Covenant with military chaplains being developed
By John H. Adams, The Layman Online, February 23, 2001
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Presbyterian Church (USA) has taken a few first steps toward securing a relationship with and funding for the umbrella organization that represents Presbyterian chaplains in the military.
The General Assembly Council’s National Ministries Division Committee received and reviewed the first rendering of a covenant between the council and the Presbyterian Council for Chaplains and Military Personnel.
In a related matter, the committee endorsed a proposal to grant special member status to the chair of the chaplain’s council on the National Ministries Division Committee. The chaplains’ representative would have a voice but not a vote on the committee.
For years, the chaplains’ organization had been supported by money from the General Assembly’s per-capita budget. But the General Assembly ended that practice, despite protests from the chaplains. The General Assembly Council then assumed the responsibility for funding the organization.
The Presbyterian Council for Chaplains and Military Personnel is an umbrella organization that represents chaplains from the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America and the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church.
The General Assembly Council contributes $250,000 annually to the organization, about 90 percent of its funds. The PCUSA has 167 chaplains in the armed services, while the other denominations have about 30 to 40, according to Kathy Lueckert, deputy executive director of the General Assembly Council.
A few members of the National Ministries Division Committee commented on the proposed covenant, but there were no major changes.
Douglas Oldenburg, former moderator of the Presbyterian Church (USA), did indicate a reluctance to fully fund the chaplains’ organization because “chaplains are paid more than a lot of our other pastors are paid.” Oldenburg, however, did not recommend any reduction in the General Assembly Council’s budget for the military chaplains.
The chaplains’ organization plays a key role in helping Presbyterian ministers qualify as military chaplains by working with presbyteries to secure calls and endorsements for chaplains.