Office of Institutional Chaplains expands web site presence
The Orthodox Church in America’s Office of Institutional Chaplains [OIC] recently announced the upgrade of its web site.
“The upgraded site features Saint Porphyrios, who was canonized in 2013,” said Archpriest Dr. Steven Voytovich, OIC Director and Dean of Saint Tikhon’s Seminary, South Canaan, PA. “Among the many reasons to celebrate the life and ministry of this saint is his service as a hospital chaplain at the Athens Polyclinic for more than thirty years.”
According to Father Steven, the new web site offers opportunities to post stories and photos that also will appear on the office’s new Facebook page.
The Office of Institutional Chaplaincies remains committed to supporting the ministry of full and part-time hospital, hospice, long-term care, prison, fire, and police chaplains, and chaplains serving in related settings. Institutional chaplains are theologically formed, clinically trained, formally endorsed, in many cases board certified, and serve in a variety of multi-faith institutional chaplaincy settings.
The OCA is a member of the Commission for Ministry in Specialized Settings [COMISS Network] and endorses chaplains to serve in specific institutional settings and toward certification with credentialing bodies, including the Association of Professional Chaplains, the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, and the College of Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy.
Under Father Steven’s direction, the Office supports the formal endorsement process for institutional chaplains and facilitates dialogue among those ministering in a variety of institutional settings. Currently Father Steven represents the OCA as endorser in COMISS, as a past-chair of the Association of Religious Endorsing Bodies, and as a board certified member with the above credentialing bodies. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, is the Orthodox Ecclesiastical Endorser for OCA clergy and laypersons who are trained and serving as institutional chaplains.