God

Over the last several days, I've watched programming on the government-run American Forces Network, a series of TV channels produced by and for American servicemen serving abroad.

A distinguishing characteristic of these channels is the relative absence of commercial advertisement, in favor of military-themed "public service announcements." Many of these PSAs promote messages such as tolerance, professionalism, devotion to family, and where to access various services provided free by the military to soldiers. For the most part, I find these sorts of ads to have a positive influence, even if the production values and ads themselves are a little shoddy.

From time to time, however, I find myself watching a news story or ad that seems to somehow reek obviously of spin. That is to say, I can tell that what I'm being shown is clearly propaganda, and when these incidents occur--usually about twice a week--I can't help but be left with a bad taste in my mouth. In particular, this bad taste has been lingering over a series of announcements I've recently viewed, produced by the United States Army - Europe Corps of Chaplains.

For those who don't know what a chaplain is, I'll explain. The Armed Services view soldier morale as being a key component of mission readiness, and part of that morale, leaders understand, is spiritual. To that end, the Army commissions ordained clergymen as uniformed military officers--chaplains--to serve with Army units, providing ministry and counseling services to soldiers in time of need. As expected, most chaplains are Christian, but I myself have seen examples of Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, and Wiccan officers of the Chaplaincy. Though chaplains themselves may be ordained in a specific denomination, they are obligated by their creed to provide ministry services to ALL soldiers, regardless of faith, and attempts to accomodate the diverse religions practiced in the military are pursued to the fullest extent. The Army, by law, is prohibited from promoting any one religion as being superior to another, and to that degree, I see the Corps of Chaplains as providing a valuable and important service to soldiers.

However...

Over the past few days, I've seen a series of TV spots promoting the chaplaincy to soldiers as a source of support during times of stress. Harmless enough, to be sure. But the nature of the ads has given me cause for thought. These ads, viewed by soldiers only in Europe, contain messages as follow:

"I would love to help. Just ask. GOD."

"Looking for a fresh start? I can help you wipe your slate clean. GOD."

"Got a lot on your plate? I can help you carry some of the burden. GOD."

This has gotten me thinking. Now, I'm a deeply spiritual person owing to my experiences, and I'll admit, I've even paid a visit to the local Chaplain myself. But the first and only time I went to see the Chaplain was early into Basic Training. When I did, I found that mostly the Chaplain's response to my problem was to feed me a series of simple platitudes, intended more to get me back in step with the Army's program than to ease any serious long-term sense of angst. It occurs to me that, while the Army Chaplain Corps cannot promote one religion over any other, clergymen must, I think, hold a specific personal worldview in order to accept the idea of becoming a military chaplain. As many clergymen shun the use of violence, this naturally weeds out all but a specific minority.

Right now, many say that American culture is engaged in a war of political and religious ideals. This isn't to say that America is at war with radical Islam, as some would maintain. Rather, I think American culture is presently hindered by a deep divide over what American culture is supposed to represent. Some in our culture believe that government should operate independently of faith, while others believe that any government of the people should represent the faith of that people. As the majority of Americans today are still Christian, many feel that this should, by logical extension, be a Christian nation. Though I vehemently disagree with this argument, I can understand the reasoning. For people of such a faith, the laws of God must necessarily trump the laws of man, and if government operates independently of church doctrine, some could argue that government is acting in direct violation of Divine mandate. Thus any hotbed issue of the right--women's rights, gay rights, separation of Church and State, criticism of American foreign policy--becomes a de facto criticism of God. I suspect strongly that any clergyperson who enters the chaplaincy must then believe that American military policy moves in step with "God's Plan." Put another way, one must believe that our ideals and aims as Americans fall in line with what God wishes, and therefore take precedence.

I find this idea dangerous. It concerns me. DOES the Divine support a national heritage? CAN It provide endorsement of a specific human leader? Would a supposedly merciful and just God place preference upon a single group of human beings; or place Its endorsement on the agendas of ONE political party? Would such a God endorse our foreign-policy actions over the past half-century?

No. No, I don't believe so.