Welcome to week six of the FAQ o’ the week series! Follow for weekly answers to questions about spiritual direction, bodywork, meditation, burnout care, ecstatic dance, spiritual direction supervision, and more. Today's question is: How is spiritual direction different from chaplaincy?
As someone who has served as a hospital chaplain, a hospice chaplain, and a spiritual director, I think chaplaincy and spiritual direction are close cousins. So close, that I sometimes think the two terms could be used interchangeably. (I’d be interested to hear any hot takes from other chaplains or spiritual directors about that.) I had a friend who once jokingly described spiritual direction as “chaplaincy for people who aren’t in crisis,” and I honestly struggle to find a better definition.
While spiritual direction certainly can provide care for people in crisis, the context for spiritual direction is typically less specific than that of chaplaincy. With plenty of exceptions, chaplaincy usually is practiced in the context of hospitals, hospice, schools, the military, etc. There are heavily emotionally charged circumstances in each of these settings, and chaplains serve as spiritual support for individuals in the thick of these circumstances. Again, while spiritual direction also could be helpful in and around these settings, spiritual direction tends to be less specialized in its scope. Spiritual direction lends itself to difficult times, neutral times, and euphoric times. It can serve as a temporary space of discernment for specific issues or life decisions, and it can be a normal part of one’s routine for general spiritual growth.
Again with plenty of exceptions, interactions with chaplains can be relatively brief (especially in a hospital setting), and relationships with spiritual directors tend to be more ongoing. There is nuance between the training and skill sets required for chaplaincy and spiritual direction, especially when chaplains need to prepare for specific contexts. But insofar as both fields invite interfaith and exploratory approaches to spirituality without direct instruction or dogma, they feel like different sides of the same coin to me. What do you think?