5 December 2024
Air Force Chaplain Karen Haynes became the first woman to be ordained by the Queensland Baptists, as well as the first female chaplain in the RAAF to do so last month.
A momentous occasion for her and her faith, Chaplain Haynes spoke candidly about the service, her study, and the journey she’s been on to be ordained.
“It is a big encouragement note, people travelling from all over to pray for me, and to recognise their supervision and mentorship,” she said.
“It represents the church having a vote of confidence in you, saying ‘yes, we’re setting you apart to do this work. We believe in you; you can do this’. It’s got a really lifelong calling element to it, so I acknowledge I might be in Defence for a number of years.”
Chaplain Haynes joined the Air Force in June 2016 and has since been posted to RAAF Bases Wagga and Williamtown, and the ADF Academy, and is currently at 13 Squadron in RAAF Base Darwin.
'It represents the church having a vote of confidence in you, saying "yes, we’re setting you apart to do this work. We believe in you; you can do this".'
In her Air Force chaplaincy role, Chaplain Haynes provides pastoral care and counselling services to the base, and has recently welcomed a chaplaincy welfare dog, Connie, into her office.
Chaplain Haynes has been working towards the ordination of women in the Queensland Baptist group for many years, but acknowledged the importance of consensus in the community.
Then in May 2024, after about 80 years of opportunities to consider whether women could be set apart for pastoral ministry, the Queensland Baptist Assembly voted to allow women’s ordination.
“Women and men have always been involved in all types of service in the church, but many churches have differentiated between men and women’s roles, particularly in roles of spiritual leadership,” Chaplain Haynes said.
“I’ve got a really strong passion for justice, and this pursuit was something I did in Queensland Baptist all the time. I was on the committees; I was arguing for greater inclusion of women in all areas of ministry. I was arguing for people to be included who traditionally weren’t.”
Chaplain Haynes joined the Air Force in search of a new challenge and the next place to grow, by helping people through difficult processes.
'For me, part of the challenge of discerning pastoral ministry from the get go was I’d never met a female pastor before.'
She reflected that it has been an unexpected privilege to be with serving members during their saddest moments, to listen to them and help them through any hardship that may be going on in their lives.
From here, Chaplain Haynes hopes to be a role model for her faith communities, both in the church in Darwin, wherever she happens to post next, and for the Queensland Baptist community more broadly.
“For me, part of the challenge of discerning pastoral ministry from the get go was I’d never met a female pastor before,” she said.
“So if I can give them an example of someone who’s done that, hopefully that makes it easier, helping other women who possibly could be ordained.”
Chaplain Haynes has goals to post into an instructor role at the Defence Force Chaplains College, and offers advice that change is sometimes the work of a lifetime.
“[The ordination] was a very unique moment, an end and a beginning. There are women and men who have been arguing, praying, pleading for decades for the ability to pray the prayer we just did,” she said.
“To them, those who are here and those who couldn’t be, I say ‘well done and thank you’.”
