Military chaplains: ‘For your tomorrow, we give our today’

 

For those who are not members of the Armed Forces, the role of military chaplains may be largely unknown. One would presume that Catholic military chaplains celebrate Masses for and offer spiritual direction to the soldiers. However, military chaplains go far beyond even these crucial ministries. 

 

On November 8, a documentary film will debut in theaters for one day only, Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain’s Journey. With extraordinary storytelling, this film gives viewers a much deeper appreciation for the selfless heroism of military chaplains throughout history, including Servant of God, Father Emil Kapaun. Next summer, the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage route will include a visit to the tomb of Fr. Kapaun in Wichita, Kansas. 

 

“Fr. Kapaun was a Catholic Army chaplain during WWII who exhibited great heroism,” said Father Lawrence Mulinda, who works as a federal employee and serves as a Catholic chaplain at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson. “Captured, imprisoned, and eventually killed, Fr. Kapaun risked his own life repeatedly to save the lives of fellow Americans. He is an example of extraordinary courage, faith, and leadership. Fr. Kapaun inspired thousands of prisoners to survive horrible conditions, to resist indoctrination by the enemy, and to retain faith in their God and country.” 

 

Fr. Mulinda is also a veteran of the United States Air Force. He was a priest for 17 years in Florida before he joined the U.S. chaplain corps. “At age 46, through a retired Navy chaplain friend, I learned about the great need of Catholic chaplains,” he said. “I felt a strong calling to serve those who serve our country. I was accepted and commissioned as an officer in 2012. My time as chaplain in the Air Force has been the greatest rewarding experience in my ministry as priest.”

Military chaplains are non-combatants, abiding by the Geneva Convention, and do not carry weapons into battle. Fr. Mulinda said that he served as a chaplain in support of our troops in Operation Enduring Freedom. “Chaplains go where the service members go,” he said. “We deploy with the troops to do our role: we are an integral part of the morale, resilience, and spiritual support that service members need. Our duty is to defend the great ideals of freedom and liberties. We bring hope. We stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves.” 

 

As a Catholic chaplain, Fr. Mulinda serves all soldiers, regardless of their faith backgrounds. “I am expected to be and remain true to my faith-grounding, but as the military environment is a diverse one, I am a chaplain to all. To the Catholics, I provide for their needs directly, and to those who may not be Catholic and are looking for their faith-specific guidance, I provide for them indirectly by finding them resources they need. Chaplains often deal with spiritual issues such death, sickness, loss, and struggles of any kind. These are spiritual care issues that are not religion specific.” 

 

Chaplains are military officers like anyone else: soldiers, airmen, guardians, and marines, said Fr. Mulinda, “Chaplains must meet and keep the same standards as everyone else. The standards are the same: physical fitness, uniform, career development and progression, code of conduct, expectations. The military is one winning team, and the chaplain corps is a part of this.” 

 

Fr. Mulinda shared, “With the exception of the Dignity of Catholic Priesthood, military chaplaincy has helped me see the military as the ‘greatest vocation’ there is, specifically in western democracy. I am a Christian, and Jesus says in the scriptures, ‘No one loves greater than they who are willing to lay down their lives for the other.’ Nowhere is this truer than in the military. Our soldiers, airmen, guardians, and marines are always standing by, ready and willing to make the ultimate sacrifice in defense of the freedoms and ideals we cherish. We defend these ideals with the price of our lives: for your tomorrow, we give our today.” 

 

This Veterans Day, remember to thank those who have served in the Armed Forces, who were willing to lay down their own lives for another and, in a special way, remember the military chaplains who, unarmed, minister to soldiers in the midst of combat.