Covenantal pluralism, a philosophy that encourages shifting from tolerance of religious diversity to mutual engagement, is desperately needed around the world. Chaplains and spiritual care providers have covenantal pluralism at the core of their professional identities and are key figures in enacting it. Recent research shows that 20% of people in the United States have had contact with a chaplain. In interviews, care recipients emphasize the value they experience in chaplains’ non-judgmental approaches and ability to engage with patience, empathy, and respect across all avenues of difference.

This project advances two efforts needed to make chaplaincy and spiritual care more broadly accessible in the United States. First, we will work with a broad set of stakeholders on a consensus statement about what chaplaincy and spiritual care is and how it can contribute to individual and institutional wellness in the United States. Second, we will collaborate with a diverse working group to articulate the current business models for chaplaincy and spiritual care, and what is needed to expand access and build the revenue streams needed to make it broadly accessible. 

This project advances the mission of Templeton Religion Trust to “improve the wellbeing of individuals and societies through spiritual growth and an ever-improving understanding of spiritual realities and spiritual information. The project does so by taking steps require to make chaplaincy more comprehensible, available, and accessible to a broad range of people across the United States.

We will complete this work in three steps:

First, we will begin developing consistent knowledge among the public about what chaplaincy and spiritual care are and how they advance covenantal pluralism. We will do so by working with a broad set of stakeholders both inside and outside of spiritual care on a consensus statement on the definition of chaplaincy and spiritual care. These stakeholders will come from a variety of fields, including the Office of the Surgeon General, to ensure that the consensus statement is comprehensive and has the potential to be communicated and marketed in a national communications campaign.

Second, we will collaborate with a working group of diverse professionals to articulate the current business models for chaplaincy and release a working paper on the topic. At present, most spiritual care is available through legacy institutions like healthcare and the military. Growing community chaplaincy efforts engage more directly with care recipients but lack business models to ensure their sustainability and success. This working group will explore both legacy and innovative business models to develop proposals for how to support chaplaincy’s broader accessibility and impact.

Third, because this project is a planning grant, we will conclude with a full grant proposal outlining what is needed to bring the learnings from our first two activities to scale. We will also publish at least one academic paper about business models, several public-facing articles, and two webinars.

Press:

Press release, “Templeton Religion Trust makes grant to plan greater access to spiritual care,” Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, September 9, 2024.

This project was made possible through the support of grant #TRT-2024-33249 from the Templeton Religion Trust. Templeton Religion Trust (TRT) is a global charitable trust chartered by Sir John Templeton in 1984 with headquarters in Nassau, The Bahamas. TRT has been active since 2012 and supports projects as well as storytelling related to projects seeking to enrich the conversation about religion.

You may also be interested in our project on mainstreaming spiritual care in healthcare organizations.