Blog Archives
6 June 1944: D-Day
On 6 June 1944, the largest amphibious combat assault in history took place as Allied forces landed in Normandy by air and sea. Among them were 13 chaplains who parachuted in with the airborne troops and many more who landed on the beaches. Here are four videos that talk more about some of these chaplains who were with the troops on D-Day:
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This 7-minute videos tells the stories of several chaplains who jumped and landed with the D-Day troops.
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This 3 1/2 minute video tells the story of Chaplain Ignatius Maternowski who, after jumping into Normandy with his unit, became the only chaplain killed in action in D-Day, while trying to establish a joint American-German medical aid station to care for Allied and enemy wounded.
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This 4-minute video tells the story of Chaplain Francis Sampson who jumped into Normandy along with his unit, nearly losing his life in a river, then to a German firing squad, before continuing to minister to the wounded, dying and fighting.
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This 3 1/2 minute video tells the story of Chaplain Joseph Lacy who proved himself, caring for the physical and spiritual needs of his Ranger battalion as they landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day.
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Remember the Four Chaplains
3 February 1943: On This Day in Chaplain Corps History, Chaplains Goode, Fox, Poling and Washington were on the U.S.A.T. Dorchester in the North Atlantic when a German submarine torpedoed and sent it to the bottom of a watery grave. These four chaplains exemplified nurturing the living, caring for the wounded and honoring the dead as they sacrificed their own safety and lives to minister to the needs of others as they served God and country.
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Army Chaplain Corps Posters
In the 1980s the Army Chaplain Corps produced a number of 24″ x 36″ “motivational” posters that were apparently distributed to unit chaplains to hang in their areas. When I was enlisted in the ’80s, serving at Fort Riley, KS, I remember seeing a couple of these hanging in the HHC Orderly Room of DIVARTY, 1st ID. Here are four that I recently came across (author’s collection).
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See the rest of the posters by following this link to the “Posters” page.
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Today’s Chaplain Doesn’t Just Punch Your Ticket
This is a rather long article that appeared in Soldiers magazine, April 1974. It gives a picture of chaplain ministry as it was recognized during the Vietnam War, including issues like endorsers, quotas, minorities in the chaplaincy (women and blacks), education, roles and civilian vs. military clergy. It was highlighted on the cover, with the tagline, “Today’s Chaplain Doesn’t Just Punch Your Ticket.”
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Meeting Needs-
The Chaplain Today
Story and photos by SFC D. Mallicoat
Be shepherds of the flock of God that is among you, not as though you had to but of your own free will, not from motive of personal profit but freely, and not as domineering over those in your charge but proving yourselves models for the flock to imitate. -1 Peter 5:2-3, Williams Trans.
These words penned centuries ago could well serve as a guide for today’s Army chaplains. Voluntary personal involvement seems to be their credo. And with critics on every side, both within and without the church structure, the task becomes even more difficult. It takes a special breed of man or woman to accept such responsibility.
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Continue reading this article by clicking here . . .
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The Chapel of St. Mark at Fort Marion
Fort Marion, now a U.S. National Park site, is the oldest existing masonry fortress in the United States. It sits at the harbor entrance at St. Augustine in Florida. The Chapel of St. Mark, which was part of the original fort built by the Spanish, is an excellent representation of Spanish-Catholic commitment to providing a worship space for their garrisoned soldiers.
The Spanish arrived at the present site of Fort Marion in August if 1565 and established the colony of San Agustín in September. Having barely survived attacks from the French and British with their hastily-built forts, on 2 October 1672, the Spanish broke ground on what would become Castillo de San Marcos but it would take 84 years to complete.
In 1740, enough of the fort was completed to offer safety to the besieged garrison and citizens of San Agustín when James Edward Ogelthorpe, from the British colony of Georgia, attempted to conquer it. The fort proved to be impregnable as canon fire from Ogelthorpe’s guns did little damage. During the 27-day siege, “the garrison chapel was the scene of daily Masses, and occasionally marriages and christenings…”1
To continue reading this article click here …
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The Jesuit Chapel at Old Fort Niagara
A modern picture of the Jesuit Chapel at Old Fort Niagara showing a French reenactor, from the Old Fort Niagara National Park website.
