Meaning
of “Chaplain”:
“Traditional”
& “Professional”
A.
Definition of “Chaplain”
B.
Etymology of “Chaplain”
Forms, Early
English Use, Origin
C.
Definition of “Chapel”
D.
Etymology of “Chapel”
Forms, Early
English Use, Origin
E.
St. Martin of Tours (c. 316-397)
F.
Modern Definition of “Chaplain”
Storied History
Traditional
Chaplains
Professional
Chaplains
A
Twentieth Century Profession
“A
Clergyman who conducts religious service [attached to, in charge of a chapel] in a chapel of a sovereign, lord, or high official, of a
castle, garrison, embassy, college, school, workhouse, prison, cemetery, or
other institution, or in the household of a person of rank or quality, in a
legislative chamber, regiment, ship, etc.”1[w/2-5] “The original
cappellani were those who had charge of the sacred
cloak of St. Martin: “custodes
illius capae usque hodie Capellani appellanture”1; “2: a
clergyman or layman appointed to perform religious functions in a public
institution, club, etc.; 3: a
minister, priest, or rabbi serving in a religious capacity with the armed
forces.”2
“‘Chaplaincy,’ [is] a modern term, which probably began in the Army.”1 “General orders issued in 1776 provided a chaplain for each regiment. . . . Under the National Defense Act of 1920, the Chaplains Corps was made a separate branch. The Army Organization Act of 1950 changed the designation simply to ‘Chaplains’ defined as one of the special army branches. . . . [Air Force] The wing is the smallest unit to which Chaplains are assigned. In the Navy, chaplains serve on each battleship, carrier, cruiser, and shore establishment. . . . Eleven Chaplains were killed in the Civil War, 11 in World War I. In World War II, 167 Chaplains were killed, 256 wounded, 1,112 were decorated, and 3 were missing in action.”4 “The term was also used to designate the king’s secretary or man of affairs, later called chancellor. In France the designation chapelain was first applied to the cleric charged with guarding the cape (chape) of St. Martin accompanying the armies to the wars, then to priests who said masses in the camps. Later it was applied to priests officiating in chapels of royal palaces. The feudal lords imitated their sovereigns in having Chaplains, either personal or family. This custom continued for centuries and was adopted by wealthy commoners. Chaplains are attached as spiritual advisors to religious houses and to individual high ecclesiasts. In some countries, as the United States, Chaplains are attached to the armed forces.”5
Forms:
capellan, capelein, chapeleyn (layn, lleyn), chapleyn (layn), chapyllayne, chapelen,
chappelayn, chapelyn, chappellane, chapplein, chaplin.1
Early
English Use:
1100, E.O.
Chron., “Se cyng Will’m . . . Rannulfe his capellane”;
1123, Ibid. “Se waes aeror bes cynges capelein”;
1300, Bcket, “Thi Chapeleyn make thu me” & Wyclif, Sel.
Wks., “Some
chapeleyns of houshold, summe chapeleyns of honour”;
1340, Gaw. & Gr. Knt., “Chaplaynez to be chapeles chosen be
gate”; 1386,
Chaucer, Prol., “Another Nonne [Nun] also with hire hadde sche, That
was hire chapelleyn”;
1393, Langi, P.Pl.C., “Meny chapelayns aren chast ac charite hem
faileb”; 1440,
Promp. Parv., “Chapeleyne, capellanus”;
1480, Caxton, Descr. Brit., “The bisshop of Rochesire is
tharchebisshops chapelayn of Caunterbury”;
1553, Eden, Treat. New Ind., “The deuiles chaplins”;
1560, 1st Bk. Discipline, “Chanteries, colledges, chappelanries”;
1581, Marbeck, Bk. of Notes, “At Listra Jupiters Chaplaines wold
have sacrificed unto them”;
1594, Shaks, Rich. III, “The Chaplaine of the Tower hath buried
them”; 1601,
F. Tate, Housch. Onl. Edw. II, “A Chief Chaplin,, or deane of the
Chappel”; 1601,
Burton, Anal. Mel., “A trencher chaplain in Gentlemans house”;
1607, Hieron, Wks., “What shall I say?
