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Law enforcement’s greatest
innovation: police chaplains

Cops are expected to deal with the worst of the worst, every day, and then get up tomorrow and do it again.

It takes a toll. How could it not?

Yet the culture of the badge—a distrust of outsiders—keeps many officers from asking for help.

That’s why police chaplaincy is such a brilliant innovation.

It is uniquely designed to solve every cop’s dilemma:

Police officers rarely ask for help.

Police chaplains don’t wait to be asked. Every so often they just show up to shoot the breeze, get coffee, and be a friend.

Police officers keep it to themselves.

A conversation with a police chaplain is confidential, protected by law and by a chaplain’s sacred oath.

Police officers naturally distrust outsiders.

Police chaplains are members of the law enforcement community. They wear a badge. They understand the culture.

Police officers can feel helpless.

Constantly forced to leave a traumatized person to answer the next call is spiritually demoralizing. Chaplains take that heavy burden off the officers’ shoulders by staying behind to do the emotional heavy lifting.

This is why police chaplaincy is a true innovation. A chaplain provides support in ways no one else can.

That small opening is enormous. A cop surrounded by cynicism now has an angel on their shoulder.

Which raises the big question.

Where Do Great Police Chaplains Come From?

There’s no academy turning out people who are part cop, part clergy. The people best suited to this work are already living among us, with little idea what they’re capable of.

They’re the people in line at the grocery store:

Wildly different people who share a rare mix of emotional intelligence, personal stamina, and a deep desire to put their faith into practice.

A community that finds these unique individuals, trains them, and sends them out gains the kind of asset that holds a town together in a crisis.

We see it happen across the country, year after year.

That’s where
ChaplainUSA comes in.

For nearly two decades, we’ve worked to raise awareness about police chaplaincy. We’ve gathered an extraordinary group of chaplains and citizens who’ve made serving law enforcement their life’s work, and handing their wisdom to the next generation is what we do here.

And if along the way we help someone discover their true calling, the work is multiplied and truly blessed.

Explore the stories, programs, and training. If this work matters to you, join us and support ChaplainUSA.

Support ChaplainUSA

Step 1

First, we ask police chaplains to tell us what they know.

Visit the newly digitally restored Police Chaplain Project.

Watch the collection

A monitor showing a mosaic of chaplains speaking during a virtual gathering.

Step 2

Next, we turn their wisdom into practical resources.

Working hand in hand with police chaplains, we have developed ways to make wisdom drawn from the archive portable and practicable.

That’s the key to what we do: an archive for future generations, but programming that addresses problems here, now, today.

A desktop monitor displaying the ChaplainUSA Crisis Checklists card.

Survivor Network

For families & survivors

A national grief literacy initiative shaped by the experience of police chaplains.

Field notes Watch

My Credo

For officers & chaplains

Put into a sentence or two what you stand for, and carry it into the work.

Write your credo

AFTERMATH: Managing a Line of Duty Death Crisis

For agency leaders

Decades of experience distilled into practical rules for dealing with law enforcement’s darkest day.

Read the series Checklists

Crisis Checklists

For chaplains & agencies

Role-by-role checklists for a line-of-duty death, from the first notification to the final honors.

Open the checklists

Living Resource Guide

For chaplains

A directory built one vital connection at a time.

Read the guide Directory

Gravitas

For chaplains

A roadmap for young chaplains looking to build trust and confidence.

Field guide

The Next Right Thing

For everyone

The archived journal on hope, grief, and healing.

Browse the journal

Days of Carnage

For chaplains

Firsthand accounts from chaplains who responded to mass shootings and disasters.

Explore the accounts

The Lighthouse Library

For chaplains & leaders

A digital collection of practical reading for police chaplains.

Browse the shelves

Step 3

Finally, get the latest from all our programming.

New articles, videos, and special reports from every ChaplainUSA program, gathered in one place.

Browse the ChaplainUSA Blog by category and topic ↗

Eleven places to start

A lone police officer in uniform sits in a briefing room filled with rows of empty chairs, facing an empty podium.

