If you have an interest in serving God and our country as an Army chaplain, here are some pointers for beginning your journey to soldier ministry. These suggestions are based on my own experience and knowledge and do not necessarily reflect official Army doctrine or policy.
Chaplaincy qualifications
To serve as a chaplain, you must fulfill these basic requirements:
- Be ordained.
- Receive an ecclesiastical endorsement for chaplaincy from your denomination or endorsing organization.
- Have a bachelor degree of at least 120 semester hours from an accredited school.
- Have a Master of Divinity from an accredited school (or a graduate degree in theological studies, with at least 72 semester hours).
- Be able to pass a military entrance physical exam.
- Be able to receive a Secret security clearance.
- Have ministry experience.
Chaplain candidate qualifications
If you do not yet meet all the requirements for appointment as a chaplain, you can work on completing them while you train for military ministry by serving in the Army chaplain candidate program.
To serve as a chaplain candidate, you must fulfill these basic requirements:
- Receive an ecclesiastical approval for the chaplain candidate program from your denomination or organization.
- Have a bachelor degree of at least 120 semester hours from an accredited school, or be in your last semester of undergraduate studies.
- Be enrolled in graduate theological studies at an accredited school, or have been accepted for admission to such a program in the next enrollment period of the school, or have completed such a program and be actively engaged in a process leading toward ordination.
- Be able to pass a military entrance physical exam.
From this point forward, I will focus on information for chaplain candidates, beginning with inquiring about the program to accessioning to active duty. Some of this information may be useful for persons who already have completed seminary and are ordained and, thus, are seeking to be directly accessioned to the Chaplain Corps. Some of it may also be useful for chaplains and chaplain candidates in the Air Force and Navy. However, I am specifically targeting Army chaplain candidates.
Please note that this is an ongoing series of short articles. In order to see the list of articles available to date, you must view this article in its archived format by clicking the title of the article. At the bottom of each article in the series is a list of available articles. You may leave comments or ask questions by filling in the comment box at the bottom of any article or you may contact me directly.
I hope you will find this series helpful.
Table of contents for Chaplain Candidacy
- The Army chaplain candidate program
- So you want to be a chaplain?
- How do I learn more about becoming a chaplain candidate? Part 1.
- How do I learn more about becoming a chaplain candidate? Part 2.
- The chaplain candidate appointment process. Part 1.
- The chaplain candidate appointment process. Part 2.
- I’m a Second Lieutenant. Now what?
- CHOBC. Part 1.
- Chaplain Candidate series to be expanded
[...] Father Daniel Sparks, an Anglican priest, begins a series of articles about the Army chaplaincy, particularly the chaplain candidate program. As a means of helping those who come behind him, he offers advice based on his own experiences and accepts questions from curious souls. [...]
Question: I attended a Catholic Mass at an AFB today, and the Deacon was an AF Chaplain. Does the Army allow Deacons to become Chaplains. I ask, because I’ve thought about becoming a Permanent Deacon in the Catholic Church, and since I’m in the military (a LTC in the USAR), I wondered if a branch change would be possible if I did become a Deacon.
Thanks.
LTC Gravlee, the deacon at the service was not a chaplain. He was either a) an airman/civilian who is an ordained deacon (but not a chaplain) who volunteered to serve in the Mass, b) a civilian contracted to perform duties in the absence/vacancy of a Roman Catholic chaplain, or c) a chaplain candidate who is still completing the requirements for appointment as a chaplain.
Deacons cannot serve as chaplains because the DOD requires that chaplains be ordained sacerdotal ministers. Deacons are not authorized to celebrate the Mass; thus, they cannot be endorsed as chaplains. If the airbase does not have a Roman Catholic chaplain, it’s very likely that someone was brought in from the local area to fill in solely for the chapel service as a contractor.
As an 0-5, even if you were a priest, it would be very difficult for you to become a chaplain. (Battalion chaplains are typically captains; brigade chaplains are majors; lieutenant colonels serve as division chaplains; colonels serve as corps chaplains and higher; the Deputy Chief of Chaplains is a brigadier general; and the Chief of Chaplains is a major general.) If you did a branch transfer, the Army would allow you to serve as a major in a captain (battalion chaplain) slot; however, the Army will not downgrade you to a slot more than one rank below your current rank. Thus, as a LTC, you could not serve in a CPT slot; and, they would not allow you, as a new chaplain, to serve in a supervisory chaplain slot.
So, the long and the short of it is, if you want to serve as a deacon, you can do that without being a chaplain–but, if you wanted to become a priest and a chaplain, it’s too late in your career to make the change.
I hope this info helps; if you need more clarification, please ask.
Father,
I have a BA in Sacred Theology and I am finishing my M-Div. degree as we speek. I attend a non-denominational community church in my area. They have agreed to ordain me. The church usues St. Lukes Evangelical Christian Church as the provider of their pastor’s ordination credentials. I wish to become a chaplain. My degrees are accredited and I know that I will meet the physical requirements, but will my non-denominational ordination meet the ordination requirement? I am thinking of joining the Navy Reserve. Sorry, they don’t have an awesome forum like yours! I saw that one of the requirements is that I am an ordained minister from one of the more than 100 RECOGNIZED religious denominations. What is considered “recognized?” Is the military saying that they only consider these 100 denominations as legit? Doesn’t this “recognization” of certain denominations violate my right to religious freedome? Who is the Government to decide which religions or denominations are real religious organizations and which ones are not? Can you please explain? Thank you and God bless!
