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In the 20th century, military medicine and psychiatry emerged as dominant paradigms in Western military contexts, shaping practices across recruitment, selection, training, screening, evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment. This approach paralleled trends in broader Western society, where it has faced criticism for medicalizing social, psychological, spiritual, and existential issues, often applying methods ill-suited to address certain forms of suffering. Despite this shift, alternative approaches embodied by military priests have maintained a meaningful role in the Swedish armed forces, in a country often, if somewhat misleadingly, regarded as one of the world's most secularized. This article aims to elucidate the foundations, concepts, distinctiveness, and contributions of military soul care— militär själavård in Swedish—as practiced by military priests, or fältpräster , within the Swedish military context. Unlike chaplains (ordained and others) in other Swedish settings (e.g., hospitals, prisons, schools, airports, police) or military chaplains internationally, Swedish military priests operate within a unique mandate and purpose. Military soul care aims to build resilience to crises and wartime conditions, strengthening individuals' will to defend and fight. The framework encompasses military soul care and counseling, advisory roles, education, ceremonies (including field sermons, prayers, memorials), and support for commanders in times of crisis. While military medicine and psychiatry continue to hold normative authority in a Swedish military society, there is a growing recognition that military personnel require more than physical conditioning to build mental resilience. Enduring the complex stresses of warfare demands approaches that transcend medical perspectives, addressing the human condition within a cultural and symbolic context. This article highlights key historical, societal, military, and ecclesiastical perspectives essential for understanding why this distinctive approach to military soul care has emerged in Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The moral educating role of chaplains in the Netherlands is seen as an elaboration of the right of military personnel to reflect on the moral aspects of their profession based on their own worldview. In this research, we explored the contribution of chaplaincy classes to the moral formation of future military leaders. We conducted an ethnographic study using triangulation of policy documents, participatory observations of chaplaincy classes and multi-day trainings, and semi-structured interviews with the chaplains who taught these classes, which were thematically analysed. Policy notes indicated that chaplains are in the position to provide a safe place in their chaplaincy classes, where they can contribute to the moral competence of military personnel by paying attention to both identity formation and moral responsibility. However, in the practice of chaplaincy classes the balance has tipped towards identity formation. We conclude that chaplains can make a more substantial contribution to the moral education of military personnel, if they identify more strongly with their role as religious and ethical experts, who are familiar with the moral challenges of military life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 20th century, military medicine and psychiatry emerged as dominant paradigms in Western military contexts, shaping practices across recruitment, selection, training, screening, evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment. This approach paralleled trends in broader Western society, where it has faced criticism for medicalizing social, psychological, spiritual, and existential issues, often applying methods ill-suited to address certain forms of suffering. Despite this shift, alternative approaches embodied by military priests have maintained a meaningful role in the Swedish armed forces, in a country often, if somewhat misleadingly, regarded as one of the world’s most secularized. This article aims to elucidate the foundations, concepts, distinctiveness, and contributions of military soul care—militär själavård in Swedish—as practiced by military priests, or fältpräster, within the Swedish military context. Unlike chaplains (ordained and others) in other Swedish settings (e.g., hospitals, prisons, schools, airports, police) or military chaplains internationally, Swedish military priests operate within a unique mandate and purpose. Military soul care aims to build resilience to crises and wartime conditions, strengthening individuals’ will to defend and fight. The framework encompasses military soul care and counseling, advisory roles, education, ceremonies (including field sermons, prayers, memorials), and support for commanders in times of crisis. While military medicine and psychiatry continue to hold normative authority in a Swedish military society, there is a growing recognition that military personnel require more than physical conditioning to build mental resilience. Enduring the complex stresses of warfare demands approaches that transcend medical perspectives, addressing the human condition within a cultural and symbolic context. This article highlights key historical, societal, military, and ecclesiastical perspectives essential for understanding why this distinctive approach to military soul care has emerged in Sweden.