The French began building on the site of Fort Niagara in 1679. The third building project on the site was the “French Castle” built in 1726-27. As you go up the stairs to the 2nd floor, on the left is the “Jesuit Chapel,” which may be the oldest military chapel in the United States (depending on the criteria used for assessment). The inclusion of a chapel at the fort would have proceeded with little thought, since France was a Catholic country at the time and the majority of its Soldiers would have been devout Catholics, needing an appropriate place to celebrate Mass. When in control of the British, the worship space would have been used for Anglican services, before returning to Catholic use again later in its history.But throughout the life of Old and New Fort Niagara, there has been a chapel available for the worship of God.
To continue reading this article, click here…
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The Chaplains’ Calling
I’ve recently been engaged in several online discussions about American patriotism, allegiances, pacifism, Just War and military service. Those discussions have revealed that there are many deeply-held views on the use of violence in the pursuit of peace and justice. There are those from all along the theological spectrum who fervently argue either for the absolute rejection of violence in any form whether for the liberation of others or the defense of themselves or else the complete justification of violence and war as the only way to achieve international peace and safety. I do not doubt the spiritual commitment of most of those in the discussions I have been involved in and believe they only want to follow -and teach- what they believe to be God’s will for Christians today.
Prior to my entry into the Army as a chaplain back in 2004, I studied Just War doctrine wanting to be sure that I could faithfully support a military institution whose main purpose is warfighting without compromising my spiritual values, biblical teaching and God’s will for my life. I determined that not only was war when waged and prosecuted justly not prohibited by Scripture, it sometimes may be the only way to fulfill some of the mandates of Scripture. I know that while the majority of the Christian Church (in the United States at least) supports its nations military and war aims there is a significant minority of Christians who attempt to follow a non-violent path to peace and object to any support of their country’s use of force to accomplish its policies.
Even with the differences that exist within the Church as to its views of war, a world without violence exists only in the realm of the “not yet” of the Kingdom of God which is still to come. The reality of life is that evil is quite present in this world and in order to protect the defenseless (perhaps the widows and fatherless the Bible speaks of), liberate the oppressed (those in need who Jesus declared to be our “neighbor”), proclaim freedom to the prisoner, essentially to love as we are commanded to love sometimes it is necessary to go to war, war that is just; to fight in a just way to achieve freedom, liberation and safety for not only our own citizens but people around the world.
Regardless of one’s views of violence, war and military service, there exists in the United States a very large military force of men and women who have accepted the call of their country (and sometimes their God) to serve as a Soldier, Sailor, Marine, Airman or Coast Guardsman. These men and women, unlike Service Members from wars past, have volunteered to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States. Most of these people have given much thought to their decision to enlist and are not as ignorant about war, peace, love, violence and the teachings of Jesus as some opponents of Christian military service imply. These brave men and woman aren’t mindless puppets being controlled and used by an evil government for selfish gain, but are -in most cases- educated, intelligent, thoughtful, people who accept the necessity of their nation’s causes along with the urgency of its call to arms. It is to these men and women who chaplains of all faith groups are called (by both their country and their God) to minister to while they serve their country in uniform.
In the midst of my involvement in the aforementioned discussions, the senior chaplain on the Army post where I currently serve as chaplain pointed out to me a thoughtful passage written by an Army chaplain from World War Two (interestingly from a book already in my library!). In it, this author gives the reader a peek into the mind of the chaplain to see his feelings, his motivations and his dedication to the God who has called him and the Soldiers he has been called to serve. I would like to share a portion of that passage with you as a testimony to the ministry of chaplains to the men and woman who also wear the military uniform.
The book from which this passage comes was written after the Allies defeated the Axis forces in World War Two but is astonishingly relevant still today. I have made no attempt to change or correct the writing which today’s standards would render “politically incorrect” or comments which refer to things particular to war of the day, such as the draft, the dominance of male soldiers or the duration of deployments though I have emphasized portions I found to be particularly powerful. Even with the changes in military service, the chaplaincy and religious observance which have occurred over the last 70 years, Chaplain Rogers has tremendous understanding and insight into the mind of the modern-day chaplain and what it means to serve in today’s armed forces. I hope that this passage will give you a better understanding of the struggles, joys and mission of the chaplains who God has placed in our Armed Forces for such a time as this.
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As the Chaplain Sees Things*
from “Doughboy Chaplain” by CAPT Edward K. Rogers
“A retired army chaplain told me when I entered the service that I would find that the chaplain is pretty much alone in the army. He is his own boss to a great extent, but he is sometimes forgotten because of that. However, the chaplain just keeps plugging along.
