Identity as a Police Chaplain and Being a Minister of Presence Rev Melissa Baker NSW Police Chaplain, Australia

Identity Who am I? When I look into a mirror, who do I see? How do I shape and (re)construct my identity? How is my identity shaped by what I do? Has my identity ever changed? Does a police chaplain’s reflection of self include others?

What is Identity? Our identity is understood through the social, self-understanding and self-actualisation and the social structures we are part of It is made up of our personal identity (unique characteristics, quirks, talents, preferences) heavily influenced by our cultural identity (ancestry, heritage, family, language, religion, traditions), which shapes our social identity (groups we belong to – age, gender, neighbourhood, church).

What is Identity? Often people who are born into white Anglo-Saxon cultures do not consciously think about being white and the profound effect it has on their day-to-day lives. This means that we may not have explored the meaning of our cultural membership and the consequences this could cause on identity.

What is Identity? The ‘Who am I’ question is best answered as a teenager. As you move through teenage years and examine links between your personal identity, social identity and cultural identity, then you will have more hope in answering this question and grow up to be a confident young adult. If you, like me, grew up too quickly, never had a place or time to fully understand who you were, then as an adult you may have times where you have an identity crisis…or many!

How would you reconstruct yourself? Minister Professional Leader Chaplain Counsellor Learner Pastoral Carer Teacher

The NSW Police Chaplain Identity Anglican Catholic Protestant Chaplain 92% 88% 93% Counsellor 33% 38% Leader 58% 75% 20% Learner 50% 13% 27% Minister 83% Pastoral Carer 47% Professional Teacher 42% 25%

The NSW Police Chaplain Identity 30s 40s 50s 60s 70s Chaplain 100% 86% 87% 50% Counsellor 0% 43% 53% 29% Leader 67% 71% 21% Learner 33% 40% Minister Pastoral Carer 47% 57% Professional 14% Teacher

Identity shaping Shaping comes from being challenged in one’s role as leader, priest, human and child of God, which is through our cultural differences. Shaping comes with discomfort, sometimes stemming from our background. E.g., chaplains feel uncomfortable with titles. Shaping comes from learning about oneself and one’s role in the community.

Identity shaping Shaping comes from the building of a social structure in relationships with other people and through one’s experiences. Shaping comes from difference, particularly in putting on a well respected police uniform (or ministerial dress) in a well respected rôle as police chaplain. Shaping comes when one is more able to be adaptable to change and to see the need to always improve one’s self.

Identity shaping Identity and learning both reconstruct and reshape each other. It is a two-way process. Learning reconstructs and reshapes the individual identity and identity reconstructs and reshapes the learning process. Our identity guides our choices in life, what we learn, our attitude, our connectedness or belonging, and our motivation.

Reflection Do you change your identity to fit socially? If you are wondering whether Christians, and particularly Christian ministers, would surely not change their identities in order to fit, then you are mistaken. When I was observing police chaplains on the field, …a chaplain talked up women (he did not do this in his parish)… It got me wondering: why does he change his behaviour for this particular community? Perhaps he wants to feel accepted by them and he doesn’t know any other way of doing so. He is not alone. Other police chaplains do this through using similar foul language to the police, or with ‘drinking’ to the same level as they do down at the pub. And yet others have been forced to change their identity because they did not fit the ‘culture’ or ‘social structure’. Like a Catholic priest in NSW who had long hair and was forced to cut it short before starting. This changed his identity on who he felt he was and his identity as seen by the community around him and his church. The end of Identity

Being a Minister of Presence What does it mean to be a minister of presence amongst the police? Talk to the person next to you…

A minister of presence In one of my interviews with the police chaplains from NSW, an interesting point came up about being a police chaplain: “Are you more of a ‘mate’ to the police than a ‘resource’.” This is what the chaplain said…

How do you perceive you come across to the police and staff in your LAC? I come across warmly, but there’s always an element of weird, always a bit of apprehension between me and the coppers. It’s almost as if they are wondering what I’m going to say. Even now? [after 10 years of being a police chaplain] I think so. Maybe it is more my own perception of them, rather than them of me. But I get that feeling. I don’t come across to them as their mate. I see myself as a resource to the police and I’m happy with that. As the opportunity arises, I’ll socialise with them, but there’s a cut-off point where they know that I won’t go any further. They know I won’t go and drink myself stupid with them. I’ll generally leave the social functions earlier rather than later. That sort of thing. I think I’m basically welcomed and warm towards them, but there’s an element of not being one of them, which is something I weigh up and ask whether that is a good thing or not.

Should I be like them? Neutrality is important for ongoing confidentiality. We are not only presenting ourselves. We are representing all other police chaplains. If I act in a certain way that affects an officer, good or bad, then that will affect the way they view chaplains in the future. This is why our behaviour, our attitude, our language (verbal and body), our reactions, our care – everything we do and say – are important.

We are not acting as one person alone, we are acting as a: Community of police chaplains; Minister of Jesus Christ; Servant and disciple; Christian witness; Independent body from the police service.

Being a minister of presence, I believe this means that we: Act according to the Bible; Exhibit care and compassion; Use an encouraging tongue to all; Make ourselves available; Exude a presence that is above reproach; Reflect upon our practice regularly in order to learn and do better; Make no compromises to the Gospel; Act as a minister, not a police officer.

Reflection and Discussion In groups of 4 Reflection and Discussion What are the challenges that police chaplains face? What challenges exist for us that may prevent us being a minister of presence? How do we deal with these challenges in order that we can be more effective?

To contact Melissa: yourchaplain@chilli.net.au