Copyright of Studia Polonijne is the property of Towarzystwo Naukowe Katolickiego Uniwersytetu Lubelskiego Jana Pawla II and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article examines the role of military chaplaincy in the formation of national-patriotic education of the Ukrainian army. The relevance and novelty of the research lies in determining the essence of Ukrainian military patriotism’s spiritual foundations, which is formed on the archetypes of "clan", "Father", "Mother", "Family". Historically, "Father" embodies power, dominion not only over the body, but also over the soul, he brings conscience and moral grounds for subordination in the entire military family, based on the principles of fraternity. The archetype of "Mother" was formed from ancient Slavic ideas about Berehynia, in the Christian era it receives a new incarnation in the image of the Mother of God as the heavenly protector of the entire human race. One of a woman-mother archetype’s varieties in Ukrainian spiritual culture is Mother Nature, which transforms into the archetype of Mother Earth, which in turn is transferred to the paradigm of the native land - "Nenka-Ukraina", creating the archetype of the Motherland. The lack of desire to conquer others and the desire to preserve one's original, native, defines the essence of the Ukrainian army’s patriotism. It has been established that the Orthodox tradition of military chaplaincy is based on the spiritual union of Cossacks and monasticism during the liberation struggle. Later, the formation of the Ukrainian military clergy was closely connected with the Greek Catholic Church, which at that time had the greatest experience in moral and spiritual support of the Ukrainian national liberation struggle participants in the western Ukrainian lands. The dangers of the destructive influence of pro-Russian denominations’ priests on the moral and psychological state of military personnel are analyzed. It was noted that the armed aggression against Ukraine led to the intensified use of the church and the clergy’s potential for consolidation of the population and strengthening of patriotic feelings in servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as to expose and isolate pro-Russian religious communities. On the basis of the positive experience of the leading world’s countries, an own system of professional training and education of personnel was created, which was based on defining principles: national dignity, patriotism, Christian morality, fidelity to the oath, fidelity to military duty.

In spiritual care research, studies on military chaplaincy are underrepresented, and most available studies center on moral injury. This article contributes to the existing literature on spiritual care in the military by presenting a study of 13 case descriptions of spiritual care provision by military chaplains from the Netherlands. These were analyzed using the framework method, a qualitative method of systematically searching for patterns in data sets, in order to answer the question: How do military chaplains contribute to the moral resilience of soldiers and veterans experiencing moral stress? The analytical framework was constructed on the basis of Doehring's (Pastoral Psychology, 64(5), 635–649, 2015) conceptual understanding of moral resilience as the outcome of processes of spiritual integration of moral stress in caregiving relationships. This study shows that soldiers experience moral stress when core values associated with 'being a soldier' conflict with expectations or actions of soldiers themselves or of others, with the way the military organization functions, or with the spiritual notion of 'being a good, loving and loveworthy human being'. In their responses to moral stress, chaplains contribute to moral resilience by engaging in co-creating spiritual orienting frameworks which accommodate a sense of goodness of self and others and allow for nuanced, biographically rooted moral views. Soldiers experience conversations and brief encounters with chaplains as relational 'moments of goodness', which may also contribute to moral resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is based on an analysis of the first season of the Danish series Herrens Veje (The Way of the Lord; Price 2017). The series portrays the young, idealistic pastor and military chaplain August, who is deployed to a conflict zone with a military unit. He accompanies the unit on a patrol to win the trust of the soldiers. During the patrol, they engage in combat and August kills an innocent civilian woman. Upon return, the transition from military to civilian life proves to be increasingly challenging and troublesome. As the series proceeds, August's mental health deteriorates and his suffering increases. In this article, August's traumatic transition is analyzed by using four different conceptual perspectives that uncover the specifics of trauma and identity: PTSD, moral injury, spiritual injury and the combat trauma itself. We argue that several factors are portrayed in the series as unnecessarily complicating and worsening August's condition and life situation. Firstly, he is affected by a harmful theological understanding of mental health due to combat trauma, and secondly, by ecclesiological and folk church specifics such as a bureaucratic mindset and a focus on hierarchy and status. The implications of the analysis are discussed both on micro and macro levels. Our aim with analyzing trauma in fiction material is to demonstrate how fiction presents real life dilemmas and situations in concentrated, often dramatized ways. This makes such material useful for reflections on 'actual' military chaplaincy and ecclesiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Vierteljahrshefte für Zeitgeschichte is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Priests of various faiths have tried to accompany Ukrainian soldiers as military chaplains since the very beginning of the fighting in eastern Ukraine. Finally, the Ukrainian parliament regularized the status of the military chaplaincy adopting a relevant law. Analyzing the process of shaping the chaplaincy allows us to better understand the place of religious communities and religion itself in the social life of post-Soviet Ukraine. It also allows for an examination of the nation-building process from a different and very interesting perspective. The article consists of three parts. The first one briefly presents the process of institutionalizing the military service of priests in Ukraine. In the next part, the significance of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church’s (UGCC) special activity in the field of military chaplaincy is demonstrated. The third part attempts to explain the reasons why the UGCC, despite a number of objective limitations, plays the leading role in the sphere of chaplaincy in Ukraine.

