US Army Chaplain (Capt) Geoffrey Whitaker, the garrison Chaplain at COB Marez, Iraq, took a unique path to the Chaplaincy. He was originally a Navy SEAL; in 2003, he fell during a helicopter speed rope and crushed his skull. Doctors gave him a 10% chance of survival, with far less a chance he’d ever recover.
He rejoined his SEALs within 12 months.
He said he owes his recovery to the thousands of people praying for him around the world. Read more
The US Navy’s only Buddhist Chaplain is currently deployed to Afghanistan. She recently posted a short blog celebrating Buddha’s birth and noting the attendance of local Marines at the service.
As noted here often, the US military protects religious freedom of its servicemembers, even when that religious freedom may be contrary or offensive to locals or America’s adversaries. While some often connect such offense with Christianity, it was just a few years ago that the Taliban ordered the destruction of “false idol” statues of Buddha in Afghanistan–which had stood for 1,500 years.
A few articles recently described how a formation of US Air Force F-16s
came so close to a commercial flight over the US this week that they triggered a cockpit alarm in the commuter plane
The incident was later described in this way:
The commercial plane “encountered two F-16s and they had a near-miss incident,” [Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Tony] Molinaro said.
While the term “near miss” in FAA parlance bodes ill, the incident is rarely as dramatic as it sounds.
While the reports don’t say how close the aircraft Read more
The US military hasn’t completely abandoned experimental (and classified) missions, as evidenced by the announced April 19 launch of the X-37B, an orbital test vehicle. The vehicle appears to be a winged reusable vehicle with traditional landing gear. Commentators are somewhat confused as to its ultimate purpose, lending support to the theories it will support classified missions, as well as a variety of Air Force experimental operations.
The X-37B has been in development for years (and was even originally scheduled for a 2008 launch). Various reports indicated that the unmanned vehicle might be intended to stay in orbit for up to 9 months before conducting its own re-entry and landing.
During a wide-ranging interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer a few weeks ago, President Obama spoke once again of his family’s position regarding attending church regularly, or “joining” a particular church. In one of the more underreported comments, he singled out a military Chaplain for strong praise:
We love the chapel up in Camp David. It’s probably our favorite place to worship because it’s just family up at Camp David. There’s a wonderful chaplain up there who does just a great job.
It is rare enough for a military officer to get such stark praise Read more
A sunrise Easter service, which may trace its tradition back to the early 1700s, was celebrated at Fort Stewart, Georgia, with a unique speaker.
It turns out General Stanley McChrystal, who is currently the commander of US military forces in Afghanistan, has a brother who is a retired Colonel…and Chaplain.
Marne Garden ushered in Easter morning with a message from Chaplain (Col.) Scott McChrystal (Ret.), that God is alive. Read more
In an effort to combine physical and spiritual fitness, some Army Chaplains have hosted “spiritual fitness runs:”
Spiritual fitness runs look like other organized brigade runs and include stretching, warm-up and cool-down periods, but add the benefit of the chaplain’s message at the end.
In the referenced article about Fort Stewart, the brigade Chaplain, Chaplain (Capt) David Clark, spoke at the end of the run on the importance of knowing “the mission of our supervisor” as well as being aware of people so they can offer help, while also being willing to accept help when necessary.
The Chaplain’s message combined a spiritual paradigm and a military application, a perspective military Chaplains are often uniquely equipped to provide.
Via the Army Chaplaincy blog.
As the debate about the possible changes to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” occurs in the public, there seems to be some confusion about what the military can control and discipline among its troops. For example, some (primarily those not in the military) who want to see DADT repealed seem to think the military cannot dictate personal conduct when those actions aren’t “wrong.”
Ignoring for a moment the moral judgment required to make such an assertion, the statements display a certain ignorance about military standards Read more