While it potentially raises more questions than it provides answers, a Wall Street Journal opinion piece does a reasonable job of trying to present a balanced portrait of religion in the US military as it pertains to the requirements of the Constitution.

Isn’t it a First Amendment-violating “establishment of religion” for the military to appoint religious officials? No, it isn’t…The chaplains exist not for the military or the government generally, but to give military men and women access to their religion.

The problem is how to achieve this objective without creating an environment that seems to associate the military with particular religious views…

Although military personnel can’t be forced to muffle their religious beliefs, courts have long given the military more flexibility than other employers to regulate freedom of expression. The military can therefore discourage officers from expressing their faith in ways that create pressure on their subordinates…

Author David Skeel, a University of Pennsylvania Law School professor, even grants the military might be a model for society in its handling of religious freedom:  Read more