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1. Executive Director’s Reflection
2. Today begins the NACC election for position on Board of Directors
3. NACC announces fall audio conferences
4. Deadline tomorrow for Certification Applications for Spring 2010 Interviews
5. NACC Ethics Commission seeks new member
6. Survey about chaplains' use of online communication tools with patients
7. Staying informed on healthcare reform
8. A healthcare reform call-in effort September 15th
9. Chaplaincy in the news!
10. United Nations International Day of Peace: “A Million Minutes for Peace”
11. Resources from NACC Hospice/Palliative Care Conference Calls now
12. Video promoting the chaplaincy profession available
13. Local/regional event dates
14. Other educational events
15. Healing Tree: a request for prayers
16. Recent job postings
17. Positions wanted

This past week my wife and I had the opportunity to see “Vianney” a live performance by Leonardo Deflippis, the director and star of the feature film “Therese” (about St. Therese of Lisieux). It is a dramatization of the life of St. John Vianney, patron saint of priests, that Leonardo had conceived and started production of prior to 2009-2010 being dedicated by Pope Benedict XVI as the year of the priest. After the performance Leonardo expressed his hope that the drama inspires vocations to the priesthood, and Vianney’s life encourages all of us to deeper holiness. It was really well done. It touched us. When Jackie and I left the performance, we commented to each other, “Yes, we can live better lives.” I was particularly struck, however, by the portrayal of the Satan’s temptations/harassments of the saint. Behind the sneering, menacing voice and image were messages we each grapple with: you are not worthy; you are not effective; your pride gets in the way; people don’t really care; this is too much; this is not what God wants. It made me reflect on the sometimes-subtle, always debilitating “messages” that can linger like a bad odor and distract and drain us of resolve and resiliency. It has made me more attentive again, and hopefully makes me a better person. Are there troubling, taunting “messages” that are unique to the pastoral care ministry that can distract and drain you? If you send me your notable example(s), perhaps I can build the list to share in the next NACC Now!

NACC Board of Directors Meeting
Next Monday, September 21st through Wednesday noon, September 23rd, the NACC Board of Directors will be meeting in Milwaukee at the national office. The board will be devoting significant time reviewing the progress on the implementation of the NACC strategic plan, and recommending any adjustments to the association’s priorities. We appreciated the feedback on the plan implementation received this summer from members of the Vision and Action Planning Committee. I commented on this feedback in my column in the September-October 2009 Issue of Vision, www.nacc.org/vision/Sept_Oct_2009/ed.asp. Please keep our deliberations in your prayer

Appreciatively,

David Lichter
Executive Director

Today, Monday, September 14th through Monday, October 12th, we will be conducting the election for the position on the NACC Board of Directors. Eligible NACC members without e-mail addresses have been sent an instruction letter to enable them to vote. All eligible NACC members with e-mail addresses will be sent instructions and a link to Votenet.com. Please vote!

NACC is happy to announce the Fall series of Audio Conferences.

(1) September 24, 2009 – Renewal of Certification.
This audio conference will provide participants with an overview of the renewal of certification process and documentation and provide a forum for answering questions about NACC renewal of certification.

This audio conference is offered to our members at no cost. For more information and to register, click here.

(2) October 8 and October 15, 2009 – Sr. Dianne Bergant, CSA presents the Book of Job: Loss, Personal Suffering, and our Pastoral Care Ministry.
These audio conferences (2) will provide participants with an overview of the most recent studies on the Book of Job and its key insights that can help those who minister to individuals experiencing loss or grief.

For more information and to register, click here.

(3) November 12 and November 19, 2009 – Dr. Susan K. Wood, SCL presents Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord: Insights and Implications for Pastoral Care Ministry.
These audio conferences (2) will provide participants a background on Co-workers in the Vineyard of the Lord. Dr. Wood will offer an overview of its contributions, ongoing discussions on church ministry and the formation and authorization of lay ecclesial ministers, and some implications for the specialized ministry of pastoral care.

For more information and to register, click here.

(4) December 3 and December 10, 2009 – Fr. Peter Fink, SJ presents Healing Ministry and the Sacraments: A Contemporary Understanding of Sacraments Can Enrich our Pastoral Care Ministry.
These audio conferences (2) will provide participants with an excellent update on the theology of sacraments, particularly the sacraments of anointing and reconciliation.

