The Military Chaplain - Military Chaplain Association

The Military Chaplain
Volume Eighty-Two ★ Number One ★ March 2009
… we can become
“unhealed wounders”
rather than
“wounded healers.”
The best way to
meet this danger
head-on is to have
our lives and
ministries
“transformed” by
the continuous
renewing of our
minds.
see page 5
In Memoriam
Bradford E. Ableson
CAPT CHC USN
Member 1986 - Life Member 2005
Bellevue NE 17 February 2009
Gregory J. Einck
Col USAF Ret
Member 1977 - Life Member 1989
Dubuque IA NDG
Charles E. Fix
COL USA Ret
Member 1960 - Life Member 1968
Deland FL NDG
James V. Harvester
COL USA Ret
Member 1964 - Life Member 1981
Emerson Foundation #81
Tampa FL NDG
H. Earl Morris, Jr.
LCDR USNR Ret
Member 1957 - Life Member 1971
National Executive Committee
Colfax CA 30 September 2008
James T. Myers
Lt Col USAF Ret
Member 1991 - Life Member 1991
Albuquerque NM NDG
Goldwin S. Pollard
COL USA Ret
Member 1973 - Life Member 1979
Emerson Foundation #102
Rydal PA 1 December 2008
John W. Simons
COL USA Ret
Member 1974 - Life Member 2005
Pittsboro NC 30 December 2008
Edward G. Wulfekuehler, Jr.
COL USA Ret
Member 1980 – Life Member 1982
Emerson Foundation #16
Kihei HI 26 November 2008
Membership
Information as of
20 February 2009
2
New Life Members
William P. Barrett, Lt Col USAF Ret, Forth Worth TX
Episcopal (Anglo Catholic)
Lemuel Boyles, Col USAF Ret, Albuquerque NM
Pentecostal Church of God
Curtis N. Price, CDR USN Act, Okatie SC
Southern Baptist Convention
Richard Stiliha, MAJ USA Ret, Clearwater FL,
Independent
Marvin K. Vickers Jr., COL USA Ret, Enterprise AL
United Methodist Church
Michael G. Viise, Col USAF Ret, Charlottesville VA
Evangelical Lutheran Church of America
New Members
Theodore Boback Jr., LTC USA Ret, Louisville KY
Orthodox Church in America
Gary R. Councell, COL USA Ret, Manassas VA
Seventh-day Adventist
Daryl W. Densford, CPT USA Act, Germany
Church of the Nazarene
Randall D. Ekstrom, LT USN Act, Pensacola FL
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
David L. Gibson, CDR USN Act, Pensacola FL
Church of God Cleveland TN
Thomas F. Harrison, Capt CAP Act, Shreveport LA
Southern Baptist Convention
Richard House, LT USN Act, Kailua HI
Roman Catholic
Brett L. Johnson, 1LT(P) USARNG, Virginia Beach VA
Elim Fellowship (NAE)
Randall F. Matheny, Capt CAP Act, Warren PA
Churches of Christ
Bradford L. Riza, Col USAF Ret, Granburg TX
Texas Baptist
Derek P. Schultz, LT USN Act, Great Lakes IL
Assemblies of God
Kendall C. Thomas, VA Act, Montgomery AL
National Baptist Convention USA Inc.
Carl “Bob” R. Wall, Capt CAP Act, Rapid City SD
United Methodist
New Associate Members
Kristian L. Carlson, CCPO LTJG USNR, Huggins MO
Evangelical Free Church
Brian J. Gelzhiser, CCPO 2 Lt USAF, Broomall PA
United Methodist Church
Matthew C. Ballard, MAJ (P) USA, El Paso TX,
World Christianship Ministries
Rev. Alex W. Brandon, U.S. Corps of Chaplains, Phelan CA
Christian (WCICC)
Eddie G. Gillette, 2Lt CAP Act, Ooltewah TN,
Grace Works Church - Chattanooga TN
The Military Chaplain
From Our National President
“Parsing the Pix”
Dear MCA Members and Friends,
Thank you for the countless ways that you minister to Warriors,
advocate chaplaincy, support chaplains, and otherwise serve our
Nation. In the December 2008 issue of The Military Chaplain, I
addressed the concept of “MCA: A Bridge Organization for Bridge
People.” That magazine and our MCA website included many photos
L to R - Chaplain McCoy, Vice President Cheney, Veterans
of
chaplains serving as “Bridge People” for the 2008 Veterans Day
Affairs Secretary Peake.
National Ceremony. One of those is among the most important
photos for that day and our present era as chaplains. We are particularly grateful to Matt Bristol, Department of Veterans
Affairs, for providing our access to this and many other Veterans Day ceremony photos.
Below you see twelve chaplains forming an Honor Cordon in front of the traditional Procession of Flags. The procession
included Color Bearers from over three dozen Veterans Service Organizations. Our chaplains led the way into the
Arlington National Cemetery Amphitheater. Then they stood on both sides of the front aisles as a Veterans of Foreign
Wars Honor Guard joined them and our MCA Color Bearers along with all of the other Color Bearers passed through.
This was a huge symbolic gesture and statement that some people might have missed. In a decidedly “Veteranoriented” event, our active duty chaplains provided a cordon, a bridge of honor for all of the Color Bearers. That is the
ministry of chaplains. We are connectors between peoples of many backgrounds and faith traditions, between Armed
Services, between agencies, and finally between people and God.
Thank you chaplain colleagues for your unique ministries!
