Tag Archives: Buddhism

Military Missionaries Deployed Abroad

When the media mentions “military” and “missionary” in the same sentence, it often causes a near cacophony of criticism from conspiracy theorists about attempts at religious world domination.  Recent accusations of impropriety make the sensitivity of the subject evident.

A few decades ago, it wasn’t so.

General Douglas MacArthur, one of the few men to reach the nation’s highest military rank of General of the Armies, was the American face of reconstruction of post-war Japan.  The self-proclaimed “soldier of God and the republic” famously encouraged the influx of “a thousand missionaries” into Japan in the hopes that Christianity would overcome Shinto Buddhism in the Japanese isles.  Documents from the Truman library reportedly indicate the Joint Chiefs, the Secretary of the Army, and Truman himself supported MacArthur in this endeavor.  (Most modern summaries indicate the “Christianization” of Japan largely failed.)

Such an emphasis was likely influential on military members themselves.  A recent article in The Deseret News of Utah highlights the Mormon soldiers who “spread the gospel in post-war Japan.” Among those is the current President of the Mormon church, Read more

Army National Guard Gets First Muslim Chaplain

According to a DoD press release, Army 1LT Rafael Lantigua of the Texas National Guard will soon be the Army National Guard’s first Muslim Chaplain.  Lantigua has fulfilled all requirements save some classes required by the Chaplain board.  Lantigua, who had a Roman Catholic father and a mother who converted from Baptist to Buddhist, converted to Islam as a teenager.  He says he looks forward to being a model for “other members of [his] faith:”

“I am humbled for this opportunity to be a role model for other members of my faith throughout the military,” he said.

While he is by no means the first Islamic Chaplain in the US military, they remain relatively few in number.

Navy to Get More Buddhist Chaplains

US Navy Ensign Aroon Seeda is reportedly being commissioned into the Chaplain Candidate Program.  When he completes his requirements, he will reportedly be the second (or perhaps third) Buddhist Chaplain in the US Navy.  Like several other Buddhist Chaplains, Seeda will attend University of the West, a Buddhist school in southern California.

Likewise, Brett Campbell will enter the Candidate program at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. Naropa was founded Buddhist Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.

As reported by Buddhist Military Sangha [Campbell].

“Freedom” Group Seeks Ban on Religious Exercise in the US Military

Despite running a self-founded “religious freedom” organization, Michael Weinstein is apparently calling for the US military to restrict religious free exercise within its ranks.  His reason?  The Constitutionally-protected liberty offends al Qaeda.

Unlike most mainstream organizations, Weinstein’s Military Religious Freedom Foundation still revels in publicizing his organization’s communications, wearing both the hate mail and the kudos as badges of honor.  (They even republish comments from their website, because apparently being posted once isn’t good enough…)  Recently, MRFF board member Richard Baker responded to a contact with a lengthy message in which he included many standard MRFF talking points, like this one: Read more

Christian Military Perspective: Pagans, Religious Freedom, and Officership

Recent articles have highlighted the moral struggle faced by Christian men and women in the US military.  When the US Air Force Academy established an official area for pagan congregation, it aroused a wide variety of emotions, from those who found the pagan belief system repulsive to those who felt anyone should be free to do as they please.  Military Christians, too, experienced tension between the tenets of their faith and the dictates of their profession.

Following an article documenting the creation of the Academy pagan area, a commenter highlighted this very conflict (as she intended) when she asked:

That’s great news…It shows a willingness to be accepting of “other” faiths. Don’t you think it’s great news?

Is the creation of a pagan circle at the US Air Force Academy “great news?”  There are two distinct perspectives at issue, that of a Christian and that of a member of the military.  Ultimately, they form the perspective of a military Christian.  Read more

Buddhist Chaplain Leads Holy Day in Iraq

US Army Chaplain (1LT) Thomas Dyer — the Baptist-Pastor-turned-Buddhist-Priest who became the US Army’s first Buddhist Chaplain — led 200 people in a celebration of the holiest day of the Buddhist calendar while deployed to Iraq in May.

US military members from across Iraq were invited to the celebration and were allowed to travel to the base specifically for the observance.

The official effort the US military puts into allowing — even encouraging — its members to participate in the religious services of their choosing is significant.  Military members can take comfort in knowing that their leadership has their spiritual resiliency in mind and will, to the extent the mission allows, protect their free exercise.

Still, all is not without controversy. Read more

Life of a Conservative Christian in the Military Isn’t Always Easy

A newspaper highlights local Dewayne Wolf, who is going through the Chaplain school at Fort Jackson, SC, to become an Army Chaplain.  Already Wolf seems to recognize the challenge in integrating faith and profession, and also his purpose as a Chaplain:

The lifestyle is kind of rough, especially in the infantry. To break away from that lifestyle really makes a distinction…It’s not the easiest environment to stand for what you believe. Nowhere is it easy to be a conservative Christian. That’s why they need good chaplains in the military.

That said, it appears Wolf — who was formerly a Chaplain’s assistant — may yet have something to learn at the Chaplain school:

As a chaplain, your main focus is evangelism.  Read more

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