“He and his fellow padres have left parish life to serve the forces for the duration and he may long at times for the duties and joys of the church back home. There will be times when he feels that he could have done more good by staying at home where the congregations are consistently large and the program of the parish reaches through many channels into the homes, those bulwarks of faith and society. He may long at times for the normal life back there where opinion and family relationships keep men somewhat more on the better side of life.
“Still the chaplain goes along with his duties and he realizes that the men about him sometimes feel that they could be more useful back home too. Many of them rightfully feel that way, for they have been most useful in their professions and trades. It isn’t pleasant for them, as it isn’t at times for the padre.
“However, there is joy for [the chaplain] in his duties. Usually he will have the maximum of services that the men will attend. The more that are necessary, the happier he is.
He wants, above all else, to make religion real and God close to the hundreds of men under his spiritual care, who have been uprooted from home in the crucial life shaping years of life and sent off to battlefields or distant posts. That is what he is in the service to do.
“When some come to him to inquire about their religious needs, which they have never cared for, he is happy to try and meet those needs–or show how God can meet them. He will sit down and reason with the soldier and he will spend hours instructing him in the teachings of his faith. In that task he finds his greatest joy…
“…the chaplain is there to help and many appreciate his being there. Others don’t care about him, for they have had no religious faith and contact with the church, or have lost faith and broken those contacts since getting into the army. Nevertheless, the chaplain wants to be where some may need him. If they avoid him and the message of God which he offers, that is their misfortune. They can’t say that the church forgot them when they were called into service and henceforth in their lives they will forget the church.
They may forget the church and God, but the church and God’s pastors or priests did not forget them.
“The psalmist once wrote, ‘If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou are there.’ The chaplain, I guess, leaves his parish so that when the soldier gets into the hell of war it will be true that God is there, through his ordained ones, to help, encourage, forgive and bless.
“I believe that the chaplains do more serious thinking about the war than any other group. Many men are in the service and don’t seem to know or care why. Their chief interest is getting home. Maybe that even surpasses their desire for victory in many cases. The principles at stake do not bother them much. It is not so with the chaplain.
“He knows more about the principles of right and wrong which enter into the struggle. He wants to see the wrong uprooted and the right prevail. He is thinking about the unfortunate victims of conquest who long for their freedom. The different philosophies of life which [bring] on … conflict are apparent to the chaplain. When there are inconsistencies, he is aware of them, but he believes in his cause. Because of that belief he wants the war to get on and he doesn’t have to fire his boilers of action with hate either.
He wants to see people free to live as they choose, if they have proper consideration for the rights of others and the common good. He may not agree with them in their thoughts and ways, but he would like to see them free to live their lives.
“His thoughts go beyond the hour of conflict to the day of peace. What will it bring? Will men have the principles and wisdom to uproot the evil without pulling out the good? Will reason or passion prevail then? It will be hard to have the former on top, but that is what he hopes and prays will be the case. He looks at his men and scans the news of home and of the Allies for assurance that the war will be really won and that the peace will be stern, but just.”
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*Rogers, Edward K. Doughboy Chaplain. Boston: Meador Pub., 1946, 222-224.
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A Soldier Death Notification I’ll Never Forget
I want to share with you a death notification I was recently part of. I share it partly for therapy but mainly so you know a little about the experience of both the families of Soldiers who die and the Soldiers sent to notify those families of their loved one’s death.
A chaplain is usually half of a notification team when a Soldier dies and their family members are notified. The chaplain never (or is never supposed to) give the notification, but is rather there to be spiritual and moral support for those now suffering loss. If the chaplain makes the notification (which sometimes happens when the notifying officer is unable to, being too choked up for example–though the notification officer who I went with did an excellent job!) the chaplain is then saddled with the bad news that he/she just gave and then finds it hard to be received as a comfort agent. The family equates the chaplain with the bad news he/she just gave.
This notification was to the father of a Soldier who died of suspected self-inflicted wounds. A suicide. Suicide deaths, for me, are harder than combat deaths. In combat, at least the Soldier died for something they believed in or for a cause greater than themself. A suicide is a death which is so much more difficult for us to understand. Nevertheless, as a Soldier on active duty, the Soldier’s family members deserve the honor of an “official” notification of their loved one’s passing regardless of how they passed. Even under these circumstances, however, being part of a death notification team is still an honor as we acknowledge the service of that Soldier as well as the memory of the soldier which the family holds onto. One of the primary roles of the chaplain is to “honor the dead” regardless of how that death occurred.
