War over, some clergy still away on duty

Christian Century, June 28, 2003

Since he got called up from the National Guard and sent to Iraq, Army Chaplain (Major) Jeff Jencks has anointed a soldier in an operating room, provided a listening ear for other military members far from home and befriended Iraqi children. But he has children back home in Rhode Island who miss him--the Sunday school class at St. John's Episcopal Church in Cumberland, who sent their pastor a long banner with tracings of their hands on it.

"It's intended for him to wrap around like he's getting hugs from all the kids," explained Paul Bousquet, senior warden of the church and the lay leader who's helping run the congregation in Jencks's absence.

Multitudes of military members serving in reserve units have been deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom, leaving jobs and families behind. But some of them also have left the leadership of their congregations--temporarily or permanently--to answer the call to military service.

While some have undetermined dates to return to familiar pulpits across the United States, others recently called up to serve in support of the Iraqi war will not go back to their congregations. Chaplain (Major) Robert Cannon, recently rector of Epiphany Cathedral in the Catholic Diocese of Venice, Florida, took the place of the Catholic priest at Bolling Air Force Base outside Washington who was deployed to the Middle East.

Cannon's bishop decided that he should not attempt a temporary absence, given the large responsibilities--3,000-plus families as well as a school. "Where some military members would miss the birth of a firstborn child and other kinds of sacrifices, my particular sacrifice is having to let go of the parish," said Cannon. "I do that willingly. It's my time to serve."

For Cannon, the shift has been from parish council meetings, daily masses and youth activities to counseling military members who have marital problems, are about to be deployed or have lost a friend in Iraq. Cannon is one of about 80 "individual mobilization augmentees," or air force reservists who were called on to help support troops in Iraq. Another 160 active-duty air force chaplains were deployed for that operation.

Of the 400 or so army chaplains involved in the Iraqi war, about 60 percent were on active duty and 40 percent were from reserve components of the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard.

"The last ten years have seen a very large increase in the utilization ... of the reserve components in all kinds of military operations from war fighting to humanitarian relief operations," said Chaplain (Lieutenant Colonel) Eric Wester, spokesman for the army office of the Chief of Chaplains. "So clergy have been called on much more frequently in the last ten years than they have, really, since World War II."

Each congregation manages in its own way with new arrangements during the absence of a military-affiliated spiritual leader. Vicar Jim Eggert, who is a pastor in training in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, has taken on more responsibility at a Zanesville, Ohio, church since its pastor, Chaplain (Captain) Keith Lingsch, was called up from the Air National Guard for Operation Iraqi Freedom in April.

Eggert was already involved with worship, Bible classes and hospital visits before Lingsch's departure, but he says his workload has increased, along with that of others at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. "Certainly our congregation members have stepped up what they've done as well," he said. "More of them are visiting shut-ins, for example."

A former pastor has officiated at the four weddings that Lingsch has missed and Eggert or the former pastor officiates at funerals. Eggert emails the pastor and is grateful for Lingsch's ability to respond quickly to questions via the Internet. Lingsch appreciates the ability to communicate with his congregation, even through the pastor's letter in the monthly newsletter. "E-mail, what a blessing!" he said in response to questions sent to him by Religion News Service.

Like other chaplains, Lingsch sees the similarities and the differences in ministry at home and in the desert. "In Zanesville I cared for people in life and prepared people for death," he wrote. "I do the same here, but maybe the reality of death is a little more in the front of our minds in this place."--RNS