From Left to Right and Front to Back:
CAPT Margaret Kibben, USMC [Navy] / MAJ Ann Tang, Army
CPT Bret Perkuchin, Army / CDR Travis Moger, Navy
CDR Tom Webber, USCG [Navy] / Capt Brian Swain, Air Force
Rev. Fr. Michael Pollitt & Rev. Clarence Cross, Veterans Affairs
Lt Col Ken Stone, Air Force / Lt Col Gary Hedges, Civil Air Patrol
LTC Ron Leggett, Army / Lt Col Rob Edwards, Civil Air Patrol
Let me here also point you towards another “Bridge People” event.
That is the second co-location of the Veterans Affairs National
Chaplain Leadership Convocation with the MCA Annual Meeting and
National Institute. It takes place from 21-24 April in Westlake, Texas.
Registration information is available at pages 8 and 9 as well as on
our website. We will focus on meeting the mental and spiritual needs
of Warriors returning from Afghanistan and Iraq. We are looking
forward to hearing from scholar-practitioners such as Dr. Kent
Drescher, staff psychologist at the National Center for PTSD in Menlo
Park, CA and several other leading authorities in the field. The Rev.
Dr. Robert Certain, retired Air Force chaplain, former POW in
Vietnam, and presiding clergy for the funeral services of President
Gerald R. Ford is our Emerson Foundation Luncheon speaker.
Watch for details at www.mca-usa.org in coming weeks. We hope
you will join us. Meanwhile, God bless and keep you!
Michael L. McCoy, Sr.
“Chaplain for Life”
The Military Chaplain
3
A WORD FROM THE CHIEF: JANUARY 2009
Wednesday, January 07 2009
Editor’s Note: One of the most important books
purchased during my first year of seminary was a small
paperback entitled Your Mind Matters by John R. W. Stott.
Over the years, I have often marveled that this rather
small and inexpensive Inter-Varsity Press book could
have so much importance for that period of my spiritual
formation and training for ministry. This compared to so
many expensive and weighty (literally) references like the
Brown, Driver, and Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon.
For this issue, I elected to use someone else’s material in
lieu of an editorial. In January, CH (MG) Douglas Carver
“posted a letter” to the entire Army Chaplain Corps family
that is certainly reminiscent of Stott’s perspective. We
are grateful to Chaplain Carver for permission to circulate
this across MCA’s Joint and Inter-agency network. And, I
don’t mind admitting that Romans 12:1-3 [which Chaplain
Carver references] has been a particularly “quick,
powerful, and two-edged” portion of God’s Word
throughout most of my Christian journey.
As we begin 2009 this month, I know all of us are very
aware of the economic difficulties we face as a nation as
we confront a growing global recession. With the
inauguration of our new president-elect later this month,
the government will have significant political, diplomatic,
and policy challenges at home and abroad. Our Army
continues to face a near-term future of strategic
uncertainty and on-going counterinsurgency warfare that
will require additional sacrifices by our Soldiers, Family
Members and DA Civilians. As a Corps, we have our own
challenges of recruiting desperately needed chaplains for
our Reserve components, coping with our continued
critical shortage of Roman Catholic priests, and
addressing the ongoing need to maintain the spiritual
health of our chaplains and chaplain assistants as they
deal with deployments and the demands of providing
spiritual leadership at home and downrange. We will
need to draw strength from every available resource to
face these challenges and others that will undoubtedly
arise over the course of the next year.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Happy New Year to all the
members of our Chaplain
Corps Family! I am always
blessed at this time of year
when I reflect on events of
the previous twelve months.
Whether it is from looking
through my appointment
planner, reading the “Year
in Review” in a magazine,
reviewing the thick file of
TDY vouchers from my trips
across the country and
around the world, scanning
the Decision Point matrix of
the Chaplaincy Campaign Plan initiatives we have
launched or completed, or reflecting with Sunny
[Chaplain Carver’s wife] on the many answered prayers
we have seen in the past year, the impact is always the
same. The realization of God’s working in my life and
those of so many others He has brought me into contact
with over the course of the year never fails to fill me with
a sense of awe and a renewed appreciation of the
Apostle Paul’s words in Romans 11:33: “Oh, the depth of
the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond
tracing out!” (New International Version) The beginning of
another year is a time to reflect on what God has done in
our lives and to look ahead with a sense of prayerful
expectancy at what He may have in store for us in the
coming year.
4
In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul encourages
his readers to find such strength for ministry through a
“renewal” of their minds and thinking that will enable
them to better see God’s working in their circumstances
as they carry out His will for their lives.
1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of
God, to present your bodies a living and holy
sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual
service of worship.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that
you may prove what the will of God is, that which is
good and acceptable and perfect.
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone
among you not to think more highly of himself than
he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound
judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of
faith.
(Romans 12:1-3, New American Standard Bible)
In the coming year God will be accomplishing His will for
our ministries and our lives as we offer them to Him as
our “spiritual service of worship.” One of the dangers we
face as spiritual leaders is that the stresses of ministry
can tempt us to “conform to this world” in our thinking in
a way that robs our ministry of its effectiveness. Spiritual
fatigue can make us callous and unfeeling to the
suffering of others. The pessimism and cynicism that
often surround us can overwhelm us and rob us of the
The Military Chaplain
and emotionally strong so that you retain that
“sound judgment” referred to by Paul? Expect to
see some good resources and training on this
topic at our Chaplaincy Annual Sustainment
Training conferences this year.
joy of serving God. Ego and “careerism” can corrupt our
thinking, giving us such an inflated opinion of ourselves
that we end up being feeders on the flock rather than
feeders of the flock. In the words of the late Henri
Nouwen, a Roman Catholic priest and devotional writer,
we can become “unhealed wounders” rather than
“wounded healers.” The best way to meet this danger
head-on is to have our lives and ministries “transformed”
by the continuous renewing of our minds.
