What do you think of this chaplain’s actions?

According to an Army Times article, a Christian Broadcasting Network report with journalist Chuck Holton, and an interview with the Army chaplain at the center of the story on the Daily Signal, the facts are that

– in conducting a suicide prevention program, an Army chaplain presented various sources of non-religious support and help to troops

– the chaplain shared with the troops that, personally, when he was an infantryman, he had found the Psalms and the story of King David and his Christian faith helpful in overcoming depression

– troops are required to attend such suicide prevention programs

– the handout the chaplain gave troops at the end of the session had a list of non-religious resources on one side; on the other, he had written Psalms from the Old Testament Bible

– the chaplain states that he presented his personal approach as just that, personal, and did not indicate any of the options he outlined were mandatory

– some troops objected to being  given, in the handout, religious material at a non-religious, mandatory program

– the Army issued a letter of concern to the chaplain

– “A local letter of concern is not punishment,” according to a statement by Maj. Gen. Scott Miller quoted in the Army Times.  “Rather, it is an administrative counseling tool, with no long-term consequences. By design, letters of concerns are temporary, local administrative actions that are removed from a Soldier’s personnel file upon transfer to another assignment.”

– Gen. Miller, the article continues, further stated that “the role of military chaplains is to serve the religious needs of military members of a unit and their families.  Their role is not to provide religious instruction during non-religious mandatory training classes. Chaplains may appropriately share their personal experiences, but any religious information given by a Chaplain to a military formation should be limited to an orientation of what religious services and facilities are available and how to contact Chaplains of specific faiths.”

– chaplains, who are both ordained clergy and military officers, are typically in charge of these suicide-prevention briefings

So….

Did this Army chaplain overstep his bounds by sharing his faith as a personal aside in a mandated, non-religious program?  Would he have been neglecting his duties as a chaplain endorsed by a Protestant church not to do so?  Should he have not addressed the help many find in religion and spirituality at all?  Was it okay to address the help many find in religion and spirituality but do so more broadly, encouraging troops of all faiths to turn to their church, mosque, temple, synagogue…?   Should the handout have had no references to religion at all?  Should he have listed on the back information on how to get in touch with a representative of one’s own faith tradition? Was the Army right to reprimand the chaplain or out of line?….

A live link

Although the Humanity Explored film festival is over, there still seems to be a live link through another site:  http://learni.st/learnings/86739-chaplains-under-fire

So if you want to stream the doc, you’ve got another chance (and, of course, there is always the DVD you can buy).

5 Things to Know About Suicide: #1 Ask Straight Out

Thank you Off The Base for this and your many other helpful blogs —

Off The Base

They’re called “responders” – the folks at the other end of the Veterans Crisis Line. But they aren’t the only ones serving on the front-line of suicide prevention.

As a society, as colleagues, as friends, as family, we cannot leave the work of suicide prevention to the “responders” alone.

It is up to all of us to act or at least “ask” if we see someone unduly stressed according to psychologist, Dr. Caitlin Thompson, deputy director of suicide prevention at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“If worried – asking people straight out saying, ‘I’m so concerned about how you seem to be, have you been thinking about suicide at all?'” Thompson advised. “It’s just that simple really to just ask the question that can be a very scary question.”

It’s time to stop being “scared” and start becoming informed.

Here are tips from the Defense Suicide Prevention Office website:

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Can computers help teach the art of being a chaplain?

Probably not entirely, but they might help prepare chaplains for the challenges that lie ahead, according to an article by Mark Pinsky of the Religion News Service.  He writes:

The animated figure on the computer screen moves carefully among the wounded, darting from one fallen figure to another. Trailing the combat medics, the uniformed military chaplain kneels and performs “spiritual triage,” assessing who is dead, who is soon to die, and who is likely to survive.

For the dead, there is silent prayer; for the gravely wounded and those in pain, there are words of comfort. Checking dog tags to determine the faith of the fallen, the pastor uses language consistent with each faith tradition. At each point in the action, a prompt asks users what they think is the appropriate response, and then offers them feedback on their choices.

It is clear from the article that any such computer program is an adjunct to not a substitution for the mentoring and training only another human can provide.

“We shouldn’t confuse simulation trainers as replacements for chaplains or care providers,”  [Chaplain Jeff Zust, an Army lieutenant colonel and an EMT] said. “Trauma care and counseling need to be provided in person. There is no substitute for human contact in training.”

Navy Chaplain Josh Sherwin, 31, a rabbi who has deployed three times to Camp Leatherneck in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province, agrees.

“There is no way a classroom environment can prepare you,” he said. “But a simulation that puts you through realistic situations can be highly valuable.”

The article then concludes with information about another valuable tool — it is one you will recognize:

A 2010 documentary, “Chaplains Under Fire,” examines the roles of military clergy in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the complexities inherent in their service. The film shows chaplains visiting with soldiers in forward operating bases, watching over them in field hospitals, and meeting their flag-draped coffins when they are returned to the United States.

“It’s exhilarating to be in combat,” says Chaplain Bennett Sandford in the film, after escaping an improvised explosive attack unscathed. But before long, after praying over a slain Marine, the Baptist minister says, “the exhilaration went away.”

We never set out to make a training tool for the military.  But we cannot think of a higher honor than to see our work  being used to shape the chaplains of tomorrow.

