The Chaplain’s Presence and Medical Power:Rethinking Loss in the Hospital System

Book Review. Richard Coble is an associate pastor of congregational care and adult education at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church and adjunct professor of pastoral care at Lexington Theological Seminary. He worked for nine months in a hospital setting, training as a chaplain under supervision in Clinical Pastoral Education after graduating from his seminary. His book is a closely argued, academic treatise on what he sees as the conflict between chaplaincy and medicine, particularly around issues of end of life care. His book, as he says, is from the point of view of a male, Christian, American chaplain and investigates the role of chaplaincy from that perspective which is a particular view and context.