Chaplain, Major General Charles C. Baldwin, USAF ret, USAFA ’69
STARRS Board of Advisors
“Pagan worship services are now taking place in Christian chapels on military bases….Military chaplains have become therapists and humanists rather than caring for the souls of troops and sailors.” —“Paganism Must Be Rooted Out of the Military” – Restoration News
These are the opening words of an article recently published to raise concern about what is happening in the military chapels today. I found the article to be a sad distortion of the amazing work being done by military chaplains around the world, especially at deployed locations.
I can assure you that the women and men who are endorsed by the Churches in America to serve as military chaplains are preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, are baptizing new believers, are teaching Church doctrine, and are not compromising their convictions in any way.
The author of the article identified the reality that, in addition to the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faith support, there are also provisions made at many posts, bases, and on ships for the practice of pagan religions. She highlighted several military chapel programs that “advertised” meetings for pagans.
She did not mention the robust program of Christian worship services, Jewish religious support, and comprehensive, confidential counseling provided by the chaplains.
The author unfortunately did not understand the tremendous privilege every member of the military—including their family—is guaranteed by the First Amendment of the Constitution. “…(N)or prohibit the free exercise thereof…” applies to every member of the military.
There are two very important oversight groups that exist to ensure that religious liberty is protected and practiced.
Department of Defense (War) Directive #5120.8 has established the Armed Forces Chaplain Board (AFCB) “…to provide advice and recommendations to the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) officials…on policies and issues related to the free exercise of religion.”
It is made up of the three Chiefs of Chaplains—Army, Navy, Air Force—and three active-duty deputy Chiefs of Chaplains. The AFCB would never allow the Chaplain Corps (pastors, priests, rabbis) to become “therapists and humanists”.
The other powerful group of religious leaders of our military chaplains is the National Conference on Ministry to the Armed Forces (NCMAF). You may “google” this group to understand that the chaplains are being held accountable by their “Endorser” to preach, teach, counsel, and follow the doctrine of their particular denomination or “faith group.”
I served as a Baptist minister on active duty for 30 years in the Air Force. My Endorser could have “pulled my endorsement” at any time, and I would have been released from active duty. This is a very good thing. It means that every chaplain must follow the convictions of their Church.
Obviously, there is a wide spectrum of doctrinal teachings among the different denominations. This is helpful since the population in the military is made up of these different denominations.
Are the pagans taking over? “No!” Are they allowed to meet on military installations? “Yes”.
I would recommend that they not meet in the same Chapel where the Christians meet. There are plenty of other buildings on base that can accommodate their meetings.
Are the “Evangelical chaplains” being told to “not be so narrow”? I once had a chaplain supervisor who told me that. He was wrong. He retired as a major; I retired as a major general.
Should chaplains be sensitive to the different religions? “Of course.” When taking care of a person of another faith, or no faith, we call it “provide for…”. We may have to find a religious leader in the civilian community who can provide for the religious needs of the person.
I do believe that Secretary of War Hegseth, a Christian, understands the First Amendment. I know he will ensure chaplains will continue to “bring God to people, and bring people to God.”
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Chaplain, Maj General Charles C. Baldwin, USAF (Ret.) is a 1969 graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. Chaplain Baldwin began his career as a pilot, flying for 5 years including two combat tours in Vietnam, one of which was in the Super Jolly Green Giant HH-53 rescue helicopter. He was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses and four Air Medals. After graduating from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Chaplain Baldwin served as a pastor in Kentucky and Indiana, and later, from 2004 to 2008, he served as the Chief of Chaplains for the US Air Force.
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