After taking some holiday leave that really
helped overcome the effects of accumulated “jetlag” and allowed Sunny and me to spend a
wonderful Christmas with Family and friends, we
are both eager to get started on the new year.
Who knows what the Lord has in store for us in
2009? Whatever this year brings, Sunny and I
want you to know that you and your Families will
remain in our prayers through it all. We hope you
are filled with as much excitement as we are at
the prospects of what God is going to do in our
Army this year through your labors of sacrificial
service. We count ourselves truly blessed to be
involved with all of you in service to Almighty God. May
He grant that the year 2009 will be one of unimaginable
grace, fruitful ministry, and renewed opportunities to
serve Him in ways we cannot yet conceive or even
imagine. As the Holy Scripture declares, “…for with God,
all things are possible!”
PRO DEO ET PATRIA.
I will not attempt to define what such a “transformation”
might mean for each of you in your particular faith
expression, but I am sure that all of our traditions support
the idea of staying strong and healthy mentally in our
thinking and emotions. In the
coming year, I will be
encouraging all of us to
examine how we are
renewing, revitalizing, and
strengthening our minds for
service to God. I will be
sharing my ideas on the
subject with you during my
visits to the field and I will be
interested to hear your
thoughts as well. If we are
engaged in what many are
calling the “Long War”, then
we need to strengthen our
minds as well as our hearts,
souls, and bodies so that we
are fully equipped to provide
spiritual leadership to the
Army Family for the duration
of this war, no matter how
long “long” turns out to be in
the end. How will you renew
and strengthen your mind for
the long haul? What are you
going to do to stay mentally
The Military Chaplain
5
Chaplain’s guardian remains ready to fight
Originally posted on the U. S. Marine Corps Official
Website by Corporal Aaron Rooks, USMC, 2nd
Marine Logistics Group. We deeply appreciate this
tribute and permission to print in honor of the
Religious Program Specialist 30th Anniversary.
Reprinted here with format modification.
MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 9,
2009) - If you search across the landscape of any
battlefield where Marines fight, you’re bound to find a
Navy chaplain nearby. If you search a little closer, you
will notice an armed enlisted sailor standing close to him,
always keeping a watchful eye and standing ready to
defend the chaplain’s life at all costs.
“It’s my job to ensure the chaplain is always safe,” said
Seaman Apprentice Maxwell Antonucci, the religious
program specialist for the chaplain of 2nd Maintenance
Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 25, 2nd Marine
Logistics Group. “The chaplain is a noncombatant.
There’s a lot of responsibility involved because he places
his life in my hands.”
Navy chaplains play a vital role in the Marine Corps’
ability to accomplish its mission abroad. They go
wherever the Marines go, serving as not only a religious
leader, but also as a life coach. Navy Lt. Calvin B.
Gardner, Sr., the 2nd Maintenance Battalion chaplain,
uses the phrase ministry of presence to define the effect
chaplains have on Marine operating forces.
The Detroit native can always be found where the
Marines are. He stated that he always rides in the back
of 7-tons with Marines and participates in the convoy
briefs before they go out to conduct a mission, just to
name a few ways. Because of this approach, Gardner is
always available when a Marine needs help. “If life
issues are not dealt with properly, you will have a less
effective Marine,” he said. “Regardless of rank or age,
they are in a game called life. If you don’t know how to
deal with it, it will cause problems.”
Seaman Apprentice Maxwell Antonucci stands next to an art piece of a
Marine in full combat gear. Provided by Cpl Aaron Rooks, USMC
Gardner said many of Antonucci’s current jobs, like
organizing religious events, bible studies, pre-marital
classes, and drafting and filing correspondence, will all
stay the same when he deploys. The major difference in
his job will come in the form of maturity. He said
Antonucci will be responsible for another person’s life at
all times, so he has to maintain a responsible and mature
attitude at all times.
Antonucci says he’s ready and waiting. The idea of
watching over a chaplain who’s in harm’s way brings him
a personal satisfaction that he feels can’t be found in
many occupations. “A chaplain has a big impact on
morale,” Antonucci explained. “If something happened to
him, it would devastate the unit. It’s more important for
chaplains to take care of people than to worry about the
fight itself. I’m going to do my job so that he can do his.”
But without his RP, Gardner would be ineffective. Known
as a Religious Ministry Team, Antonucci and Gardner
work together to accommodate the religious practices of
Marines and facilitate free exercise of their religions.
They also serve non-religious needs of Marines and
sailors, dealing with relationships, ethical problems and
the overall totality of Marines.
The 2007 graduate of Pittsburgh’s Charleroi Area High
School didn’t foresee himself being in his current position
more than a year ago. At the time, he was working part
time in construction and teaching Sunday school
regularly at his church for teenagers under the age of 18.
Antonucci knew he wanted to get out of Pittsburgh and
do something with his life. He later decided that the
military, the U.S. Navy in particular, was the best option.
He said he was hooked once he found out there was a
job in the Navy to support and protect religious leaders.
He later attended Navy boot camp at Recruit Training
Command Great Lakes, Ill. from January to March 2008,
followed by RP “A” School at Naval Air Station Meridian,
Miss. from March to April 2008.
Antonucci, who was actively involved with the 1st United
Methodist Church in Bentleyville, Pa. his entire life, is
scheduled to deploy to either Iraq or Afghanistan later
this year. His job as an RP in a deployed combat
environment will center around protecting the chaplain so
that the chaplain can positively affect the Marines.
He arrived at 2nd Maintenance Battalion in August 2008.
