Replies

1. It repeats twice on pages 30 and 57: "If a chaplain is unable to reconcile serving with or caring for gay and lesbian Service members with his or her faith, the chaplain may request that the relevant endorsing agency withdraw its ecclesiastical endorsement for him or her.

2. Chaplains will have religious "freedom" only in context of Sunday chapel.
The Pentagon report dubiously promises to protect Chaplains' freedoms, "in the context of their religious ministry," claiming they won't need to change their sermons, counseling, prayers, or worship.

3. Battalion Commander relieved of duty for refusing to "endorse" open sin.
One Senior Officer in the Army National Guard has already been relieved of his battalion-level commanding officer job after stating his conscience would not allow him to participate in "re-education" training that will soon force young Christians to learn how to respect homosexual sin.

4. Left demands punishment of Christian Colonel who is taking a stand.
In a letter to Stars and Stripes entitled "Won't Choose To Deal With It," Lt. Col. Maxey took a stand, and wrote:
"DOD officials plan to tell servicemembers who have a problem with those living a homosexual lifestyle to 'learn to deal with it,' but they are prepared to counsel and/or slap Christians with paperwork if someone feels "offended" by our witness? Wearing sexual lifestyle choices on your sleeve is OK, but not your faith?

In the above, I would respond to former chaplain Klingenschmidt (I believe) as follows:

1. No chaplain or pastor should ever have trouble "serving with or caring for" any person involved in any sin. We don't invite homosexuals to boycott our ministry, we encourage them to listen. That is why Paul was able to tell the Corinthian Christians that some of them had formerly been homosexual. The only way to minister to them is to minister to them. Ministry does not equal approval any more than a soup kitchen means endorsement of alcoholism or drug abuse. This is not the troublesome provision mentioned by the military.

2. No need to change sermons, counseling, prayers, or worship. Klingenschmidt says this will only be at Sunday chapel. That simply isn't realistic because field ministry is not limited by "Sunday chapel." As a Navy chaplain, Klingenschmidt was not familiar with the Army's adage that for chaplains, "every day is Sunday." What it means is that when traveling to various squads and platoons scattered over hundreds of square miles it is not possible to see them all on Sunday.

"In the context of ministry" means that chaplains have both a religious support mission and a general support mission. Their religious support mission must by US Code be according to the faith tenets of their denomination.

One's "sermons, counseling, prayers, and worship" are always part of one's religious ministry. Attending a commander's briefing on the proper way to guide a vehicle at night through a bivouac area is not. It is not the time to stand up and talk about those who will be eternally lost.

3. This commander said he wanted to be relieved of his command rather than have to require his troops to participate in gay sensitivity training/indoctrination. I commend his honesty before-the-fact regarding the training. He should be permitted to resign a command, if he wants to.

If such training does not teach that all forms of fraternization and PDA are detrimental to good order and discipline in the same way as it teaches that hetero-sexual fraternization and PDA is detrimental to good order and discipline, then this commander is right on target.

We should have huge problems with that. If John and Suzy can't play lickey-face when in a military setting, and they can't, then Johnny and Mikey can't either. If Lt Dan and PFC Cutsey can't play hide the sausage because of rank differences, then neither can Lt Dan and PFC Dan.

4. Gays can be vocal, but Christians cannot. If the rules are that gays can verbalize their beliefs, but Christians can't, then that is wrong, too.

If the GayBlade can enthrall a room with his banter about how neat fisting is, then a Christian should be allowed to entrall all with the story of Sodom and Gomorrah.

I never recall a time when sexual banter was acceptable speech. It was considered sexual harassment.

I hope they don't change that.

So, all in all, I've got 2 areas of agreement with Klingenschmidt and 2 areas where I think he's over-wrought.

Just my humble opinion based on 24+ years of Army service versus however many he had compiled with the Navy.