Letters to the editor of Globe Magazine
Spiritual Connections
As a Capuchin friar who ministers among the homeless, I find it misleading to portray chaplains as people who work outside of organized religion (“The New Search for Meaning,” March 14). St. Francis of Assisi was loyal to the Catholic Church, warts and all; you could say he was a chaplain, embracing lepers and reconciling with Muslims. By bringing mercy and peace to others, he revitalized Western Christianity. Likewise, chaplains today invigorate faith by practicing mercy and awakening people’s religious imagination.
Brother Anthony Zuba
Jamaica Plain
I retired as an Army chaplain after 30 years on active duty. I never read an article that so accurately captured the immediacy of the chaplaincy. No one ever seemed to know how to explain its dynamics; Jonathan Fitzgerald has done it in this article. He helps the reader appreciate nuance in religion, spirituality, and diversity, and the fact that the best chaplains can “create” a relationship and a sacred space in the matter of moments — usually born out of urgent need and suffering.