Since then he has constantly applied his knowledge and
skills as an RP, learning many new things along the way.
He believes that after having this time to learn his job in a
calmer environment, he will have an easier time doing so
in a combat zone.
6
The Military Chaplain
“I’ve enjoyed being able to see the positive effect a
chaplain can have on individuals,” he said. “Marines will
even come to me for help at times, and even though I
can’t give them counsel, it feels good knowing they’re
comfortable asking me for help. That’s just one of the
reasons why I love my job.”
Antonucci has developed a desire to become a Navy
chaplain himself one day from his experiences in the Fleet
Marine Force thus far. He yearns for the ability to one day
affect the lives of others in the way he's seen Gardner do.
But until that day comes, Gardner and any other chaplain
who’s teamed up with Antonucci can rest assured that
their guardian angel will be watching over them.
Front L to R - RPCS Angela Berry, RPC Sheronica Prater,
RP2 Sequiell Bolden, RPC Rafael Barney
Back L to R - CDR Joseph Sheldon,RP2 Montana Sor,
RPC Wanda Wright, CAPT John Morrison
Navy Religious Program Specialists Celebrate 30 Years
The late 1970’s saw dramatic changes in the military
services and their organization: the Navy Chaplain Corps
was no exception. RADM John J. O’Connor, one of the
most influential Navy Chiefs of Chaplains, explained the
importance and justified the need for the
Navy/Marine Corps team to employ enlisted
religious ministry support professionals
as “partners in ministry of religion.”
The result is that for the past
thirty years the professionals
of the Religious Program
Specialist (RP) rating have
been an integral part in
providing religious
ministry to the Sea
Services.
Recently, new key
milestones were set in
place to further
develop the rating and
help it to keep pace
with the mission
demands of the Navy,
Marine Corps, and Coast
Guard. New rating entry
requirements for accession
and lateral conversion were
set. A new rating scope has
been established. Appropriate
authorizing instructions have been
developed to support training and set
parameters for performance. Occupational
standards have been set and a new training curriculum
has been initiated. A career road map for the rating is now
being produced. All of these are pivotal in sustaining a
The Military Chaplain
healthy and effective RP community.
Additionally, the RP rating is now integrated into the
Department of the Navy’s Strategic Plan for Religious
Ministry and is aligned with the Chaplain Corps
four core capabilities of Facilitation,
Provision, Care and Advisement.
Working together under the aegis
of the Strategic Plan, the
Chaplain/RP Religious
Ministry Team will better
meet the religious ministry
requirements of every
Sailor, Marine, Guardian
and their families.
This is a great time in
RP history as the Air
Force and Navy
chaplain schools are
co-located next to the
Army Chaplain Center
and School at Fort
Jackson, SC. Very
soon, RPs and Chaplain
Assistants will train
together with their chaplains.
The last thirty years has seen
incredible development and
growth for RPs and their success
has set the table for RPs to “exceed
the expected” in the next thirty years.
Happy 30th Anniversary shipmates!
- Official release from the Office of the Navy
Chief of Chaplains -
7
Military Chaplains Association 84th Annual Meeting & National Institute
With the Veterans Affairs Chaplain Leadership Convocation
21-24 April 2009 at the Dallas-Fort Worth Marriott Solana Hotel, Westlake, TX
Member/Other Participant Name ______________________________________________________________________
Spouse/Other Participant Name ______________________________________________________________________
Address
________________________________________________________________________________________
City/State/ZIP ____________________________________________________________________________________
Telephone ______________________________________ Email ____________________________________________
Check here if you decline listing in a printed Institute attendance roster ______
A. INSTITUTE REGISTRATION FEE. $99.00 for MCA members and others who participate in
the entire event.
SUB-TOTAL Registration Fee $ ___________
Please Note: Spouses are invited to attend all Institute events without additional charge other than meals. Other
professional guests are welcome to attend our special meal events even if they are unable to attend other
sessions. For Institute participants who are only able to attend less than half of the plenary sessions, a pro-rated
registration fee is available. Please contact the Executive Director at (904) 422-1789 with that request. Our two
planned meals are somewhat more costly than last year at Fort Jackson. In order to give attendees more
flexibility with event expenses, we have not planned any group breakfasts.
B. SPECIAL MEAL RESERVATION. Please mark one preference for each item reserved.
Wednesday, 22 April – Emerson Foundation Luncheon
MCA Member / Other Registrant
____ Regular
____ Kosher
____ Vegetarian
at $35.00 $ ___________
Spouse / Guest
____ Regular
____ Vegetarian
at $35.00 $ ___________
MCA Member / Other Registrant
____ Regular
____ Kosher
____ Vegetarian
at $40.00 $ ___________
Spouse / Guest
____ Regular
____ Vegetarian
at $40.00 $ ___________
____ Kosher
Thursday, 23 April - Annual Awards Banquet
____ Kosher
SUB-TOTAL Meal Reservation $ ___________
GRAND TOTAL [A- Registration Fee plus B-Meals] Payment Enclosed $ ___________
Please continue on the next page to complete your registration
8
The Military Chaplain
84th Annual Meeting & National Institute Registration Form - Page 2
21-24 April 2009 at the Dallas-Fort Worth Marriott Solana Hotel, Westlake, TX
C. TRAVEL AND LODGING PLANS. Please review all choices below and then mark every
blank that applies.
