Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in Bulgaria Renewed

Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in Bulgaria Renewed (2010-2023)

We are proud to announce that the Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program, we designed and launched in Bulgaria in 2006, has been selected to be part of the Social Service Program of New Bulgarian University. After being for years a valuable part of the regular curriculum of the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute and the St. Trivelius Institute in the capital Sofia, the chaplaincy program has received the highest level of recognition as successful graduates will be finally able to receive government recognized degrees and apply their knowledge and training in chaplaincy on a professional level. The chaplaincy program can also serve within the Integration Proposal of local NATO programs and be instrumental in dealing with the enormous wave of Middle East migrants crossing through Bulgaria today.

Although the Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association emerges from and ministers within the Bulgarian cultural context, it is designed for integral cooperation with organizations of various origins. This advantage comes from the experience of previous working relationships that the organizations represented within the Association have had with other non-Bulgarian organizations. The vision, structure and operation of the Association incorporate and comply with western styles of chaplaincy work on three levels (1) cultural, (2) educational and (3) governmental.

The cultural heritage of the Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association represents a valuable environment for integration of NATO forces within the local cultural setting. On a cultural level, various events and activities such as English speaking church services, fellowship of soldiers with local communities, hospitals, orphanages and other cultural experiences are available. Humanitarian aid projects are among the most efficient manner for integration within the local community.

On an educational level, there are possibilities on both sides. For example, Bulgarian language courses for the soldiers and English language courses for the local community could be implemented. The most important element within the education strategy perhaps may be education of chaplaincy workers, especially in the current context when Bulgaria is in a need of trained crisis counselors for cases of floods and other natural disasters. Finally, local and national government relations will assist in the change of the status of chaplaincy within the Bulgarian Army. Such an approach will have positive political implications, as chaplaincy becomes a mediator between the army, church and government.

The presented proposal integrates religious moral issues along with socio-political principles in the idea for chaplaincy within the Bulgarian Army. The implications of these principles project involvement of local NATO units in partnership with local Bulgarian organizations. In the case of chaplaincy within the Bulgarian Army, the proposed organization is the newly established Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association. Although political, social and economical issues remain in the scope of its work, the Association’s main priority is the renewal of spirituality within the army structure through cutting-edge chaplaincy ministry beyond the ecclesial gates into a world of war and insecurity. The Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association acts as an agent of spiritual restoration targeting morality within the Bulgarian Army with the Bulgarian chaplain as the key element in this process. For an army without spirituality is no army at all.

Chronology of Events:

2018 The Road toward a Balkan Multi-Ministry Center and Legal Status

2017 Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Legal Case Renewed

2015 Revisting the Integration Proposal with Local NATO Programs by Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association

2014 Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Vision and Resolution Reaffirmed

2012 First Class of the Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program

2011 Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program Continues

2010 Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program begins in Sofia, Bulgaria

2009 Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association holds an introductory chaplaincy course in Yambol, Bulgaria

2008 The Case of a NATO Chaplaincy Model within the Bulgarian Army released

2007 Bulgarian Chaplaincy Associations Recognized by U.S. Department of State

2006 Registration for the Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Rejected by Bulgarian Court

2005 The Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association presented before the Bulgarian Evangelical Alliance

2004 Three U.S. Bases in Bulgaria to be Built by 2010

2003 The Case of a NATO Chaplaincy Model within the Bulgarian Army

2002 First Balkan Chaplaincy Conference at the Central Church of God in Sofia, Bulgaria

2001 Church of God Chaplaincy Commission to visit Bulgaria

2000 Euro-seminar: Christian ethics in the military forces

1997 First Military Ministry Seminar in Veliko Tarnovo

The fall of the Berlin Wall introduced a new reality that Bulgaria was not prepared to embrace. The end of Communism was unable to tear down the communist mentality. Today, an entire Bulgarian generation lives with the scars inflicted by their experience under years of the Communist Regime, while another generation lives with an immense historical gap that has formed a new political, social, economical and cultural reality.

Three points are worth noting about Bulgaria’s Postcommunist context. First, in the beginning of the 21^st century Bulgaria is left with armed forces, which were organized and influenced by the Soviet model and still act accordingly. The bureaucratic infrastructure disallows and discourages any changes apart from carefully chosen decisions that keep the army’s activities to the minimum possible. The two main factors needed for any change to occur, namely decision-making processes and chain of command, still operate under an Eastern Soviet paradigm.

Second, atheistic morale has gained the status of a positive military qualification in the Bulgarian military. This may sound familiar for any given army; however, in most cases it replaces a religious attitude with an atheistic one. In the Postcommunist context, atheistic beliefs pervade and even when a soldier experiences a genuine need for spirituality, in most cases s/he has no religious root to which to return. This lack of alternative or spiritual choice results in a pessimistic morale, intensified by the required mandatory military services.