Shawn,
My current denomination does its own endorsements for chaplaincy to the military. However, the denomination to which I previously belonged went through a third party organization in order to endorse chaplains. Why the difference? Some independent churches don’t wish to belong to denominations, fellowships, or networks, and they don’t wish to seek status as an independent endorser; so these churches may have their chaplains endorsed by a third party. Likewise, some denominations are small and do not wish to seek status as independent endorsers–and, so, go through third party umbrella organizations.
The military refuses to be involved in the ordination requirements, seminary programs, or ministry experience requirements of any denomination or faith group. Instead, the DOD has a set of guidelines by which any denomination may represent itself as a bona fide religious group and seek status as an endorser. The DOD does not get involved with requiring faith groups to believe or not believe anything. However, it must verify that a denomination has control over its clergy before they are admitted to military service. For an example of why this is important: if a denomination withdraws its endorsement of a chaplain (say, because the chaplain is living an immoral lifestyle or no longer confesses the same basic doctrines as the denomination), the military will generally separate that chaplain from service within 48 hours. Thus, the denomination is the one which decides whether the chaplain is being faithful to his religious beliefs.
The DOD does not prohibit any organization from applying for recognition as a military chaplaincy endorser. It does review the organization’s administrative data to verify that it is a real religious organization. Otherwise, to give an absurd example, the First Church of Al Qaeda might endorse one of its terrorists as a military chaplain, and then the “chaplain” (who might have absolutely no ecclesiastical qualifications as a minister) might execute terrorist acts against the United States.
For more information, consult these files (.PDF):
Department of Defense Instruction, Number 1304.28. June 11, 2004. Subject: Guidance for the Appointment of Chaplains for the Military Departments. (Specifies how a denomination may seek status as an ecclesiastical endorser.)
DD Form 2088. Statement of Ecclesiastical Endorsement. May 2006. (The form which an endorser must submit to endorse a cleric for military chaplaincy.)
I am currently serving as an active duty soldier. I am a licensed missionary in my faith group. I am getting ready to start at Virginia Union University to obtain my Master of Divinity Degree. I have been on active duty for 12 years, and I will like to become an Army Chaplain. Is it too late in my career to apply for the Army Chaplaincy?
Rebecca,
I know that it has been a while since you posted. I would love to discuss the Chaplaincy with you. Please give me a call.
CH Ehler
(770) 363-0253
Chaplain Recruiter
I attend a non denominational church. How will I get ecclessiatical endorsement?? I am ordained and in seminary seeking the Chaplain Candidate program.
Ian, there are several umbrella organizations that offer endorsement for nondenominational churches and denominations that do not have their own endorsers. Associated Gospel Churches, Chaplaincy of Full Gospel Churches, and International Ministerial Fellowship are some that spring to mind. Search online or see if your local church is involved in a network of other churches through a fellowship or association.
I took the first step today, by applying to Liberty Seminary, for the MDiv. I would have preferred a residential program, but am unable to stop work, and move the family to a school setting. I am a former active duty Marine, and look forward to the opportunity to minister to those in harm’s way.
Matthew, congratulations on beginning the journey. Distance education can be a very good option. Just be sure that you learn the practical ministry skills in your local church. I recommend finding a mentor who will help you evaluate your preaching and teaching skills. Distance education doesn’t given you the opportunity to stand in front of a class to be evaluated on preaching, and this is sometimes a problem for new chaplains. If you work with your pastor or some other mentor in ministry, this should be very helpful.
I pray that you meet with success in your studies and future ministry.
Sir,
I am a Chief Warrant Officer serving in the Army for 14 years. I have been a minister for 10 years and have worked in ministry for 12. Currently I am 7 classes away from my BA in Relion at Liberty University. I would love to serve as a CH, but I am afraid of having to get out of the military to attend the Masters Div program. No CH around here can give a clear answer on what my options are. Thank you.
Tony
Tony, there are distance education programs available for the M.Div. The most popular one is that offered by Liberty. As you finish up your B.A., talk with the Liberty advisors about their online M.Div. program.
Realize, however, that you will need a minimum of 2 years of post-seminary pastoral ministry experience. At some point, you will need to leave the Army to gain that experience.
In your case, there is another complication. You must have less than 16 years of active duty time to become a chaplain. Since you already have 14 years, it seems extremely unlikely that you could meet this deadline. I recommend that you talk with a chaplain recruiter to verify how the accessions rules apply to your particular situation.
I am currently not in pastoral ministry due to a secular job change. but am an active member in my new church (SB) I have 5 years of full-time ministry in a previous non-denomination church, and a dozen years of youth worker exp. before that. I have my BA in non-religious business, but have been looking at Liberty online for a while for my M-Div as a outlet for my need to be doing something in ministry. My middle son enlisted in the reserves, and while talking to the recruiter for him, the possibility of serving as a reserve or Guard chaplain first entered my thoughts. If I begin the M-Div course, are there opportunities for part-time chaplains?
Dean, there are openings for chaplains in the USAR and USARNG. To receive an appointment, you will need to have the education, ordination, and ministry experience completed. You might qualify to serve as a chaplain candidate while working on your master degree.