About
About Us
The Office of Chaplains
The Office of Chaplains was established to foster the ministry of chaplaincy within Old Catholic Churches International and to support clergy called to this specialized work of pastoral care. It serves those who bring the Church’s presence into places of suffering, crisis, transition, and human need.
Pax et Bonum
The Work of This Office
Chaplaincy is a distinct ministry of the Church. It calls clergy to serve in settings beyond the ordinary pattern of parish life and often within interfaith or no-faith environments. In such places, chaplains are entrusted with a ministry of presence, prayer, counsel, and pastoral care offered with wisdom, reverence, and compassion.
The Office of Chaplains exists to strengthen that ministry. It encourages vocations to chaplaincy, assists clergy and candidates in understanding its demands, and supports the Church’s work of preparing qualified ministers for service in specialized settings.
How We Serve
Fostering Chaplaincy
The office promotes chaplaincy as a serious and necessary work of pastoral ministry within the wider life of the Church.
Guidance and Preparation
It helps clergy and candidates understand the formation, character, and readiness required for faithful service as chaplains.
Ecclesiastical Endorsement
It supports the process by which qualified chaplain candidates receive ecclesiastical endorsement for ministry where such recognition is required.
The Character of Chaplaincy
Chaplaincy is often exercised among those who are ill, grieving, vulnerable, isolated, or under strain. It therefore requires more than goodwill alone. It demands pastoral maturity, spiritual steadiness, disciplined charity, and the ability to remain present to others with patience and care.
In many settings, the chaplain serves among people of different traditions, or among those who claim no religious identity. For that reason, chaplaincy requires a manner of ministry that is clear in faith, gracious in bearing, and attentive to the dignity of every person.
Chaplaincy extends the Church’s pastoral presence into places where people most need prayer, comfort, counsel, and the steady care of Christ’s ministers.
Why This Ministry Matters
The Church must be present not only at the altar, but also wherever human need is most keenly felt. Chaplaincy makes that presence visible in hospitals, institutions, emergency settings, public service, and other places where people may be far from the ordinary support of parish life.
In this way, the Office of Chaplains serves the wider mission of Old Catholic Churches International by helping ensure that this ministry remains ordered, faithful, and properly supported for the good of those whom the Church is called to serve.
Learn More
If you are discerning chaplaincy, seeking information about ecclesiastical endorsement, or looking to understand this ministry more clearly, the Office of Chaplains is here to assist you.
Office of Chaplains
Email: chaplaincy@myocci.org