Police Research Watch

The real problem with policing in America

Many Americans are convinced the problem with our country is there are too many police officers. Hard data tells a radically different—and alarming—story. Drawing on key insights from Malcolm Gladwell, justice system research, and CDC health data, this article exposes the real cost of under-policing.

Open the article ↗

A bald man with a gray beard, wearing a black polo shirt, sits on a gray couch and looks directly at the camera.

ChaplainUSA Blog · Police Chaplain Project

When a Good Man Loses His Way

Bill McCamley breaks down the behavioral patterns that precede male crisis, suicide, and fatal relapse—and what police chaplains and peer-support officers can do.

Open the article ↗

A retirement cake decorated with a police shield and the words “Happy Retirement, You Deserve It” is being cut with a knife.

ChaplainUSA Blog

The Grief of No Longer Being a Police Officer

For many police officers, retirement brings an unexpected loss. The badge is gone, the radio falls silent, and a lifetime of purpose suddenly has to find another home. Police chaplains have an important role to play in what happens next.

Open the article ↗

A uniformed police officer sits alone at a table in a station break room at dawn, head lowered, beside an empty chair.

Police Research Watch

When Police Officers Need Help but Won’t Ask for It

Some of the officers struggling most with depression, burnout, and alcohol-related problems may also be the least willing to seek counseling.

Open the article ↗

A white-haired police chaplain in a Police Chaplain jacket stands on a rainy city street at dusk.

THE STATE OF CHAPLAINCY

Is the Next Generation Ready for What’s Coming?

Officers need someone they trust. Chaplains need the training, resources and departmental support to be there. Here is what a sustainable program requires.

Open the article ↗

ChaplainUSA Blog · Aftermath

Why Rural Policing Is So Dangerous: What Chaplains Need to Know

Distance changes the call—and the support that follows. How chaplains can build a regional circle of care.

Open the article ↗

Commemorative portrait stamp of Rabbi Marie Betcher

Engraved commemorative stamp portrait of Chaplain Cyndee Thomas

Commemorative portrait stamp of Chaplain Mindi Russell

Legendary Women of Police Chaplaincy

We salute living legends Marie Betcher, Cyndee Thomas, and Mindi Russell—trailblazers in women’s growing presence in law-enforcement chaplaincy. Hear their stories from the archives of the Police Chaplain Project.

Research reports, a magnifying glass and a highlighted key finding on a desk.

Police Research Watch

Buried in 107 Pages: A Warning for Police Chaplains

RAND’s new report on officer wellness contains a finding that should get the attention of every chaplain program.

Open the article ↗

A chaplain and a surviving spouse review paperwork from opposite sides of a table.

2026 CHECKLIST

A Grieving Spouse Shouldn’t Face the Benefits Maze Alone. Bring a Chaplain—and a Checklist.

Help a surviving spouse navigate benefits, reach the right specialists, and take the next step.

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ChaplainUSA Blog

“More Fishermen Die Every Year”: A Chaplain’s Response

Fatality rates answer one question. They cannot tell us what the officer in front of us carries home. An honest reading of the numbers leaves room for both facts and the person.

Open the article ↗

ChaplainUSA Blog

A Law Enforcement Funeral Is Different. How Chaplains Can Make the Case.

A funeral director brings expertise. A chaplain helps the department keep its responsibilities to the family.

Open the article ↗

The Lighthouse Library

After a Tragedy, Who Has to Go Back to Work?

The cameras leave. The employees return. Who checks on the people going back to a place changed by tragedy?

Open the article ↗

Black-and-white photograph of a uniformed police chief.

FIELD GUIDE

Five Decisions Every Police Chief Should Make Before a Line-of-Duty Death

John Cooley’s experience with more than 80 police funerals offers a starting point for agency leaders.

Open the article ↗

ChaplainUSA Blog

Who Is This Funeral For?

The public may remember the procession. A child may remember whether anyone included them. Listening to the family reveals what a ceremony alone cannot tell us.

Open the article ↗