Mission First
CH (COL) BONNIE KOPPELL
807 th Medical Command
COMMAND CHAPLAIN
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Mission First
“The Soldier’s heart, the Soldier’s spirit, the Soldier’s soul are everything.
Unless the Soldier’s soul sustains him, he cannot be relied upon, and he will fail himself, and his commander, and his country in the end.”
-15 th chief of staff of the Army, General of the Army,
George C. Marshall
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Mission First

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• To provide for free exercise of religion
• Title 10, U.S. Code, Sections 3073, 3547, and 3581
• To perform and provide comprehensive religious support to
Soldiers, Family members and other authorized personnel
• Religious advisor to the commander
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• United States Constitution, Amendment 1:
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• Education
• Bachelors Degree
• Masters degree ≥ 72 graduate hours
• Age- NLT 42 years of age
• Endorsement by religious body
• Meets Military standards
• At least two years of ministry experience
CH Tim Vakoc injured by an IED in Iraq and later died of wounds.
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• Pastors were Soldiers in Revolutionary
War.
• George Washington enacted command
• Continental Congress created the chaplaincy on July 29, 1775
• Chaplains have accompanied Soldiers in every U.S. military engagement
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• Geneva Convention – “Non-Combatant”
• Addressed as “chaplain” rather than rank
• Tested, and upheld before the US Supreme Court
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Mission First
IT IS THE COMMANDER’S
RELIGIOUS PROGRAM!
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Commander’s responsibilities:
• Establish and maintain a climate of high moral and ethical standards
• Provide religious, spiritual, moral, and ethical support to
Soldiers
• Support the free exercise of religion for all personnel
• Provide UMT’s with the resources required to perform their duties
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Chaplains Support Commander as Special Staff Officers
• Perform or provide religious rites and pastoral counseling to Nurture the Living, Care for Wounded, and
Honor the Dead
• Develop and implement the commander’s religious support program
• Liaison with indigenous religious leaders
• Provide the commander with personal pastoral care, counseling, advice, and privileged communication
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• Religious Services: mass, worship, prayer breakfasts, memorial services/ceremonies, and weddings
• Religious Education: Bible study, moral leadership, stress management, marriage and family, leader development
• Pastoral Care: ministry of presence; visits and counseling
• Suicide Prevention: ASIST trained
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Ministry of Presence
Army chaplains are not assigned to a chapel; they are assigned to Soldiers!
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Buddhist Christian Hindu Jewish Muslim
Chaplain Candidate
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• Significantly lower selection rates than most branches
• Branch specific promotion boards
• RSC chaplain manages USAR assignments
• Must have a Chaplain in the rating chain, usually the
Intermediate Rater
• Career Life Cycle: specialty tracks
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• UMT consists of one chaplain and one chaplain assistant
• UMT members are not to be assigned additional duties or command responsibility for Soldiers in order to maintain autonomy for counseling (AR 165-1, 3-4)
• Examples include: Platoon leadership, welfare, morale, victim advocate, sexual assault response coordinator, and EO
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Confidential Communication :
• Any communication to a chaplain or chaplain assistant given as a formal act of religion or as a matter of conscience
• Communication made in confidence to a chaplain acting as a spiritual advisor or to a chaplain assistant aiding a spiritual advisor
• A communication not intended to be disclosed to third parties in any context, legal or otherwise
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•
Strong Bonds promotes resilience
• Single
• Married
• Family
• Chaplain led training: nonreligious in nature
• Supported and paid by RSCs
• 3 day duty (Friday-Sunday)
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• Events are for deploying and re-deploying Soldiers and their Families
• Chaplains brief on the Role of Chaplain, conduct chapel services, and are available for counseling
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Religious Advisement
Joint Publication 1-05
Religious Support
• Two major Chaplain responsibilities - religious advisement and religious support
• Religious advisement – focus on the impact of religion on joint operations
• Chaplains provide religious advisement consistent with their noncombatant status
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Soldier Leader Engagement
• Chaplains will often be involved in liaison activities with both:
• Indigenous Faith Group Leaders
• Faithbased NGO’s
• Cultural sensitivity is critical
• Lack of favoritism is critical
• MUST BE ORDERED BY THE COMMANDER!
FM 1-05, Religious Support, 2-2
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Guiding Principles for Advising
• Know the commander’s desired end state and supporting mission objectives
• Form partnerships with other staff working groups
• Determine how the religious terrain shapes/impacts the operational environments
• Contribute relevant and timely analysis of the religious factors
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Advising Continued
Religious Terrain encompasses a range of categories ( GTA 41-01-005, Religious Factors Analysis, p.16)
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• In the past “Few American military personnel could be said to have demonstrated much cultural awareness, much less an interest in acquiring it.”
• What we have learned “The more these (front-line) troops know about the local culture, the greater the chance that they will develop relationships that will prove useful to mission accomplishment.”
Lawrence Yates, The U.S. Military’s Experience in Stability Operations, 1789-2005, 32
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Chaplain will have input to the PMESII-PT operational analysis
P Political
M Military
E Economic
S Social
I Information
I Infrastructure
P Physical Environment
T Time
(see ATP 1-05.03, A-1ff for religious considerations within PMESII-PT analysis)
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Multi-National Social Intelligence
HISTORY AND CULTURE MATTER;
SO DOES LEADERSHIP!
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• “The burdens of governance require culturally astute leaders and joint forces capable of adapting to nuances of religion, ethnicity, and a number of other considerations essential to success.”
• “The military force should, consistent with security requirements, respect the religious celebrations and the legitimate activities of religious leaders.”
Joint Publication 307, “Stability Operations,” xxviii
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Guidance on Religious Accommodation
• “The mission of providing religious support remains the same no matter the threat. Chaplains adapt religious support operations based on the operational conditions and the mission of the unit.” FM 1-05, 2-4
• Principle: Err on the side of religious accommodation, unless it interferes with the mission
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• Examples of religious accommodation:
• Letting Muslim Soldiers work night shift in order to observe
Ramadan
• Allowing for worship space and time for all religions
• Providing for religious dietary considerations; Halal and
Kosher
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YOUR
YOUR
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• Combat Multiplier- Lawrence Yates, The U.S. Military’s
Experience in Stability Operations, 1789-2005, 32
• Guiding Principles for Advising- Religious Terrain encompasses a range of categories ( GTA 41-01-005,
Religious Factors Analysis, p.16)
• Key Leader Engagement- FM 1-05, Religious Support,
2-2
• The Soldiers Heart- The 15 th chief of staff of the Army,
General of the Army, George C. Marshall
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References Continued
• The Role of the Chaplain in the United States Army- CH (MAJ) Daryl
Densford
• Religion and the Contemporary Strategic Environment- CH (COL)
Bonnie Koppell
• A Commander’s Guide to Getting the Most Out of Your Chaplain-
CH (COL) Marc Gauthier
• Advising the Commander- Anonymous
• Multi-National Social Intelligence- Joint Publication 307, “Stability
Operations,” xxviii
• AR 165-1 Chaplain Activities in the United States Army
• Religious Accommodation, FM1-05, 2-4
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