Mel Baars: War and the dimensions of love
An Army chaplain in Afghanistan discovers that it’s easier to talk about love of enemies from a distance than up close. Fortunately, God promises to stand in the void and finish all that we have not been able to do.
Mel Baars: Holding ideals in bloodstained hands
After a tour of duty in Afghanistan, an Army chaplain ponders anew the question a professor once asked: How can she be a Christian and be a part of an organization that breaks things on purpose?
Mel Baars: Room for all of us
It is in military chaplaincy, perhaps more than anywhere else in the religious world, that people from every theological background are thrown together and forced to find a way forward, an Army chaplain says.
Mel Baars O'Malley: To an Army chaplain, all are welcome
Like Paul, military chaplains must sometimes be “all things to all people,” welcoming and praying with people of many faiths, an Army chaplain says. Hospitality to the other never distracts from the one who directs her path.
Russ Ferguson: Making space for veterans
Many of the nation’s veterans are in desperate need of community, and the church should welcome and help them, says a Navy chaplain.
Russ Ferguson: Beauty in the midst of chaos and carnage
After a deadly firing-range accident, a Navy chaplain learns that beauty exists even in the wake of tragedy. Search for it and point it out to others, he says, for it is a glimpse of the resurrection.
