The history, role and influence of the South African military chaplaincy, 1914-2002

Abstract

The work of the South African chaplains during the First World War was of an extremely high standard. The postwar military failed to recognise this contribution. In the 1920s and early 1930s the chaplaincy was allocated an inferior position within the military. It was only in 1938 that the first chaplains were appointed in the Permanent Force. During the Second World War the unwillingness of the UDF hierarchy to appoint a single chaplain as the head of a Chaplains' Branch influenced the ministry negatively. Inter-denominational issues were resolved on a basis of consensus amongst Principal Chaplains who were granted very little executive power. The establishment of the SA Corps of Chaplains in 1946 confirmed the permanency of the chaplaincy within the UDF. The appointment of the first Deputy Chaplain General in 1949 did much to ensure effective ministry. The discontinuation of this post in 1954 had a detrimental effect on the chaplaincy. With the establishment of the Department of Physical and Spiritual Welfare in 1966 no clear cut division was made between the responsibility for spiritual (pastoral) care and physical care (social welfare). This anomaly was rectified in 1968 when an independent directorate for the chaplaincy was created and in 1970 when a Chaplain General was appointed. The chaplaincy in South West Africa grew from a single chaplain at Walvis Bay in 1963 to an immense organisation with hundreds of chaplains. In 1980 the SWATF Chaplain Service was formed under command of its own director. The presence of SADF/SWATF chaplains in South West Africa ceased in 1989 with the implementation of UN Resolution 435. The 1990s was a decade of great transition and turmoil for the Chaplain Service. In 1994 the military chaplaincies of the TBVC countries, as well as members from MK and APLA, were integrated into the Chaplain Service. The implementation of the transformation policy of the Department of Defence resulted in the Chaplain Service becoming more representative of the communities it serves.