Chaplaincy

Chaplaincy in public institutions

In order for the right to freedom of religion or belief to be protected, public institutions such as hospitals, prisons or the army have to ensure the conditions for the provision of spiritual care through chaplaincy services. The regulation of such service is contained in agreements between the Spanish State and the Holy See and the national federations of the Islamic, Jewish and Protestant communities. In the case of other religious groups, which do not have an agreement with the state, religious care is provided on a more occasional and less institutionalized basis. Updated data on chaplaincy services in various public institutions is not publicly available.

For further information on this topic, please see the following publications:
– García-Romeral, G., Griera, M., & Forteza, M. (2007). Gestión de la diversidad religiosa en el ámbito sanitario catalán. Inguruak, 43, 57–74.
– Griera, M., & Clot-Garrell, A. (2015). Banal is not Trivial: Visibility, Recognition, and Inequalities between Religious Groups in Prison. Journal of Contemporary Religion, 30(1), 23–37.
– Griera, M., & Martínez-Ariño, J. (2014). The Accommodation of Religious Diversity in Prisons and Hospitals in Spain. RECODE Working Papers, 28, 1–13.
– Martínez-Ariño, J., García-Romeral, G., Ubasart, G., & Griera, M. (2015). Demonopolization and dislocation: (Re-) negotiating the place and role of religion in Spanish prisons. Social Compass, 62(1), 3–21.
– Martínez-Ariño, J., & Griera, M. (2016). Responses to Religious Diversity in Spain: Hospitals and Prisons from a Comparative Perspective. Interdisciplinary Journal for Religion and Transformation in Contemporary Society–J-RaT, 2(1), 37–59.

D 8 December 2023    AJulia Martínez-Ariño