Tag Archives: rebekah montgomery

Unitarian Chaplains Multiply in US Military

An article at the Unitarian Universalist website notes an increase in Unitarian military chaplains and chaplain applicants after decades of under-representation.  The article reports the denomination now has 10 chaplains, with 7 more applying.  While a significant increase from the “one or two” chaplains before (including Army Chaplain Rebekah Montgomery), it still isn’t a high number.  The reason for the low interest?

It’s no secret that for many years after the Vietnam War many UUs harbored some hostility toward the war and the politicians who promoted it. In some cases veterans themselves were treated distantly in our congregations, even shunned.

One UU chaplain said they are needed to balance out “evangelicals”:  Read more

Military Chaplain of the Year, 2009

Army Chaplain (Capt.) Rebekah Montgomery has been selected by the Military Chaplain’s Association as their Chaplain of the Year.  The Unitarian-Universalist is a member of the Maryland’s Army National Guard.  She is the brigade chaplain for the 58th Troop Command in Maryland, and also works at the National Guard Bureau.  About the difficulty of quantifying a Chaplain’s role, she said

“We don’t see the direct results, but we trust God is using us in a profound and positive way,” she said. “You can’t quantify how many divorces didn’t happen. You can’t quantify how many suicides didn’t happen.”