Correctional Chaplains: Keepers of the Cloak

Dr. Beckner briefly reviews the history of correctional chaplaincy and its development within the American criminal justice system and summarizes several significant studies of the profession. He examines the critical premises on which chaplaincy rests and presents a unique structural model of chaplaincy consisting of four critical dimensions: personal, pastoral, administrative, and community. Beckner then shows how this paradigm serves as a template for the development of a chaplaincy plan that will meet the needs of a specific institutional setting and can be monitored for effective results.