Tag Archives: hebrew

US Soldier’s Path to Service, through the Israeli Army

A Department of Defense article highlights the unique story of Daniel J. Houten, an enlistee with the Georgia National Guard.  He’s now in basic training — but he hardly took the traditional route to get there:

Houten…wanted to join the U.S. Army — but without a GED and 15 hours of college credit, he was ineligible.

An acquaintance told Houten the Israeli Army recruited new soldiers simply because they were Jewish…
 
Although his religious faith had diminished somewhat, he still identified himself as a Jew and felt strong connections to Israel, the homeland of his people, culture and religion. He decided this should be his next step in life.

Houten learned Hebrew and was Read more

Arlington Dedicates Jewish Chaplains’ Memorial

As noted last week, Arlington National Cemetery’s Jewish Chaplains’ Memorial was added to Chaplains’ Hill and dedicated yesterday.  Despite the claims of some military atheists, speakers at the event noted there are chaplains on the front lines of America’s battles, serving the troops who serve their country:

“The 14 men we honor today were rabbis in uniform,” said Maj. Gen. Cecil Richardson, the Air Force chief of chaplains. “These men did much more than preach sermons. … They walked where warriors walked, and that is what made them military chaplains.  Read more

Jewish Arlington Memorial to be Dedicated Next Week

The Jewish Chaplains Memorial that will join the others at Chaplain’s Hill in Arlington will be dedicated in a ceremony next Monday, 24 October.

The memorial is a bronze plaque with the names of the 14 Jewish Chaplains who died while on duty from 1943 to 1974; at the top are two lions bracketing the Jewish chaplains’ insignia, which is two tablets with a Star of David on top.

As a point of trivia, none of the chaplains memorialized Read more

Military Chief Faces Criticism over Role of God in Military Funerals

The head of the armed forces is embroiled in a controversy over the proper place of “God” in military funeral rites — but its likely not the problem you think.

The Israeli military is embroiled in a public battle over whether God ought to be mentioned at memorial rites for fallen soldiers…

The controversy is over whether Yizkor, the Hebrew prayer of remembrance, should begin at military ceremonies with the words “May God remember” or “May the people of Israel remember.”

Military policy calls for the version mentioning God to be used, but enforcement has been patchy in an apparent nod to the sentiments of the Jewish state’s secular majority.

It is a seemingly odd controversy for a nation that is often assumed to be religious in some form.

Back home in the US, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs in Texas is Read more