Chaplain in need of some help...
 

Hey guys so I'm Chaplain in my sorority this year.:):):) YAY!!! The problem is the verses I'm selecting seem to come off a bit too Christian for the advisors. (I thought that was the point of the office but whatever:rolleyes:) I know I have sisters who hold a different faith than I, but I just don't really know exactly what they are wanting. Plus the ones I am finding that may be "appropriate" don't really seem to be what I'm wanting to tell them. My advisors have also suggested I use quotes some weeks. I have found two I really like, and have used them. So I guess I'm just looking for Bible verses that you've found applicable in your chapters, or cute quotes that apply to sorority sisters, or inspirational quotes in general. ANy help/ advice will be greatly appreciated.

You should probably see if you could find non denominational prayers to use if at all possible. Or possible mix up christian verses with verses from the various faiths of the sisters.

First off, are you using at LEAST an NIV bible? The clearer the English, the less biblical it sounds. Also are you allowed to (you don't have to answer if you can't, I understand) interpret the verse after you read it or say why you chose it? Sometime the message gets lost without interpretation.
Lastly, if they don't like Bible for being too Christian, find out if you can use inspirational poems or rotate other holy books because I don't see why a grown woman wouldn't understand that the Bible is a Christian thing and most of its messages will be Christian, you're not reading Huckleberry Finn, a Torah, Koran, or Gone With The Wind, Windows for Dummies or anything else! It is what it is at the end of the day! (Sorry if I sound off the wall, but that is the most outlandish thing I think I've ever heard, I'm sure you're doing your best to be balanced in the message!)

I really like that idea!

Also google "Sorority Sister Quotes"- about 2 million websites will pop up.

I mean I guess. We really aren't all that diverse: we have CHristians, Jews (they use the Torah, prettys sure its like 36 books of the Old Testament, and girls with no concept of faith or God...I really think in this instance it may be the advisors and not my sisters. I'm not really sure but I talked to the old chaplain and as far as she remebers this issue was never really an issue.

I perfer the NASV so thats actually what I have been using, but it is still understandable. and yeah thats what I thought, I was like how is the Bible to Christian...last I checked it was kinda suppose to be that right?

i have the problem is they all come up with the same quotes. And I just don't really care for those for one reason or another. Some of them are just not "formal" enough for a meeting or just don't give the best conotation.

I just googled it, and I found a bunch of orgs that have non denominational prayers online. It's always a good idea to try to stray away from too obvious a faith, because you never know.

ADPiTigergurl, I was Chaplain in my chapter one year. We used a lot of inspirational verses or poetry at the time. Now, you can just google it - then, we had various books of approved verse. :rolleyes:

We had one really horrible month, with sickness & midterms, and a lot of sisters barely speaking to each other. I read Jabberwocky. Everyone was stunned for a moment, then started to laugh. As one sister said, "You just kept reading it so straight, even though everyone was laughing hysterically!" I finished by thanking the Lord for the gift of laughter, for the good and the bad times of sisterhood, and that if it took Jabberwocky to start it, well, thanks for Lewis Carroll or something like that. The rest of the term, you'd hear someone say, "Hey - watch that vorpal sword!" or "brillig this!" and it was great that one silly poem would bring so much laughter back into the sisterhood.

PM me if you have any questions. I'll sharpen the vorpal sword. ;)

Think of prayer as a time of deep reflection, meditation, and spirituality that people of all faiths share. I have Christians and Jews in my family and we pray together all the time when we're around each other. "A family that prays together stays together." :) We do such things as referencing God but not Christ so prayer can be an inclusive venture. "Thank you for this gathering...we pray for strength (to what or whom they pray is their business)..etc.." When you create a prayer, read it to see if someone could guess what "religion" you subscribe to just based on the prayer. If they could, revise your prayer to be less "religion" and more "spiritual."

rant/
This is not an issue in every collegiate and graduate chapter because some chapter members are so close that they do know someone's professed faith, including chapters that attend religious services together. That can also have to do with the majority religious demographic in an area. However, when the religious and faith demographic of the chapter knowingly changes, they should make the necessary adjustments without making anyone feel left out. For the record, part of this involves steering away from statements like "XYZ is an organization based on (insert religion) principles" unless there is hard evidence to that fact. /rant

With my chapter, when it came to the more "creative" part of the Chaplain's job where she could read what she liked, it was usually a very general, inspirational quote. Sometimes they were funny, sometimes they were serious, but they always appealed to the chapter as a whole.

