It’s the end of lunchtime at the Afghan National Army base of Pol-i-charkhi and, as the mess hall reverberates with the dish-clatter and chair-scraping of soldiers in dark camouflage dispersing, two men linger behind, still digging with spoons into a shared dish of rice and lamb.
US Navy Capt. James Fisher is the guest of Afghan Col. Moheb Moheburahman. The American is fair skinned, every inch of his face and scalp clean-shaven, and with ready smile and can-do attitude, he looks downright sunny. The Afghan has an olive complexion and a full black beard flecked with gray. When he laughs, the white of his teeth brightens his face like a flash of lightning in a night sky. The American has never borne arms in battle; the Afghan spent years in the mountains of northern Afghanistan fighting as a mujahideen against Russian occupiers and, later, against the Taliban. A limp in his walk and a cloudy left eye are leftovers from a Taliban ambush.
Both men are officers, both are clergy, and neither could have imagined joining forces when they made religion the cornerstone of their life and work: Colonel Moheburahman as an Islamic mullah trained in Kabul and now serving in the Afghan Army; Captain Fisher a born-again Christian ordained in the Evangelical Covenant Church and committed to ministering to American troops.
As they eat and talk, an interpreter in a gray suit and yellow tie bridges the linguistic divide through word and gesture. Nothing, not even the smiles and the ribbing, gets lost as the two discuss the transformation of the Religious Cultural Affairs (RCA) department of the Afghan Army into a professional military chaplaincy.
A good story. Thanks CSM.
Two minor corrections.
[blockquote]This is a first not only for Fisher, but for the American chaplaincy. US commanders have in past conflicts used chaplains to promote cooperation between local religious factions and to foster understanding toward Americans. But never before have US chaplains mentored foreign clergy to help them develop a chaplaincy and one so different from their own.[/blockquote] Bishop Chuck Keyser and Canon Bill Noble were heavily involved in the re-creation of the Russian Chaplain Corps back in the 1990’s. Both did a great job and because of the sensitivity of the project, received little fanfare.
[blockquote]Weaver does what Fisher can’t: he proselytizes.[/blockquote] Actually, Chaplain Fisher can proselytize at a Protestant service: one of the more appropriate places to do so. This is a misunderstanding concerning military chaplains and the role they play – largely advanced by the self-centered theatrics of former chaplain Gordon Klingenschmidt.
RevK said
“…largely advanced by the self-centered theatrics of former chaplain Gordon Klingensch”midt.
“Judge not…” RevK.
May I ask why the title “Military chaplains: Being a cog of conscience in the military killing machine” was used to headline this item on T19?
Does this ‘title’ attack the authority to use armed force to repel and ‘put down’ hostile enemy forces that seek to violently impose their will on others?
Didn’t Christ tell a disciple to “put down his sword,” which implies that some of his disciples were armed?
AnglicanFirst,
Gordon Klingenschmidt set the Chaplain Corps back twenty years because he was a convincing liar. But in the end, his real intentions were shown when he offered to trade ‘his principled stand for Christ’ for a military retirement. I think he judged himself.
RevK,
When you publically say that a person has lied, then you had better be ready to offer specific and non-controversial evidence.
When you say that a member of the laity has lied, that is one thing, but when you impugn a member of the clergy, you do terrible public damage to that person. Such comments should never be ‘cavalier’ or ‘offhand.’
AnglicanFirst,
I appreciate your desire to avoid cavalier and offhand statements. I don’t make them lightly with regard to Gordon Klingenschmidt. I served with and/or for most of the people that Klingenschmidt accuses and know them to be honorable – particularly Norm Holcombe.
It is good and faithful chaplains like Jim Fisher and Blues Baker and 800 others who will slowly rebuild the reputation of the Navy Chaplain Corps.
If you would like that ‘evidence’ of his lying and manipulation of important people, there are dozens of web sites, but the best source would be the transcripts of his Court Martial – there, everybody was under oath. It is my understanding that his denomination has taken oris taking action against him as well.
The headline is the one used in the Christian Science Monitor.