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<\/source><\/picture>A presidential candidate and pastor is defending the idea of putting chaplains in schools after a group of theologically progressive Christian chaplains and clergy of other religions wrote a letter urging Texas public school districts not to put volunteer or paid chaplains in their schools as a new Texas law allows them to do so.<\/p>\n
Ryan Binkley, a North Texas-based pastor running for president of the United States as a Republican, spoke out in favor of Senate Bill 763 <\/a>in an interview with The Christian Post. \u201cI think the intent behind it is good and that\u2019s really just to try and provide … better counseling support for our younger generation, and I think that\u2019s needed,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Binkley\u2019s support for the bill comes after more than 100 chaplains, primarily affiliated with hospice programs, hospitals, universities, prisons or the military, urged all Texas school board members to vote against the creation of a \u201cpaid or volunteer chaplain program to \u2018provide support, services, and programs for students\u2019\u201d in an Aug. 22 letter.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n The signatories urged school boards to \u201creject this flawed policy option,\u201d expressing concern that \u201cSB 763 allows a school district to give any employee or volunteer who can pass a background check the title of \u2018chaplain.\u2019\u201d According to the chaplains, \u201cThis is simply not enough. Professional chaplains have specific education and expertise to fulfill our role in helping others engage their own religious practices and traditions.\u201d<\/p>\n While Binkley suggested that school districts should have the authority to \u201cset some rules in place\u201d regarding the eligibility of prospective chaplains, he pushed back on the argument that \u201cextensive training\u201d was necessary for chaplains to positively impact the lives of young people: \u201cSometimes you have a lot of kids that are facing a lot of difficult issues, they\u2019re facing emotional issues, facing depressive issues, going through trials, and I don\u2019t know that you have to be … an expert in every single area just to be a friend.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The chaplains who oppose Senate Bill 763 warned that \u201cThere is no requirement in this law that the chaplains refrain from proselytizing while at schools or that they serve students from different religious backgrounds.\u201d They contended that establishing a chaplain program in public schools would constitute \u201cthe government assertion of authority for the spiritual development and formation of our public school children.\u201d<\/p>\n They added, \u201cWe would never provide spiritual care to someone without their consent. And when children are involved, parental consent is necessary. Not only are chaplains serving in public schools likely to bring about conflict with the religious beliefs of parents, but chaplains serving in public schools would also amount to spiritual malpractice by the chaplains.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Binkley told CP that school districts should have \u201csome guidelines\u201d to address these concerns, suggesting that such stipulations could be: \u201cWe don\u2019t want you to offer certain counseling [from] a certain perspective. We\u2019d ask that you not invite them to come to your particular church to try and … persuade them to change religions or faiths.\u201d<\/p>\n While favoring measures seeking to \u201cprotect kids from … anybody that may be trying to abuse the authority in any way,\u201d he stressed that \u201can overreach of trying to avoid the possibility of anybody doing something wrong is unnecessary.\u201d<\/p>\n The signatories behind the letter to Texas school boards contend that the presence of so-called \u201cgovernment-sanctioned chaplains\u201d in public schools is unnecessary in light of the absence of \u201cbarriers to religious exercise\u201d frequently experienced in other settings such as the military and prison. Additionally, they insist that they lack the qualifications for \u201cthe duties envisioned by SB 763,\u201d specifically referring to special training for mental health professionals.\u00a0<\/p>\n From Binkley\u2019s perspective, Senate Bill 763 seeks to provide children with additional options, not replace trained mental health professionals: \u201cA large majority of people are Christians in Texas and if they would like to have a chaplain there, I think they should be available. If somebody would prefer that … their child not receive counseling from a chaplain, I think they should also be able to request that. I\u2019m sure there are other counselors out there that are more neutral from a faith perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n Binkley noted that \u201cmany kids are walking through difficult moments and if having more chaplains and counselors available can help, I think that should be beneficial. And then, in the more severe cases where somebody needs a higher level of professional help, they should be able to refer those [students] to\u201d licensed mental health professionals.\u00a0<\/p>\n After condemning the use of \u201cthe school safety allotment to pay for chaplains\u201d as \u201cwholly inappropriate,\u201d the signatories concluded the letter by writing, \u201cWe urge you to support religious freedom and parental rights by rejecting this harmful program to have government-approved chaplains in our public schools.\u201d They also asserted that \u201ca strong public school system is one in which the limited funding for safety and security of students is used to hire the most skilled professionals for those roles.\u201d<\/p>\n The chaplains declared \u201cWe believe that families, not the government, are entrusted with their children\u2019s spiritual development.\u201d<\/p>\n Texas\u2019 Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 763 into law earlier this year after the Republican-controlled Texas Senate<\/a> approved it in a 19-12 vote and the Texas House of Representatives<\/a> passed the legislation in an 84-60 vote. The Senate vote came down along party lines, with Republicans supporting the measure and Democrats opposing it, while three Democrats in the House joined Republicans in voting for the bill.\u00a0<\/p>\n The measure, which took effect Sept. 1, declares that \u201ca school district or open-enrollment charter school may employ or accept as a volunteer a chaplain to provide support, services, and programs for students as assigned by the board of trustees of the district or the governing body of the school.\u201d It stresses that such chaplains are \u201cnot required to be certified by the State Board for Educator Certification.\u201d School boards have until March 1, 2024, to vote on whether or not to establish a chaplain program in their districts.\u00a0<\/p>\n The law also amends existing statutes governing the use of state funds allocated to \u201cimprove school safety and security.\u201d The revised language of the relevant statutes puts chaplains in the same category as \u201clicensed counselors, social workers\u201d and \u201cindividuals trained in restorative discipline and restorative justice practices.\u201d It amends state law authorizing the use of funds to pay for \u201cmental health personnel and support\u201d as well as \u201cbehavioral health services\u201d and \u201csuicide prevention, intervention, and postvention.\u201d<\/p>\n The co-authors of the Aug. 22 letter took issue with the provisions of the law, likening chaplains to mental health professionals: \u201cWe cooperate with mental health counselors \u2014 we do not compete with them. Further, professions which help children with sensitive matters, such as therapists and police investigators, typically require special training on how to interview and treat juveniles. Few chaplains have this expertise.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n In contrast to the progressive chaplains who oppose Senate Bill 763, Binkley and others see the measure as a force for good. Gordon Robertson, host of \u201cThe 700 Club\u201d on CBN, praised it as an effective way to address the shortage of school counselors and the mental health crisis facing American youth on an episode<\/a> of his program that aired shortly after the Texas Legislature approved the bill.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOur children today need it,\u201d Robertson said. He expressed concern about \u201cthe rate of mental illness that is happening in our high schools, our junior high schools and even in our grade schools,\u201d which he suggested may arise from \u201cthe pandemic or the current political divide in America.\u201d<\/p>\n Robertson recalled a conversation he recently had with college students, where he asked if any of them had hope for the future: \u201cI was expecting a couple of hands to get raised. I certainly wasn\u2019t expecting no one to raise their hand.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a hopelessness that has hit this generation. They need help. They need to know, yes, there is a hope, there is a future for them.\u201d<\/p>\n Robertson described chaplains as \u201cideal for getting that message across.\u201d He shared statistics finding that, on average, Texas public schools have just one school counselor for every 392 students.<\/p>\n Praising Robertson\u2019s analysis as \u201ca great argument,\u201d Binkley explained that \u201cwe have so many kids and so few mentors and people in their life that can help them navigate through some difficult moments relationally, emotionally, spiritually, mentally even.\u201d<\/p>\n Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n