God and Country

Michael Weinstein, frequent critic of religious freedom in the US military, has “threatened” so many lawsuits that he’s long become the boy who cries wolf.  (Besides, the “wolf,” in the case, has yet to survive the first Motion to Dismiss — four times.)

The US Army has once again raised Weinstein’s ire by — shockingly enough — researching the ability to train chaplains the same way it trains other soldiers.

Weinstein finally got around to commenting on a subject noted here a month ago:  The US Army is researching the ability to use simulations to train chaplains for battlefield scenarios, much like it does for medical personnel.  As noted at the time:

Chaplains [already] go through training on how to survive the bullets and explosions…This simulator…will give chaplains multiple opportunities to experience real-life scenarios and practice their ministry in a controlled environment.

Weinstein would have none of it:

“We are gong [sic] to put the pedal to the metal on something like this. If necessary, we will consider intervening in federal court,” said Mikey Weinstein…

Laughably, even the otherwise-friendly article noted Weinstein’s vendetta Read more…

Contrary to a prior prediction that Michael Weinstein would seethe at the thought of LtGen Robert Caslen taking the helm as Superintendent of West Point, it seems Weinstein has chosen to do the complete opposite:

I am pleased to announce that the Military Religious Freedom Foundation fully endorses the United States Senate’s confirmation of the President’s nomination of Lt. General Robert Caslen to the position of Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point.

If only it were that simple.  The “endorsement” (cross-posted) is a veritable portrait in self-contradiction and capriciousness.  Weinstein says he is “pleased,” but later says he has “non-trivial trepidation” — yet also “wishes him well.”  Demonstrating both his repetitive redundancy and intellectual inconsistency, Weinstein says he has no idea what Caslen will “actually do,” but “he incontrovertibly deserves and merits [sic] the chance to do it.”

During Gen Caslen’s involvement in the Christian Embassy controversy in 2006, Weinstein said those involved in the scandal were equivalent to al Qaida, Iraqi militant Muqtada al Sadr, and deserved to be court-martialed.  Two years later, Weinstein Read more…

Update: A Navy Chaplain spoke at a Virginia church service noting

“These chaplains were united in their belief that with God all things are possible,” and they served as an enduring witness to “the power of God to transcend chaos and calamity and produce in us the strength to do all things.”

The story of the four chaplains inspired three Colorado Springs-area military chaplains.

February 3rd marked the 70th anniversary of the sinking of the US Army Transport Dorchester – a tragedy made famous as much by the act of four chaplains as the fact 627 of the 900 men aboard died.

The four chaplains were Protestants George Fox and Clark Poling; Catholic priest John Washington; and a Jewish rabbi, Alexander Goode.  The chaplains famously gave up their own life vests and sank with the ship, arm in arm without regard to any person’s particular religious faith.

The Rev Robert Phillips of Peoria, IL, remembered the chaplains at the end of his service and remarked on the impact the chaplains had on the military as a whole:  Read more…

NBC reports the US military chapel at Forward Operating Base Orgun-E was improperly displaying Christian crosses, and the Army has ordered them removed and covered over:

U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan on Thursday ordered the removal of a steeple and crucifix erected over a remote American base in the Muslim country after a soldier deployed there noted that the symbols violated Army regulations…

Doors with cross-shaped windows were reportedly boarded up until they can be replaced.

This has happened before, and, as noted previously, it is not really a significant event.  The article accurately notes Army regulations (not DoD regulations) dictate Read more…

In addition to providing chaplains and psychologists, the US military is also making contract civilian clinical counselors available to those who want confidential counseling.  From the Army National Guard site on the subject, the DoD provides Military Family Life Consultants (MFLCs) who

are licensed clinicians with a Masters Degree and at least five years of experience in social work, counseling, or a related clinical discipline.

While psychologists or visits to base Mental Health might generate attention, the MFLC program is specifically designed to be Read more…

An official Army article about a helicopter downed in Afghanistan covers the work of the crew to survive as their chopper falls.  In retelling the story, the article contains this tidbit about the immediate aftermath of the crash in hostile territory:

Before [Chief Warrant Officer 2 Mike] McGann grabbed his weapon, he’d made sure he had one other “sensitive item” — a stuffed dragon that his 4-year-old daughter, Hope, had sent him.

“It flies with me all the time; it usually sits right on the console,” McGann said. “Before I grabbed my weapon, and before I did anything else, I grabbed (the dragon) and stuffed it under my armor.”

Apparently, some Army pilots are softies. 

