CHRISTIAN JAIL MINISTRY

Varieties of CJM Chaplains

The CJM Lead Chaplain has responsibilities similar to those of an executive director for many non-profit organizations in addition to his chaplain duties. He is the primary leader for CJM.

A CJM Chaplain is a person with normal clergy credentials for the chaplain's denomination or religious group plus special training for ministry in correctional institutions. The chaplain is expected to be involved in the full spectrum of pastoral and priestly activities (prayer, meditation/contemplation, preaching, teaching, counseling, etc.). The chaplain is also a leader of religious programs. This involves planning and administering programs, using and managing volunteers and staff (recruitment, selection, training, assigning, supervising, etc.), and other such functions, including fund raising for the ministry.

A CJM Associate Chaplain has normal clergy credentials for the chaplain's denomination or religious group with at least two years of ministerial experience. An Associate Chaplain serves a minimum of 6 hours per week in CJM’s ministry and functions in specific ministry assigned to the Associate Chaplain by the CJM Lead Chaplain. A CJM Associate Chaplain functions under the direction and supervision of the CJM Lead Chaplain.

Chaplain Compensation: CJM contracts with the Lead Chaplain and CJM Chaplains to provide chaplaincy services; at present, Associate Chaplains are not compensated financially by CJM for their ministry. See CJM Practices and Policies for more information on this topic (such as how CJM determines how much to pay chaplains).

The Chaplain's Assistant is a lay person who functions with specific leadership responsibilities under the direction of a CJM chaplain. Normally such responsibilities include coordination and oversight of activities by other volunteers. A person designated as a Chaplain's Assistant has to be a CJM volunteer in good standing with at least a year's experience as a CJM volunteer (many who fill this role will have been CJM volunteers far longer than a year). The person is expected to be fully aware of and agree with CJM philosophy, policies, and practices. Appointment as a Chaplain's Assistant is by the CJM Board upon recommendation for such appointment by the CJM Lead Chaplain -- the specific leadership responsibilities of the person are to be specified in the Lead Chaplain's nomination and approved by the Board. The term of the appointment is for approximately a year, and may be renewed without limit (assuming that the Lead Chaplain nominates and the Board approves the person in that role each year). A Chaplain's Assistant normally is a volunteer who serves without financial compensation from CJM. A Chaplain's Assistant is welcome to attend CJM Board meetings and may be identified in CJM literature (such as the CJM brochure) and on its website in the same way that CJM Chaplains are identified.

Current CJM Chaplain and Chaplain's Assistant