Religion and Theology

Introduction

Chaplains who minister to soldiers spiritual needs have been existence for a long time now.  During their existence for almost 2000 years, the role that has been played by them is of no small account, taking the fact that they minister to the laity who are out to kill or be killed.  Another point to be considered is whether they are just pawns who minister to the soldiers so that they fight bravely and die for the purpose which the ruling class has designated them to serve. How well does the chaplain understand the situation of the soldier and cater to his needs or are the just morale boosters  For deciphering this situation we need to understand the foundations and the growth of chaplaincy (Bergen. 2010).

Chaplaincy and how it came to be

A chaplain is different from a priest in that he is a priest who conducts service in the chapel, by going for the word meaning. He is the one without parochial charge who is attached to any establishment, like the army or the navy.  It could also be other institutions like that congress or colleges or even cemeteries.  In the fourth century the chaplains carried the cloak of St. Martin de tours in the field. The cloak was kept inside a tent which came to be known as the Capella, from Cappa or the cloak and its caretaker priest came to be Capellanus.  So the clergy associated with the military came to be called Capellani in French and Chaplain in English.  The incident of Martin of Tours happened in the fourth century when Martin was a pagan.  Another reason for the origin of the word is attributed to French kings who kept a tent or canopy over the altar for the worship of the soldiers. The church recognized the authority of the chaplain which gradually extended from this holy tent to the royal household.  He came to be confessor of the royal household and was a bishop or other high dignitary. This was such that he was the representation of the authority of the monarch in religious matters (Chaplain. 2006).

The military chaplains every day work consisted of preaching administering the sacraments, soothing the sick and the wounded and burying the dead.  Often they fought along with the men they served and died with them. As chaplains they wanted to be present to the others in the midst of the worst possible scenario. They, on the other side have also been despised by soldiers as men in brass-hats, who sent others to their deaths. There were no Christian soldiers before 173 CE (Armed forces and society. 2006).  The clergy always denounced violence against any form of provocation, at that time.   It changed only when Churchs attitude towards the State changed.  After the conversion of Constantine, the Church accepted the theory of lesser evil. Augustine of Hippo and Athanasius said that it was lawful to kill enemies in war.  The chaplains joined the army under singular condition that they would not be required to bear fire arms.

Even the Romans had their own Chaplains who were the priests who could read the signs and predicted favorable or unfavorable, when the emperors were pagans. Prior to Constantine, the main difficulties faced by soldiers was the system of worshipping the emperor as a deity, which was prohibited for Christians.  So there was a lack of interest in joining the army before the time of Constantine (The military chaplain.2000).  Military service was not very popular even though the pay was good.  By the fifth century army situated in the forts and fortresses had regimental chaplains.  But most of the soldiers were still pagans because they were drawn from the barbarian hordes as compared with the Christian states under the Roman Empire of Constantine (Frame 2003).