What? as Ahaba chaplains, ‘Go, and prosper’”;
1608, Fulbecke, and Pt. Parall., “A man seised in fee of
landes deuisable, did deuise them to one for terme of his life, and that he
should be a Chapplein, and that he should chaunt for his soule all his life
time”; 1638,
Penit. Conf., “There was a Pope . . . that committed to a
Chaplain of his own, Apostolical power to absolve with plenary authority”;
1641, Termes de la Ley, “Chaplain is he that performeth
divine Service in a Chappell”;
1645, Milton, Colast. Wks., “To pop into the Bethasda of
som Knights Chaplainship”;
1649, Milton, Eikon,“Bishops or Presbyters we know, and Deacons
we know, but what are Chaplains?”;
1726, Ayliffe, Parerg., “A secular Chaplainship or Capellania
was that, which men built and founded on their own Estates, and in their own
proper Houses”; 1727,
Swift, What passed in land, “The chaplains of the several regiments”;
1745, Swift, Lett., “The chaplaincy was refused to me, and given
to Dr. Lambert”; 1807,
G. Chalmers, Caledonia, “There was a chaplainry of St. Ninian attached
to the catheral church of Ross”;
1814, Scott, Ld. of Isles, “He shall dwell In Augustin the
Chaplain’s cell”;
1821, Fosbroke, Aricon., “I . . . was offered a
Chaplaincy in the Forces”;
1828, J. Hunter, S. Yorkshire, “The Vicar of Blythe was bound to
find a chaplain to celebrate in the chapel of Bawtry”;
1844, Regal. A Ord. Army, “Chaplains to the Forces receive the
Pay and Allowances of Majors in the Army”;
1846, Macaulay, Life & Lett., “The Chaplainship of Chelsea
Hospital”; 1856,
Emerson, Eng. Traits, Relig., “Wellington esteems a saint only as far
as he can be an army chaplain”;
1878, Clergy List, “Foreign Chaplaincies . . . are
under the superintendence of the Bishop of London”; 1883, Lloyd, Ebb & Fl., “As to that cemetery chaplain”;
1884, Private letter from Montreal, “In the convents of Canada
the domestic Chaplain is frequently, if not always, a woman”;
1884, Crockford’s Cler. Directory, “Examining Chaplain to Abp.
of York.”1
Origin:
OF Chapelain (in ONF capelain, Pr. capellan, It. cappellano),
late L. cappelln-us, f. cappella, chapel;
“The original cappellani were those who had charge of the sacred
cloak of St. Martin: “custodes
illius capae usque hodie Capellani appellanture”1;
OFr. chapelain;
LL. capellanus, from capella, a chapel2;
ME chapelain, fr. OF, fr. ML cappellanus, fr. cappella.
(12c).3
“1:
a secondary place of worship usually attached to a large church or
cathedral, separately dedicated, and devoted to special services. 2:
a
building subsidiary to a parish church; as, a parochial chapel; a mission chapel.
3: in
Great Britain, a place of worship used by those who are not members of an
established church. 4: a private place of worship; as, a college chapel;
hospital chapel; prison chapel.”2[w/3] “The tent which sheltered St. Martin’s cloak, a building used for
divine worship. It
may be entirely detached, in order to supply the needs of those in different
parts of a parish, or it may form a separate apartment in a church, school,
palace, or private house. In the Middle Ages nearly all castles and many homes of the gentry had
their own chapels; most
present-day colleges and universities as well as many hospitals and private
schools have chapels. In England the houses of worship used by the Dissenters were known as
chapels to distinguish them from buildings of the Established Church.”4
“A name for religious edifices of various kinds. . . . In England Nonconformist places of worship are commonly called chapels in
distinction from those of the established faith to which the term church is
applied. In
the early history of Massachusetts Bay Colony the Congregational body was the
established church, and the first Episcopal church in Boston was consequently
termed a chapel, retaining that name, King’s Chapel, to the present time.”5
D.
Etymology of “Chapel”:
Forms, Early English Use, Origin
Forms:
chapele, chapelle, chapell, chapaile, schapell, chappelle,
chapylle, capell, cappell, chappell.
