Week 1

Well, I’ve done it.  I completed my first week as an intern prison chaplain.  I can not even begin to describe how nervous I was leading up to it!  I felt like I was preparing for my first day of high school.  I didn’t get over my nerves until I left the building and walked to my car!

I am not totally new to prison chaplaincy.  I have been voluntarily running a religious program there for almost two years, but it feels different to be an intern.  For one,  thing, volunteers are only allowed to talk about the religion that they volunteer under.  As an intern chaplain,  I work in an interfaith capacity.  I need to be as useful to a Sufi inmate as I am to a Catholic inmate.  Interfaith means that I may work with Agnostics, Humanists, and Atheists as well.

That brings me to an interesting experience.  I met with two inmates that both wanted to be able to spend more time with “good Christians.”  I talked with each of them for a while, and afterwords they both expressed gratitude for our conversation.  The thing is, I am not Christian.  I think they assumed that since I introduced myself as ‘Chaplain Holly’ that I must be a Christian.  I am fine with them assuming that.  I don’t think chaplaincy has much to do with religion anyway.  I strive to be a voice of reasonable loving Spirit.

Can any religion have the lock on love and compassion?  All do it well sometimes, and screw it up sometimes.  As do people!  The thing that worries me, is that I might not be able to be ‘enough’ for some people.  I don’t know the right words or prayers to soothe every heart.  I want to be what people need, and I don’t know how to always do that.  I will have to learn to accept that I have to put faith in the Universe to speak through me and offer up a message that they need to hear.  Sometimes I’ll mess it up, but I don’t know of any perfect Gods, so I guess I don’t have to be either.

Blessings,

Chaplain Holly