Third, a Postcommunist mentality with definite Balkan characteristics rules not only the army but also the country as a whole. The economical, political and cultural crises have remained an undividable part of Bulgaria’s reality in the past 16 years. There, Postcommunist mentality holds captive every progressive thought and idea.

It is natural to conclude that the active solider within the Bulgarian Armed Forces is left without much choice when it comes to his/her personal and spiritual development. A positive career development is possible only when pressed by the economical factors one accepts to be part of a highly inactive bureaucratic machine. On the other hand, any attempt for spiritual growth is constrained and receives little privilege to become fully expressed. Naturally, such dynamics decrease one’s motivation for further development due to the lack of morale emerging from a personal spirituality. And because an army without a spirit is no army at all, the current condition of the Bulgarian Army is in much need of revival.

Also important [click to read]:

• U.S. Department of State recognizes our chaplaincy efforts in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Integration Proposal with Local NATO Programs
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Vision and Resolution
• Chronology of our role and involvement in developing Church of God chaplaincy in Bulgaria since 2001
• Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in Bulgaria Reflections
• The Past Decade of Chaplaincy in Bulgaria (2006-2016)
• Related Publications and Presentations by Cup & Cross Ministries International

Addressing the Masters of Chaplaincy Ministry Program Graduating Class in Bulgaria

The Road Ahead for the Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program (2016-2020)

We are proud to announce that the Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program, we designed and launched in Bulgaria in 2006, has been selected to be part of the Social Service Program of New Bulgarian University. After being for years a valuable part of the regular curriculum of the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute and the St. Trivelius Institute in the capital Sofia, the chaplaincy program has received the highest level of recognition as successful graduates will be finally able to receive government recognized degrees and apply their knowledge and training in chaplaincy on a professional level. The chaplaincy program can also serve within the Integration Proposal of local NATO programs and be instrumental in dealing with the enormous wave of Middle East migrants crossing through Bulgaria today.

In the beginning of the 21^st century in Bulgaria, law and chaplaincy meet on the road to democracy. But before chaplaincy could be legalized completely and endorsed by the state to its full functionality, several changes must be undergone. Some of them are:

1. Legal provision allowing chaplains to work as staff in the army, which guarantees the equal presence of protestant chaplains as well.
2. The approval, acceptance and implementation of a NATO based model for chaplaincy within the structures of the Bulgarian Army.
3. Periodical and systematic educational strategy toward chaplaincy workers among Bulgarian evangelicals.
4. A paradigm for cooperation of Bulgarian chaplains from various ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds.
5. Further research publications to enhance the efficiency of chaplaincy within the Bulgarian national context.

Also important [click to read]:

• U.S. Department of State recognizes our chaplaincy efforts in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Integration Proposal with Local NATO Programs
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Vision and Resolution
• Chronology of our role and involvement in developing Church of God chaplaincy in Bulgaria since 2001
• Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in Bulgaria Reflections
• The Past Decade of Chaplaincy in Bulgaria (2006-2016)
• Related Publications and Presentations by Cup & Cross Ministries International

Further Developments on the Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria

We are proud to announce that the Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program, we designed and launched in Bulgaria in 2006, has been selected to be part of the Social Service Program of New Bulgarian University. After being for years a valuable part of the regular curriculum of the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute and the St. Trivelius Institute in the capital Sofia, the chaplaincy program has received the highest level of recognition as successful graduates will be finally able to receive government recognized degrees and apply their knowledge and training in chaplaincy on a professional level. The chaplaincy program can also serve within the Integration Proposal of local NATO programs and be instrumental in dealing with the enormous wave of Middle East migrants crossing through Bulgaria today.

The Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria was:

1. Upgraded to the necessary educational and professional levels, applicable to the specific context of ministry in Bulgaria (December 2010)
2. Presented in its upgraded form for approval before the educational board of BETI in 2011 (January 2011)
3. Applied in its full capacity with the remaining modules in Theology (Spring 2011), Counseling (Fall 2011) and Master’s Thesis (exp. 2012)
4. Transferred to the New Bulgarian University in Sofia under their new social worker studies program.

