United States military chaplains hold positions in the armed forces of the United States and are charged with conducting religious services and providing counseling for their adherents. As of 2011, there are about 2,900 chaplains in the Army, among the active duty, reserve, and National Guard components.[1]
A military chaplain must be endorsed by a religious organization in order to serve on active duty. In the contemporary U.S. military, endorsement is a complex area and many different paths are available. This religious endorsement must be maintained throughout the chaplain's military service and can be withdrawn at any time for religious or disciplinary reasons by the religious body with which the chaplain is affiliated,[4][5] though provisions exist for exceptional cases.[6][7] A military chaplain's rank is based on years of service and promotion selection from the appropriate peer group. Each is identified in uniform both by rank and religious affiliation insignia that indicate as well the branch of service.
Chaplains have served in the various branches of the United States armed forces since their formation, including in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. Congress authorized the hiring of an Army chaplain in 1791. Reverend John Hurt of Virginia (who had served as Chaplain of the 6th Virginia Regiment during the American Revolution) was appointed to the position on March 4, 1791, and became the first officially recognized United States military chaplain.[8] He served until his resignation of April 30, 1794. He was succeeded by Reverend David Jones of Pennsylvania who was also a veteran of service with the Continental Army during the American Revolution. Jones served until he was discharged on 15 June 1800. He later served as a chaplain during the War of 1812.[9][10] Until 1862, only Christians were allowed to be chaplains in the US Army. After a lobbying campaign, the law was changed and President Lincoln appointed Rabbi Jacob Frankel of Philadelphia as the first Jewish chaplain on September 18, 1862.[11] The first female chaplain in the United States military was Ella Elvira Gibson, she served in the American Civil War but she was not paid until 1876, and not recognized as a chaplain until 2002, when she was also posthumously given the rank of captain.[12]
The U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Coast Guard do not have their own chaplaincies, but are served by the Navy Chaplain Corps.[14]
Expanding role of military chaplains
In 1999, Rabbi Arnold E. Resnicoff, a U.S. Navy chaplain, proposed widening the chaplain's role to include that of engagement with local religious leaders in conflict zones to improve the military's understanding of local religious issues and include chaplains in the conflict prevention and reconciliation processes.[15] This outreach is part of the duties listed for chaplains in Joint Publication 1-05 on chaplain operations.[citation needed]
The Military Association of Atheists & Freethinkers supports expanding chaplain services to support atheists and humanists. Whether they are already required to support such non-theists is disputed. Chaplains are not trained to provide such support and often oppose doing so.[16][17]
Controversies
Constitutionality
Jewish Worship Pennant, flying over the National Ensign (American flag) on a U.S. Navy ship.
Two Harvard law students brought a suit in 1979 arguing that military chaplains should be replaced with non-combat volunteers or contractors. In Katcoff v. Marsh (1985),[19] the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit determined that the plaintiffs lacked standing to bring the suit and upheld the right of the military to employ chaplains. According to one analysis of the case, the court analysis described the First Amendment's free exercise clause and establishment clause as separate issues. It noted that only the wealthiest religious sects could provide chaplains for their adherents, effectively denying to other military personnel the "free exercise" of their religion.[20] The court also established guidelines for the military's chaplaincy programs, emphasizing the constitutional boundaries governing the program's administration and operations, including accommodating the rights and beliefs of each service member, and the avoidance of evangelizing and involuntary participation in religious observances.[21] A contrary view holds that the military chaplaincy violates two requirements of the establishment clause, neutrality and non-entanglement, by promoting ecumenism, conflating military and religious functions, and controlling expenditures.[22] It cited the difficulties faced by the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod since World War II in attempting to service its adherents in the military outside of the chaplaincy program rather than submit to military authority.[23]
Restrictions on religious observance or expression
A September 14, 2006, court-martial resulted in a reprimand and fine for U.S. Navy Chaplain Lieutenant Gordon Klingenschmitt, a Protestant, who participated in uniform at a March 2006 protest in front of the White House, though he had been given a direct order not to wear his uniform. The protest was in support of his and other chaplains' complaint that the military restricted the free exercise of their religion by allowing only non-sectarian prayers at public ceremonies.[24]
In April 2007, the court held that the Navy had abandoned the thirds policy and that its current criteria were constitutional because the Navy has broad discretion to determine how to accommodate the religious needs of its service members. This decision was affirmed in 2008 by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.[citation needed]