Priests of various faiths have tried to accompany Ukrainian soldiers as military chaplains since the very beginning of the fighting in eastern Ukraine. Finally, the Ukrainian parliament regularized the status of the military chaplaincy adopting a relevant law. Analyzing the process of shaping the chaplaincy allows us to better understand the place of religious communities and religion itself in the social life of post-Soviet Ukraine. It also allows for an examination of the nation-building process from a different and very interesting perspective. The article consists of three parts. The first one briefly presents the process of institutionalizing the military service of priests in Ukraine. In the next part, the significance of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church’s (UGCC) special activity in the field of military chaplaincy is demonstrated. The third part attempts to explain the reasons why the UGCC, despite a number of objective limitations, plays the leading role in the sphere of chaplaincy in Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the role of military chaplaincy in the formation of national-patriotic education of the Ukrainian army. The relevance and novelty of the research lies in determining the essence of Ukrainian military patriotism's spiritual foundations, which is formed on the archetypes of "clan", "Father", "Mother", "Family". Historically, "Father" embodies power, dominion not only over the body, but also over the soul, he brings conscience and moral grounds for subordination in the entire military family, based on the principles of fraternity. The archetype of "Mother" was formed from ancient Slavic ideas about Berehynia, in the Christian era it receives a new incarnation in the image of the Mother of God as the heavenly protector of the entire human race. One of a woman-mother archetype's varieties in Ukrainian spiritual culture is Mother Nature, which transforms into the archetype of Mother Earth, which in turn is transferred to the paradigm of the native land - "Nenka-Ukraina", creating the archetype of the Motherland. The lack of desire to conquer others and the desire to preserve one's original, native, defines the essence of the Ukrainian army's patriotism. It has been established that the Orthodox tradition of military chaplaincy is based on the spiritual union of Cossacks and monasticism during the liberation struggle. Later, the formation of the Ukrainian military clergy was closely connected with the Greek Catholic Church, which at that time had the greatest experience in moral and spiritual support of the Ukrainian national liberation struggle participants in the western Ukrainian lands. The dangers of the destructive influence of pro-Russian denominations' priests on the moral and psychological state of military personnel are analyzed. It was noted that the armed aggression against Ukraine led to the intensified use of the church and the clergy's potential for consolidation of the population and strengthening of patriotic feelings in servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as to expose and isolate pro-Russian religious communities. On the basis of the positive experience of the leading world's countries, an own system of professional training and education of personnel was created, which was based on defining principles: national dignity, patriotism, Christian morality, fidelity to the oath, fidelity to military duty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Military chaplains are involved in the moral formation of military personnel. They have to do justice to the internal perspective on morality of their religion, while honouring the plurality of perspectives. The objective of this article is to examine how the contribution of military chaplains to the moral formation of military personnel can be substantiated from a Protestant theological perspective. We first discuss Tillich's Protestant principle, which functions as a starting point and criterion in the moral discourse. We then show how Bonhoeffer combines a view of reality inspired by faith and a serviceable attitude towards reality. Finally, we focus on the role of theology and the role of the military chaplain as theologian in the moral formation of military personnel with the ideas of Volf and Croasmun. We conclude that Protestant theological perspectives on morality are vital to the moral formation of military personnel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article studies the genesis of the military chaplaincy phenomenon in Ukraine. The author analyses the critical models of military chaplaincy in different world armies. The spiritual ministry of the chaplain stands between the Church and the state, which forces them to be in a war-torn world, and at the same time to remain outside the mundane, given the inevitable contradictions between total obedience to the military and humble obedience to God. Religious education is a component of the system of combat and moral and psychological training of military personnel. It is entrusted with the main task - to maintain the troops' high spiritual, patriotic, and combat potential. The main stages of the formation of military chaplaincy in Ukraine in the context of its instantiation are presented in the study. In the national context, the institute of military chaplaincy exists due to the manifestations of the national liberation movement in terms of military threats, forming the image of the chaplain as not only a spiritual but a deeply patriotic personality. It is defined that a robust challenge in the formation of the national military chaplaincy was the war of Russia against Ukraine, which has mobilised the internal potential of active cooperation of state military and religious institutions in the legislative and regulatory framework of military chaplains. The article describes the peculiarities of attracting positive world experience of military chaplaincy. The relevance and novelty of the study are explained by the involvement of a systematic approach that makes it possible to analyse the formation of domestic military chaplaincy in the context of applying positive world experience and preserving its national specificity, focused on the ideological foundations of moral and patriotic education of military personnel. The main directions of religious organisations' activities in military structures are cult and worship, psychological and rehabilitation, ideological and patriotic, spiritual and moral, and motivational and social. It is found that the importance of the global challenges facing the Ukrainian state and its Armed Forces requires military chaplains not only to perform religious functions but, above all, to ensure the high moral qualities of service members, the formation of civic duty to protect the state, to foster the spirit of patriotism, brotherhood, and mutual respect.