_____ Indicate here if you will travel to Westlake by personal or official vehicle.
_____ Indicate here if you will fly to Westlake and plan to rent a vehicle for discretionary use.
_____ Indicate here if you will fly to Westlake and plan to use the hotel’s free shuttle service.
_____ Indicate here if you desire to use Marriott Solana Hotel lodging.
_____ Indicate here if you plan other lodging.
MCA National Executive Committee members should arrive on Monday, 20 April 2009. Our sessions
will commence at 2:00 PM into that evening and then resume Tuesday morning at 8:30 AM.
All other attendees should plan to arrive Tuesday, 21 April 2009 in time to attend the important
workshop on “My Healthy Vets” at 1:30 PM. We will have an “Opening Reception” that begins
Tuesday evening at 5:00 PM.
We expect the Friday, 24 April morning session to conclude at 11:00 AM. All event participants
should arrange return travel on Friday after 1:00 PM or on Saturday, 25 April.
Completion of this registration form does NOT reserve your room at the Marriott Solana, so make
your reservations NOW. Please call the Dallas-Fort Worth Marriott Solana directly at (817) 4305000 and ask to be included in the special “United States Department of Veterans Affairs” room
block. The room rate is $134.00 (double or single occupancy). The hotel will honor the Institute
room rate for three days prior to and following the main event on a space available basis. Sales
tax exemption forms are accepted for travelers on government orders.
* * * Marriott Solana Hotel Reservation deadline is Monday, 30 March 2009 * * *
___________________________________________________________________/_____________________________
Signature
Date completed
Please mail your total registration fee and meal payment by 8 April 2009
Send this form with your remittance to:
Military Chaplains Association, P.O. Box 7056, Arlington, VA 22207-7056
Please note that no one will be available in the MCA National Office to process your registration after
Thursday, 16 April. With office staff travel requirements this year, it will also help if you send us an email
advising that your reservation form has been mailed.
Thank you for your participation!
chaplains@mca-usa.org (703) 533-5890
The Military Chaplain
9
An Old Soldier’s Retirement Letter to His Son
Upon retirement from the Army in 1990, MCA Life
Member Chaplain (Colonel) Wallace Alcorn wrote the
following letter to his younger son, Stephen. Wallace
came upon it while preparing material on the present
conflict in Iraq. Stephen deployed from Germany to Iraq
with the 1st Armor Division and served as a tank platoon
leader in combat during Desert Storm.
drafted me for the Korean War when I completed college.
I taught psychology and speech and was in counterintelligence. I experienced a lot of disillusionment during
this pointless debacle, and by the time I was released I
despised the army and everything about it. They illegally
transferred me to the reserve, and I fully intended to get
that invalidated.
Happily, the casualties we anticipated didn’t
occur in that war and I wasn’t needed again,
because Stephen might have been one of them.
And I did learn what it is to be the father of a
soldier in harm’s way. I learned again that the
Lord is good, no matter what.
For some reason I didn’t. With some broadened
perspective and more careful thinking, I began to
recognize the differences between the essentials and the
accidentals in the military. I knew I had much to gain, and
I felt I had some things to contribute. I joined a CIC
reserve unit and accepted a direct commission. I still
didn’t like many of the things I saw, e.g., unfairness,
arbitrariness, self-promoting.
After five years in the Regular Army and acquiring the
rank of Major, Stephen reverted to reserve status and
attended law school. He was a prosecutor and today is a
judge in the District Court of Oklahoma City.
After seminary graduation and ordination I was
reappointed a chaplain, and this I have been for the
twenty-nine years until today.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Dear Stephen,
Today is one of the saddest days in my life -clearly happy,
but sad nonetheless. In a little less than an hour I will no
longer be an Army chaplain...a soldier. Inasmuch as
tomorrow is my sixtieth birthday, the Army will retire me
upon reaching it. My boss at MDW tried to get me
extended, and we still hope for possible re-call if he
needs me back at Arlington.
I was sworn into the Navy on
my seventeenth birthday on
29 August 1947, and I have
served in some military
category continuously until
today. Forty-three years 71.66% of my life, if you will.
You and even Mom have
never known me as other than
a soldier: five years as a Navy
enlisted man, another five as
Army enlisted, four as an MP
officer, and twenty-nine as a
chaplain.
In the fervor of World War II I
tried to enlist while sixteen, but Grandpa wouldn’t lie with
me about my age. The fighting was over, but I got on
board within the emergency period. I served as a
signalman/quartermaster on a sub chaser and then as a
chaplain’s yeoman on a heavy cruiser.
I went back and finished high school, and then the army
10
I look back even as you look forward. I have never been
one of those who moans the passing of "the old army,"
and I honestly and sincerely encourage you to look to
your future with confidence of experiencing the good
things in the army that I have. I want you to take what I
have taught you and multiply it and then teach it to your
soldiers.
I judge today’s Army is the best army this country has
ever fielded. It’s professional,
tough, competent.
Consider training. I have
received, given, and observed
an awful lot of training during
these years. From the vantage
of a professional educator, I
am confident the army today
trains more effectively,
efficiently, and realistically
than it ever has. When I took
Navy boots in 1947 at Great
Lakes and Army basic in
1952 at Fort Riley, we
suffered monstrous
dehumanization and
downright abuse. That is all
gone. Such things made life harder for us and we were
never trucked anywhere. But I still think today’s training is
tougher because it demands tested performance.
I saw few blacks in the Navy other than stewards, and
our army basic was segregated despite the law. Now, I
am not only proud of the Army’s leadership of the Nation
The Military Chaplain
in civil rights, I am deeply grateful for bringing me into
inescapable fellowship with splendid people of many
minorities. I now feel comfortable with no thought of race.