Proselytizing
Numerous complaints have been made against chaplains for mandatory prayers, coercion, and using government money to promote Evangelical Christianity.[27][28][29][30][31] Atheists, whose religious position would not be represented by references to a generic God or in the "spiritual fitness" initiatives of the Army, have created groups to ensure the separation of church and state in the military.[27][29] Groups representing atheists have advocated the appointment of a non-believer to the chaplaincy.[32]
Sexual orientation
During the 1992 presidential campaign, the possibility of allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the U.S. military became a political issue. During the summer, Captain Larry H. Ellis, a Navy chaplain, sent senior military officers and senior chaplains his analysis that said: "In the unique, intensely close environment of the military, homosexual conduct can threaten the lives, including the physical (e.g. AIDS) and psychological well-being of others". He called the presence of homosexuals in the military a "physical and psychological" threat. Advocates of the policy objected that the Department of Defense might exploit Ellis' role as a chaplain in opposing the policy: "It's as if the religious attribution somehow gives their argument more credibility."[33]
Chaplain groups and religious organizations took various positions on "Don't ask, don't tell" (DADT). Some felt that the policy needed to be withdrawn to make the military more inclusive. The Southern Baptist Convention battled the repeal of DADT, warning that their endorsements for chaplains might be withdrawn if the repeal took place.[34][35] They took the position that allowing gay men and women to serve in the military without restriction would have a negative impact on the ability of chaplains who think homosexuality is a sin to speak freely regarding their religious beliefs. The Roman Catholic Church called for the retention of the policy, but had no plans to withdraw its priests from serving as military chaplains.[36] Sixty-five retired chaplains signed a letter opposing repeal, stating that repeal would make it impossible for chaplains whose faith teaches that same-sex behavior is immoral to minister to military servicemembers.[37] Other religious organizations and agencies called the repeal of the policy a "non-event" or "non-issue" for chaplains, claiming that chaplains have always supported military service personnel, whether or not they agree with all their actions or beliefs.[38][39][40]
In May 2011, revelations that an April Navy memo relating to its DADT training guidelines contemplated allowing same-sex weddings in base chapels and allowing chaplains to officiate if they so chose resulted in a letter of protest from 63 Republican congressman, citing the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as controlling the use of federal property.[41] A Pentagon spokesperson replied that DOMA "does not limit the type of religious ceremonies a chaplain may perform in a chapel on a military installation", and a Navy spokesperson said that "A chaplain can conduct a same-sex ceremony if it is in the tenets of his faith".[42] A few days later the Navy rescinded its earlier instructions "pending additional legal and policy review and interdepartmental coordination."[43]
On September 30, 2011, Under Secretary of Defense Clifford Stanley announced the DOD's policy that military chaplains are allowed to perform same-sex marriages "on or off a military installation" where local law permits them. His memo noted that "a chaplain is not required to participate in or officiate a private ceremony if doing so would be in variance with the tenets of his or her religion" and "a military chaplain's participation in a private ceremony does not constitute an endorsement of the ceremony by DoD".[44] Some religious groups announced that their chaplains would not participate in such weddings, including an organization of evangelical Protestants, the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty[45] and Roman Catholics led by Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA.[46]
Free speech
A January 5, 1991, letter to the Abilene Reporter-News from Lieutenant Colonel Garland Robertson, a Southern Baptist U.S. Air Force chaplain who had served as a reconnaissance pilot during the Vietnam War, questioned the use of U.S. military force against Iraq. He wrote that "The need to use military force in this circumstance ... is an open issue." When reprimanded, he wrote a lengthy rebuttal that he shared with the press. Air Force officials noted that he identified himself by rank to the newspaper, when he could have written as a private citizen. Robertson's orders to relocate to Germany were canceled. He submitted to three psychological examinations, and was relieved of his pastoral duties. He was honorably discharged without benefits in September 1993 based on a record of "poor leadership". He told the New York Times: "If you're consistent with the teachings of your church, there will always be tensions between being a minister and being an officer".[47] He initiated a lawsuit and lost in both the District Court and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, which found his free speech rights had not been violated, noted that "a chaplain is a member of both military and religious denomination institutions", and reaffirmed the lower court's finding "that the conflict between the Air Force and [Robertson] as an Air Force chaplain does not establish a constitutional violation of the religion clauses."[48]
A U.S. Navy chaplain in Iraq studies his Bible for an upcoming service.
