Now before you get your knickers all in a knot, I’m referring to the role of a chaplain at a children’s summer bible camp. Not that of the role a chaplain my fill at a hospital, or in the military etc. Those are often paid clergy. (although, there could be some discussion there!)

It’s true that historically chaplains have been men. And there is nothing wrong with that. Nor is it wrong that women typically haven’t assumed that role. But there should be discussion about *why* this has been the pattern. In this blog article, I’d like to address several things. Definition of chaplain, the matter of church authority and/or spiritual leadership and whether or not that factors in at a children’s camp, and the possibility of women in that particular role.

For those of you who know me, you may or may not be aware of my resignation as a chaplain at a particular bible camp in my area. It hurts and puzzles me for a number of reasons. As I work through this, I am speaking about female chaplains in a general sense, but also from a personal viewpoint. Those involved in my case have received a letter from me that includes much of the information here written. Up front I will say that there is no ill will from me, nor from those I’ve spoken with. In our community this is new, and change can be hard for people.

When I started researching the role of chaplain, and speaking with older, much wiser people than me, and developing my own understanding around it through the study of God’s word, I ran into a definition problem. Here are a few dictionary definitions.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a chaplain is defined as: “a member of the clergy, a religious leader, or a specially trained layperson officially attached to a secular institution – such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, or university – to provide spiritual and pastoral care. Unlike a pastor or a priest who serves a specific congregation in a church, chaplains work in “alien environments” or public settings to support people of various faiths, as well as those with no religious affiliation.”  I’m not sure a Christian camp is considered an alien environment. 🙂 

The Cambridge dictionary: “a Christian official who is responsible for the religious needs of an organization: -the college/hospital/prison chaplain.”  

Britannica: “originally a priest or minister who had charge of a chapel, now an ordained member of the clergy, who is assigned to a special ministry.” 

A quick perusal online also confirms a few things – chaplains are pastors or ministers. Or as other websites put it – ordained clergy. That means they are in the ministry business, typically in the roles of Pastor/Preacher. The only ordained clergy in the Reformed churches are ministers and missionaries. They have received specific education and training, usually through seminaries. Ordained clergy does not include elders and deacons. Although they are office-bearers in the church and hold authority as such, they do not have what an ordained minister does.

The issue of “authority” has been brought up. Let’s talk about that. God has given authority to elders, pastors, bishops, overseers. See Ephesians 4: 11-16, Titus 1:5-9, 1 Timothy 3:1-13. He’s given these men authority in his church to guard against heresy, false doctrine, and to shepherd the flock. Within the church, only qualified men may hold these offices. In many smaller congregations, the minister does all the teaching and preaching – off the pulpit and in the classroom (for example, catechism instruction). He may offer classes for adults in matters of theology etc. In larger churches it’s not uncommon for elders or deacons to do some teaching (not off the pulpit) if qualified.

All well and good! The question is: where does authority in the church begin and end? Do the ministers and elders hold authority over parents and families in terms of choices they might make in educating their children, or what summer camp they go to, or what church they may or may not attend while on holidays? Some of these might fall under “guarding against heresy” and “shepherding the flock”. But that’s not what happens in reality. Parents have authorities over their families, and usually Dad and Mom will work together in the decisions they make.

Now let’s take this matter of authority and look at summer bible camps. The particular camp I’m involved with is not church run, or even technically parent run, such as our affiliated schools are. The schools have “boards” and the general membership elects individuals who agree to stand to represent them.  The camp (along with many other bible camps) is run by a ‘board’ – chosen from the membership at large.

There isn’t an official ‘ordained clergy’ who exercises spiritual authority over camp as a whole. There is no church that runs it. The board – all of whom share equal standing in terms of decision making – consists of men and women. Committees are formed under the auspices of the board that then take care of certain aspects of camp – and also consist of men and women. There are a Camp manager and a Camp director (who is present at camp each week) – both who are women. They actually hold a lot of authority – over all the staff and counselors working at camp. I’d imagine most Christian children’s camps are run similarly. It takes a lot of people to run one well.

If we compare the society board of the camp to the school board – both of which consist of men and women with equal standing and authority, they are responsible to hire staff that then have authority in the school – the principal and vice principal. (and yes, all the teachers and staff). They, at various times, have been both men and women. There is no church ordained clergy that has any type of spiritual authority over the school. As a matter of fact, all teachers are equal and as such would offer spiritual guidance to anyone when called upon.

If church authority doesn’t bleed into the school, it most certainly doesn’t into a children’s camp.