Early
English Use:
1225, St.
Marher, “hwa so omi nome maked chapele oder chirche”;
1297, R. Glouc, “Thulke prelat soldein ischapeleichose be”;
1300, K. Horn, “Horn let wurche Chapeles and chirche”;
1330, Amis & Amil., “Sir Amis lete him ly alon, And into his
chapel he went anon”;
1360, Wyclif, Wks., “[lordes & ladies] holden wib goddis
tresour curatis in here worldly seruyce or chapellis”;
1394, P. Pt. Crede, “A Chirdhe and A Chapaile with chambers a lofte”;
1428, E.E. Wills, “The trinite schapell”;
1491, Act 7 Hen. VII, So that thoes espousels be solempnysed in
Churche, Chapell, or Oratory”;
1517, Torrington, Pilgr., “The Chirche of the holy Sepulcre ye
Rounde . . . and hath . . . Chapellys hygh and lowe, in gret
nowmber”; 1523,
Act 14 & 15 Hen. VIII, “The Deane and Chapiter . . . of
the free chapell of the kynge, of Sainct Martins le graunde”;
1538, Leland, “There was a nothere Paroche Chirch yn the Towne yet
standing, but now it servith but for a Chapelle of Ease”;
1545, Act 37 Hen. VIII, “There have been divers Colleges, Free
Chapels, Chantries, Hospitals, Fraternities”;
1555, Eden, Decades W. Ind., “The virgin, to whom he buylded and
dedicate a chapell and an altare”;
1590, Spencer, F.Q., “There was an holy chappell edifyde,
Wherein the Hermite dewly wont to say His holy thinges”;
1596, Shaks, Merch, “Chappels had beene Churches, and poore mens
cottages Princes Pallaces”;
1617, Baynk, On Eph., “Where God hath His Church, we say, the
Devill hath his Chapell:
so on the contrary, where the Devill hath his Cathedrall, there God hath
his people”; 1626,
Bacon, Sylva, “The Toom is a Chappel or small Church”;
1630, Risdon, “Shute . . . is a chapel for ease to Colliton”;
1631, Weever, Auc. Fun. Men., “One of those Parish Churches hath
fourteene Chappels of ease within the circumference of her limits”;
1654, Evelyn, Diary, “Thence we went to New College where the
Chapel was in its ancient garb”;
1660, R. Coke, Power & Subj., “Concerning the
Mother-Parish-Church twenty shillings;
and concerning a Chappel ten shillings”;
1673, Ray, Journ. Law C., “The Chappel of the Jesuites
College”; 1726,
Ayliff, Parerg, “Chapels of Ease . . . commonly built in very
large Parishes, were all the people cannot come to the Mother Church. . . .
Domestick Chapes . . . built by Noblemen and others for the
private Service of God in their Families”;
1776, Keysler’s Trav., “On the altar of this chapel is the
martyrdom of St. Sebastian, in oil colours, by Domenichino”;
1842, Burn, Eccles. Law, “Chantry was commonly a little chapel,
or particular altar in some cathedral or parochial church, endowed . . .
for the maintenance of a priest to pray for the souls of the founder”;
1857, Stanley, Mem, Canterb, “The first object that would catch
their view would be the little British chapel”;
1870, F. Wilson, Ch. Lindisf, “Bolton church . . . is
considered a Chapel of Ease”;
1873, Phillimore, Eccl. Law, “The king himself visits his free
chapels . . . and not the ordinary. . . . A parochial
chapel is that which has the parochial rights of christening and burying;
and this differs in nothing from a church, but in the want of a rectory
and endowment . . . . Proprietary chapels . . . are
anomalies unknown to the ecclesiastical constitution of this kingdom, and can
possess no parochial rights . . . Dr. Lushington said . . .
the ancient canon law of this country knew nothing of proprietary chapels or
unconsecrated chapels at all . . . The necessity of the times . . .
gave rise to the erection of chapels of this kind, and to the licensing of
ministers of the Church of England
to perform duty therein”;
1874, Baring-Gould, Lives of Saints, “Upon these remains
Benedict built two oratories . . . and . . . round these
chapels rose the monastery”;
1875, Dict. Chr. Antiq., “Although very many churches built
before A.D. 800 exist . . . scarcely any clear examples of chapels
[forming parts of the main building] can be pointed out. . . .
