Chaplaincy Program

Rev. Travis Richardson

• What did you learn?

This course has provided to me valuable insight in to the history of a Chaplain and the role that Chaplains have provided. Although I was aware there are Chaplains in the Military, Police Forces, Fire Departments, Hospitals, Prisons and so on, I was unaware of the roles that the Chaplain actually provided. Not only is the Chaplain there for the members of the particular service but the service they provide to the general masses was enlightening moment of understanding for me. An example of this is in a hospital where an individual is awaiting a major surgery and has some reservations and calls upon the services that a Chaplain is able to offer. Back in lesson one, the term and concept of “keeper of the sacred” struck a deep sense of understanding within me, furthering my understanding of what it is that a Chaplain actually does. To borrow a term used in lesson two, “mark of the divine” combined with “keeper of the sacred” provided to me the universal level of understanding that my mind frequently searches for when taking a class. A Chaplain is one who serves all people spiritually regardless of who they are.

• What helped you?

What helped me the most out of this course was the actual encouragement from Rev. Daniel Moore promoting the Humanist style of being a Chaplain, where it is encouraged that a minister  who so chooses lean more towards promoting and encouraging individual beliefs rather than simply following the same old same old. The promotion of the person over the belief structure rings true to me and my own beliefs.

In lesson two the paragraph titled The Call By God where it speaks of the three points of how God calls to someone; Personally, Dreams and Visions and Miracles are elements that resonate within my life and my perceptions. There are over 6 billion people on this planet, not everyone is going to believe the same thing. 

Another aspect I found that this course highlighted for me was my own tendency of responding in kind to individuals who have a harsh tongue when they speak in a degrading manner towards another based upon racial commentary of age, race, gender, personal choices. It reminded me that even though individuals have the “right” to freedom of expression, that it does not mean one should. 

This course has also led me towards the Clinical Chaplain Education for service in my local Hospitals. I have found the local CPE board and will soon be contacting them as well as the local hospitals to further my own goals. There are internships available however having a family and financial concerns to consider may just result in an opportunity to resolve a difficulty.  

• What could improve this course?

The only suggestion that I would like to offer is more internet links for other countries alongside those provided for the USA.

• What you hope you will accomplish as a result of taking this course.

This course is part of the Chaplaincy Program offered by the ULC Seminary, it is a required course, but I feel the need to say that if all courses where as informative with a good balance of information and personal experiences, that they would be just as enjoyable to take as this one has been.

Thank you Rev. Daniel Moore for taking the time to share your wisdom, constructing this course and offering thought a church that is more in line with my own philosophies.

**********************

Ordination with the Free Online Ordination button.

The  ULC, run by Rev. Long, has created a chaplaincy program to help train our ministers. We also have a huge catalog of Universal Life Church materials.  I've been ordained with Seminary since the beginning and have loved watching the continual growth of the seminary.

Try our new free toolbar at: ULC Toolbar