Humanity Explored Film Festival up and running

Humanity Explored Film Festival is up and running, and you can watch Chaplains Under Fire on-line as well as a number of other great documentaries and feature films.  And, please, give the festival your feedback and spread the word.  Thanks.

Stand Up for Heroes

Last year, the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival showed the value of laughter, empathy, respect and understanding by putting on “Stand Up for Heroes” — check out a news report of last year’s event then pass the word along about this year’s Stand Up for Heroes at the Beacon Theater in New York on Thursday, Nov 8.

Tickets are available at www.ReMIND.org and at www.nycomedyfestival.com

Of suicides and same-sex commitment

Two notices tumbled into the in-box one atop the other:

The first was the report that, on average, one veteran commits suicide every day.  Every day.  The tragedy of this statistic is only made worse by the fact that experts are at a loss to come up with an explanation and, hence, effective preventive strategies.  Some of the veterans have been deployed multiple times, some have suffered trauma, some have had injuries to the brain from concussions, explosions and penetrating injuries.   A great number, however, have not been deployed.  In all cases, our system is failing them, overwhelmed as it is by the numbers and baffled as to the cause of this enduring, tragic and epidemic loss of life.

The second notice was a report that two congressmen denounced a same-sex commitment ceremony  performed at Fort Polk, Louisiana.  They charged that the ceremony, performed by a chaplain, was ‘marriage-like’ and therefore violated the Dept of Defense policy that only allows same-sex marriages to be performed on military bases in states where this is legal.

The timing of these reports gives pause.  Surely time and effort are better spent trying to figure out how to reach out to troops and veterans so that they do not feel their only alternative is suicide rather than worrying about a ceremony that was not a marriage.  Don’t see  how this violated state laws.  Do see how this could help a service woman strengthen a relationship key to her well-being.

War and Its Wake

It has been an amazing privilege to contribute a chapter to War Trauma and Its Wake: Expanding the Circle of Healing which Routledge is publishing in May/June.

Here is a flyer with the table of contents  in pdf form: War Trauma and Its Wake (it also offers a 20% discount on pre-orders).  The chapter I contributed deals with the journey home for physically wounded troops and their families and it is greatly informed by the troops and families we got to know while making Chaplains Under Fire.

United Methodist Church screens doc

Jaye White  runs a program for the  United Methodist Church geared to encouraging congregations to reach out to military families.  As part of this outreach program, she showed Chaplains Under Fire  at the Haymount United Methodist Church in Fayetteville, NC.  Here is what she reports:

We had about 35 people show up for CUF at our screening in February. There were two active duty chaplains in attendance and three retired chaplains. All of the response was positive. One woman was upset that anyone would take issue with having chaplains in the service. One of the retired chaplains pointed out that chaplains are to assure that everyone has religious freedom. Obviously there have been problems at times, but this documentary addresses the issues fairly.

We are showing the film this Thursday, March 8 at Southern Pines United Methodist Church in Southern Pines, NC at 6:30 pm. FREE Everyone welcome!

Pass the word along to anyone you know in the Southern Pines area — thanks!

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New Army report

According to some estimates, the average infantryman in the South Pacific duringWorld War II saw about 40 days of combat in four years.  In contrast, the OPTEMPO in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past decade has remained persistently high, providing very few opportunities for individuals to rest, either physically or mentally. Most Soldiers today have deployed at least once; many have deployed two or more times on 12‐15 month rotations. Nearly two‐thirds of those Soldiers who deployed had less than 24 months of “dwell” time spent back at home, resetting, retraining, and recuperating before deploying again. Simply stated, for over a decade nearly every leader and Soldier serving in our Army has lived in a near constant state of anticipation – whether anticipating an upcoming deployment, anticipating the next mission or convoy, or anticipating the challenges of returning home. The prolonged stress and strain on them – and on their Families – must be effectively addressed.

This is an excerpt from a new report detailing the progress made in meeting the needs of our troops, veterans and their families but it also describes the enormity of the suffering many continue to endure.    Suicide rates are alarmingly high, sex crimes are up, prescription drug use is rising… the toll of multiple deployments is enormous.  The report, “Army 2020: Generating Health & Discipline in the Force,” is available for download.  One of the areas in which much more work is needed is in the prevention of and response to sexual violence.  At a press conference, Army vice chief of staff Gen. Peter Chiarelli said:

“What concerns me the most is an increase in violent sex crime offenders by 64 percent from 2006 to 2011. This is unacceptable. We have zero tolerance for this. Army leaders take sexual assault seriously. We’re expanding our surveillance and response against these crimes. We’ve identified numerous sex crime factors, such as alcohol and the newly designed barracks that offer privacy, coupled with a lack of leadership.
This impacts the youngest and most junior female Soldiers and the perpetrators mirror that age, he said.
“We also had an increase in 2006 to 2011 in domestic violence. It increased by 33 percent, from 293 to 383. And our child-abuse cases increased by 43 percent in that time period from 201 to 287.
Alcohol, associated with domestic violence, increased by 54 percent, and with child abuse by 40 percent, he said.
“And research informs us that PTS is a factor in partner aggression. A person diagnosed with PTS is three times more likely to participate in some kind of partner aggression.
“That is why it is so critical to eliminate the stigma associated with PTS and get people in for treatment for their alcohol problem, their drug-abuse problem, prescription drug-abuse problem, or anger-management problems, spouse abuse and child abuse. That to me is critical. And the National Institute of Mental Health lays this out as not just an Army problem, this is a national problem.

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