For more information and to register, click here.

Register for audio conferences two, three, and four and save $5. For more information and to register, click here.

Tomorrow, September 15, 2009, is the postmark deadline for supportive materials for the May 1-2, 2010, certification interviews. (“Postmark” means the actual day the postal service date stamps your parcel.) To best prepare for the certification process, please familiarize yourself with the current Standards and Procedures, located at www.nacc.org/certification/standards-and-procedures.asp. Please print out these 3 documents that pertain to you:

1. Standards: You will write your Narrative Statement citing each of the Standards listed in Section 300-Standards for Certification of Chaplains (Standards 302 through 305.6).
2. Certification Procedures Manual: Chaplain Certification Procedures CP11 through CP133.5j pertains to you.
3. Ethics Procedures Manual: See Ethics Accountability Statement Procedures. Read thoroughly and sign Page-7 Ethics Accountability Statement for Initial Certification. If you wish to remain a member of the NACC, but are unable to sign the Ethics Accountability Statement (Page-7) because of a recent or a pending complaint, then you would refer to EP14 for the required written process.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the certification process, please contact Rose Mary Blanco-Alvarado, Certification Specialist, at the NACC National Office, (414) 483-4898 Ext. 308.

Deacon Pat Bradley, Chair, Ethics Commission, on behalf of the Ethics Commission, would like to thank D.W. Donovan for his service to the commission over the past years. Donovan will complete two terms on the commission at the end of this year. Also Patricia Melesco will complete one term and has said that although she is willing to serve a second term she feels that we have other members who would like to serve on this important commission. Members of the Ethics Commission must be board certified chaplains in good standing with the association. Some background or education in ethics is desirable. The Commission only deals with issues of ethical conduct by our members as set out in the Code of Ethics for Spiritual Care Professionals. The Code is found in the Standards for Ethics, Certification, and Renewal of Certification. Over the past several years the Ethics Commission has only been asked to investigate two Ethics Complaints. They do, however, meet by teleconference periodically. If you have an interest in serving your association in the capacity of member of the Ethics Commission please submit a letter of application stating your qualifications to Deacon Pat Bradley at tpbradley@bresnan.net.

Do you use the Internet to communicate with your patients? The Internet has transformed many spheres of society. The emergence of hundreds of social networking websites, such as MySpace and Facebook, has invited millions of users into instant contact. This rapid emergence and exploding use of online social networking forums presents healthcare professionals with new ethical and professional challenges. There is little or nothing in the literature regarding the use of social networking websites or other electronic communication tools such as electronic mail (e-mail) in the chaplain-patient relationship. Mary Johnson at Mayo is grateful to you for taking a few moments to complete this brief electronic survey about your use of online communication tools in patient care. The survey is located here: www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=EYtEVDWItcZ5GWrkGbvm9A_3d_3d

As we seek to stay informed…read CHA’s most recent statement on healthcare reform at: www.chausa.org/Pub/MainNav/Newsroom/NewsReleases/2009/r090910a.htm Also Faithful Reform in Health Care, a multi-faith organization dedicated to assess healthcare reform from a faith perspective, will be providing an ongoing series of information pieces as healthcare reform moves the legislative process – all based on “A Faith-Inspired Vision of Health Care.” You can access the first one at this link.

Faithful Reform in Health Care is also inviting people to participate in a nationwide call-in to our legislatures to express and encourage moral witness about our support for healthcare reform. The Capitol switchboard toll-free number is 1-888-797-8717. For more info: www.faithfulreform.org/storage/frhc/documents/LightShine/call in days.sept09.pdf

We were alerted to a couple chaplain news items. Thanks to those who contacted us. Let us know of stories as you read them! One was on e-chaplaincy in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: click here to read. The other was in the Boston Globe: click here.

September 21, 2009, is the United Nations International Day of Peace. Millions of people and thousands of organizations worldwide celebrate this day every September 21. We are invited to commit one minute for peace at noon that day. For information on this commitment go to www.odysseynetworks.org. If you want to add your name to a “million minutes for peace” pledge that will be presented to the Secretary-General at the opening of the United Nations on September 18th go to: live.faithstreams.com/site/prayer_pledges/register.

