Major [David] Bowlus is part of a cohort of military chaplains who have gone through the same kind of multiple deployments as American soldiers in nearly a decade of war in Afghanistan and Iraq, and suffered similar emotional aftershocks.<\/p>\n
\u201cI found myself at a crossroads of giving and pouring out and having to find a way to refill my reservoir,\u201d\u009d Major Bowlus said in an interview last month, recalling his lowest ebb. He continued a few moments later: \u201cI realized my passion for God and my love for people was waning. I cared, but I didn\u2019t care as much as when I first went in. I was lovingly going through the motions.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Major Bowlus\u2019s challenges, his struggle and his ultimate recovery \u201d\u201d to the point that he now instructs chaplains at the military\u2019s school for them at Fort Jackson \u201d\u201d exemplify the experiences of his peers. And it sets this group of military chaplains apart from their predecessors in the Vietnam War era, the last period of sustained American combat overseas.<\/p>\n