Rabbi Becomes Army’s Newest Chaplain

Rabbi Michael Gisser officially became a Chaplain in the US Army Reserve on Veteran’s Day.  Why Veteran’s Day?

“I wouldn’t be here if not for the U.S. Army and the Allied forces,” said Gisser, the associate chaplain for Jewish life at Wake Forest University…

His father, a native of Lodz, Poland, was a prisoner in the Dachau concentration camp during World War II. He was down to 45 pounds and nearing death when American soldiers liberated the camp in April 1945.

Gisser wanted to “give back to American and its military,” so he decided to become a chaplain, though he had to become a US citizen first.

In describing the role of a chaplain, another Jewish chaplain, Chaplain (Col) Barry Baron, recounted an interesting perspective on providing support to those of other faiths:

“I used to carry around metal crosses and rosaries because people asked for them,” said Baron, who has been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Via ArmyChaplaincy.com.