Over the past months, we have hosted conference calls with members ministering in hospice and palliative care settings. They have been providing resources for one another as needs are identified on the calls. These resources can now be accessed in the Resources section of our NACC website (www.nacc.org/resources/palliative.asp). We are grateful to those who have shared, and invite others to share their wealth and wisdom as well!

Our video on Chaplaincy, both a recruitment version (that begins and ends with “Is God Calling You?”) and a version without this question, are available in DVD format. The charge is just $6.00, the cost of production and shipping. You may preview the video at this link. To order copies please email Cindy Bridges for instructions.

More local gatherings are being set. Please review the list below, and mark your calendars. More details of events will be in future NACC Now's.

• Wednesday, September 16, 2009, Phoenix, AZ. See details.
• Friday, September 18, 2009, Spokane, WA. See details.
• Thursday-Friday, September 24-25, 2009, Alexandria, MN, North Central Prairie. See details.
• Friday, October 9, Buffalo, NY. See details.
• Saturday, October 10, Nazareth, KY. See details.
• Saturday, October 17, 2009, Boston, MA. See details.
• Sunday-Tuesday, October 18-20, Green Lake, WI. See details.
• Thursday, October 22, 2009, Sacramento, CA. See details/register.
• Friday, October 30, 2009, Charleston, SC. See details.
• Sunday, November 15, 2009, Washington, DC. Details to come.
• Saturday, December 5, 2009, Chicago, IL. See details.
• Friday, December 11, 2009, Florida. Details to come.

We have been alerted to other educational events that you can find on the NACC website. They include:

• Tuesday, September 29, Chicago, IL, “Vatican II – Now More Than Ever.” Chicago, IL Click here for details.
• Wednesday, September 30, Thursday, October 1, 2009, Washington, D.C., “Foundations of Catholic Healthcare Leadership Program.” Click here for details.
• Saturday, October 3, 2009, Lisle, IL, “Spirituality in the New Millennium” with Rev. Richard Rohr, OFM. See details/register.
• Friday, October 9, 2009, Albuquerque, NM, “Health and Wholeness: Finding Harmony in a Stressful World.” See details/register.
• Monday-Tuesday, October 26-27, 2009, Mahwah, NJ, “RTS Bereavement Training in Early Pregnancy Loss, Stillbirth & Neonatal Death.” See details/register.
• Monday-Tuesday, November 2-3, 2009, Springfield, VA, 11th Annual Josefina Magno Conference "Pain Has a Measure: Suffering Has a Story." See details.
• Tuesday, November 3, 2009, Hartford, CT, Rabbi Bonita Taylor and Rabbi David Zucker, “Using Lamentations to Lament,” Connecticut Chaplains. See details.
• Thursday, November 19, 2009, Milwaukee, WI, Dr. Daniel P. Sulmasy, OFM, the Bartholomew Lecture Series, Cardinal Stritch University. See details/register.
• Los Angeles, CA, Loyola University Marymount offers certificate and degrees in bioethics. See details.

Please let us know if you would like our membership to pray for your health and healing. We continue to pray for Fr. Bob Nee BCC, LICSW, CT (intractable epilepsy), Joyce Fink (heart attack/recovery from open heart surgery), Judy Novak (brain surgery and recovery), Mike J. Murphy (cancer treatment), Fr. Bill Spacek (detached retina and other eye issues); Sr. Nancy Crane, OP (cancer treatment); Sr. Hilda Mallet, MHS (cancer treatment); Sr. Rita Rzeppa, IBVM (recovering/rehab from knee surgery), and Dennis Eldridge (Kathy's husband, for cancer treatment).

The following positions have been posted in the last two weeks. Please go to our online job board for more information about them. VICE PRESIDENT OF MISSION
     Spokane, WA – Providence Health Care

PRIEST CHAPLAIN
     Chicago, IL – Our Lady of the Resurrection Medical Center

DIRECTOR OF MISSION LEADERSHIP AND SPIRITUAL CARE
     San Pedro, CA – Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center

In this time of change and uncertainty it is more important than ever to use every resource available. If you have lost your job recently, if you’re just seeking a new or better position, or if you are an employer seeking a chaplain for your organization, be sure to visit our Positions Wanted webpage. NACC members can take advantage of this free service by placing a job-seeking ad, for free, which will run for 60 days. To see the ads, visit www.nacc.org/positions/wanted.asp.

To place your own ad, send an email to Phil Paradowski: pparadowski@nacc.org.