LTJG Shin signs her oath of office to become the first Buddhist chaplain in the US Military in 2004
President George W. Bush congratulates Chaplain Imam Abuhena Saifulislam, the first US Navy Muslim chaplain assigned to the Marine Corps.
Saleha Jabeen, the first female Muslim military chaplain from the Air Force Chaplain Corps College
A U.S. Navy chaplain offers Catholic Mass for U.S. Marines at Saipan, June 1944.
Military Chaplains Association
The Military Chaplains Association of the United States of America is dedicated to the religious freedom and spiritual welfare of our armed services members, veterans, their families, and their survivors. Founded in 1925, it received a congressional charter in 1950 by the 81st United States Congress.[51]
↑ If a chaplain notifies his or her endorsing agent in writing of intent to seek endorsement in a different faith group, the code of ethics of the National Conference on Ministry to the Armed Forces (NCMAF)—the principal organization of endorsing agents—requires the chaplain's current endorser to continue endorsement until the chaplain is able to meet requirements for endorsement by the second faith group unless there is a moral charge against the chaplain that would otherwise have resulted in revocation of endorsement. See Archived 2004-04-05 at the Wayback Machine NCMAF Code of Ethics. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
↑ Archived 2012-04-02 at the Wayback Machine NCMAF Procedures for Change of Religious Body (Denomination) Endorsement. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
↑ Kenneth Lasson, "Religious Liberty in the Military: The First Amendment under 'Friendly Fire'", Journal of Law and Religion, vol. 9, no. 2 (1992), 471–99, 493
↑ Register of Officers of the Continental Army. Francis B. Heitman. pg. 311.
↑ Julie B. Kaplan, "Military Mirrors on the Wall: Nonestablishment and the Military Chaplaincy," Yale Law Journal, vol. 95, no. 6 (May 1986), 1210–36, esp. 1212–19, 1227–32
↑ Washington Post: Alan Cooperman, "Navy Chaplain Guilty Of Disobeying an Order," September 15, 2006, accessed March 2, 2012. Military policies allow participation in such events by military personnel, so long as they did not wear uniforms or appear to be in attendance in a way that gives the appearance of endorsement by the military.
Stephen L. Harris, Duffy's War: Fr. Francis Duffy, Wild Bill Donovan, and the Irish Fighting 69th in World War I (Potomac Books, 2006)
Israel A. S. Yost, Rebecca Salter, Monica Elizabeth Yost, Michael Markrich, Combat Chaplain: The Personal Story of the World War II Chaplain of the Japanese American 100th Battalion (University of Hawaii Press, 2006)
General
Warren B. Armstrong, For Courageous Fighting and Confident Dying: Union Chaplains in the Civil War (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1998)
Doris. L. Bergen, ed., The Sword of the Lord: Military Chaplains from the First to the Twenty-First Century (University of Notre Dame Press, 2004)
Richard M. Budd, Serving Two Masters: The Development of American Military Chaplaincy, 1860–1920 (University of Nebraska Press, 2002)
Cathey, M. Todd. 2017. Combat Chaplain: The Life and Civil War Experiences of Rev. James H. McNeilly. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press.
Dom Aidan Henry Germain, Catholic Military and Naval Chaplains 1776–1917 (Washington, D.C., 1929)
Hansen, Kim Philip (2012). Military Chaplains and Religious Diversity. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN978-1-137-02515-9.
Herman Norton, Rebel Religion: The Story of Confederate Chaplains (St. Louis: Bethany Press, 1961)
Albert Isaac Slomovitz, The Fighting Rabbis: Jewish Military Chaplains and American History (New York University Press, 1999)
Willard L. Sperry, ed., Religion of Soldier and Sailor (Harvard University Press, 1945)
Sybil Thornton, "Buddhist Chaplains in the Field of Battle" in Buddhism in Practice, ed. Donald S. Lopez Jr. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995)
Mark O'Malley, An History of the Development of Catholic Military Chaplaincy in the United States (Gregorian University, 2009)
"Don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) was the official United States policy on military service of non-heterosexual people, instituted during the Clinton administration. The policy was issued under Department of Defense Directive 1304.26 on December 21, 1993, and was in effect from February 28, 1994, until September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while barring openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual persons from military service. This relaxation of legal restrictions on service by gays and lesbians in the armed forces was mandated by Public Law 103–160, which was signed November 30, 1993. The policy prohibited people who "demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts" from serving in the armed forces of the United States, because their presence "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability".