In order to substantiate the contribution of military chaplains to the moral formation of military personnel from a Protestant theological perspective this article examines, first, how an absolute imperative can be found in a relative reality, second, how a faith-inspired view of reality can be combined with a serviceable attitude towards reality, and finally, how a vision on flourishing life should be articulated and lived by military chaplains. The conclusion is that Protestant theological views of morality offer promising perspectives on the moral formation of military personnel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article first of all shows how moral questions arise in spiritual care in the armed forces. The role of the chaplain is not neutral because part of it is opening up, explaining and articulating questions concerning the moral basis of military action. Next, it is examined how contemporary Protestant theological-ethical reflection on questions of war and peace can inform the practice of spiritual care. It is argued that both the just peace approach and the just war tradition as well as Christian pacifism have something to say to spiritual care, albeit in different ways and to varying degrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Military Chaplaincy in the Dutch armed forces play an important and estimated role in the care-giving systems of the military. What guarantees its independence from military goals? Protestant chaplains also are ordained ministers, being sent to the military by their churches. What can and should be their own role in supporting and inspiring those chaplains? The author asks for a stronger involvement of protestant theology and of the sending Churches into Chaplaincy and the chaplains, and into issues related to war and peace and to the impact of military deployments on the personnel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The key question regarding the validity of ‘Just War’ is analyzed as a limited one: it is not a theory, rather an approach. The underlying issue is the need for a paragraph regarding ethics in case of escalation of international conflict. Its validity depends on the integration in comprehensive concepts of peace, justice and security – even in case of apreference for ‘Just Peace’. The ethics of peace also requires a contemporary political theology. Military chaplaincy has a legitimate educational role to play regarding ‘Just War’ and its future varieties or alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article studies the genesis of the military chaplaincy phenomenon in Ukraine. The author analyses the critical models of military chaplaincy in different world armies. The spiritual ministry of the chaplain stands between the Church and the state, which forces them to be in a war-torn world, and at the same time to remain outside the mundane, given the inevitable contradictions between total obedience to the military and humble obedience to God. Religious education is a component of the system of combat and moral and psychological training of military personnel. It is entrusted with the main task - to maintain the troops' high spiritual, patriotic, and combat potential. The main stages of the formation of military chaplaincy in Ukraine in the context of its instantiation are presented in the study. In the national context, the institute of military chaplaincy exists due to the manifestations of the national liberation movement in terms of military threats, forming the image of the chaplain as not only a spiritual but a deeply patriotic personality. It is defined that a robust challenge in the formation of the national military chaplaincy was the war of Russia against Ukraine, which has mobilised the internal potential of active cooperation of state military and religious institutions in the legislative and regulatory framework of military chaplains. The article describes the peculiarities of attracting positive world experience of military chaplaincy. The relevance and novelty of the study are explained by the involvement of a systematic approach that makes it possible to analyse the formation of domestic military chaplaincy in the context of applying positive world experience and preserving its national specificity, focused on the ideological foundations of moral and patriotic education of military personnel. The main directions of religious organisations' activities in military structures are cult and worship, psychological and rehabilitation, ideological and patriotic, spiritual and moral, and motivational and social. It is found that the importance of the global challenges facing the Ukrainian state and its Armed Forces requires military chaplains not only to perform religious functions but, above all, to ensure the high moral qualities of service members, the formation of civic duty to protect the state, to foster the spirit of patriotism, brotherhood, and mutual respect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urgency of the research. War crimes and occupation actions by Russia which are being committed today that are taking place on the territory of