Roelofs to be the New Director of Chaplaincy and Care

On February 23, the Board of Trustees of the Christian Reformed Church in North America voted unanimously to appoint Rev. Sarah Hae Kyung Roelofs to the position of Director of Chaplaincy and Care Ministry of the Christian Reformed Church.

As a 32-year-old female Asian American pastor who has lived in the United States and traveled extensively overseas, Roelofs said that she brings a unique perspective to the role.

“I was born in South Korea and was one of many kids thirty or forty years ago who were adopted into the CRC,” she said. “I was nurtured, educated, and loved in this denomination. It is such an honor to serve and give back to it.”

Roelofs, who grew up in Pella, Iowa, said that she felt a calling to ministry when she was in high school but wrestled with that calling for a long time. “In my family system, women were seen as a vital part of the family but not necessarily as leaders.”

She said she also didn’t see many women in formal ministry positions in her community. When she began attending Dordt College, she planned to pursue what she considered the “highest level of ministry” that a woman could do with her career — and studied to become a missionary teacher. As part of her program, she spent a semester in Nicaragua.

“I did my student teaching in Nicaragua, and I felt that God was calling me to seminary,” she said of the experience, adding that the calling left her in tears because she did not want to go.

“I started seminary with the idea of becoming a more thoughtful and better equipped teacher, but I wrestled with my calling to ordained ministry. I did not want to do it.”

Through the encouragement of professors and classmates at Calvin Theological Seminary, she studied the Scriptures and accepted her calling.

“It was such a relief when I embraced it and when I discovered what chaplaincy was all about,” she said. “I wanted to sit with people and hear their story, help them cope.”

Roelofs has had a diverse work experience since graduating from Calvin Seminary. She has served in a variety of hospital chaplaincy roles and has been in the U.S. Air Force Reserve since 2014. She has also completed four units of Clinical Pastoral Education and has successfully sustained the rigorous process to become a Board Certified Chaplain with the Association of Professional Chaplains (USA).

Roelofs will replace Rev. Ronald Klimp, who has served as the director of Chaplaincy and Care Ministry since January 2010. Chaplains are pastors who usually serve in specialized settings, such as prisons, hospitals, counseling centers, and on military installations. As specially trained ministers of the gospel, they seek to encourage others in their relationship with Jesus Christ while also ministering to people’s physical and emotional needs.

The Office of Chaplaincy and Care Ministry of the CRC supports and develops chaplains by assisting them through their specialized training, endorsing them for ministry, and providing opportunities for ongoing networking and education. 

Roelofs, who is married and is a mother to two young children, explained that her personal history has equipped her for this role. While in seminary and still unmarried, she became pregnant with her first child. She wrestled with what that would mean for her ministry.

“It felt like my world was crashing, that one bad mistake would maybe prohibit me from ever serving the church,” she said, but some of her trusted professors encouraged her not to disappear but to instead confess her sins and continue in her ministry.

“It is part of my story, but it is not where it ends,” she said about that time. “God has used that story, my journey, to be an example of forgiveness and peace.”

A year after her own pregnancy, Roelofs said that she received a random email from a college student who was pregnant and was terrified. “I was able to hear her story, and she was able to experience that there was hope and that her world wasn’t so closed.”

It is that experience of sitting with people, listening to them, and supporting them spiritually, emotionally, and physically that exemplifies the type of ministry Roelofs will now help to lead and support in the Christian Reformed Church.

In its report to the BOT, the search committee said, “Sarah is curious and confident, passionate and wise, thoughtful and insightful, compassionate and kind. She has a powerful sense of call to this ministry and articulates a vision that is both compelling and grounded.”

During her interview for the position, Roelofs said that she is eager to use her experience and skills to engage with individual chaplains to hear their stories and support them, but is equally eager to reach out to congregations to tell the story of chaplains and chaplaincy.

“I feel called to connect chaplains and churches in varied and meaningful ways for mutual growth, learning, and edification,” she said, adding that she plans to make learning about Canada and the Canadian context of chaplaincy one of her first priorities.

“I am very honored and excited to serve in this role and look forward to leading this combined effort that extends and expands the kingdom mission of the church into the world,” she said. She will begin her new leadership position in April. “I promise to work diligently,” she said.