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Christianity Today, August (Web-only), 2007 |

Not Just Chaplains

Parachurch organizations are filling in the gaps through ministry to troops and their families.

Susan Wunderink | posted 8/21/2007 08:54AM

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"We're not doing anything tricky," said McCandless. "We just make ourselves available." Campus Crusade's Military Ministry has a broad range of programs designed to reach both Christian and non-Christian troops and their spouses. It has more than four decades of experience and runs entirely on donations for its full-time staff and programs. Volunteers round out teaching programs, such as Sunday schools.

In view of the chaplain shortage and ongoing military conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Sanders said, "there's going to be a greater need for chaplains and churches and these parachurch ministries to work together more closely than they've done in the past."

Campbell continues to keep in touch with former members of the youth group, Sanders is excited about the frequency of e-mails he receives asking how to set up a ministry to military families, and Military Ministries said the real measure of its ministry "comes through the many letters we receive from soldiers and chaplains." A chaplain assistant in Iraq wrote them to "thank you so much for all you have done for us. The Rapid Deployment Kits are one of the tools that we depend on to help us complete our mission."

Related Elsewhere:

"Nurturing the Living," about the causes of the chaplain shortage, accompanies this article.

Malachi Ministries' mission statement describes the influence their youth ministers aim to have on military kids. Malachi Ministries is a division of Cadence International, which focuses on the military in general.

Military Ministry, a part of Campus Crusade for Christ, has six "pillars" of ministry: evangelism and discipleship, leadership, families, spiritual resources, and internet outreach.

The US army provides more information about its chaplain corps on its website.

Ministering to Military Families blog has postings about church, parachurch, and chaplain ministry to the military, as well as more links to organizations that are involved with military ministry.

The Military Missions Network seeks to help chaplains, churches, and other organizations coordinate their ministries to troops. They produced a guide to ministering to the military with information about military culture and the unique needs of troops and their families.

Christianity Today's special section on Christian soldiers is available online.

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Malachi Guy

Posted: August 27, 2007 8:46 AM

Joe, At least from my experience working in this setting (10 years) your statement is completely inaccurate. I am currently in Germany and how we are working here is how we have worked for the past ten years. We currently attend the main post chapel as per our chaplains instructions. The reason for that is it has the "heavier youth concentration". At the same time, we make time to attend all the services on a rotating basis. We are part of parish councils in each of our chapels and our youth group is not representative of just one main chapel. In fact, currently our youth group consists mostly of "non-chapel" attending youth as well as a healthy dose from each chapel. Our strategy is not to "look for the main chapel" or seek out "higher ranked families". Our heart and passion is to minister to military teens regardless of rank, race or denomination. If your experience was different, you have my profoundest apologies. My prayer is that it was an exception and not the rule.

John	Posted: August 26, 2007 2:53 PM


My favorite military chaplain, is the Reverend Lennox Yearwood-he speaks the truth about the occupation of Iraq and the Guantanamo Bay detainment camp. Groups like Christian Embassy, just suck up to the powerful and condone what's going on-SHAME ON THEM.

fra59e

Posted: August 22, 2007 1:44 PM

Problems arise when fundamentalists assume that their fringe view of Christianity is typical of Protestantism - let alone of Christianity. It is not. Fundamentalists have no authority to speak for Christianity as a whole. And in any case the US Government and the armed forces under its direction exist to serve the American people, not God or the church. The loyalty of every servant of the people must be not to the Bible but to the Constitution of the United States. Those who cannot accept this do not belong in the uniform of the United States military. The uniform of the Salvation Army is available for them.

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