The process for undertaking the Emergency Services Chaplaincy (SA)

The calling of the Emergency Services Chaplaincy (SA) – ESC(SA) is as set out in our Vision and Mission Statement on the “About Us” Page.

1. The Prerequisites

To be an ESC (SA) Chaplain requires exceptional dedication and commitment to God and to this vision and mission that brings the redeeming love of Jesus Christ to others.

Through the years many individuals have come to the Chaplaincy only to fail, fall by the wayside or suffer from burnout. In many cases, these Chaplains lasted only a few months and, in some cases, left themselves and others emotionally or socially injured.

In order to protect the potential Chaplains and those that we serve the ESC (SA) is therefore careful that we only accept candidates that feel called by God to be part of this specific organization and therefore require the following from a potential candidate:

A belief that the Bible is the very Word of God.

A sound Christian Faith as defined in the Bible.

A clear understanding of the Atoning Work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

A clear and specific salvation Testimony.

A discernible Calling to the Work and Vision of the ESC (SA).

A heart for standing by your fellow man/woman in a time of crisis irrespective of race culture or belief system.

Some tangible experience in Church Leadership.

A submissive heart.

A resilient personality that can remain composed in adverse situations, withstand criticism and opposition without reacting aggressively. (Turn the other Cheek)

A non-judgemental attitude.

The ability to work in harmony with those that we disagree with.

Not be Status, Rank, Position or Self-importance seeking but to work with a submissive attitude for the Glory of the Lord.

2. The Chaplaincy expects the following from its Chaplains

To be a God’s Kingdom builder and developer at heart, growing the Chaplaincy Ministry in a positive and fully committed way.

To always reveal a positive attitude especially to those outside the Chaplaincy.

To be linked to one or more specific Stations and to visit these stations on a regular roster.

To support the Staff at these stations with the love of Christ and God's Word when required.

To be available to support the staff at incident scenes as may be required.

To support the management structure and take part in all the required meetings.

To fully support the Chaplaincy way of working and the Chaplaincy Policies and other relevant documentation.

To fully support and comply with the ESC(SA) Code of Conduct.

3. Why do you want to become an ESC(SA) Chaplain?

To be an ESC (SA) Chaplain requires exceptional dedication and commitment to God and to this vision and mission that brings the redeeming love of Jesus Christ to others.

Through the years many individuals have come to the Chaplaincy only to fail, fall by the wayside or suffer from burnout. In many cases these Chaplains lasted only a few months and, in some cases, left themselves and others emotionally or socially harmed.

Furthermore, the Chaplaincy is a Calling from God, that well depicted in Luke 10: 25- 37 and Matt 28: 18-20. It is vital that you are sure that you have a clear Calling from the Lord to do the work of an ESC (SA) Chaplain.

Over the years many dear Children of God have mistakenly joined the Chaplaincy for the wrong reasons which automatically causes conflict, and in the end, they left unfulfilled and even disappointed and bitter.

4. Some of the wrong reasons for joining the Chaplaincy could be:

The Uniform – This seems to give us the feeling of status and self-importance.

Rank - The Chaplaincy does not function on a rank system at all.

To be healed from a traumatic experience, (the truth is that doing Chaplaincy work would most probably engrain the experience through layered trauma).

The excitement and adrenaline rush of being on accident scenes.

Just wanting to feel important or find social satisfaction for yourself.

Wanting status within your church or to start your own church.

To serve the Lord in General. The Chaplaincy service is a specialised Ministry and you need to be sure that this is what you are called to do.

List Item:

There are many other reasons that could be added to this list, but it is important that we critically examine our own motives for wanting to join the Chaplaincy. Put differently we are all called to serve the Lord and His Children, but we may not necessarily be called to be an ESC (SA) Chaplain!

The Emergency Services Chaplaincy (SA) Training Information

The Emergency Services Chaplaincy Training process is as follows:

1. The potential Candidate needs to apply through the ESC(SA) Application Form.  (This is found in the Apply & Training Page)

2. Read through the information given here to see if you meet these requirements. 

3. If you are sure that you do, then click on the Apply button at the end.

4. This detailed document is necessary as you will be interviewed by the Head of Training or one of the training team, to ascertain your suitability of the Chaplain Ministry.

5. During the interview, you may   ask all questions that you may have, and the team will provide you with the required information. 

6. After the Interview, you will be advised if you have been accepted onto the course. You will be provided will all the information required in terms of how and when the next training takes place. 

7. Should you desire to proceed you will then be required to register for the course and pay the required fund. 

8. The course is in two Phases, Phase 1 (induction course) consist of 6 lectures once a week and Phase 2, consist of 24 Lectures, provided as two lectures a week for 12 weeks.

9. The 2024 prices for the course is: R3,000.00