Will Anyone Listen?

I am writing this as a longtime Police Chaplain and someone who has witnessed far too many police suicides over the recent years here in Canada. I address my thoughts to police management, police officers and even police chaplains. I counted 4 suicides just in the last few days and many in the wellness area of policing are understandably upset. However, the claim is that management doesn't have the resources to handle the obvious concern. I agree to a certain extent but perhaps the problem lies with seeing what is staring everyone right in the face.

Before and during my time as a police chaplain, I like many pastors, faced crisis after crisis in the church I led. We dealt with people in their darkest moments and becoming a police chaplain simply added another layer: police officers. There are some police services in this country that are doing everything they can to make chaplains irrelevant. Those same individuals who could be a resource for hurting officers are instead being pushed to the sidelines due to ignorance. I do not use that word lightly.

Diversity over rides the needs of men and women who serve our cities simply because there is a lack of understanding on how to use chaplains. The first big stumbling block for senior officers is defining the role chaplains could have. As long as we continue to leave the impression that these men and women are nothing but "religious" individuals, the usefulness of chaplains is undermined. The problem is that many of our chaplains like to be seen as "religious". I have said it before: they should not be chaplains within law enforcement.

I see chaplains in a totally different light that up until now, most want to ignore. Let me ask a question: what is the one thing that chaplains can do that mental health professionals can't? In my years as a chaplain with Toronto Police Service, I probably did over 100 ride alongs. I attended just as many parades (briefings prior to platoons heading out) and each time I did so, I built relationships and trust. Our psychologists very seldom if ever experience this and yet they are the ones management presents as the first contact. I don't have to say that most would never head into an office with a dozen eyes watching them as they quite possibly commit career-ending "suicide". 

One service in Canada recently decided that ride alongs for chaplains is a bad idea so they are banned from patrol cruisers. In fact they can't be called chaplains. This at a time when wellness folks both in police services and outside providers, are demanding a better way for desperate cops to get help. Does anyone see how bizarre this is? My guess is that if the wrong leaders start making these decisions, many other services will follow suit in the name of diversity. The funny thing is, chaplains never seem to be included in the "diversity".

As I write this I am well aware that not every cop who wants to harm themselves, will reach out for help. There are however a multitude of issues facing our officers, including family struggles that are brought to work. PTSD and other Operational Stress Injuries continue to surface due to the nature of the job. Why not use chaplains (those who are qualified) as an initial point of contact. The thing is, management has to work a lot harder in identifying chaplains as a "safe" place to go. Other than peer support, other options don't always feel safe even if we insist it is getting better. I have been in way too many cruisers to know that the rank and file don't see the options available right now as "safe".

I have nothing to gain my sticking my nose in where (if I can say this) it belongs. I know many individuals who serve faithfully within Wellness both in police services and places like Boots on the Ground, Badge of Life Canada, Beyond The Blue, Wounded Warriors and others. How do we get those in need to these resources?

My solution might not sit well with those who have no use for people of faith. There in lies the difficulty. We want to make it about our preferences and out biases rather than about those who are in desperate need of someone to come alongside them. I put this out there once again because Christmas is often the time when cops are suffering in silence. I know this because it is true in society as a whole. I hope some people in leadership positions begin to use the unique resource called police chaplaincy.

Common Sense

This will be a "politically incorrect" response to something Calgary Police Service has implemented in what used to be called "Chaplaincy". This is solely my opinion. I write this after speaking with a couple of CPS officers individually two days ago, when they pointed out a few more facts about a strange decision to restrict access by their Chaplains to the members . Today came news about the suicide of a Calgary cop.

In my experience as a Police Chaplain in Toronto and knowledge of chaplaincy across law enforcement around the world, I have no problem calling out the leadership of CPS for their terrible decision. This happened months ago so what the officers were reacting to, has already been enforced. No ride alongs are allowed and Chaplains are no longer permitted into briefings prior to shifts. Both are a common practice in police services. Chaplains are no longer allowed to be called "Chaplains" and beautiful donated pews in the HQ chapel have been removed and replaced with folding chairs. I kid you not!

You may already have picked up where this is all going. Christians are no longer welcome. The reason is simple: it offends somebody. Because of this, a valuable and necessary resource for the wellbeing of frontline officers, their families and other members, has effectively been removed.

There has always been a stark difference between Chaplains and company psychologists and other mental health professionals. As Chaplains we get to be boots on the ground during ride alongs and even the parades (briefings) prior to heading out for a shift. We are able to build relationships and more importantly trust so that when issues do arise, we are a safe place to go for help. That has been removed in Calgary.

The removal of pews boarders on pettiness. The interesting thing is that this is all done under the label of "diversity". Toronto Police, where I served as a Chaplain for many years, was the first in Canada to focus on diversity. The Canadian Police Chaplain Association has increasingly brought in diverse voices within it's organization but none have eliminated the Christian backbone of Police Chaplaincy.

The question is, who came up with this idea? I will not point fingers at anyone because in Toronto and the CPCA, we have worked together despite our individual faith traditions. When I moved to Alberta 2 years ago, I approached the lead Chaplain about the possibility of joining CPS as a Chaplain. Her response was a clear one: "Christians need not apply". That was not her decision but one that had been made for her.

When I woke up this morning to hear of another law enforcement suicide, I was quite frankly angered more than anything else. Somehow we still have people in leadership positions in the 1st Responder community that believe their personal beliefs trump the wellbeing of those who serve. Having access to a Chaplain might not have prevented today's suicide but it certainly could have helped. All resources need to be easily accessed and in Calgary that has changed.

Let me make something very clear. Chaplains, regardless of their faith, are there to serve all members regardless of the their faith or lack there of. We do not promote our faith by preaching or judging. I always joke that none of us would have a job if we preached at officers. Somehow that fact has never reached the individuals who make these decisions of exclusion.

I want to encourage the management of CPS to revisit the decisions made to limit the effectiveness of your Chaplains. You owe it to your men and women and their families.