Also important [click to read]:

• U.S. Department of State recognizes our chaplaincy efforts in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Integration Proposal with Local NATO Programs
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Vision and Resolution
• Chronology of our role and involvement in developing Church of God chaplaincy in Bulgaria since 2001
• Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in Bulgaria Reflections
• The Past Decade of Chaplaincy in Bulgaria (2006-2016)
• Related Publications and Presentations by Cup & Cross Ministries International

Church of God Chaplaincy in Bulgaria: In the beginning…

Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Celebrating a Decade of Ministry

We are proud to announce that the Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program, we designed and launched in Bulgaria in 2006, has been selected to be part of the Social Service Program of New Bulgarian University. After being for years a valuable part of the regular curriculum of the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute and the St. Trivelius Institute in the capital Sofia, the chaplaincy program has received the highest level of recognition as successful graduates will be finally able to receive government recognized degrees and apply their knowledge and training in chaplaincy on a professional level. The chaplaincy program can also serve within the Integration Proposal of local NATO programs and be instrumental in dealing with the enormous wave of Middle East migrants crossing through Bulgaria today.

But let us backup just a moment and start from the very beginning. In the summer of 1995, while pioneering the first Bulgarian church in the Chicago Metro, the local Church of God state office offered a civil chaplaincy training course for beginners. Unfortunately, due to our heavy church schedule, the chance to attend was low and virtually unobtainable. It was not until five years later that our interest in the field was finally rewarded, as in the summer of 2000 both my wife-to-be and I completed the required course work for chaplaincy accreditation, followed by an intense module at the Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga, where essentially the whole idea for the resurrection of chaplaincy ministry in Bulgaria was born.

Today, our Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program has produced a number of graduates who are serving in various chaplaincy positions and civil services in Bulgaria. Please continue to pray for all our named and unnamed chaplains on mission. (Click here to read more)

Also important [click to read]:

• U.S. Department of State recognizes our chaplaincy efforts in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Integration Proposal with Local NATO Programs
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association: Vision and Resolution
• Chronology of our role and involvement in developing Church of God chaplaincy in Bulgaria since 2001
• Master’s of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in Bulgaria Reflections
• The Past Decade of Chaplaincy in Bulgaria (2006-2016)
• Related Publications and Presentations by Cup & Cross Ministries International

Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria: The Road Ahead

In the beginning of the 21st century in Bulgaria, law and chaplaincy meet on the road to democracy. But before chaplaincy could be legalized completely and endorsed by the state to its full functionality, several changes must be undergone. Some of them are:

1) Legal provision allowing chaplains to work as staff in the army, which guarantees the equal presence of protestant chaplains as well.
2) The approval, acceptance and implementation of a NATO based model for chaplaincy within the structures of the Bulgarian Army.

3) Periodical and systematic educational strategy toward chaplaincy workers among Bulgarian evangelicals.

4) A paradigm for cooperation of Bulgarian chaplains from various ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds.

5) Further research publications to enhance the efficiency of chaplaincy within the Bulgarian national context.

• Chaplaincy Conference and Master’s of Chaplaincy
• Chaplaincy Course in Yambol, BULGARIA
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Annual Meeting
• Family Seminar for Military Men and Women
• Cup & Cross Ministries in Church of God Publications
• The Case of a NATO Chaplaincy Model within the Bulgarian Army
• 10 Years of Military Ministry in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Associations Recognized by U.S. Department of State
• National Chaplaincy Conference
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Gains Legal Status
• Chaplain Dees Visits Bulgaria
• Chaplaincy Course at the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association
• Meeting the NATO Chaplain
• National Chaplaincy Meeting
• Chaplaincy Developments in Bulgaria
• U.S. Bases in Bulgaria
• National Chaplaincy Meeting
• Chaplaincy in Bulgaria
• HEALTHCARE CHAPLAINCY IN BULGARIA
• Chaplaincy in Bulgaria
• Mission Bulgaria

New Develpoments in the Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria

The Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria was:

1. Upgraded to the necessary educational and professional levels, applicable to the specific context of ministry in Bulgaria (December 2010)
2. Presented in its upgraded form for approval before the educational board of BETI in 2011 (January 2011)
3. Applied in its full capacity with the remaining modules in Theology (Spring 2011), Counseling (Fall 2011) and Master’s Thesis (exp. 2012)
4. Transferred to the New Bulgarian University in Sofia under their new social worker studies program.

• Chaplaincy Conference and Master’s of Chaplaincy
• Chaplaincy Course in Yambol, BULGARIA
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Annual Meeting
• Family Seminar for Military Men and Women
• Cup & Cross Ministries in Church of God Publications
• The Case of a NATO Chaplaincy Model within the Bulgarian Army
• 10 Years of Military Ministry in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Associations Recognized by U.S. Department of State
• National Chaplaincy Conference
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Gains Legal Status
• Chaplain Dees Visits Bulgaria
• Chaplaincy Course at the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association
• Meeting the NATO Chaplain
• National Chaplaincy Meeting
• Chaplaincy Developments in Bulgaria
• U.S. Bases in Bulgaria
• National Chaplaincy Meeting
• Chaplaincy in Bulgaria
• HEALTHCARE CHAPLAINCY IN BULGARIA
• Chaplaincy in Bulgaria
• Mission Bulgaria

Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria

The Master’s Degree of Chaplaincy Ministry was intended to:
1) Present a master’s level course work by the Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association and its educational initiative to the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute (BETI) and the Bulgarian Ministry of Education.