A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric, or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution, or a private chapel. The term chaplaincy refers to the chapel, facility or department in which one or more chaplains carry out their role.
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The United States Navy Chaplain Corps is the body of military chaplains of the United States Navy who are commissioned naval officers. Their principal purpose is "to promote the spiritual, religious, moral, and personal well-being of the members of the Department of the Navy," which includes the Navy and the United States Marine Corps. Additionally, the Chaplain Corps provides chaplains to the United States Coast Guard.
The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA is a Latin Church jurisdiction of the Catholic Church for men and women serving in the United States Armed Forces and their dependents.
A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases, they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations.
The Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF) is a community for atheists and freethinkers in the military, both within the United States and from around the world. The MAAF can assist U.S. military members to respond to illegal and insensitive religious proselytizing on military bases. It is an independent 501(c)(3) organization building community for freethinkers and other nontheists in the military. The MAAF supports constitutional separation of church and state and First Amendment rights for all service members. It also educates and trains both the military and civilian community about atheism and Freethought in the military.
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The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) is a non-profit organization that was founded in 2005 by Mikey Weinstein, a former Air Force officer and attorney. The organization's mission is to ensure that members of the United States Armed Forces are able to practice their religious beliefs without fear of discrimination or coercion, and to promote the separation of church and state within the military.
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Arnold E. Resnicoff is an American Conservative rabbi who served as a military officer and military chaplain. He served in Vietnam and Europe before attending rabbinical school. He then served as a U.S. Navy Chaplain for almost 25 years. He promoted the creation of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and delivered the closing prayer at its 1982 dedication. In 1984 the President of the United States spoke on his eyewitness account of the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing. After retiring from the military he was National Director of Interreligious Affairs for the American Jewish Committee and served as Special Assistant to the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, serving at the equivalent military rank of Brigadier General.
In the United States armed forces, the Chiefs of Chaplains of the United States are the senior service chaplains who lead and represent the Chaplain Corps of the United States Army, Navy, and Air Force. The Navy created the first Office of the Chief of Chaplains in 1917; the Army followed in 1920, and the Air Force established its own in 1948 after it became a separate branch.
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The Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 is a landmark United States federal statute enacted in December 2010 that established a process for ending the "don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) policy, thus allowing gay, lesbian, and bisexual people to serve openly in the United States Armed Forces. It ended the policy in place since 1993 that allowed them to serve only if they kept their sexual orientation secret and the military did not learn of their sexual orientation, which was controversial.
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Religious symbolism in the United States military includes the use of religious symbols for military chaplain insignia, uniforms, emblems, flags, and chapels; symbolic gestures, actions, and words used in military rituals and ceremonies; and religious symbols or designations used in areas such as headstones and markers in national cemeteries, and military ID tags.
The Armed Forces Chaplaincy Center (AFCC) was the center for training of United States military chaplains, located at Fort Jackson, Columbia, South Carolina. Co-located on the AFCC campus were: the United States Army Chaplain Center and School, the United States Naval Chaplaincy School and Center, and the United States Air Force Chaplain Corps College. The Center includes the "Joint Center of Excellence for Religious Training and Education."
In addition to the three official Chaplain Corps seals for the army, navy, and air force, chaplaincies also have special seals and emblems for special schools and organizations for their chaplains, as well as a shared emblem for the "Armed Forces Chaplaincy Center" (AFCC), Fort Jackson, Columbia, South Carolina, where chaplains from all branches of the military receive their training. The original AFCC emblem had three symbols traditionally associated with learning and wisdom—a lamp, a torch and a book. A second emblem was developed by the Commandants and Commanding Officer of the three schools, in part so that it could be used on the reverse side of a two-sided AFCC challenge coin, with one symbol drawn from each of the army, navy, and Chaplain Corps emblems: a dove from the army emblem, cupped hands from the air force emblem, and an anchor from the navy emblem. In addition to using both emblems on the two sides of the AFCC coin, both designs were displayed in the AFCC lobby.
Jason Torpy is president of the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF), an advocacy group focused on non-religious service members and veterans. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army and a Humanist Celebrant who works to increase the visibility of "atheists in foxholes".
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