Chaplaincy Assistant
Our current Chaplaincy Assistant is Emily Webb. She has the unenviable task of keeping the chaplains in order.
She is also responsible for a lot of the administrative work that gets done, as well as being the person you’re most likely to speak to if you ring the Chapel office. Her PAX number is 3393, which is also the main Chapel phone number. To call from outside, dial (01782)583393.
Emily started the post in September ‘07.
The Chaplaincy Team
Here at Keele we have a chaplaincy team comprising (optimally) of Anglican, Catholic, Free Church Chaplains,and the Chaplaincy Assistant. At the moment we also have a visiting Orthodox Chaplain.
So, let’s meet the team.
The chaplains
Click on the images of the chaplains for more information (where available)
Anglican
Charles Clapham |
Free Church
Ruth Maxey |
Roman Catholic
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Roman Catholic
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What is a Chaplain?
Are you a sort of University vicar then?
Not really, being a Chaplain is different from being a vicar.
In what way?
For a start Chaplains work mainly with non-church-goers. All ministry is conditioned by where it takes place. A parish priest or minister works largely with people in a parish or church setting. A Chaplain works with Christians and non-Christians in a secular framework.
So what do you do?
We try to help people see how God is present and at work in their situations. Chaplains try to help people of all faiths, and none, to develop their spiritual and moral values.
Are you part of the academic staff?
No - we try to speak intelligently about our faith, but we don’t compete with academics in cleverness. Chaplains need to learn how the university functions in order to work effectively within it. Keele doesn’t have a theology department, so Chaplains try to help people discuss what they do and don’t believe through formal lectures and study days, as well as in informal groups.
Do you do much counseling?
It is part of our job, but by no means the whole of it. Chaplains are part of the student welfare provision of the university. We are not qualified counsellors, but we are always available for people who want to talk in confidence, whether or not they go to Chapel.
Do many people come to you?
Sometimes, but we try to meet them where they are - in bars, offices, halls of residence, and union buildings. Chaplains have to learn their way around Keele, crossing the boundaries between staff and students, and between different departments.
What about other faiths?
The Chapel has links with other faiths (e.g. Judaism & Islam) and we are happy to help you to find out more about these. It is important to know that the Chaplains, and the Chapel building, aren’t just there for the Christians.
What good is all this to the Church?
Chaplaincy is one of the ways in which the Church serves God in the world of work. Chaplains symbolise the Church’s concern for higher education and all who work in it. They also symbolise the university’s recognition that people’s pastoral and spiritual needs are as important as their physical and intellectual ones, if they are going to get the most out of university.