2) Be received and approved by BETI as a master’s level educational program on a national level.

3) Aid BETI’s faculty with an international team of qualified professors for the completion of the educational process.

4) Satisfy the educational requirements for a chaplaincy vocation properly contextualized for Bulgaria in association with secular educational institutions, if necessary.

5) Provide the necessary knowledge and practical skills to people with a call on their lives for chaplaincy ministry

• Chaplaincy Conference and Master’s of Chaplaincy
• Chaplaincy Course in Yambol, BULGARIA
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Annual Meeting
• Family Seminar for Military Men and Women
• Cup & Cross Ministries in Church of God Publications
• The Case of a NATO Chaplaincy Model within the Bulgarian Army
• 10 Years of Military Ministry in Bulgaria
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Associations Recognized by U.S. Department of State
• National Chaplaincy Conference
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association Gains Legal Status
• Chaplain Dees Visits Bulgaria
• Chaplaincy Course at the Bulgarian Evangelical Theological Institute
• Bulgarian Chaplaincy Association
• Meeting the NATO Chaplain
• National Chaplaincy Meeting
• Chaplaincy Developments in Bulgaria
• U.S. Bases in Bulgaria
• National Chaplaincy Meeting
• Chaplaincy in Bulgaria
• HEALTHCARE CHAPLAINCY IN BULGARIA
• Chaplaincy in Bulgaria
• Mission Bulgaria

Masters of Chaplaincy Reflections

It has taken exactly 10 years since the envisioning of the Masters of Chaplaincy Ministry in Bulgaria for its final realization in the Bulgarian national and cultural context. Through this time of struggle and anticipation, we encountered a number of difficulties as follows:

• Government difficulties on various levels within the Bulgarian administration and a direct repression from the Ministry of Justice, which was later included in the Religious Freedom report of the U.S. Department of State
• Administrative difficulties with approving the program as a legal educational process, while no legal background of chaplaincy has ever been provided in Bulgaria
• Economic difficulties with arranging location and time placement for the program, lecturers, the very much needed student scholarships and various other academic expenses
• Proper student selection through a special screening process to ensure only qualified candidates for placement within the Masters’ Program
• And of course, spiritual difficulties with the whole process of establishing chaplaincy in Bulgaria again being a definite spiritual warfare for all participants

Now that the Bulgarian Chaplaincy Program is an undeniable fact, we realize how our training was more than just a necessity for the implementation of such a great task. It was also well sufficient for a time as such.

I’m especially grateful for the role of my wife Kathryn, who was the main motivator behind the program and who stepped in at very crucial moments in the teaching process providing the complete structure of the program’s counseling module through her training from the Department of Psychology with Lee University and expertise from the Crises Counseling Center in Cleveland. My own experience as a chaplain during my CPE days at Erlanger and Siskin hospitals, as well as educational background from the Pentecostal Theological Seminary and experience with various churches and organizations as an ordained Church of God bishop, also served as tremendous support in various steps through the whole process of the program from its envisioning and foundation in 2001. We are thankful to all friends and partners in the ministry who contributed with their own expertise in the designing of the program and the educational process. And at last a final word of encouragement to all students and churches now set forth to do the ministry of chaplaincy in Bulgaria through the first Masters’ of Chaplaincy Ministry Program in the country.

Read more about chaplaincy in Bulgaria in the following HISTORY of EVENTS

Masters in Chaplaincy Program in Bulgaria Continues

Just this past week our students of the first Masters in Chaplaincy Program in Bulgaria finished their classes of the Theology Module. This is the second of three sets of courses designed to equip active chaplains in Bulgaria for a new level of ministry in the armed forces, medical establishments and correctional institutions. The theology module incorporated various subjects from several schools of thought giving the students a solid theological background on a master’s seminary level for their future ministry. We are now ready to approach the last of the three modules, which deals with clinical psychology and Christian counseling, which will involve the students in a set of research assignments and practicum curriculum contributing directly to the writing and defense of their masters’ thesis prior to graduation from the chaplaincy program. Selected thesis will be published by the university’s press as a new volume in their innovative series and turned to NATO’s research foundation as a proposal to consider chaplaincy within the Bulgarian Army, which still remains the only armed force within the Alliance’ structure which does not implement chaplaincy into their missions.

Next Page »