US Senate Chaplain Barry Black recently made waves for his daily prayers scolding the US Congress during the government “shutdown.”

Though it was just as newsworthy, another address by Chaplain Black — himself a former US Navy Chief of Chaplains — was lost in the simultaneous hubbub over Michael Weinstein and his meeting with the US Air Force.

In his address to the Heritage Foundation in April, Chaplain Black noted plainly that Christian doctrine might one day be considered “hate speech:”

Military chaplains…may have problems with being accused of “hate speech” for teaching what scripture says about homosexuality, Barry Black [said]…

I can see many military chaplains having some problems because, to teach the passages of Paul with exegetical integrity would mean being accused of engaging in hate speech. So, this is a challenge that I think we’re going to have to deal with going forward.

Notably, he encouraged Christians to bring their faith into the workplace:

[Black] encouraged Christians to bring their faith into the workplace by being “salt and light” and by witnessing without words. By being ethically congruent and focusing on one’s actions, Black said, Christians can make a difference in their workplaces without using words.

Black’s encouragement to live a Christ-like life in whatever one’s situation is a theme that has been echoed here before.

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