Some of my favorites that I'll never forget:

"Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I'll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man with no goals and I'll give you a stock clerk."
- J.C. Penney

"I don't believe the accident of birth makes people sisters or brothers. It makes them siblings. Gives them mutuality of parentage. Sisterhood and brotherhood is a condition people have to work at."
- Maya Angelo

You could also say a quote that was made by a prominent sister, or a sister who has had a great influence on the sorority in the past (such as one of the founders). A few times, our Chaplains have recited quotes made by national staff members at conventions or leadership workshops.

There are many different things you can do with this. Try and ask the sisters what they would like to hear. This will give you a better idea as to which direction you should be headed in when trying to come up with something to say.

I'm not sure how this office functions in ADPi, but I held an office in Kappa that included a similar job. In addition to inspirational quotes, sometimes I read part of our ritual or a quote specifically about Kappa. The Kappa-specific quotes were usually from famous Kappas, I guess.

We sometimes used Chicken Soup for the Soul.

I never used a bible verse the entire time I was Chaplain. No, the job is not to pick out christian things.

The first thought I had was to wonder whether ADPi has any resources for chaplains.
Just FYI, the Torah is the first 5 books of the Christian Old Testament. The Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh or Mikra) consists of the Law (Torah), the Prophets (Nevi'im) and the Writings (Ketuvim). It basically consists of the 39 books of the Protestant, or shared Christian, Old Testament, altough the books are ordered, grouped and numbered differently, so that what is 39 books in the Protestant Old Testament = 21 books in the Tanakh.

And yes, I referred to the Protestant Old Testament. For historical reasons, Catholic and Orthodox Old Testaments have books and material that is not in the Protestant Old Testament. The original Christian Bibles used the Greek version of the Jewish Bible (the Septuagint) as a source, not the Hebrew version. The Septuagint included books and passages that the Hebrew version did not. At the Reformation, Protestants rejected all portions of the Old Testament not found in the Hebrew version, leaving the 39 books recognized by all Christian churches. The Septuagint "extras" are sometimes published separately in Protestant Bibles as the Apocrypha.

More than you wanted to know, I'm sure, but potentially helpful info I hope if you're trying to be sensitive to different traditions represented in your chapter.

Thus endeth the lesson for today. :D

It's also not an issue for some groups because some groups do not have a chaplain position and do not incorporate anything like devotions into their meetings or activities. ;)

Hee hee hee...glad you said it! I remember the first time I saw a "Catholic" bible. I was like, "What book is this?!"

Ok guys thanks so much and mystic cat thanks for the history lesson...

I realize that is not the whole job...but it is part of it as described in the description of chaplain:)

Actually I suggest you re-read your job description in the COB. The position of Chaplain is defined as "encouraging spiritual growth of members". Spiritual growth is not limited to only Christian beliefs.

Not to mention the "lost" books of Thomas, Mary Magdalene etc.

See if you can get a good basic poetry anthology (this is one I like a lot) and just look through it and see what you can find. Not only can you find things that are inspirational, it can make you think. It's always fun to read a quote and have everyone think it's from the Bible, and it turns out to be Robert Frost instead. :)

I would look into this, as well. I know that our Chaplains have a book from which they can read if they don't wish to find something on their own. See if ADPi has a resource that can be distributed to all of the chapters for the Chaplain. Sometimes, over the years, things get lost in the mix. Perhaps there is a resource available to you through HQ, but your chapter hasn't ordered it, not knowing that there was even something like that out there.

Our chaplain even occasionally used Jack Handy quotes.

There's a lot of inspirational things out there that aren't religion based.

This comment kind of struck a nerve with me. It sounds like you ARE that diverse- you have Christians, you have Jews, and agnostics and/or athiests. Don't get stuck on pulling from only one or two of those buckets. I am very grateful that my chapter did not include religion in our meetings or ritual because it would have made me quite uncomfortable if it was like that all the time. I respect people of other religions, but unless we are part of a church group or religious org please don't expect me to believe what you do.

I really like some of the comments people have made about using inspirational poems, quotes, or stories. Inspiration doesn't have to be about religion, although it can. If I were a part of your chapter (falling into the third bucket you list), I would be very happy to hear a rotation of sources. Sure, throw in biblical references here and there- a good number of your chapter identifies with it, and if you translate it for me (as someone else mentioned) to show how it's relevant to the chapter then I'm good with it. Just make sure you supplement with others so you reach everyone and focus on the real goal you're there- fostering a fantastic sisterhood.