The advance of technology with cell phones, rapid texting and social media has made the need for the notification team to get to the next-of-kin quickly even more important. To hear about your son or daughter’s death from a Facebook post or a phone call can be devastating and does not give the Soldier or the family member the honor which is deserved. But many times, we arrive to make the notification only to discover that they had already received a call from another family member or friend so have been able to process the news a bit before our arrival. While this is never ideal, it does make the notification a bit easier just because the family members aren’t hearing from you the news for the first time. However, the goal remains that the families are first notified of their loved one’s death by an official notification team representing the Secretary of the Army.
When we arrived at the home of our Soldier’s father and knocked on the door he came out onto his porch very friendly and introduced himself. My thought was that he had already heard about his son’s death and was trying to put us at ease realizing the difficult situation we were in. We introduced ourselves and confirmed that he was the man we were looking for, saying that we were there from Fort Leonard Wood to speak with him. He then proudly said with a smile the words that caused my heart to drop, “I have a son in the Army!”
He didn’t know.
We asked if we could go inside and sit down, so he called into his wife to put the dog into the kennel, that a couple of Soldiers from Fort Leonard Wood were here to see them. After she did, he invited us in and offered us a seat. My partner asked if his wife could join us but she said she had to get the ice cream put away first, that she would be there in a minute (they had just returned home from the grocery store as we arrived). While we were waiting for her, the father talked more about his Soldier-son, about how he was trying to get him to Fort Leonard Wood to be closer to home.
Again, my heart sank and I could barely hold back the tears knowing the news we were there to share with him about his son.
Still waiting for his wife, I changed the subject to his hobby of amateur radio and asked what his farthest communication was, to which he answered, “Belgium” and that when he gets back on he expected to talk to someone in Hawaii.
Finally his wife joined us and the Master Sergent with me started sharing the news. Slowly and respectfully he began with something like this:
The Secretary of the Army has asked me to share with you his deepest regrets . . .
He then went on to give as many of the details as we had surrounding his child’s death. I watched as tears welled up in the father’s eyes, as they did in mine. I wasn’t sure what to expect, you never do in these situations, but he took the news calmly and with dignity.
He explained how his son had been going through some tough situations and that he had seemed depressed lately. He said that he told him he could always call if he needed to talk, and seemed disappointed that he hadn’t called but instead took his life. I tried to assure him that knowing that his father was there for him was most certainly a comfort to him, to which he agreed and added that his son really loved the Army, though.
I asked if there was anyone we could call for them but they said they would call their minister later. They went on to describe their faith as something that was a vital part of their life. I suggested that it was that faith that would help them through this difficult time.
One of the hard things that must be done during the notification visit is to try to confirm and get as much information as possible to aid in the rest of the casualty assistance the Army provides to the family. The Notification Officer did a good job going through the paperwork and asking the important questions while being very respectful of the family’s feelings.
Finally, with the notification complete and the information gathered, I asked if there was anything at all that I could do for them, to which they thanked me but said that they would be fine. I assured them that as God brought their faces to my mind that I would say a prayer for them, so they were not alone. They seemed to appreciate that.
We left the house and got on our way. The Notification Officer called the Casualty Assistance Office and let them know that the notification had been made … then we were finally able to breathe.
On our way home, an interesting discussion ensued. The Notification Officer that I was sent with is a black man. He told me that when he saw the father, a big guy with a bandana tied around his head who lived out in the backcountry of Missouri, he was concerned about the response he would receive when giving the news. This Master Sergeant has been the brunt of some unfair hate and prejudice in the past and admitted he expected the same from this man by the looks of him. I then confessed that I had thought of the same thing when I laid eyes on him. We both quickly agreed, however, that this couple exhibited anything but hate or prejudice. They were loving and compassionate, even as they were receiving the worst news you can receive about your son. The father even thanked us for coming, and for our service.
So while this was a very tough notification as I watched a father learn of his son’s death, I was also encouraged. I was encouraged because it is always a privilege to honor men and women who have served their country. I was encouraged because this couple could testify that their faith in God can -and will- help them through this most terrible time. I was encouraged because in the midst of tragedy, these people could still express love to us- the bearers of such bad news. Maybe there is still hope for us.
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Photo credits: Praying Soldier from backyardworkshop.com; Soldier in front of flag from docstoc.com; Garden with sun rays from fanpop.com.
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The Chaplain Kit 