Disclaimer: Any views expressed below are my own and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Department of the Navy or the Navy Chaplain Corps.
Professor Guinn has called attention to something I've
been wondering about since I first saw this particular line of argument
made in Chaplain Klingenschmitt's "War Against Christians" presentation
(available on his website at http://www.persuade.tv/frenzy2/WACspeech.ppt
). In the quoted passage from my paper, I reported on questions asked of
the Secretary of the Navy by the Speaker of the House in 1859 regarding whether
there were any requirements for chaplains to literally *read* prayers, follow
any partcular liturgy, or whether "non-Episcopal chaplains had to follow the
Episcopal liturgy." I did not describe, nor do I recall finding, any
evidence that official Navy policy at the time actually included such
requirements.
As quoted below, I did report that the Secretary
explained in his reply to the Speaker that "he was not aware that the
instruction to 'read' had ever been construed to require a literal reading from
a particular prayer book . . . ." In other words, even if there had been a
policy requiring "non-Episcopal chaplains . . . to follow the Episcopal
liturgy," much less a mandatory requirement that prayers be read from the
Episcopal Book of Common Prayer, the Secretary didn't know about it. Just
to make sure there would be no misunderstanding in the future, he issued
orders clarifying that there was no such policy and a chaplain could "conduct
public worship according to the manner and forms of the church of which he may
be a member."
Even so, my article is cited in apparent support of the
proposition that use of the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer "was once seen as
'mandatory' for all chaplains." I do not, however, think
what I wrote supports that conclusion, and I do not recall finding support for
it in any of the materials I reviewed or cited. Of course, other historical sources may have more information on
this particular point, but I don't.
By the way, while the quoted passage from page 226 of
my paper is reproduced accurately enough below, in context it is
followed immediately by these words beginning at the bottom of that
page:
While conducting worship has always been one of a military chaplain's duties, protecting the rights of others to freely exercise their faith also predates the Constitution and Bill of Rights. [FN59] The earliest chaplains, like their modern-day counterparts, served a military population representing a variety of faith groups or no faith at all. [FN60] One author asserts that the "pattern for chaplain ministry to soldiers of different religious backgrounds was set in the seventeenth century, from the time the first militia units drilled at Jamestown, Plymouth, Boston and New York." [FN61]
Very respectfully,
Bill Wildhack
Member, Florida Bar and bar of the U.S.
District Court for the Middle District of Florida
Minister of Word and
Sacrament, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
Commander, Chaplain Corps, U.S. Navy
Reserve
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of David E. Guinn
Sent: Sunday, October 01, 2006 11:57 AM
To: Law & Religion issues for Law Academics
Subject: Re: Victory for Military Chaplains Who Pray "In Jesus Name"
I am appalled by the selfishness of this line of
argument -- that the only point of concern is to "protect the chaplain" --
as opposed to serve the religious needs and interest of our armed
forces.
Not only are these interpretations of history and
law enormously biased and inaccurate, they are offensive. If the
chaplaincy's purpose is solely to promote Chaplain Klingenschmitt's sectarian
faith than perhaps Madison was correct in arguing that Congress' decision to
hire chaplains was wrong and should now be recended.
David
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Gordon James Klingenschmitt
Sent: Saturday, September 30, 2006 9:16 PM
To: Law & Religion issues for Law Academics
Subject: RE: Victory for Military Chaplains Who Pray "In Jesus Name"
Excellent comment Professor Scarberry,
But now that the policy is rescinded, so is any distinction between "public
worship at divine services" and "public worship at command ceremonies" and so
the law (once again) protects the chaplain at all events whenever he
prays...prayer itself is restored as an act of "public worship" the same way
it always had been since 1860.
The origins of the 1860 law were described recently by our new friend
CDR Wildhack, who wrote in the Naval Law Review Vol 51 (2003):
"As in our day, questions about the manner and forms of worship
have also long been a part of the history of the Chaplain Corps. Early
regulations specified that the duties of chaplains included having to 'read'
prayers (53). In 1859, the Speaker of the House of Representatives asked the
Secretary of the Navy whether chaplains were required to 'read' prayers or
follow any particular forms or ceremony in leading worship, and if the Navy had
any evidence of a requirement that non-Episcopal chaplains had to follow the
Episcopal liturgy (54). In replying, the Secretary explained that he was
not aware that the instruction to 'read' had ever been construed to require a
literal reading from a particular prayer book, but rather as a requirement that
prayers be offered aloud without specifying they be read from a book, written
down by the chaplain beforehand to be read later, or offered extemporaneously
(55). To further reassure the Speaker and his colleagues in Congress, the
Secretary announced a new order officially interpreting the requirement that
prayers be 'read' to mean that prayers be 'offered,' thus leaving the chaplain
free to follow the dictates of his own religious tradition.(56) Perhaps in
response to such communication with Congress, new Navy Regulations adopted in
1860 included this addition: "Every chaplain shall be permitted to conduct
public worship according to the manner and forms of the church of which he may
be a member."(57) No longer merely a regulation, that language is now in force
as part of the United States Code.(58)"
Thanks to CDR Wildhack for this insight....But it reveals
today's tragic irony....the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer was once seen
as 'mandatory' for all chaplains...but Congress (wisely) overcame that, to allow
non-Christian chaplains (i.e. first 3 Jewish chaplains appointed by Abe Lincoln
in 1860) total freedom to NOT the use Christian prayer book...and now in 2006,
the policy actually PROHIBITED using the Christian prayer book in
public....the pendulum swung too far...so now Congress has (wisely) righted
itself, to restore religious diversity, allowing any variety of prayers to
be said, instead of punishing Christian prayers while forcing Christian
chaplains to pray Jewish prayers (i.e. theologically sensitive prayers).
Chaplain Klingenschmitt
"Scarberry, Mark" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
It seems there is a distinction between "Divine/Religious Services" and other "command functions." I don't suppose Marty is saying that a chaplain may not pray in Jesus' name during Divine/Relgious Services. Paragraph 6(c) does not require that Divine/Religious Services be non-sectarian but only that religious elements in other command functions be non-sectarian. If Divine/Religious Services were required to be nonsectarian then they couldn't be divine services for the chaplain's particular faith; note that the chaplains are required to "provide ministry to those of their own faith" which rules out nonsectarian requirements for such ministry whether or not that ministry occurs in a Divine/Religious Service. I suppose there could be a serious question whether a particular memorial service for a deceased sailor (the context, I believe of Chaplain Klingenschmitt's disagreement with the Navy) is a Divine/Religious Service or instead a different kind of remembrance of the sailor. Whether nonsectarian prayer would be required might depend on how the event was classified, I think.
Mark Scarberry
Pepperdine
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