Back from Study Leave

On August 15 I travelled to CAF Base Borden to attend an ethics course at the Canadian Forces Chaplain School and Centre. In preparation for this course, I read Ethics: A Pluralistic Approach to Moral Theory by Lawrence Hinman.  

The Intermediate Ethics course is intended to provide CAF Chaplains with an awareness of different ethical lenses at use within our society and provide us with an ability to assess ethical dilemmas through a variety of different frameworks. The intent is that with this new awareness and ability we will be able to provide our commanding officers and our members with good advice and be able to understand how others are approaching any particular ethical situation. With regards to the latter the current debate around vaccinations can be seen as a conflict between different approaches: our government has approached vaccination through a consequentialist ethic (the greatest good for the greatest numbers) while those opposing vaccinations are approaching this issue through either an egoist lens (I will do what is good for me) or a rights-based approach (the individual and not the government has the right to decide).  

I believe that this course has provided me with a conscious awareness of the various frameworks we employ in our decision-making as well as a language to discuss these choices. I have no doubt that this will be useful both to my work as a CAF Chaplain and as a Presbyterian Pastor.  

While the course was focused on ethics, being at the ‘mother ship’ enabled me to recognise the changes going on within the CAF Chaplaincy. It is clear that the Chaplaincy is going through a process of secularisation. It is expected that in addition to having chaplains of many faiths, we will soon have chaplains who profess no belief in a greater power (a humanist chaplain for instance). The CAF seems to be employing a rights-based ethic in terms of religious freedoms and as a consequence it is likely that the chaplaincy itself will one day be asked to remove references to the ‘divine’ in its own marching orders, in order to protect the freedoms of those who do not acknowledge a greater power. This begs the question whether chaplains offer skills that qualitatively different from a modern social worker. 

Regardless of what happens in the Chaplaincy I have no doubt that CAF chaplains are offering God's love to those who are in need. I have no doubt that my colleagues have been called by God to this important ministry. I am most grateful for the opporutnity to take this course and am looking forward to sharing what I have learned with you all.

Pastor Steve