SANGIN, Afghanistan—"They say there are no atheists in foxholes. There's one on the front lines here, though, and the chaplain isn't thrilled about it," writes Michael Phillips, reporter for The Wall Street Journal.
"Navy Chaplain Terry Moran is steeped in the Bible and believes all of it. His assistant, Religious Programs Specialist 2nd Class Philip Chute, is steeped in the Bible and having none of it.
"Together they roam this town in Taliban country, comforting the grunts while crossing swords with each other over everything from the power of angels to the wisdom of standing in clear view of enemy snipers. Lt. Moran, 48 years old, preaches about divine protection while 25-year-old RP2 Chute covers the chaplain's back and wishes he were more attentive to the dangers of the here and now."
This article was in The Wall Street Journal last Saturdau. September 4, 2010. My good friend, Jack Shaw, of Greenville, SC, had his secretary send me a copy of the article vial e-mail attachment. Jack has called me on Saturday morning to tell me about the article.
There are some 460 Army, Navy and Air Force chaplains deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan who are prohibited from carrying weapons, counting on their assistants and the troops around them for protection. It can be a perilous calling. On Monday, Chaplain Dale Goetz, 43, of White, SD., and four other soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb near Kandahar. Chaplain Goetz is the first Army chaplain killed in action since the Vietnam War.
Michael Phillips, the reporter for this news article, wrote, "Army chaplains represent 130 religions and denominations, including Catholicism, Judaism, Islam and Buddhism. The military says it's common for assistants to be of different faiths from the chaplains they support, or of no faith at all."
The reporter gave a chart that showed the number of deaths of chaplains in various wars fought by Americans.
Civil War 41
World War I 21
World War II 182
Korean War 13
Vietnam War 15
Iraq/Afghanistan 1
*This article can also be accessed if you copy and paste the entire address below into your web browser.
http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052748703467004575463833265055248-lMyQjAxMTAwMDAwNzEwNDcyWj.html
Posted on
Wed, September 8, 2010
by Hugh Morgan