Ukraine are terrifying with the power of their cynicism, and, by no exaggeration, savagery, barbarism and horrible atrocities against everything that is Ukrainian – the nation, its spiritual values, cultural heritage, etc. However, the Kremlin has been eroding, leveling and denying the national and cultural-value identity of the Ukrainians long before 2022, and even before the occupation of Crimea and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Therefore, Russian aggression today has not only made urgent the reform of all military structures of Ukraine, but also significantly affected world politics, the economy and, in particular, the religious community in its entirety and in all its denominational diversity. Target setting. The study of nature and peculiarities of the Church and religious life during the war allows us to state with certainty that the Church is quite active in the search for effective models of how to solve urgent problems, since it is constantly present in the public sphere. Therefore, in religious and political circles, the Church is regarded as one of the main actors in the solution of a number of problems of social development. Actual scientific researches and issues analysis. The main empirical source for our study was a survey of the opinions of the clergy of the OCU regarding the specifics of parish life and the role of the pastor in war conditions. A considerable body of background information is also contained in the official statements and decisions of the meetings of the Holy Synod and Council of Bishops of the OCU. The main empirical source for our study was a survey of the opinions of the clergy of the OCU regarding the specifics of parish life and the role of the pastor in war conditions. A considerable body of background information is also contained in the official statements and decisions of the meetings of the Holy Synod and Council of Bishops of the OCU. Meanwhile, the general ideological basis for the study is the works of the leading Ukrainian experts – theologians, religious scholars and psychologists, namely: O. Brodetskyi, S. Holovashchenko, I. Horokholinska, V. Yelenskyi, T. Kalenychenko, I. Kozlovskyi, O. Kokun, A. Kolodnyi, V. Mykhalevych, L. Nauholnyk, O. Sahan, L. Fylypovych, V. Khromets, Yu. Chornomorets, A. Yurash et al. The research objective. The goal of the study is to comprehensively explore practical models of socially significant activity of clergy of the OCU and to consider their views on the specifics of parish life and the role of the pastor during the war. The statement of basic material. The OCU’s significant role in the society and the specifics of its activity during Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, and the impact of Russia’s war crimes on the church and religious life and the state of public consciousness in the country are analyzed. Further, we reveal peculiarities of this confession in practical terms of its parishes’ functioning, in relation to the events of the war itself and their consequences. Conclusions. The Church and the State are facing extremely complicated tasks today. Therefore, rational decisions and correct approaches of both the Church and the secular leadership determine how constructively changes in the society will occur and complex problems will be solved, in particular the end of the war and the return of peace to Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the article is to familiarize the reader with sermons delivered during World War II by Marcin Chrostowski OP, chaplain of the Polish Armed Forces in the West. Father Chrostowski’s legacy of sermons, stored in the Archive of the Polish Province of the Dominican Order, is an interesting supplement to information we currently hold on his service as chaplain of the Polish Armed Forces. The sermons reflect the spirit of his times and also present the morale of the military. Studying them allows us to capture moral attitudes preached to soldiers. This edition contains sermons delivered in Great Britain (Scotland), the USSR (where Fr. Chrostowski accompanied the field bishop during his official visit with the Polish forces), Iraq, the Holy Land, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the Reich. To date, these sermons have not been commonly known, although selected passages were published in Chrostowski’s printed biography (see H. Gallus, E. Mikołajczak, Ojciec Marcin Chrostowski, Poznań 2001). The remaining texts have yet not been analyzed by researchers. Father Marcin Chrostowski volunteered for the army in France, where he was staying at the outbreak of the war. Later, he became chaplain of the Polish Armed Forces in the West – in France and Great Britain, secretary of Field Bishop Gawlina, with whom he travelled to the USSR. After his service in the Holy Land, he was transferred to Great Britain, where he joined the ranks of General Maczek’s 1st Armored Division. As chaplain of the 9th Rifle Battalion, he followed the battle trail from “Maczuga” to Wilhelmshaven. Notably, he was rewarded for his heroism during the hostilities at Baarle Nassan with the War Order of Virtuti Militari.

