Chaplaincy: A sacred and called duty

In 1864, Joel Tyler Headley, an American clergyman, historian and author, cited Gen. George Washington in his book, a detailed account of how chaplains served in the American Revolution, as saying that Chaplain David Avery, born in 1735, was the "embodiment of all those qualities he wished in a chaplain."

Headley described Avery in his "Chaplains and Clergy of Revolution" as being "fearless in battle," that he "nursed" Soldiers with care and that he was impassioned with a love for God and country."

Washington's comments about what a chaplain should be were nothing short of prophetic. U.S. military chaplains, formal positions in the military recognized by Congress on July 29, 1775, which made them equal to captains in rank and earned them $20 a month, have endured for over 200 years. Thousands of uniformed men and women have served the spiritual and religious needs of military personnel domestically and internationally.

"We have one of the most incredible traditions of this country," said Kenneth Botton, a retired Navy chaplain and coordinator of Chaplaincy Studies and affiliate professor of pastoral theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. "Right from the beginning it was our nation that brought a sense of the divine to Soldiers and meeting the religious needs of Soldiers that was intrinsically important...which is consistent with our Constitution."

Serving alongside Soldiers, caring for the sick and wounded, sometimes in the face of countless deaths, and shepherding Soldiers is a tradition that chaplains within the military will celebrate on July 29, the 241st anniversary of the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps.

Botton said that the role of the chaplain is different from that of a pastor. Traditionally, a pastor is responsible for guiding congregants within his or her own faith and denomination, and it is these congregants who come to the pastor rather than the pastor being amongst the people.

"The chaplain is the person who incarnates their group's religious perspective," explained Botton. "[Chaplains] are literally where the Soldiers are."

For example, because chaplains and Soldiers serve together, they often experience the same things together, said Botton. Accordingly, chaplains develop a relationship with the Soldier because they can relate to the Soldiers sorrows' and joys.

"A chaplain is a Monday through Sunday [person] and not just a Sunday person," explained Botton. "Some of my best discussions happened at 3 a.m."

U.S. Army Capt. Mark Worrell, deputy garrison chaplain for Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, understands what it means to be among Soldiers. At one point, Worrell was stationed in Iraq, where he cared for the needs of 450 Soldiers, many of whom did not share the same faith. As a chaplain, Worrell said, his job is to help each Soldier grow in their respective faith.

"If someone comes to me with a different faith, I'm responsible to help them find a connection or to find a way to help them grow in their faith," he explained.

Worrell also said he traveled through southeastern Iraq to check on Soldiers.

"I would help them through hard times and just being there when they needed somebody or even if they didn't know they did," he said.

Worrell, who's been a chaplain for eight years, said service as a chaplain is a call from God to serve Soldiers. He said that he was first exposed to the idea of chaplaincy while attending seminary at Baptist Bible College in Pennsylvania.

A former youth pastor, Worrell said that he met Chap. (Col.) James May, an alumnus of Baptist Bible College who served at Arlington National Cemetery while attending seminary. Worrell, along with classmates, went on a trip to West Point. It was these two experiences that opened him up to the idea of serving in the military as a chaplain.

"I got to meet some men who loved God and Soldiers, who wanted to minister in whatever way God wanted to use them," he said.

Worrell said that it is a joy to walk in the steps of those who have died serving, like Capt. Dale Goetz. Like Worrell, Goetz was also a Baptist commissioned chaplain. Goetz died in Afghanistan while on his way to conduct services for troops in 2010, according to multiple news sources.

"It means a lot to carry on that legacy," said Worrell. "He was on his way to spend some time with his Soldiers, to share his faith, to share who God was to him and what that meant. And so he died in the process of doing that, and that says a lot to me."

Worrell is not the only one who has a reverence for the chaplaincy.

"I believe that people are created in the image and likeness of God and I believe that God's presence is in the people who are around me," said U.S. Army Chap. (Maj.) Alfred Wendel, a Catholic chaplain at JBM-HH. "And [I] need to treat them with dignity and respect, whether the person is living or deceased. That to me is a sacred duty."

Wendel grew up in a military family. His father was an Army officer, so he wanted to carry on the family tradition of serving his country. He enlisted in the Army in 1970, but didn't start serving as a chaplain until he joined the Wyoming National Guard on Oct. 1, 1989, as a first lieutenant.

"I wanted to serve in the military," said Wendel. "I come from a military family. My dad was an Army officer, so I grew up in that."

Wendel said that being a chaplain didn't come until after he was ordained a priest.

A huge part of being a chaplain is being with Soldiers and their families, said Wendel. "Being with Soldiers and ministering to them is a great responsibility," he said.

Wendel said Soldiers, families, and chaplains enjoy a unique relationship, one that involves confidentiality.

"To me that is a very sacred thing," he said. "Soldiers and their families can come and talk to me and that is between us."

Wendel also said that he has to make sure that he is upholding the values of the military and his faith. He said that military standards and values aren't only for those who come to him for counseling, but are also meant for him.

"I also have to be thinking about it myself and I have to live up to it," he said. "This is a great duty and a great honor."