“Towards the end of our conversation, the patient said that he felt as though his faith had been awakened. He also looked physically different – when I arrived he looked disengaged and down, but when I left his bedside he was relaxed and smiling. Before I left, he asked to pray for me, which was profound,” says hospital chaplain The Rev’d Peter Mayen
“Most of the soldiers, sailors and aviators to whom we minister are not aware of Jesus’ comfort, so it is the role of the chaplain to bring that calm sense of assurance to the many and varied situations ADF personnel face,” says Air Force chaplain, The Rev’d Michelle Philp
“Stan was a stoic and grumpy old inmate whose head was always downcast, reading, writing, or doing crosswords. Whenever I drew close to the table at which he sat (usually alone), he’d make some disparaging remark about the uselessness of what chaplains stood for,” says prison chaplain Ken Collins from St Mark’s, The Gap
Meet Fr Bernard Thomas, who recently celebrated his 100th birthday, and find out about his ministry, why he decided to become a priest, what advice he has for people discerning their vocation, about his faith journey and what scripture he would write on a billboard and why