Last fall, US Army BGen Timothy Connelly transferred the stole of his command chaplain from outgoing Chaplain (Col) Charles “Chuck” Lynde to incoming Chaplain (Col) Charles Causey.

As has been discussed before, the changing of the stole appears to be a “tradition” largely only within the US Army. The passing of responsibility from one chaplain to another is a benign event, though it is notable that Commanding Generals participate — as they likely should, as the chaplain is their command chaplain.

A “stole” is a slightly odd thing for a non-liturgical chaplain to “receive” to begin with, since they wear no vestments — but putting a Christian stole on the shoulders of a Muslim chaplain, done a couple of years ago, was odder still.

Sometimes “tradition” prevails, it seems.

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