Islamic US Army soldiers in Iraq, including Spc. Linda Boyed and Spc. Fatima Benasser, two Arabic interpreters, note the challenges in exercising their faith during Ramadan while still executing their mission.
Finding time to pray in a high op tempo can be difficult, Read more
Sgt. Jason Boatwright, a US Army Chaplain’s Assistant, has been named both the Installation Management Command and National Capital Region Soldier of the Year.
This humble Heidelberg garrison chaplain assistant has earned the chance to compete in the Department of the Army “Warrior Challenge” competition at Fort Lee, Va., Sept. 28 – Oct. 2.
According to the Command Sergeant Major, Read more
US military Chaplains serve a variety of roles for the military members they serve. They are spiritual advisors, shoulders to lean on, and counselors for all matters.
To that end, the Army notes that Chaplains in Iraq have helped provide video conferencing, along with Chaplains on either end of the line, for soldiers looking for marriage counseling during their separation. Family stresses remain one of the top concerns for troops in the field, who are often in combat areas for a year or more.
Previously, a question was posed about the propriety of a photo that showed Maj. Gen. Vincent Brooks and a flag with a Christian cross. The photo and initial post can be seen here. The accusation said that a regulation had been violated because it was
a photo of an Army officer giving a briefing while standing in front of a Christian flag.
So, did the General, as the accusers assert, violate military regulations?
The shortest, most accurate answer: Read more
Thomas Dyer grew up Presbyterian and enlisted in the Marines. Feeling threatened by the training he was receiving to kill, he left the Marines and attended Mid-America Baptist Seminary, eventually becoming a Baptist preacher. His inability to find happiness as a Christian led him to convert to Buddhism. Having obviously given up his job as a Protestant preacher, he joined the Army National Guard and was commissioned a Chaplain in 2008. He will deploy to Iraq in January.
The article on Dyer is quite interesting, detailing both his wife’s reaction (she stands by him, though she hopes he’ll return to Christianity) and Dyer’s own lifelong search for fulfillment. Read more
President Barack Obama hosted an iftar at the White House Tuesday night, celebrating the end of Ramadan. Among the guests were Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Navy Chaplain (Lt. Cmdr.) Abuhena Saifulislam, the second Islamic Chaplain in the US Navy, and Elsheba Khan, whose 20-year-old son, Army Spc. Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, was killed in Iraq on 6 August 2007.
Chaplain Saif, a Bangladeshi immigrant, was one of two Chaplains Read more
As previously noted here, Time has picked up on the apparent plans of the Navy and Air Force to acquire slower, prop-driven aircraft to aid in the counterinsurgency fight. Again, as already pointed out here, Time points out the similarity between the Air Force plans and the venerable Skyraider from Vietnam.
Purists will readily admit that despite the coolness of the term, such an aircraft wouldn’t technically be a “fighter.” It would be an attack aircraft.
In the vein of the American Atheist’s complaint against NASA, a variety of similarly-minded groups continue to bring accusations of wrongdoing against government-associated religious organizations. For example, the ACLU has criticized the Gideons providing religious materials while in some association with a government entity (including the Gideons’ interaction with the US military).
Controversies notwithstanding, the ubiquitous nature of the Gideons ministry almost inevitably leads to the never-gets-old joke:
How do they get those Bibles in all those locked hotel rooms?
Well, in 1996 evidence arose that the Gideons were successful in getting a Bible into one of the most inaccessible nightstands in the world; in fact, it’s not even in the world. Read more