PBS documentary, "Chaplains," explores the real work religious leaders do every day.
Adelle M. Banks— Religion News Service
(RNS) They can be found on the battlefield, at a chicken-processing plant and behind the locked gates of a prison.
They are chaplains, and as a two-hour, two-part documentary airing on some PBS stations beginning Tuesday (Nov. 3) points out, they minister to people of all religions and none in places where they work and live.
Advertisement
“Their ministry really does bring them into some of the most extraordinary places where people are in crisis and need,” said Journey Films producer/director Martin Doblmeier in an interview about “Chaplains.”
Chaplains and experts featured in the film demonstrate that, while often thought of as people dealing with death and dying, these ministers also foster everyday religious practice in places where people might otherwise not experience it: The congressional chaplain dabs ashes on Congress members’ foreheads during Ash Wednesday services. A rabbi straps a Torah scroll onto his front passenger seat before driving off to minister to retired employees. The military chaplain hears confession before the soldier picks up his gun and returns to war.
At the maximum-security Oregon State Penitentiary, Chaplain Karuna Thompson, a Buddhist, organizes religious events ranging from evangelical praise and worship to a Native American sweat lodge ceremony.
“If I had to live in a 5-by-8 bathroom with another person I would lose my mind,” she says in the film, referring to a prison cell. “What a chaplain does is lean into the painful places.”
Advertisement
Doblmeier, 64, who also has produced “Bonhoeffer” and “The Power of Forgiveness,” said he chose to include the Oregon chaplain because her work demonstrates tangible results. At the time of the filming, Oregon had the lowest rate of recidivism in the country.
“She was a great example of working outside of her own faith tradition, her willingness to do that, and actually have documentable evidence that she’s part of a team that’s really making a difference,” he said.
But the influence of many chaplains is often less tangible.
Melissa Brannan, an Assemblies of God-endorsed chaplain based at Tysons Foods’ Arkansas headquarters, is shown meeting with a worker who is facing stage 4 cancer.
“I can’t cure this lady’s cancer,” she says in the documentary. “I can encourage her. I can call her. I can pray for her. I can love on her. But I can’t fix it.”
Advertisement
The preparation for chaplains in the health care field is particularly arduous, involving in some cases not only endorsement by a denomination and a theological degree but 1,600 hours of clinical pastoral education and 2,000 hours of chaplaincy practice.
Despite the long history of chaplains in some professions such as the military and Congress, Doblmeier said chaplains in other fields often face questions of job security.
“The financial part of it is still very much unresolved because many of them operate on the good graces of the institution,” he said.
Supervisors of chaplains also have the challenge of making sure that these ministers take time to care for themselves in lines of work where there often aren’t 9-to-5 days.
“If we’re not being cared for then we can’t care for them,” warns the Rev. Paul Hurley, a Catholic priest and U.S. Army colonel, in a meeting with chaplains in Afghanistan about their ability to minister to military members.
Advertisement
Doblmeier, a Catholic, hopes the series will not only teach viewers about the role of chaplains but also give them insights into faiths that are different from their own — something that chaplains may experience on a daily basis.
“To really celebrate — not just tolerate but celebrate — what others believe and celebrate the best of what they believe,” he said, “I think enriches us all.”
Also on HuffPost:
Inspiring Female Religious Leaders
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.