Pastors serving as military chaplains have been an integral part of the Swedish Armed Forces for hundreds of years. This close relationship has continued even after the Church of Sweden was formally separated from the state in 2000. Yet contemporary research drawing from experiences of Swedish military chaplains during their pastoral and spiritual assignments within a military context is virtually non-existent. This research explores the contemporary situation for military chaplaincy in Sweden through the lenses of proportional accessibility for military personnel, availability to civilian congregations, increasing cultural and ethnic diversity, religious embeddedness in military culture, theological tension, and personal identity development among chaplains. It furthermore suggests that military chaplains navigate a complex situation: they are expected to serve professional service members, many of whom have war zone experiences, in addition to shepherding increasing volumes of conscripts now that conscription has been reinstated, all within a new interreligious paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author of this article considers moral distress theologically, as a potential shattering of core sustaining belief systems, hope, securities, self-identities, and organizing principles of one's existence. Shattering of individual moral expectations can occur in both medical and military moral injury., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

As Rabbi Dr Raymond Apple celebrates his 85th birthday, this article pays tribute to his life and achievements. In addition to leading one of Australia’s largest and most prestigious Jewish congregations, Sydney’s Great Synagogue, he was active in scholarship, institution building, interfaith work, military chaplaincy, Freemasonry, Aboriginal reconciliation and as a public spokesman for Judaism and the Jewish community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During World War II, US photographers, government censors, and publishers—Catholic and non-Catholic alike—were attracted to images depicting the intersection of Roman Catholic ritual forms and military equipment such as Jeeps, ammunition boxes, cannons, and artillery shells. The motif was seductive in the environment of wartime propaganda for reasons beyond its ideological affirmation of American religious pluralism. Catholic objects—including especially Eucharistic hosts, altars, priestly vestments and bodies, and crucifixes—offered an aesthetically compelling visual match for the objects of war. The spectacle of Catholic materiality also tapped into longstanding fascination with Catholic forms as a quasi-forbidden expression of and invitation to an alternate modernity. The wartime depiction of Catholic forms in martial settings offered a way to signal distance from the logics of modern war without at the same time abandoning the war and the wider US projects to which it contributed. The images thus helped advance a form of Catholic secularism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the portrayal of the military chaplaincy in Europe in European scientific journal articles during the past two decades. The military chaplaincy represents an interesting case as it is a member of two strong professions: a soldier and the clergy. Furthermore, the profession is facing many challenges connected to diversification and pluralisation, networking, technology, and extraprofessional collaboration. The data of the review study included scientific journal articles that are published electronically in major scientific databases. When portraying military chaplaincy, the articles emphasised five themes: Basic functions, the history of the profession, the changing nature of the military chaplaincy, organisational change, and professional ethics.

With the idea that it is important to distinguish between institutional mechanisms and informal practices of Protestant militarism, in this article, I examine the relationship between Korean Protestant churches and militarism in two dimensions. Firstly, I focus on institutionalized channels and mechanisms that contribute to militarism's direct infiltration of the church. This includes military chaplaincy, the Christian doctrine of war and peace, and doctrinal anticommunism. Active support for sending Korean troops to assist in a war of aggression and strong opposition to conscientious objector status can be said to be the result of these three factors working together. Secondly, I focus on informal practices that allow and encourage militarism to rule the daily lives and consciousnesses of Protestant believers. These include the spiritual warfare frame, foreign and North Korea missions, and domestic evangelism and church-building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

France was a crucial testing ground for the Counter-Reformation conduct of war. In 1590–92, the Holy League appeared a receptive field for the model of an ideal "Christian soldier," and a Jesuit apostolate to an army at war and some examples of missio castrensis were therefore attempted in France, or in close contact with French battlefields. In particular, a Jesuit mission was established for the papal troops sent to support the Duke of Mayenne (1554–1611), and the Holy League. An earlier Jesuit mission to the troops of Alessandro Farnese in the Low Countries served as an inspiration to the Leaguers, the more so as on two occasions he led his soldiers into France to help them. As shown in numerous writings coming from the radical and urban circles of the League, as well as from the clergy engaged alongside the soldiers and urban militias in certain towns, the Christian soldier model was welcomed. However, no formal religious service was introduced within Mayenne's army, and the Jesuit project ended in failure, largely because the expected discipline and moral reform of soldiers' behavior failed to materialize. The failure of the mission is equally highlighted by the levels of violence during the war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How often do secular and religious discourses communicate and interrelate at points where they intersect in society? When the Science of Judaism ( Wissenschaft des Judentums) evolved at the