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A chaplain is sometimes understood as someone who comes in, prays with you, and leaves. Prayer can be part of chaplaincy. But if spiritual care were only a prayer, the chart would be a short one. The impression persists for understandable reasons. Chaplains are often called during the hardest moments of a hospitalization, and a prayer or blessing may be the most visible part of the visit. The less visible work is listening, assessing, identifying what matters to the patient,

If I had a dollar for every time someone in church told me they were a chaplain because they visited the sick, I would be retired on some island sipping cocktails. Virgin ones, of course. That line gets a laugh, but it also points to a real confusion. Chaplain is not a promotion from pastor, and it is not a synonym for "the person who shows up at the hospital." The difference between a pastor and a chaplain is primarily the setting, the people they serve, and the role's respo