In the East, as the rule that there should be only one altar in a church
has always existed, chapels have rarely formed parts of churches. . . .
At what time the practice of placing an altar and of celebrating the
eucharistic service in a sepulchral chapel was first introduced cannot be stated
with precision”; 1876,
Gwilt, Archit, King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, has no side aisles,
but in lieu of them are small chapels between the buttresses”;
1880, Shorthouse, J. Inglesant, “Service was sung daily in all
the Chapels”; 1887,
Morley, Crit. Misc., Patrison, “He read the service in chapel when his
turn came.”1
Origin:
ME. chapele,
OFr.1 chapele, capele, from ML cappella, LL. capella,
dim. of cappa, a cope, cape2;
from the cappella or cloak of St. Martin of Tours preserved as a sacred
relic in a chapel built for it2-3;
the cloak was preserved by the Frankish kings as a sacred relic, was
borne before them in battle and used to give sanctity to oaths, and the name
“chapel” (and variations) was applied to the sanctuary in which this cloak (cappa
or cape) was preserved under the care of its cappellani or
“chaplains”1;
thence “chapel” generally referred to a sanctuary containing holy
relics, attached to a palace, etc., and so to any private sanctuary or holy
place . . . the earlier name for which was Oratorium, Oratory.1
E.
St. Martin of Tours (c. 316-397):
Sulpicius
Severus (c. 360-425) wrote the biography of St. Martin as a contemporary with
Martin, and it is this biography that has been the primary source for most all
of the information we have on St. Martin.
Though written during the life of St. Martin, it was not published till
after the Martin’s death.
Severus became a personal friend and an enthusiastic disciple of St.
Martin.
Martin
was born in Sabaria, then the Roman capitol of Pannonia (today Szombathely in
Western Hungary). His
pagan parents moved to Pavia, Italy.
From childhood Martin aspired to serve God, wishing to become a
catechumen at 10 and a hermit at 12.
His
father prospered in the imperial army, attaining the rank of Tribune.
An edict directed that all of the sons of veterans were to enroll in
military service, young Martin resisted, but was chained and was forced into the
army at age 15. He
remained till he was 20, serving first under Constantine then under Julian
Caesar. During
this time he endeared himself to his fellow soldiers with sacrificial living and
generosity to all he encountered.
Around 337 while in Amiens, France, he noticed a poor man at the city gates, destitute of clothing. Martin drew his sword and divided his military cloak in half and gave one half to a shivering beggar in the freezing cold. In the following two paragraphs is Severus’ words that have become the most celebrated action of St. Martin:
“Accordingly,
at a certain period, when he had nothing except his arms and his simple military
dress, in the middle of winter, a winter which had shown itself more severe than
ordinary, so that the extreme cold was proving fatal to many, he happened to
meet at the gate of the city of Amiens a poor man destitute of clothing.
He was entreating those that passed by to have compassion upon him, but
all passed the wretched man without notice, when Martin, that man full of God,
recognized that a being to whom others showed no pity, was, in that respect,
left to him. Yet,
what should he do? He
had nothing except the cloak in which he was clad, for he had already parted
with the rest of his garments for similar purposes.
Taking, therefore, his sword with which he was girt, he divided his cloak
into two equal parts, and gave one part to the poor man, while he again clothed
himself with the remainder.
Upon this, some of the by-standers laughed, because he was now an
unsightly object, and stood out as but partly dressed.
Many, however, who were of sounder understanding, groaned deeply because
they themselves had done nothing similar.
They especially felt this, because, being possessed of more than Martin,
they could have clothed the poor man without reducing themselves to nakedness.
