Month: April 2010

Obama Praises Military Chaplain

During a wide-ranging interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer a few weeks ago, President Obama spoke once again of his family’s position regarding attending church regularly, or “joining” a particular church.  In one of the more underreported comments, he singled out a military Chaplain for strong praise:

We love the chapel up in Camp David. It’s probably our favorite place to worship because it’s just family up at Camp David. There’s a wonderful chaplain up there who does just a great job.

It is rare enough for a military officer to get such stark praise Read more

McChrystal Addresses Easter Service

A sunrise Easter service, which may trace its tradition back to the early 1700s, was celebrated at Fort Stewart, Georgia, with a unique speaker.

It turns out General Stanley McChrystal, who is currently the commander of US military forces in Afghanistan, has a brother who is a retired Colonel…and Chaplain. 

Marne Garden ushered in Easter morning with a message from Chaplain (Col.) Scott McChrystal (Ret.), that God is alive.  Read more

Army Chaplains Host Spiritual Fitness Runs

In an effort to combine physical and spiritual fitness, some Army Chaplains have hosted “spiritual fitness runs:”

Spiritual fitness runs look like other organized brigade runs and include stretching, warm-up and cool-down periods, but add the benefit of the chaplain’s message at the end.

In the referenced article about Fort Stewart, the brigade Chaplain, Chaplain (Capt) David Clark, spoke at the end of the run on the importance of knowing “the mission of our supervisor” as well as being aware of people so they can offer help, while also being willing to accept help when necessary.

The Chaplain’s message combined a spiritual paradigm and a military application, a perspective military Chaplains are often uniquely equipped to provide.

Via the Army Chaplaincy blog.

Military Places High Value on Character

As the debate about the possible changes to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” occurs in the public, there seems to be some confusion about what the military can control and discipline among its troops.  For example, some (primarily those not in the military) who want to see DADT repealed seem to think the military cannot dictate personal conduct when those actions aren’t “wrong.”

Ignoring for a moment the moral judgment required to make such an assertion, the statements display a certain ignorance about military standards Read more

Military Religion Question of the Day: Beliefs, Part 2

On the same day someone complained in a Facebook post that a military Chaplain was “blatantly proselytizing” (in fact, just 6 minutes after the post), another Facebook post made a similar complaint about a different Chaplain:

Fans, check out this, written by a government-[employed] Chaplain in an official government publication:

Writing for the Chaplain’s Corner at Marine Corps Base Quantico, The Marine Corps Recruiting Command Chaplain writes about why women were created (as an afterthought to keep men from being lonely), marriage as a Christian institution, and segues to a blatant Jesus salvation pitch.

The article referenced is that by Chaplain Read more

1 … 3 4 5 6