifts and opportunities, such as how to define chaplaincy, models for forming and educating chaplains, and economically sustainable models of chaplaincy, with a particular focus on community chaplaincy. In recent years, there has been a significant shift in chaplaincy and the ‘location’ of ACPE-accredited programs. As already mentioned, there has been a significant number of ACPE-accredited programs in hospitals, hospices, and other similar institutions that have closed. However, at the same time, there has been growth in new and emerging sectors such as community, corporate, educational, and sports chaplaincy. As a result, some theological schools are newly establishing or re-imagining chaplaincy programs for the twenty-first century. One of the most exciting areas of growth has been in the field of community chaplaincy. Community-based organizations are often the first responders to public health crises and social injustices. However, most clinically trained mental health practitioners, such as Licensed Mental Health Counselors and Licensed Clinical Social Workers, receive little training in spirituality and religion and often express discomfort in addressing these issues with their clients. Even if clinical practitioners value spirituality personally, their commitment to scientific, evidence-based approaches may prevent them from attending to spirituality in their treatment plans. This creates a significant gap in the care provided to individuals in crisis. Chaplains and spiritual care providers are primed to step into emerging spaces. Though chaplaincy is historically bound to institutions like hospitals and hospice care, the job market for spiritual care provision is rapidly changing. The types of organizations that intentionally attend to spiritual needs ought not to be limited to healthcare and crisis-response settings (hospital, hospice, police, fire, disaster relief, etc.). Community-based chaplaincy and spiritual entrepreneurship are on the rise. Examples include movement chaplaincy, pet chaplaincy, and college and university chaplaincy, among many other opportunities. These growing expressions of chaplaincy are community-focused and imagine spiritual care beyond institutional walls. In existing research, community-based chaplaincy has only been noted in sparse and disconnected ways, and robust studies demonstrating the need and efficacy of an interdisciplinary approach to holistic care are limited outside traditional healthcare settings. Research in healthcare settings shows a positive relationship between social workers and chaplains, yet few have intentionally pushed this into clinical social settings like community-based non-profit organizations and studied its effect. This panel discussion will highlight important considerations for the institutions that train and prepare spiritual care providers and the organizations that recruit and hire them. Additionally, attention to the expressed needs of social service providers and the institutional positionality of a spiritual care provider may provide insight into the benefits of spiritual care for organization leaders and staff. Spiritual care providers within community-based social service organizations may also prove beneficial and necessary to adequately attend to the shifting religious and cultural landscapes and the subsequent wave of individual and systemic crises. Educational programs across the ideological spectrum are noticing the shifting opportunities for spiritual care and are already developing resources and training for community-based chaplaincy. As these programs prepare students for chaplaincy in new and necessary spaces, dialogue and collaboration will be critical for developing sustainable training and financial models. To continue ongoing conversations in this space, this roundtable discussion will bring together individuals from educational institutions and CPE centers representative of different theological streams: Sankofa CPE Center, NPO, and two theological schools, Eden Theological Seminary, and Palm Beach Atlantic University. Each of these organizations is dedicating efforts to build sustainable community-based spiritual care opportunities. The panel will discuss the characteristics of their respective programs as well as the challenges and opportunities they see in the field. Panel Participants: Presider Dr. Kater Lassiter: Sr. Director of Lifelong Learning and DMin, Meadville Lombard Theological School Panelists Rev. Dr. Danielle Buhuro: Founder and Director of Sankofa CPE Center, NPO Rev. Dr. Sonja Williams: Dean, Eden Theological Seminary Dr. Ryan Gladwin: Director, Community Transformation Center at Palm Beach Atlantic University Rev. Dr. Daniel Prada: Chaplain, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital; Church Planter, Heartway Church