“In the following night, when Martin had resigned himself to sleep, he had a vision of Christ arrayed in that part of his cloak with which he had clothed the poor man. He contemplated the Lord with the greatest attention, and was told to own as his the robe which he had given. Ere long, he heard Jesus saying with a clear voice to the multitude of angels standing round -- “Martin, who is still but a catechumen, clothed me with this robe.” The Lord, truly mindful of his own words (who had said when on earth -- “Inasmuch as ye have done these things to one of the least of these, ye have done them unto me”), declared that he himself had been clothed in that poor man; and to confirm the testimony he bore to so good a deed, he condescended to show him himself in that very dress which the poor man had received. After this vision the sainted man was not puffed up with human glory, but, acknowledging the goodness of God in what had been done, and being now of the age of twenty years, he hastened to receive baptism. He did not, however, all at once, retire from military service, yielding to the entreaties of his tribune, whom he admitted to be his familiar tent-companion. For the tribune promised that, after the period of his office had expired, he too would retire from the world. Martin, kept back by the expectation of this event, continued, although but in name, to act the part of a soldier, for nearly two years after he had received baptism.”7 Click Here to see Full Version
When
under Caesar the barbarians were attacking in Gaul, Caesar began to give his
soldiers some pay the day before battle.
Martin wanted to deny pay and withdraw to serve God.
Caesar accused Martin of cowardice on the day before battle.
Martin said, “If this conduct [his desire to retire] of mine is
ascribed to cowardice, and not to faith, I will take my stand unarmed before the
line of battle tomorrow, and in the name of the Lord Jesus, protected by the
sign of the cross, and not by shield or helmet, I will safely penetrate the
ranks of the enemy.”
Instead, Martin is thrust into prison, to be placed on the battle line
the following day. Yet
enemies send emissaries who negotiate a surrender without a fight.
Martin leaves the army.
Martin
went to Illyricum and so opposed Arianism that he was scourged and forced out.
Martin encounters robbers and the Devil and prevails by faith.
Martin established himself at Milan.
But Auxentius, an Arian Bishop, persecuted Martin, beating him severely
and drove him out of the city.
In
about 360, he returned to Poitiers, France, and worked for St. Hilary, bishop of
Poitiers and a fellow opponent of Arianism.
Some reports said he was miraculously saved from harm in his opposition
and destruction of paganism.
Martin is credited with raising a strangled man from the dead.
Martin received some land from St. Hilary and with a group of hermits
established the monastery at Ligugé, the first monastery in Gaul.
The
people of Tours prevailed upon Martin to become the bishop of Tours in 371.
He was a tireless worker for Christianity and combatant against paganism,
sometimes ruthlessly destroying pagan temples.
Martin demonstrates courage and faith and escapes a falling pine-tree, an
assassin’s sword, cures and casts out devils, performs many miracles and even
preaches repentance to the Devil.
In
384 Martin interceded with Emperor Maximus at Trier to spare Priscillian’s
life from Ithacius, Bishop of Ossanova, who demanded death for heresy.
Ithacius then accused Martin as well.
Priscillian was beheaded by the Prefect Evodius after being given the
case by Maximus. This
execution became the first official judicial death for heresy.
This was viewed by many as an infringement of the secular upon the
ecclesiastical. Martin
again went to Trier to plead with the Emperor against the blood bath about to be
unleashed against the Priscillianists in Spain.
Martin
made a visit to Rome then to Candes in Touraine where he stayed, establishing a
religious center and then dying there.
He founded the famous abbey of Marmoutier near Tours.
Over time many miracles were credited to him and he became the source for
much folklore and art.
The most popular artwork depicted him dividing his cloak with a beggar
and being rewarded the following night with a vision of Christ making known to
the angels Martin’s act of mercy to the beggar.
His
name is found in the Canon of the Mass according to the Gelasian Sacramentary
and the Bobio Missal and his name has occurred in local French usage.
His body was buried in Tours, and his tomb has become a national shrine
in France with a feast celebrated on November 11, making him one of the most
popular patron saints of France.
His tomb became a popular pilgrim site in Europe.
The monastery Liguge continued until 1607 and was revived by the Solesmes
Benedictines in 1852.4-7
F.
