I’m an Army Chaplain and Proud of It

Chaplain (Major) Marc Gauthier, USA

October 2001 - Many images from these last weeks will forever be etched in my mind. One image is that of New York Fire Department Chaplain Mychal Judge, his lifeless body reverently carried out from the rubble of the World Trade Center by his own firefighters.

He was killed administering last rites as one of the Towers collapsed. Mychal gave his life while serving God and people in the midst of trauma and crisis. What a way to go, out front, doing exactly what God called His servant to do.

At that same moment in the Pentagon, an Army Chaplain by the name of Bob Jenkins found himself at the gaping hole caused by the impact of an American Airlines jet. He was put on a casualty recovery team with another Army Chaplain, a Catholic priest. The team’s mission was to go into the damaged area and remove the remains of those killed.

Chaplain Jenkins writes, "As each stretcher came and stopped we each simultaneously blessed the deceased. Every body removed from the disaster would have a Protestant and a Catholic blessing offered. We did with deep respect what our conscience and duty as chaplains called for. We comforted the living and honored the dead. It was difficult duty."

These stories highlight why I’m a Chaplain and proud of it. While others may be there after a crisis, chaplains often find themselves at ground zero.

Their vocational position often puts them right at the center of tragedy. When it seems most hopeless and godless, chaplains are there as a representative of God’s hope and presence. He is a pastor on point. He is at the tip of the ministry spear, able to provide pastoral care to those at the center of the blast.

Even now as Air Force squadrons launch, carrier battle groups are under way and Army units deploy, in their ranks are chaplains, on point, at the front, providing a word from the Lord to those made receptive by the nearness of danger. Their "parish" is a military organization filled with unchurched people and populated with fellow followers of Jesus Christ.

These chaplains are right there, going where their troops go, sharing in their hardships and serving them in the love and grace of Jesus Christ. They are strategically placed representing God as He opens up doors of ministry.

There is no other ministry where you can stand in an airplane full of paratroopers and pray for them as you follow them out of the aircraft at the green light.

What other minister can pray with men as they depart on a combat mission? Serving on the front lines, it is the chaplain who finds himself beside a mortally wounded soldier, bringing him final words of eternal hope.

In the midst of the storm the facades of self-sufficiency and self-reliance are stripped away. Imminent danger and death destroy agnosticism. As soldiers cry out to God, chaplains are there to show them the way. Their proximity often puts them at the place of greatest need.

I thank God for the chaplaincy. It is a unique opportunity to serve God as shepherd on point, loving and serving those who defend and protect our nation. That’s why I’m a chaplain and proud of it.

Marc Gauthier is currently a student at the Command and General Staff College, Ft. Leavenworth, KS. Marc has been associated with OCF for over fifteen years both as an Infantry Officer and a Chaplain. Marc and his wife, Christa, have four children: Timothy, Christopher, Rachel and Benjamin.