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Posted on 04/14/2003 6:44:08 PM PDT by mhking
Christians in combat gear find peace in worship
Bob Dart - Cox Washington Bureau
Monday, April 14, 2003
Camp Udairi, Kuwait --- On Palm Sunday, the soldiers prayed at a makeshift altar at the hood of a Humvee.
Just because the 4th Infantry troops from Fort Hood, Texas, are anxious to ''get in the fight in Iraq doesn't mean we're warmongers. We're soldiers,'' said Maj. Greg Walker, the 2nd Brigade chaplain.
''But I guarantee you this: God can give you peace,'' said Walker, an Assemblies of God minister from Arnold, Mo.
With M-16 rifles slung over their backs and palm fronds in their hands, the troops sang ''Amazing Grace.''
''It feels very strange'' to go to church armed, admitted Sgt. Philip Davis of Jacksonville, Ala. But he wanted to come to worship.
Elements of the 4th Infantry Division have begun moving into Iraq. Their role most likely will be to relieve the 3rd Infantry Division, which fought its way to Baghdad, and serve as peacekeepers in Iraqi cities convulsed by lawlessness since the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime.
''If we make a wrong turn, we meet the Great Creator out here,'' said Davis. ''I want to make some sort of peace with God --- in more ways than one.''
This Protestant service was held in the dust near parked tanks and trucks. A small gold cross stood on a folding table covered with purple cloth. Stuck in the Humvee bumper was a red-and-blue brigade flag with a cross. Later in the day came a Catholic Mass, a service in Spanish and a Mormon service.
Orthodox Christians, including those in the military, will celebrate Palm Sunday on April 20.
Religion can be different on the edge of battle, said Walker. ''The difference in the congregation is that we get a lot of people here who normally wouldn't go to church. They suddenly see the importance of God and the importance of recognizing some higher power,'' he explained.
''And there are differences between a regular pastor and a military chaplain. Pastors back home are getting up around 7 a.m., showering and shaving, driving to church and leading a service in a clean environment,'' said the chaplain. ''But the pastor doesn't know his congregation like we know our soldiers. We're with them 24-7.''
The sermon was punctuated with ''huahs'' --- the Army grunt of approval --- rather than amens. Some soldiers were moved to testify. ''We can't just go to church and then go back to our tents and act like the devil,'' said Sgt. 1st Class Eddie Crain from Florence, S.C. ''I just love the Lord and like to share it.''
''I always go to church back home,'' said Chief Warrant Officer Phyllis Mitchell of Greenville, N.C. ''My father is a retired pastor, and I come from a long line of preachers and evangelists.''
The service provided ''a sense of peace,'' said Master Sgt. Elijah Mitchell of Charleston, S.C. ''It's good to be around people who want to share the word of God.''
Walker was vague about how the palm fronds were acquired, murmuring about the Lord working in mysterious ways. But the soldiers kept these slices of greenery as they left the service to return to prepare their tanks and other weapons in a camp where everything is tan.
Without hymnals, they sang two verses of a closing hymn: ''What a Mighty God We Serve.''
From Revelation 18: "[1] After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory. [2] And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird. [3] “For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality.”
Spent a year and a half up on Tapline when I was a toddler. But you ain't seen nothin' till you see a nativity staged on a ball field with sheep, donkeys, shepherd boys...and three wise men on camels!
We used to have standing room only crowds from the folks in Khobar and Dammam coming into Dhahran to watch.
Got shut down after the revolution in Iran.
This whole thing could go bad...or maybe it will loosen things up in the neighboring countries.
If nothing else, the "Old School" moslems in Saudi respected us for taking our religion seriously. We may be able to pull this off.
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