So, too, concerning the various religious groups. What
other Baptist preacher from the Midwest has among his
respected and valued friends
orthodox and reform rabbis,
traditional and modern
priests, strongly liberal
protestant ministers along
with charismatics? And
plenty of other evangelicals. I
was accepted and given the
same ministerial
opportunities as those from
the large, mainline
denominations - a tolerance
and freedom often missing in
the civilian sector.
I’ve seen a lot of changes. In
basic I earned two
sharpshooter and one expert
badges. Yet, you haven’t fired
one of those weapons
because none remains in the
inventory.
I have gone through more uniform changes than I can
recall. In basic training we used to burn black die on our
brown boots to make them appear black. About the time I
succeeded, they started to issue black boots. I still have
one set of herringbone twill fatigues and a set of tropical
worsted class As. In MP OBC we wore pith helmets,
shorts with long stockings, and carried swagger sticks.
Variously colored helmet liners and khaki cottons with
long sleeve shirts were standard for field duty for years. I
actually can’t count the number of fatigue caps I have
worn.
Change is the Army’s strongest constant. Remember:
“This, too, shall pass.” Don’t fight it, but be ready for the
next. Occasionally the change is for the better, but mostly
it is just change. The Army has a maddening tendency to
swing from one extreme to the other and - for just a
fleeting moment - it passes through the balance between
them. But those moments come often, so try to be in the
right place when they do. Seize that moment and make it
last for you and your soldiers.
The Army is increasing good for and to its soldiers. When
I was a second lieutenant, my battalion commander
distrusted me because I never got drunk and ridiculed
me because I didn’t even drink. Now the Army has come
to recognize alcoholism as an enemy. I was laughed at
because I didn’t smoke, and now I can breathe clean air.
The time came when the Army refused to tolerate my fat
The Military Chaplain
and, so, I took off seventy pounds. At sixty years of age I
still score 300 on APFT.
I’m still uncomfortable saying I like the Army. I have
always known I like the people I meet in the Army and
what the Army has let me do. One of the most rewarding
affirmations I ever received
was from a senior NOC who
scolded me: “Sir, you do like
the Army. You are a soldier!”
I suppose one of the greatest
things about the army is
belonging. Whenever and
wherever I see a soldier, I
know he is my soldier.
Whenever and wherever they
see me, they know I am their
chaplain. When I have joined
units, I was accepted
because I belonged there.
Home is where they have to
let you in.
I heard MacArthur tell
congress that old soldiers
“just fade away,” and perhaps
this is what is happening to me. But I know old soldiers
never forget, and so I won’t bore you further. I do step out
of your way and out of the way of the others who carry
on. Accomplish your mission and take good care of your
troops.
When, at RIT,* I pinned my gold bars on you and swore
you in, I thanked you for already having become a good
soldier - and sooner than I had. I want you to become a
better soldier than I ever was. I’ve always been proud of
you, and I’m confident I always will be. Mostly, though,
I’ve profoundly grateful for the Christian gentleman you
have become. I salute you, Sir.
I am praying, now, that our political leaders are very, very
wise and our military commanders are very, very careful.
But if this thing does develop into war, your unit will be
deployed. I’ve been a chaplain to combatants, and I think
I’ve been reasonably effective. I don’t know what it will be
like to be the father of one. But I know the Lord is good,
no matter what.
Mom and I will never stop loving you and we’ll never stop
praying for you. God bless you, my son.
Love, joy, peace. Dad
*Rochester (NY) Institute of Technology, where Stephen
was an ROTC Distinguished Military Graduate and
received a B.F.A. in professional photographic
illlustration.
11
Pastoral Reflections from a Returning Chaplain
Ch, Capt Mark Robertson, USAF recently returned to
Vandenberg Air Force Base from a second deployment to
Iraq. There he served as a hospital chaplain at Joint
Base Balad Hospital, the largest casualty collection point
in the war zone. Mark wrote an essay about his experiences in ministry, entitled, "Caring for the
Warfighters' Soul:
Hospital Chaplaincy in
Iraq". The Association
of Professional
Chaplains (APC) committed to publishing
the first five pages in
Chaplaincy Today.
Mark is an APC
Board Certified
Chaplain, a member
of Association for
Clinical Pastoral
Education, and a CPE
Supervisor licensed
through the College of
Pastoral Supervision
and Psychotherapy.
From 1998-2005, he
was the Emergency
Room Chaplain for
Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, GA. This is the
largest Level One Trauma Center in the Southeast with
nearly 1,000 beds. During Mark’s service there, Grady
Memorial saw about 900 gunshot wounds per year. His
essay includes a comparison of chaplaincy at Grady
Hospital with Balad Hospital. Mark joined the MCA in
2004. He is endorsed for ministry by Chaplaincy for Full
Gospel Churches.
Mark’s essay is composed of eleven sections:
1. Saying Good-Bye to My Little Girl - Daddy, What If
You Get Killed?
2. The Gold Rule for Combat Medical Care
3. Pastoral Care for Iraqi and American Snipers
4. What Snipers Want to Know - Did I Commit Murder?
5. The Bat System and the Identification of Dead Bodies
6. Red Cross Notification and Ministry to Our Coalition
Partners
7. A Muslim-Christian Ministry Team
8. Helping Wounded Warriors Home
9. Memorial Day in the War Zone
10. Prayer Walking Saddam's Torture Chambers
11. What If We Leave Iraq?
Excerpts are printed here. Go to www.mca-usa.org for
the entire text and Mark’s official Air Force biography.
12
“Saying Good-Bye to My Little Girl: Daddy, What If
You Get Killed?”
My six year old, Dorothea, didn’t want me to deploy. She
said, “Daddy, what if you get killed?”
