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Rocks Around The Flock
For more than 30 years, the Chicago Police Chaplains Ministry has been providing the strength, support, faith, presence and passion to be your sisters’ and brothers’ keepers and help of cers remember they are truly doing God’s work.
n BY MITCHELL KRUGEL
T he responders in the second or third car on the scene of a domestic disturbance, call of shots
fired or even just a traffic stop pro- vide back-up Chicago Police Of- ficers find more and more indis- pensable every day. They stand in and stand by with their unique re- inforcement until long after the all clear has been given.
Most officers might not even re-
alize that these are the women and
men of the Chicago Police Chap-
lains Ministry under the vests and uniforms. Heroes in their own rite,
the chaplains offer a weapon that ev-
ery Department officer must wield in
this era of policing in the city. Amidst
the shootings, reductions in force, ac- countability studies, community com- plaints and ISRs, some days all coppers
have to get through the day is their faith.
So the Chicago Police Chaplains Ministry keeps the faith, often with a leap of faith. Pope Francis once told a group of priests that the shepherd should smell like the flock, and the Chicago Police Chaplains might have been way ahead of him on that one in their 24-7/365-calling to remind the city’s law enforcers of their faithful sense of nobility and sacred character of police work.
“I see the most important part of our work in the chap- lains section is to remind our officers as often as possi-
ble that they might report to sergeants, captains or com- manders, but they are do- ing God’s work,” preaches Father Dan Brandt, director of the Chicago Police Chap- lains Ministry. “I like to think they are tempering justice with mercy, just as
God does.”
T ef
he biblical, even
Talmudic, pro- portions of the Chap- lains Ministry can be
connected right to the Scripture. Who among CPD officers would take issue with the fact that the Ten Commandments are the basis of all human laws they enforce? And the growing urgen- cy of the chaplaincy can be validated by what Father Dan describes as more and more members calling to confide that they feel disenfranchised and they are looking for a
confidential ear to consult.
Retired Father Thomas Nangle, who inaugurated the
Chaplains Unit in 1980 and forged much of its gospel as director for 30 years, not only sends up the homily of
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CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ MAY 2016 31
Chaplains Bob Montelongo (right) and Father Dan Brandt (second from right) check up on of cer who responded to a domestic call in Englewood during the weekly tour.
Father Dan gets set to go out on tour in his Department car.