Let’s address the issue of spiritual leadership or guidance. In any school related, or even general church related issues, concerns, etc., where spiritual guidance is needed, Pastors aren’t the only ones to provide guidance. Un-ordained office bearers may, and men and women can equally provide such help. Women pray with men as well as with their sisters and children in the church. Men pray with women. Whether it’s the school classroom, the Bible study groups, or prayer meetings, God gives all his sons and daughters spiritual gifts – and none of them are gender specific. (except for office-bearer roles which are specifically given to men.) This includes teaching, leading, praying, encouragement, bible study, providing counsel and more.

So, what about with the Christian bible summer camp?

Some would argue that only men should take on the role of chaplain. But – if we are going to do so, and keep using the word ‘chaplain’, then we need to extend if further and restrict the role to only ordained clergy: ministers. From a practical point of view, that’s not feasible. In our local area, we have 7 weeks of camp, and there are 12 churches. That means we need more than half of those men to commit to a week of camp without their families.  

Alright, let’s include office-bearers. But remember they aren’t technically chaplains because they are not ordained clergy. And what qualifications does an office-bearer need to have to fulfill the role of chaplain equal to that of ordained clergy?
And is that even necessary to capably work as a chaplain? Of course it’s not, most people would agree with that. So then couldn’t any other man meet that need even if they are not an office-bearer with specific authority? I would say yes, and again, I assume many others would as well. But…. what if you have women that have more ‘qualifications’ than your average man in the church?  If we remove the office-bearer/ordained clergy distinction of authority, then any man would have no authority and no unique spiritual leadership over anyone else – men and women alike. Thus, women also would have no authority and no unique spiritual leadership over anyone else either.

Ergo: authority is off the table.

Some might argue that only men can be ‘spiritual leaders’ in the sense that camp has adult men and women on staff. And women cannot have spiritual leadership over men. And I’d agree – in the context of church activities and of the church family.  But camp, as already seen, is not under the authority of the church. This particular camp is for kids ages 7 up to grade 12. (other camps have different ages). There are no adult men present as campers. Leading chapel times of teaching is absolutely no different than a female teacher teaching Bible study from grades 1-12 or even leading in staff devotions. And most people I know have not had an issue with women teaching high school seniors in Bible class.

So the argument that all the staff are adults – and men are present, so a female chaplain can’t provide spiritual leadership over them also isn’t a good reason for no female ‘chaplains’. Again, camp is not church.

There is a hierarchy in camp. The counselors of the children bring concerns or problems to the head male counselor or head female counselor. If the issues are too big for them to handle, the Director and Assistant Director are to be notified. If necessary and requested, the chaplain can assist wherever they’re needed. But the role of chaplain at camp is not to delve into deep theological matters.  It’s certainly not to assert spiritual authority. What does the chaplain do? Open God’s word (women can and should do this), pray (women can and should do this), listen (women can and should do this), use the wisdom and knowledge given by the Holy Spirit to guide someone to Jesus (women can and should do this).  This is basic evangelism or discipleship. Since we’re all called to the Great Commission in Matthew 28, women should be encouraged in this – yes, even at camp.

And if it’s the knowledge of God’s Word that concerns people, causing them to think that only men should take on the role of chaplain, I tell you I can find 10 women right now who have more biblical knowledge than many men! And age has nothing to do with this and neither does gender.

Half the church is women. Ezer warriors. Created equal with man in God’s image and made to reflect his character with unique roles in the family and church. By taking a non-office-bearer role and restricting it to 50% of the church, you’re missing out on the God given spiritual gifts and talents of the other half.

Maybe, just maybe, we all need to open our eyes and our minds and our hearts and use critical thinking skills instead of simply going with what ‘tradition’ tells you or saying, ‘That’s the way it’s always been done. Why change it?’

Someone once said to me that there could be a male teenager who needs spiritual guidance at camp and goes to the chaplain for help – a teen guy wouldn’t be comfortable with a female chaplain. My response should have been right there and then: “There could be a female teenager who needs spiritual guidance – but isn’t comfortable going to the chaplain because he’s a male.”  Someone might respond with, “Well then, she can just go to one of the other female staff.”   “Okay, well, if there’s a female chaplain, the teenage boy can just go to one of the male staff.”  See what I mean?

One last thought in conclusion. Perhaps the title of chaplain needs to be turfed. Chaplain is very male related – and it just doesn’t make people feel comfortable if there’s a female chaplain. Even if they can’t biblically explain why. How about Chapel Leader? Chapel Teacher? Bible Leader or Teacher? What might you suggest?

Grace and Peace!