I hope that wasn't too rantish, and if it was I appologize. I just want you to hear the perspective of someone who falls in your third bucket, someone who may not necessarily speak up at meetings but would appreciate being considered as well.

I think people's issue is likely the fact that the religious quotes are solely from the Bible. If you mixed in quotes from Buddhist sutras, the Torah, the Hindu Vedas, etc. I doubt anybody would have a problem with the Christian verses. There would be a wide enough mix that it would be clear sisters were not expected to subscribe to a specific religion (or any at all!). And if you are morally opposed to the inclusion of inspirational quotes from other faiths...well, that is likely how the Jewish and atheist/agnostic sisters feel about the Christian verses!

I do think that religious quotes (as well as to whoever suggested Jack Handy!) are miles above the standard, overused and often saccharine sorority quotes as long as they are from various different religions. And mix it up too...Oscar Wilde, Bob Dylan, Maya Angelou, Disney quotes...whatever works!

[And if this makes any difference, I am a Christian and I still think all religions should be included unless you are a Christian sorority.]

Ok guys sorry but I think there may have been a little confusion the quotes I have used actually have not been Biblical at all. I've used three all about sisterhood: I've used 2 sets of Bible verses (yes Ive only held this position for 5 weeks). SO actually there have been more "non Christian" quotes, I promise they all dealt with sisterhood...and were in no way scripture based off of any holy book. When I said inspirational i simply meant not the casual ones like "from the inside looking out you cant explain it, from the outside looking in you can't understand."

Here are the quotes I have used:

They're the people you can share your secrets with, cry with, laugh with, and just be yourself with. They don't judge you or make you change. They accept you exactly as you are. They look at you and they see a great person, one they love spending time with. You all share something in common and are tied together by memories, tears, laughs & smiles. You're tied together by love for the other. Sisterhood is the greatest thing in the world. I find my time with my sisters the best times of my life. My sisters are my heart, my soul, my fun, my laughter, my tears, my love and my life" ~ Unknown

"They are the family we choose to surround us, the sisters bound by love instead of blood. They know when we are lonely, and appear without being called. When we feel lost, they provide a living map to what comes next; when we doubt everything about ourselves, they remind us who we are." ~ Barbara Alpert

Sisterhood is the essence of all the wisdom of the ages, distilled into a single word. You cannot see sisterhood, neither can you hear it nor taste it. But you can feel it a hundred times a day. It is a pat on the back, a smile of encouragement. It's someone to share with, to celebrate your achievements." ~ Anonymous

Have you thought about buying a book that leads the reader through a specified growth process, then taking something from each topic to your weekly meetings?

For instance, there's a book called One Day My Soul Just Opened Up: 40 Days and 40 Nights Toward Spiritual Strength and Personal Growth. That book would give you 40 different "lessons" to pull from. (I'm not necessarily suggesting this book in particular. I enjoyed it personally, but it's definitely geared toward individual growth. Still, you'd likely be able to apply some of the lessons to the sisterhood.)

My chapter's chaplain relied heavily on scripture, but that was years ago and that approach probably wouldn't fly too well these days. It's hard for me to think of a non-religious chaplain lesson: This was the best I could do!

If half of what you've used has been non-Biblical, then I think your advisors are being a little hypersensitive. I mean, Jews may not believe Jesus was the Messiah, but that doesn't mean they don't think he was a basically good dude. :)

If you read something particularly inspirational, you can even stop at the end and say, "Let's think about this for a minute." It give those who pray a chance to pray and everyone a chance to think.

I loosely identify myself as a Quaker and I have found wonderful quotes over the years which are nondenominational and introspective.

Ad: "Learn Biblical Hebrew ONLINE"

Ha, mine too :p

"Jesus was a good man, but he was not the son of God."
"'Jews for Jesus' are not real Jews."

Those are my favorite "Jewish family quotes." :)

The interestin thing I learned by coming to GC today. :D

I'm a very bad one. You know, being confrontational and all. :o But I am digging the whole silent prayer and social justice thing! (And I do subscribe to the magazine!)

I guess that makes many of us Quakers. :D

I don't subscribe to the magazine. It's bad enough when the Jehovah's Witness magazine is forced on me.