beginning of the nineteenth century, it intended, through both theological and secular studies, to demonstrate the general value of Jewish culture and civilization. Although denied a place in the public university system until after the Shoah, Jewish Studies departments have since been established at various German universities, and, in 2013, the School of Jewish Theology of the University of Potsdam was opened as the first Jewish divinity school in the history of the German university system. With this, what was once a utopian dream became a reality, and both branches of the Science of Judaism, religious and secular, became undisputed parts of the German academic scene, using similar tools for differing aims. Two prime examples of the intersection of the secular and religious in Germany today are the proliferation of divinity schools at state universities, on the one hand, and the development of military chaplaincy in the armed forces, on the other. Both of these, through contractual agreements, aim to regulate and facilitate religious pluralism within a secular state. While the one has already begun to take place, the other is currently under discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is concern in many legal systems over the meaning and the implications of the term religion which the law contains. This concern is manifested in those borderline cases in which new religious movements come to the law seeking legal recognition as religious communities or groups. In this article we will deal with the presence of religion through the chaplains in the army, one of the oldest manifestations of religion in the society. We will not deal with the institution in the US legal system which is probably best organized and present with the troops all over the world. We will deal here with the European countries’ situation and laws. One commonality across most liberal democracies today is that their armed forces dispose of military chaplains. Religious freedom for soldiers who have enlisted or are drafted into an organization that as a total institution is not always capable of providing sufficient private sphere for such religious exercise is the main argument made in state-church regimes as different as the French, the German, the Romanian or the Dutch one. In the military, religious freedom is mostly defined as a set of rights to practice one’s religion including the right to access spiritual care. One specificity of the military is that in all these European countries the religious rights of soldiers can be limited if military arises. Second, if there is a right to access spiritual care, this spiritual care is not necessarily denomination-specific even though all of these liberal democracies dispose of at least two different chaplaincies. From this perspective it may not astonish that in France as well as in the Netherlands the Jewish chaplaincy naturally felt obliged to offer spiritual care to Muslim soldiers who accepted this service during times before a Muslim military chaplaincy was set up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article I analyse the ‘strategic action field’ evolving in five European countries around the inclusion of Muslims into military chaplaincy. I show that cross-national institutional differences in particular with regard to the state–religion relationship have an influence on the accommodation of Muslims in military chaplaincy: countries with a strong focus on equality in their state–religion relationship are the European forerunners in setting up a Muslim military chaplaincy, whereas countries whose state–religion relationship explicitly allows for the differential treatment of religious groups lag behind, in particular if Muslims are among the groups for whom official cooperation with the state is impossible since they have not acquired the requested legal status. At the same time, I show that organisation-specific arguments that push for religious accommodation and equal treatment in the military lead to a convergence of practices across the various European countries. Similar things are ‘at stake’ in the strategic action field that evolves around the inclusion of Muslims into military chaplaincy: the distribution of scarce chaplaincy posts; training and education of chaplains; security and control of religion; attracting new recruits; and assuring social cohesion, as well as being in line with principles of equality and religious liberty. France stands out in this comparison because it reached a high level of Muslim accommodation in military chaplaincy that stands in stark contrast with the limited accommodation of religion reached in state schools. An additional cross-national comparison shows that all European countries in the study differ fundamentally from the USA, where the distribution of chaplaincy posts is organised along a relatively easy market-based system that does not depend on the European institutionalisation of faith-specific military chaplaincies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article examines a type of journal entitled "Notes de guerre (1915-1918)" written by French pastor and doctor of theology Henri Monnier who was a chaplain for the French Army's 66th Division in World War I and discusses the context in which the journal was written. His thoughts on war violence and the moral aspects of war, the role of a chaplain, his relations with Catholic chaplains, and material and spiritual challenges he faced are discussed. Biographical information is also provided. His patriotism, his witnessing of battles including the Battle of Hartmannswillerkopf and the Battle of the Somme in France are also mentioned.

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The article presents a study which examines the involvement of the Papacy, with support from the Catholic religious order Society of Jesus, in shaping a Christian soldier model from 1568 to 1569. It is noted that the reason behind the creation of such a model is related to Pope Pie V sending his Army to France to support the fight French King Charles IX was leading against the Protestants. Focus is given to the model proposed by Jesuit Emond Auger. The relationship between war and religion during the 16th and 17th centuries is also considered.