To calm her fears, I
put on my body
armor, saying, “This
is bullet-proof.” She
knocked tentatively
on the breast plate,
as if it were the door
of a stranger’s house.
Then she punched
harder and harder.
Since her little fists
couldn’t hurt me, she
trusted the body
armor.
But then she thought,
“Daddy, what if
Osama Bin Laden
gets you?”
I said, “I’ll run away.”
She continued to
worry, “What if he runs faster than you?”
So to convince her of my lighting quick speed, I started
chasing her around the house, wearing my body armor,
of course. After catching her, I tickled her. She giggled
hysterically, as I covered her with “Daddy” kisses.
Then I said, “In Iraq, the Air Force lets me drive a special
car. This car can drive off the road, through the sand,
and over rocks. This car drives much faster than Osama
Bin Laden can run.”
Amazed, she said, “Over rocks! You can drive a car over
rocks. Wow!”
This is how I convinced her that I was safe from all
danger. If I could drive over rocks, then Osama Bin
Laden couldn’t catch me. It’s axiomatic from a little girl
standpoint. Moreover, if she couldn’t punch through my
body armor, then bullets couldn’t penetrate, either. But
the truth is, I’m not invincible. Something bad could
happen to me in Iraq. So I sidestepped her anxious
question: “Daddy, what if you get killed?”
We lie by leaving the wrong impression. But what’s the
alternative? Say, “Yes, sweetheart, you’re right. Daddy
can die in Iraq. So while I’m away, you should worry,
The Military Chaplain
From “Helping Wounded Warriors Home”
. . . Most troubling were patients with traumatic brain
injury (TBI). Blast attacks cause concussions that result
in the loss of short and long-term memory. A brainbruising, memory-losing concussion is called TBI. Once
I pastored a TBI soldier who forgot to take his weapon
into combat, and now had the senile recall of an
Alzheimer’s patient. This soldier had been “blown up,” as
they say, more than 20 times in armor-plated fighting
vehicles. He confessed, “After the third IED blast, I knew
I had a memory problem, but I hid it from my sergeant
because I didn’t want to leave the fight.” These soldiers
are like professional boxers: they keep fighting after
repeated knockouts, and they won’t quit, like Mohammad
Ali, until brain-damaged.
Bunker Bible Study
fear, cry.” I couldn’t say this: It would terrorize her, and
my mother. So I pretend, as do most soldiers, that no
harm could come to me in Iraq.
From “Pastoral Care for Iraqi and American Snipers”
. . . Another soldier loved slinging guns and kicking in the
doors, until this incident. He broke into a house and
shot a terrorist three times in the chest. The daughter of
this terrorist, age 7 or so, screamed hysterically. But this
soldier had a mission to complete. He had to photograph
the face, for reasons of military intelligence. But the girl
was clinging to the blood-soaked wounds of her dying
father, so the soldier had to yank her off. The girl fought
back. The soldier used more force. The father died
during the struggle. The girl went berserk. The soldier
fled the scene but couldn’t outrun the screams. Her
screams torment and take sleep. Consequently, he
suffers severe PTSD.
With SSgt Bill Spencer, USAF Chaplain Assistant
From “Pastoral Care for Iraqi and American Snipers”
. . . After ministering in a battlefield hospital, how am I
doing? About as good as Jonah. Like the prophet, I’d
rather flee from my enemies than minister to them. Also
I’m more condemning than forgiving. I really identify with
Jonah. He failed to love his enemies, yet God tells the
story of Jonah’s failure with such grace and good humor
that we all identify, even laugh. Jonah is the great comic
hero of the Bible. He shows us our universal need for
repentance. I’m hoping that the same comic greatness
awaits me in the Kingdom of God. I’m no war hero, but
a comic hero - perhaps? I make snipers laugh, at least.
We laugh, of course, so we don’t cry.
See full essay at www.mca-usa.org
Foreign Bodies
The Military Chaplain
13
THE MILITARY
CHAPLAIN
ISSN-0026-3958
Volume Eighty-Two
Number One ★ March 2009
Executive Director and
Publication Editor
Chaplain Gary R. Pollitt
Associate Executive Director
Chaplain George E. Dobes
National Office
P.O. Box 7056
Arlington, VA 22207-7056
Phone: 703-533-5890
chaplains@mca-usa.org or
www.mca-usa.org
Graphic Design and Printing by:
Printing Images
www.printingimages.com
THE MILITARY CHAPLAIN
ISSN-0026-3958) is published
quarterly by The Military Chaplains
Association, 5541 Lee Highway,
Arlington, VA 22207-1613. Articles in
this publication express the point of
view of the authors only and are not
necessarily those of the Association,
the Military Services, the Department
of Veterans Affairs, or the Civil Air
Patrol. Similarly, the advertisements
do not reflect an endorsement by the
Association unless so indicated. This
publication is mailed to all members
of the Association. Membership dues
are $50.00 per year, $24.00 allocated
for the magazine. Non-member
subscriptions Domestic $24.00;
Foreign $36.00 per calendar year.
Periodicals Postage Paid at
Arlington, VA and at additional
mailing offices.
POSTMASTER: Send address
changes to EDITOR, THE
MILITARY CHAPLAIN, P.O. Box
7056, Arlington, VA 22207-7056.
If this publication is addressed to a
member of the U.S. Military service
whose address has been changed by
official orders, it is to be forwarded,
except to overseas APO’s without
payment of additional postage.
Send form 3579 to EDITOR, THE
MILITARY CHAPLAIN, P.O. Box
7056, Arlington, VA 22207-7056
Copyright 2009 by The Military
Chaplains Association of the
USA. Copyright not claimed for
editorial material in public domain.
