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To be a successful chaplain requires acrifice, study, hard work and dedication. All of these qualities are needed to be able to serve your assigned community or congregation. I was not aware of the diversified communities a chaplain functions in. Trying to understand the culture and backgrounds of the community, religious, socio-economic and cultural preferences are so very important.

A chaplain needs to understand at least the very basic concepts of all major religions and their beliefs so they can better minister to the needs of all these divergent communities and not offend anyone, which would be contrary to the purpose of helping others in their time of need. I can fully understand now why I need to take the other courses ULC requires to attain the chaplain title.

Another major requirement is for a chaplain to understand exactly what is required of him by the organization that hired him. What job duties are required to be performed, how, when and where, how the function is to be done, whether they are holding services before work hours in the company chapel,for example, or being allowed to counsel employees during lunch hour etc. Each organization has it's own culture and tradition and the successful chaplain incorporates all of this in their ministry.

This ULC Seminary course also taught that a chaplain needs to take of themselves as well. Sometimes it is the chaplain themselves that need the help and counseling and the vacation, to get away from it all for awhile and recharge their spiritual batteries, so they can come back strong and continue their ministry. A chaplain should always have a good "mentor", someone they trust and can go to, for objective advice and suggestions. Someone they can express themselves to, basically get it out of their system, a sounding board, someone that will get them back on course if they have strayed from their path. Especially in first responder ministries, a chaplain may need professional counseling themselves after a terrible accident, multiple fatalities etc.

Just like a good boyscout, a chaplain should always be prepared to face whatever circumstance comes up in his ministry. Sometimes a chaplain will minister to someone for a minutes and that will be it, they will never see that person again..while other times...they minister to a person on a daily basis, depending on the circumstance and nature of the ministry. I also learned a good chaplain should never betray their core beliefs, they should say true to them and not try and fit their beliefs to the circumstances they are in. Be honest with people with certain requests and offer other individuals of similar beliefs to service them. This way there is no conflict and or resentment or guilt for that matter.

I also noticed that various organization have different requirements for hiring a chaplain. For the military you have to actually join the military and be an officer to perform chaplain duties. I enjoyed this Universal Life Church course so very much, I am sorry it is over. It was very simple to understand, presented logically and covered every facet of being a chaplain. It has encouraged me to continue on with my studies and helped me understand the full ramifications of being a chaplain. I noticed with my own online ministry I look at things differently now, I realize I am a chaplain to my group members that come from all parts of the world. I want to thank the author for this wonderful ULC Seminary course and would recommend this course to anyone considering a career as a chaplain! --Reverend Andy Arecco

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