Nice work, Dad.  That’s enough to make every father proud.

A quick article local to Fort Campbell notes the vast religious support structure provided to Army Soldiers at the sprawling base, as well as the troops’ demand for it:

There are over 50 chaplains and 50 chaplain assistants at Fort Campbell…There are seven chapels on post…

In addition to Catholic services, there are Protestant services for those who are Baptist, Presbyterian, United Methodist, Episcopal, Church of Christ, Assembly of God and other Protestant traditions, as well as Read more…

The Thomas More Law Center represents LtCol Matthew Dooley, the Joint Services Staff College instructor who was removed from his position following complaints about a class he taught entitled “Perspectives on Islam and Islamic Radicalism.”  Richard Thompson, president of the TMLC, now says it has

obtained an official communication that vindicates their client.  Read more…

A recent DoD article highlights a previously noted tradition of transferring the stole worn by some chaplains to his incoming replacement.  The ceremony is conducted much like the more familiar change of command:

Transferring the stole – a long, plain, black cloth worn around the neck – is similar to a command’s leadership passing the unit’s guidon Read more…

From around the world:

Operation Christmas Drop, the annual event in which C-130s drop packages to remote Pacific Islands, completed its 61st year.

Airmen from Yokota Air Base, Japan, were joined by the University of Guam, the local community and charitable organizations to provide more than 39,000 pounds of humanitarian supplies to islanders during Operation Christmas Drop Dec. 11 to 18.

A commenter on AF.mil site sarcastically noted it is only a matter of time before someone complains about the name of the operation hiding an attempt to conver the locals…

The Stars and Stripes had a few more details, including the Operation’s use of condemned Air Force parachutes, and the unfortunate consequences of using a chute that’s too small.

A San Antonio-based US Army Public Affairs Read more…

It has been noted here many times before that chaplains in the US military travel the world with US troops, even to one-off places [the South Pole].

It should go without saying that chaplains follow their troops into combat, as well.  Many are familiar with the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan and Part 3 of Band of Brothers, which dramatize the real-life service of chaplains serving under fire.  In the movies, they are unfazed (and unstruck) by the bullets landing around them:

From Saving Private Ryan, a chaplain gives last rites during the assault on Omaha Read more…

Retired US Army Chief Chaplain (MajGen) Douglas Carver, now the executive director of the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board, recently addressed a community gathering and encouraged local ministries to engage troops as they return from war.

“Treat them with dignity and respect because you don’t know what they have gone through…”  The church pew can be a lonely place for a solder, Carver observed. “We need to go to them. We need to connect Read more…

Construction is complete on the US Army’s newest chapel facility on Fort Bragg, and the chapel will open in time for holiday services.  The complex, billed as the first chapel built on the base since Vietnam, has a sprawling campus and a main sanctuary that has double the capacity of the Division Memorial Chapel it is intended to replace:

At 22,600 square-feet, the complex includes a worship and activity center, expansion area, gathering area, lobby, clergy and staff offices, baptistery and sacristy suites, meditation and reconciliation room, kitchen, choir room, nursery, and vestibules. With a seating capacity of 629, the new facility is twice as large as the old chapel, which only seats 300. The facility spans 9 acres located off Ardennes Road next to the 82nd Airborne Division Memorial Museum.

The chapel also boasts some significant historical content:

One of the most distinguishing features of the chapel is Read more…

An article at the Unitarian Universalist website notes an increase in Unitarian military chaplains and chaplain applicants after decades of under-representation.  The article reports the denomination now has 10 chaplains, with 7 more applying.  While a significant increase from the “one or two” chaplains before (including Army Chaplain Rebekah Montgomery), it still isn’t a high number.  The reason for the low interest?

It’s no secret that for many years after the Vietnam War many UUs harbored some hostility toward the war and the politicians who promoted it. In some cases veterans themselves were treated distantly in our congregations, even shunned.

One UU chaplain said they are needed to balance out “evangelicals”:  Read more…

The US Army recently released Field Manual 1-05 (FM 1-05), Religious Support, the

Army’s keystone manual for detailing fundamental principles of comprehensive religious support.

Much of the 40-page manual is little more than logistics and structural guidance on how chaplains and religious support are to be integrated into Army operations.  That the Army felt the need to publish such a document, however, is one indicator of the high value it places on such religious support.

The manual begins with an introduction on the history and importance of chaplains:

Chaplains have served in the U.S. Army since the first days of the American Revolution and many have died in combat. These chaplains represented more than 120 separate denominations and faith Read more…