RAF commissions first deacon

The first permanent deacon has been commissioned as a Catholic chaplain in the armed forces as concerns grow about the shortage of priests serving the military.

David Skillen, who is married with three sons, has been commissioned for the Royal Air Force and will take up his work alongside the 27 regular – full-time – Catholic chaplains and eight reserve chaplains.

Over the last decade, however, this number has steadily decreased and Fr James Caulfield, principal Roman Catholic chaplain to the RAF, said they “desperately need” more priests as RAF chaplains. He added, however, that there was a lot a permanent deacon could do in terms of pastoral support. 

Demand for chaplains’ ministry is high: a spokesman for the Bishopric of the Forces – the ­military ordinariate that provides Catholic chaplains for Britain’s armed services – explained that roughly 20 per cent of the armed forces are Catholics which is more than double the proportion in the UK population.

Forces chaplains are commissioned officers and are released for this service by their dioceses or religious orders. But due to the decline in priest numbers, the pool for chaplains has shrunk while an ageing clergy has also led to a decline: the maximum age for a commissioned chaplain is 46. Mr Skillen, a former policeman and teacher, will serve at RAF Brize Norton. The Bishop of the Forces, Richard Moth, said his appointment “will help us to explore new possibilities for chaplaincy”.