Modern Definition of “Chaplain”
--
“Traditional”
& “Professional”:
Storied
History
Traditional Chaplains
Professional Chaplains
A Twentieth Century Profession
Storied
History. The
above classic definitions and etymology of “Chaplain” and “Chapel”
reveal a storied history with fairly clear boundaries.
Among the greatest aspects of “Chaplain” is that the office is a high
order vocation, never a first order vocation.
That is, the “Chaplain” is a person who sought out credentials in a
faith group and served to some extent and for some time in that faith group
prior to assuming the role of “Chaplain.”
Only after a period of time and training, does the minister move into the
second order of vocation and field of service.
A Chaplain is a minister who moved into a specialized ministry setting
after a period of service and training (never the reverse).
In
essence and historically, a “Chaplain” was sought out from ordained and
credentialed clergy to serve as ministers to leaders and kings.
The history of St. Martin of Tours illustrates the origin of the term,
“chaplain,” and how the term developed into a profession.
The clerics who kept charge of the cloak of St. Martin under the Frankish
kings were called “chaplains,” and these clerics-termed-chaplains were the
first ministers in specialized settings.
In the case of the Frankish kings, the first chaplains were military.
Since the time of the Frankish kings, throughout the Dark Ages and
through the Enlightenment and Reformation, Chaplains were commissioned to serve
in settings where the people did not have free and frequent access to a regular
clergy person.
For
the most part today, a “Chaplain” is a credentialed minister who serves an
institution of some sort.
Most of the time that institution is a public institution offering a
specialized selection of services, and the clients in these specialized
environments are to some extent prevented from having free and frequent access
to a spiritual and faith-based counselor:
like the armed services, hospital services, universities and prisons.
Today, even large corporations fall into the category of institutions in
the sense of cultivating their own working culture that is somewhat exclusive of
the society at large.
For
over 1,600 years, since St. Martin of Tours, a Chaplain’s specialized setting
was focused upon the total delivery of services within the Chaplain’s own
faith. That
is, the Chaplain was chosen to minister exclusively to persons of like faith.
While practicing the chosen faith and delivering services in these
specialized settings, an overall aspect of delivery focused upon faith issues
and crisis intervention.
The “chapels” evolved and were commissioned as extensions of the
church and even in opposition to the established church and always to make
clergy-termed-chaplains available to person in faraway places.
Said in another way, the Chaplain was made available to those who did not
have free and frequent access like those who lived in town or a cathedral city.
The services of Chaplains provided faith-based resources to those away
from home and in foreign theaters, in the military, in hospitals and in prisons.
Since the Reformation over four hundred years ago and especially so for the last two hundred years, a burgeoning “respect” for a person’s conscience has pushed hard for a world of true “religious freedom.” Especially in the last two hundred years, a change has taken place in institutional service with respect to the nature of the “specialized setting.” As democratic values and issues of religious tolerance have become more ubiquitous, the “specialized setting” has divided into at least two categories for the modern Chaplain: Traditional and Professional.
Traditional Chaplains. The first category of “Traditional Chaplains” continues the traditional and rather long history of sectarian services in specialized settings. These Chaplains attained credentials and served a time and then moved to serve in a specialized setting where their “sole” or “primary” focus is upon their own faith group. From their specialized training and experience these Chaplains seek to minister to their own faith group and seek to guide others into their own faith group.
Professional
Chaplains.
The
second category of “Professional Chaplains” includes all of the activities
and functions of the first, but the uniqueness of the “specialized setting”
of the “professional” Chaplain requires a broader role, especially in public
and governmental service.
Especially over the last hundred years, these “Professional
Chaplains” continue the long tradition of gaining credentials, serving and
then moving to a specialized setting where they facilitate their own faith in
that specialized setting, certainly, yet these chaplains also facilitate and
resource for faith groups that are not their own.
For example, a federal or state military or prison chaplain will minister
to and instruct those in his or her own faith group, but that is not all;
because of respect for religious freedom and the nature of governmental
sponsorship these chaplains also help resource for those of all of the faith
persuasions in the specialized setting.
Without the Chaplains compromising their own belief-systems, these
Professional Chaplains serve their institutions with their own faith specialty,
which usually makes up the majority of the institution, and these Chaplains also
provide for and help resource for the minority faiths represented in that same
institution.
