A Christian chaplain has received a formal apology from the nonprofit he worked for after being threatened with consequences for continuing to wear a tiny cross pin badge that they thought may “create a barrier” with patients. However, the chaplain defended his choice to the end and stood firm in his faith.
Former businessman Derek Timms, 73, of Solihull in England, has worked as a chaplain for the U.K.-based hospice charity Marie Curie for the past five years, providing care and support to patients of terminal illness and their families. He has worn a half-inch gold pin badge depicting the Christian cross for 14 years, including at work. But in September, his choice was challenged by the new management.
After the Solihull branch announced they would be changing the job titles of chaplains to “spiritual advisors” as part of an interfaith approach, Timms received a written instruction from a new Methodist minister: he should refrain from wearing his cross, in line with the ethos of hospice and healthcare chaplaincy.
Timms, who lost his wife in early 2021 responded, asking whether the censoring of religious accessories also applied to people of other faith, adding, “My faith helps me to help the patients and staff, whether they have faith or not.”
The minister responded by suggesting Timms compromise by keeping his cross pin in his pocket unless he was sharing the room with another person of Christian faith.
Timms then searched but found no reference to the prohibition of wearing crosses in Marie Curie Solihull documentation, the code of conduct for healthcare chaplains, chaplaincy guidelines, or the chaplaincy code of conduct.
However, Timms reiterated in a face-to-face meeting with the minister on Sept. 20 that he believed he had done nothing wrong.
The minister said that based on the refusal to comply, Timms would need “re-training.” The back-and-forth eventually escalated to Timms being warned that unless he removed his cross pin, he could not work at Marie Curie as a chaplain.
Timms handed in his identification badge and left the premises.
With the support of the Christian Legal Centre, Timms wrote a letter to Marie Curie explaining how the controversy over his cross pin had led to “a crisis of conscience.”
“I have had a crisis of conscience since I received this request ... I have serious and cogent reasons for wearing it and consider it a manifestation of my faith and a devotion to God,” Timms wrote. “The cross I wear around my neck is also highly meaningful to me as it represents a physical devotion to both my late wife, and to God, who brought us together and blessed our marriage.”
When the correspondence between the minister and the chaplain reached Marie Curie’s regional head office, a representative issued a formal apology in November 2022, to Timms, writing, “I can confirm that currently we have neither an organisational or uniform policy that would support our recent request to remove your cross while supporting patients and families in the Hospice. I apologise unreservedly for the distress that we have caused.”
Timms remains shocked and hurt by the ordeal.
“There was and is no need to suppress the symbol of the cross, and in so doing send a message that the Christian faith needs to be neutralised or removed entirely from a chaplaincy front line service,” he said. “When I became a Christian, I wanted to show people the faith that totally changed my life.”
Timms said no one was ever “offended” by his cross pin. He said that it has always been a privilege to support people of all and any faith through tough times. Timms appreciates the formal apology but now believes his service as a chaplain lies elsewhere.
“The easiest thing to do would have been to say, ‘I’ll take it off’, but I thought, ‘no’, I should be standing up for what I believe in," he said.
Timms had the support of the Christian Legal Centre throughout his ordeal. Chief Executive Andrea Williams, said: “He showed great courage by refusing to cave in to the significant pressure to remove what mattered so much to him.”