Military transformation is a multifaceted and complicated process. The purpose of this article is to chart the transformation process of military chaplaincy in the South African Defence Force (SADF) from c. 1990 to 1994, and in its successor, the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), from 1994 to 1998; i.e. when the SANDF's first-ever black Chaplain General Maj. Gen. (Rev.) FFS Gqiba, took office. The central question under consideration is: was military chaplaincy in South Africa by 1998 suffering from transformation fatigue and institutional overstretch, or was it able to reflect the new democratic dispensation in South Africa and to guide the restructuring process to the benefit of all involved? Aspects that are discussed include the organisational structures and effective processes that were put in place to bring about transformation and to translate decisions into reality; the role played by the chaplaincy command structure, individual chaplains and the different churches and religions with regard to transformation; and the effect that transformation had on chaplains and chaplaincy in general These issues' are considered against the background of the prevalent ideologies and socio-political forces in South Africa's defence force and the South African society at large. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A survey of M.Th. dissertations from the Cardiff Centre for Chaplaincy Studies provides a comparative case study of how British Army chaplains are educated and prepared, particularly vis-à-vis Army core values and broader moral reasoning regarding justice and peace. How is a virtuous ethos directed toward good ends in the real world? This requires advanced ethical reflection that connects the moral culture of the Army with moral consideration of its “mission”—an important question for all those concerned with the legitimacy of military operations. In the context of Just War thinking, we need to ask: How do we continue to inculcate a military culture which equips soldiers to bring about jus in bello and jus in pace? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Religious Leader Liaison is an essential part of the staff work chaplains perform. Indigenous religion and religious leaders are essential to a robust civil society and critical to the military mission's success. General David Petraeus tasked the author to develop a strategy to: engage Iraqi religious leaders, Iraqi government officials, and non-governmental organizations; advance reconciliation and healing acrosssectarian fault lines; and, foster positive religious messaging from clerics at every level. The strategy had to be relevant to military objectives, promote collaboration with other staff sections, and allow chaplains to retain their own distinctive faith identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Like the prophet Jeremiah, who was compelled to buy the land by law and by the spoken word of God, chaplains “buy into the field” of ministry in the military and provide a “ministry of presence.” The chaplain's theological understanding shapes the role of policy, strategy, and tactics in today's changing military operations. Accordingly, the World Religions Chaplain position has moved from the classroominto the military unit. Military chaplains can offer a “prophetic” voice that mitigates the risks of misapplied secular or religious thought. Using a balanced approach, they can remind the military of the religious connections in the mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The military needs a deeper conceptual understanding of religion, and chaplains alone cannot fill the military's religion gaps. Rather, religion—or what we might call more broadly the spiritual dimension of war—is everybody's “problem” and charge toconsider, from the generals on down. Secular approaches to religion and the militarytraditionally locate chaplain responsibilities with respect to personal or private dimensions of faith. The public prominence of military chaplains conducting religiousengagement in stability operations challenges this secular approach, while chaplains' focus on the inner soul or moral interior of the individual warrior seems to reinforce it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most U.S. commanders are not conceptually or practically equipped—that is, educated and trained—to engage religious issues, and there is no group within the militarybetter positioned than the chaplains to serve as inter-religious liaisons and advisers. But chaplains themselves are not yet fully equipped to perform these roles either. A number of recommendations, if implemented, would better educate and train chaplains for today's challenges. These include a centralized “Center of Excellence” for education and training at Ft. Jackson, South Carolina; specific reports on chaplain liaison; inter-religious awareness in chaplain basic training; and deeper research on religion and security issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an interconnected and interdependent world in which human rights, political democracy, and particular religious loyalties matter profoundly, the role of armies is changing. Increasingly armies are called on to engage in peacekeeping and peacemaking missions. We may be witnessing an emerging worldwide movement to make external, reconciliatory ministry one of the chaplain's proper roles. Chaplains must understand the functions of faith and examine where they place their ultimate loyalty. At the same time, the military itself may be challenged to re-conceptualize its mission in terms of peacemaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Throughout American history, military chaplains played roles that extended beyond typical spiritual duties. Today's movement toward expanding chaplain responsibilities in inter-religious liaison is a natural extension of that history. Other countries have similar approaches. Canada and Norway, for example, require chaplains to participate in conflict resolution activities. Chaplains bring religious legitimacy to clergy-to-clergy communications. For example, U.S. chaplains have engaged with local religious leaders in Iraq and Afghanistan in projects ranging from organizing and celebrating community religious services to coordinating mosque renovation projects and forming religious councils. An enlightened understanding of the underlying religious dynamics can sometimes make the difference between failure and success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U.S. military chaplains have engaged persons of diverse faith groups in various ways throughout American history. Before the American Revolution, chaplains tried to convert Native Americans to Christianity. As the United States military became more pluralistic and more engaged in conflicts around the world, chaplains sought to win the hearts and minds of the people in the area of operations. For example, Chaplain William D. McKennon pursued peace with Filipinos during the Spanish-American War. The major influence that brought chaplains to the platform as instructors in World Religions was the involvement of the United States in Vietnam from 1962–1973. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]