Military names new Chaplain General
Brigadier-General John Fletcher focuses on "spiritual resilience"
OTTAWA, ON—Canada's Armed Forces recently named Brigadier-General John Fletcher as its new Chaplain General. During his three-year term, which started September 4, 2013, Fletcher will oversee 220 full-time chaplains and 130 reserve chaplains.
From a young age Fletcher aspired to be involved in ministry. As a child he says he often "played church," setting up pews and preaching in his back yard. After high school he rediscovered his interest in ministry, while attending Royal Military College (RMC).
"The first few years in the military can be fairly intense with the physical and emotional demands of basic training," says Fletcher. "Those pressures drive you inside, to see where your strength comes from. The one aspect of my life that [remained] constant was my faith journey—daily prayer and participating in worship. In lots of ways I became an adult Christian in that context."
As Chaplain General, Fletcher hopes to his focus on spiritual grounding to the chaplains he works with.
Fletcher says he enjoys "working in a multi-faith environment. What enables you to do this well is to remain deeply rooted in your own tradition. You have to come at it with a deep respect for the other faith traditions as well, but staying grounded strengthens you and adds to what you can bring to the table."
Fletcher is challenging both himself and the front-line chaplains to maintain balance in their work. He says it's easy to get worn out or even experience vicarious traumatization, but his goal is to build a culture of "spiritual resilience."
"My message for chaplains is to prioritize prayer and spiritual disciplines, physical exercise and to balance your work and family life so that you remain resilient."
Fletcher hopes to use his term to strengthen the chaplaincy presence among healthy soldiers, while maintaining a focus on soldiers wounded during operations. He also plans to use his office to underscore the importance of religious faith among senior military leadership.
"Religious faith matters. It matters personally, to the community and in the lives of those we serve and lead. Faith is a fundamental that can't be ignored."
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