Reproduction without
permission is prohibited.
14
Preserving the Memory
By Nicole Juszczyk
Remembering heroic efforts is about
more than just recalling the event. It’s
about honoring the hero’s efforts in a way
that everyone can see and experience.
Just like most of the citizens in
Philadelphia I have never heard of the
Chapel of the Four Chaplains or the story
behind the Chapel. That is before I took
a class at Holy Family University, which
required us as students to visit the
Chapel firsthand.
The Chapel of the Four Chaplains is one
such physical monument located inside of
the Navy Yard in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. The Chapel invites people
of all religions to join and be part of their
congregation. They also host several
church services, weddings and many other events year round. As we entered the
gorgeous Chapel we learned the story behind the Four Chaplains and why they have
a memorial in their honor.
The story of the Four Chaplains goes back to February 2, 1943. On the evening of
February 2nd when the U.S.A.T Dorchester, which was crowded to capacity carrying
902 service men, merchant seamen, and civilian workers, began taking on water
and rapidly sinking. Then the captain gave the order to abandon ship. The Four
Chaplains gave people hope in a time of panic and chaos. These four men
sacrificed their lives for others by giving up their own life jackets to other
crewmembers.
These men deserve to be honored. So please donate money to the Four Chaplains
Memorial Foundation to help preserve their memory as well as those lives that were
lost that historic night. Congress even awarded these men with the Special Medal of
Heroism, which was never to be given again. After I left the Chapel I had a better
understanding of why
these men should be
honored therefore, I
donated some money
to help preserve their
memory. For more
information on how you
can help, call the
Chapel of the Four
Chaplains at 215-2181943 or you can come
and visit at 1201
Constitution Avenue
Philadelphia, PA,
19112.
Nicole Juszczyk majors in Communications at Holy Family University, Philadelphia,
PA. She developed this article last Fall as a class assignment on writing for the
media by promoting the “Chapel of the Four Chaplains.”
The Military Chaplain
Purchase “Your Mind Matters”
Special Donations
InterVarsity Press
makes this great work
by John R. W. Stott
available now in the
IVP Classics series.
Bequests and Grants
ISBN: 978-0-830834080-2. Retail price
$7.00. Order at
www.ivpress.com or
800-843-9487.
The V.L. & J.H. Robinson Charitable Foundation
InterVarsity Press
granted permission to
use the original photo
of Stott’s book on the
front cover of this
magazine.
The Estate of Chaplain H. Earl Morris, Jr.
The Vallen Memorial Fund by Robert W. Bruce
Civilian Churches
Resurrection Episcopal Church
Jacksonville, FL
Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish
Lewistown, PA
Navy Chapels
All Faith Chapel
Naval Air Weapons Station
China Lake, CA
The Protestant Community
Naval Base Coronado
San Diego, CA
Special Tributes
MSG Robert Avino, CT ARNG in memory of
PFC Melissa Hobart, USAR
Claire and Norm Blanchard in honor of
Captain Matthew Williams, USA Act
LTC Noel Dawes, British Army Ret. with
thanks for MCA’s executive leadership
Chaplain Grover DeVault in memory of
CH (COL) C. Gordon Kyle, USA Ret.
Veterans Day 2008 Ministries
Florida MCA Chapter
Conducts Ninth Annual
“Four Chaplains Ceremony”
Ch, Lt Col John Meyer , USAF (Ret), member of the
MCA Kingdom of the Sun Chapter, Ocala, FL during the
annual Four Chaplains Memorial Ceremony at OcalaMarion County Veterans Memorial Park on Sunday, 1
February 2009. Chapter members have conducted this
ceremony since 2001. In that year they dedicated a Four
Chaplains Memorial Marker sponsored by the Greater
Ocala Ministerial Association. Contact Elden Luffman at
joy-el@att.net for more information on chapter activities.
The Military Chaplain
Platinum
Chaplain William Thompson
Gold
Chaplain and Mrs. Don den Dulk
Chaplain and Mrs. Jack H. Phillabaum
Silver
Chaplain David B. Kennedy
Chaplain Walter K. Sauer
Chaplain Willis W. Wessmann
Thank You for Your Support!
15
Navy Professional Development Training Course
Combat Operational Stress Control:
The Family Dynamic
This 3 day training course is sponsored
by the Navy Bureau of Medicine and
Surgery (BUMED) and the Navy
Chaplain Corps.
“Combat Operational Stress Control:
The Family Dynamic” will provide
training to caregivers in the area of
resilience as it relates to:
• Pre-deployment family and support system readiness
• “Supporting the supporters” during deployment
• The special needs of bereaved family members and those who
assist injured service members
• Recognizing when family members have, themselves, been
wounded by stress and are in need of mental health interventions
The training is open to caregivers
(active, reserve and civilians) serving
Sailors, Marines and their families. For
more dates, locations and registration
information, please visit our website
FY09PDTC-COSC.org.
“As a Clinical Social Worker who works with families, I thought the tools and applications
of the FOCUS (Families Overcoming Under Stress) model were user friendly, will meet
the need of all caregivers, and provide the unique needs to our Sailor and Marine
families.”
Kirsten Woodward, MSW, LCSW - Family Programs Coordinator
“Speaking as a Family Physician, this COSC training was one of the most worthwhile
training programs. I’ve attended in several years. This is the one CME that all Navy
Medicine providers should attend in 2009.”
CAPT Murray Norcross, MC, USN - Senior Medical Officer
www.FY09PDTC-COSC.org
PERIODICALS
POSTAGE
PAID
Go to www.mca-usa.org for
more information and
application form to join the
Military Chaplains Association