CHAPTER 3

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Religious education is as central to religion as is worship. It is important for chaplains to realize and value the fact that they are doing religious education all the time. Thus, a major _{task .. .is to heighten.} .. the awareness of the centrality and pervasiveness of religious education in overall ministry, and to provide the vision and strategies whereby chaplains can provide effective religious education opportunities for sea service personnel.

Rear Admiral Alvin B. Koeneman, Chief of Chaplains, February 1990

As indicated in the quotation, religious education is always a work-together endeavor. In fact, the information in this chapter can only be effective when the quality of interaction and ability to work together are recognized as important goals among the chaplains, Religious Program Specialist (RPs), religious education teachers, volunteers, and lay readers.

The purpose of this chapter is to prepare you, the RP, to be able to help in the promotion of religious education to sea service personnel and to other members of the Department of the Navy (DON). An essential task of any CRP is to provide and encourage religious education opportunities and participation. Before the education process can begin, however, the facilities _{must be prepared.} Preparing the facilities includes setting the environment, providing the necessary audiovisual/media equipment, providing for proper distribution of the curriculum, and setting up the classrooms.

As an RP, you must be aware of religious education within the arena of your Command Religious Program (CRP). For example, you should be able to detect the current growth or decline within your commands religious education population. You should also be able to provide some of the skills necessary to plan, develop, and carry out an effective religious education program. After reading the information in this chapter, you should be able to identify the scope of your CRP's religious education program, determine its needs, and provide some important skills toward its goals.

INCLUSIVENESS

To understand religious education, you must first understand the role of the chaplain. You must also understand the definition of inclusiveness and the role this important characteristic plays in the success of your CRF. In fact, inclusiveness is the key principle in any CRP. One of the most important responsibilities of all chaplains is to support this principle as they plan, program, and implement religious education for sea service personnel.

A basic definition and purpose of the characteristic of inclusiveness is expressed in the Department of Defense (DOD) Directive 1304.19, Accession of Chaplains for the Military Services, in the following statement:

"Persons appointed as chaplains shall be able to provide a ministry for their own specific faith groups, as well as to facilitate ministries appropriate to the rights and needs of other faith groups."

Following the principle of inclusiveness, the CRP must serve the entire command unit, their families, and other authorized persons. There are no exceptions to this policy. As a way to develop and nurture life unto a God in others, providing and facilitating religious education is an essential function of all sea service chaplains and their CRPs. In fact, to provide and facilitate expresses a foremost principle in all religious ministries in the sea service. Chaplains provide for members of their own faith groups by guiding formal and informal religious education activities based on their own specific faith traditions. Chaplains facilitate for members of other faith groups by guaranteeing that personnel have suitable circumstances to engage in religious education activities within each person's own distinctive faith tradition. Chaplains also care for all by making sure shared religious education activities respect the needs of all personnel. To serve the needs of all authorized persons, chaplains and their CRPs must meet the religious education needs of the nonchurch-connected individuals as well those who are church connected.

Figure 3-1.-Diagramming a task.

Now that you have read about the various roles involved in providing religious education, let's take a closer look at the role you will play in this important area. In the following paragraphs, we will look at some of the tasks for which you, the RP, will be responsible and the skills you can gain as you turn religious education opportunities into positive situations that will affect many people.

ROLE OF THE RP IN RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

The area of religious education offers many opportunities for you, the RP, to develop important professional skills, In carrying out your responsibilities in developing and implementing your CRP's religious education program, for example, you will have many opportunities to develop and enhance your own skills in the following areas:

. Diagraming program support requirements Training religious education volunteers in the use of audiovisual/media aids

Coordinating logistics support

Coordinating religious education program enrollment

Rigging and unrigging religious education programs

Compiling and reporting religious education statistics

In the following paragraphs, let's take a look at some of the professional skills you will gain as you carry out these important responsibilities.

DIAGRAMMING PROGRAM SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS

As an RP, whether you work in the area of religious education, worship, religious program support, library, or administration, you will be responsible for

diagraming program support requirements. As your Navy tasks become more and more complex, the jobs or skills associated with your day-to-day operations, maintenance, and even repairs will tend to increase in complexity. As a result, the task of diagraming the program support requirements of these skills and jobs will become more exacting, and you will likely discover thorough and conscientious preparation to be an absolute need.

Diagraming program support for religious education means simply reading and following a diagram. For each particular task you should be provided with an outline or diagram. It should contain both a step-by-step method for performance and some factual information closely associated with the task. Figure 3-1 shows an outline you can use to diagram a task. To diagram a task, simply fill in the outline.