The variety of specialized settings has steadily increased, but the essential division between “kinds” of chaplains has become rather stable. Many persons are being called to fulfill the role of Chaplain in a variety of specialized settings. Some will be fulfilling the role of the “Traditional Chaplain” in providing service solely or for the most part within their own faith perspective. Other Chaplains will be fulfilling the broader role of the “Professional Chaplain” that includes the functions of the Traditional Chaplain with the additionally responsibilities and duties inherent to respecting the issues of freedom of religious choice and facilitating religious expressions of minority faith groups.
A Twentieth Century Profession. A “Traditional Chaplain” in full time paid employment is certainly a professional too. Just as any minister is in the ministry profession, when the narrower definition of “profession” includes for the most part the practice of a skill requiring special training and where the “professional” exercises a high degree of initiative in treatment and personal development. The “Professional Chaplain” has the added elements of a greater role diversity and a broader spectrum of accountability and carries the added defining characteristics of a twentieth century “profession.” The added dimensions of a twentieth century “profession” include at a minimum a full respect for all races, creeds, genders and religions. And this side of the definition of a twentieth century “profession” attempts to service people within an inclusive and holistic framework. The holistic delivery of pastoral care does not cause the Chaplain to sacrifice, deny or otherwise negate his or her own faith group, but such holistic delivery does call upon him or her to limit proselytizing and to equitable pro rata delivery of crisis intervention and of administrative support to minority faith groups.
The twentieth century “Professional Chaplain” does not discriminate against anyone because of race, creed, gender or religion. Without negating their own belief system, they facilitate the faiths of all in the specialized setting. Ever available to expound his or her own faith, at times taking the initiative, the prime directive, the chief modus operandi, the most significant “operating doctrine” of the truly “professional” twentieth century Chaplain is that of a deep-seated and firm respect for religious freedom and freedom of conscience.
____________________
1
Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford, England: Oxford University
Press, 1971. S.v., Chaplain, Chaplaincy, Chaplainry, Chaplainship &
Chapel.
2
Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language,
Unabridged. Second Edition. William Collins and World
Publishing, 1975. S.v., Chapel & Chaplain. Abbreviations:
OFr., Old French; LL., Low Latin, Late Latin.
3
Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary. Merriam-Webster,
Springfield, MA, 1989. S.v., Chapel & Chaplain. Abbreviations:
ME, Middle English; OF, Old French; ML, Medieval Latin; LL,
Late Latin.
4
American Peoples Encyclopedia. Chicago: Spencer Press, 1956.
S.v., Chaplain, Chapel & Saint Martin.
5
Encyclopedia Americana. New York: Americana Corporation,
1962. S.v., Chaplain, Chapel & Saint Martin of Tours.
6
Dictionary of Saints. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1980.
S.v., Martin of Tours (c. 316-97), Sulpicius Severus (c. 360-425) and Hilary of
Poitiers (d. c. 368). See also:
7
Sulpicius Severus (c. 360-425). Life of St. Martin of Tours
Click Here to see Full
Version. Several English translations of Severus 4th century work exist, and the 4th
century version is the primary text from which most all of the life of St.
Martin of Tours derives: Catholic Encyclopedia (Ed. Kevin Knight,
Online Edition, 1999), New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912;
Sulpicius Severus, De vita beati Martini, ed. by Carl Felix von Halm in
the Vienna Corpus, vol. 1, pp. 107-216 (Vienna 1866); Charles Edouard
Babut, St. Martin de Tours (Paris 1921) in destructive criticism that was
answered by P. H. Delahaye in Analecta Bollandiana, Vol. 38, pp. 1-136
(Brussels 1920) and by Camille Jullian in Revue des etudes anciennes,
vols. 24 and 25 (Bordeaux 1922, 1923); for English translations of Severus
Sulpicius see vol. 7 in the Fathers of the Church series, Life in Niceta of
Remesiania: Writings: Severus Sulpicius Writings (New York 1949)
and The Western Fathers, ed. by Frederick Russell Hoare (London
& N.Y., 1954).