US Army Chaplain Assistant Followed God’s Call

A Chaplain assistant has an interesting story of his eventual enlistment in the US Army:  God led him to it.  From the Army article entitled “God Made a Path to the Army, It Made a Path to Peace:”

After Hurricane Ike, [Spc. Kendall] Jackson was laid off and out of work yet again. Desperate, Jackson said he started reading his Bible, looking for answers, but everything he read talked about fighting in the Army.

While he was out looking for work “with everyone else,” a stranger approached him, touched his shoulder, and said, “Do what God has told you to do.” Jackson shook off this odd encounter. Then, after a Read more

History Channel “Pawn Stars” Buy AMRAAM?

A few different entertainment news sources are reporting that the purveyors of the reality TV series Pawn Stars purchased a US Air Force air-to-air missile recently.  As with many discussions of military hardware, its difficult to tell what, precisely, anyone is talking about:

Sources confirm to FOX411 that the stars of the History Channel’s reality show “Pawn Stars” have purchased a guidance system for a missile used on F-4 Phantom fighter planes.

TMZ originally reported that Rick Harrison and his team made the deal for an AIM-120 AMRAAM missile last week, although the missile did not contain a live war head.

An AIM-120 is not a guidance system, and AMRAAMs were not Read more

US Drones Flying in War…over Mexico

The New York Times reports the United States has, with the knowledge of the Mexican government, begun flying drones over its southern neighbor to “gather intelligence” on Mexico’s ongoing drug war.

Officials on both sides of the border also said that Mexico asked the United States to use its drones to help track suspects’ movements. The officials said that while Mexico had its own unmanned aerial vehicles, they did not have the range or high-resolution capabilities necessary for certain surveillance activities.

One American military official said the Pentagon had flown Read more

Chaplain Sponsors “Duty Day with God”

Chaplain (Capt.) Tony Cech came up with an innovative way to introduce himself to the men and women he serves.  He has led trips to the local Mount Mauna Kea observatories, which are the highest peaks in the area at nearly 14,000 feet.  These “Duty Day with God” trips serve several purposes:

The Army has developed innovative ways to help improve and maintain a soldier’s mental health throughout the years. One way is to help strengthen the spiritual health of a soldier with the help of Army chaplains…

[Cech’s] ‘Duty Day with God’ helps reduce stress and serves another purpose for Cech.

“I wanted to be able to take soldiers on a trip to help them relax and for me to try and build a relationship with them,” said Cech. “I wanted the soldiers to see an approachable chaplain for anything that is bothering them. I also wanted them to see that the chaplain goes everywhere the soldiers are.”

Read the full story.

Fort Bragg Issues Statement on Atheist Rock Beyond Belief

After Col Stephen Sicinski’s letter approving the atheist “Rock Beyond Belief” event was publicized, the Fort Bragg Garrison Commander reportedly responded directly to both RBB and the Secular Coalition for America, which has been publicly critical of his decision.  His message has not been made public by those organizations, despite the fact multiple groups continue to inaccurately portray Fort Bragg’s decision.  (Col Sicinski previously lamented the fact Fort Bragg was being “misrepresented.”)

Col Sicinski’s message, which reaffirms some points and contains some interesting details not previously made public, is below in its entirety (unedited):

Message from Col. Stephen Sicinski, Fort Bragg Read more

DADT: Chaplain Endorsers, Training Begins, and Troop Inputs

The Alliance Defense Fund has filed an amicus brief in the Log Cabin Republicans lawsuit which had temporarily resulted in an injunction against the enforcement of the ban on homosexuality in the military. The brief was on behalf of a fairly long list of Chaplain endorsing agencies — the organizations required to provide endorsements of potential Chaplains before the military will accept them.  The list of Chaplain groups included:  Read more

Chaplain Team Reaches Troops through Holy Crap

Enter any military unit (but especially an aviation one) and you’re likely to find the bathroom stalls stuffed with reading materials.  In some cases you might find laminated copies of aircraft emergency procedures; in others, it might just be generic left over magazines ranging from Guns and Ammo to Newseek; in almost all cases you’ll find copies of the most recent safety publications.  (In years past, various levels of adult magazines could be found in most fighter units.  That practice has largely, though not entirely, faded away).

A US Army Chaplain’s team composed of Chaplain (Capt) Jason Hohnberger and his assistant Sgt David Cavazos recently took advantage of the traditional practice:

Holy Crap: Chaplain’s Thought of the Week, where Read more

USAFA Religious Environment to be Reviewed, Again

According to the local Colorado Springs Independent, and repeated at other news sites, a former US Air Force Academy commandant and retired four-star General has been tasked to return to USAFA and review the religious climate.

As requested by the assistant secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Ret. Gen. Patrick Gamble will visit the academy to assess the religious climate.

“His visit is not an investigation or compliance inspection, but an independent, subjective look at the overall climate at USAFA relating to free exercise of religion,” the Air Force says in a statement. “A detailed report is not expected.”

Many of the networks that repeated the story, however, missed the far more interesting details…

Also noted at the Religion Clause.

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