Navy chief says chaplains meet vital spiritual needs

‘Christ calls us to serve with the people who need it most’

January 9, 2019

While the religious backgrounds of U.S. military personnel have changed greatly over the past three decades, their spiritual care continues to be a pressing need, the U.S. Navy’s chief of chaplains says.

Rear Admiral Margaret Grun Kibben, chief of chaplains for the U.S. Navy, addresses commissioners to the 223rd General Assembly (2018). Photo by: Danny Bolin

Rear Admiral Margaret Grun Kibben, a Presbyterian minister of Word and Sacrament, addressed commissioners to the 223rd General Assembly earlier this year, on the day she celebrated her 35th anniversary as a Navy chaplain.

When she began her career, she said, there was a common religious language that included such words as “forgiveness,” “grace,” “faith” and “reconciliation,” and these words were understood.

Today, she said, military chaplains not only serve people from diverse religious traditions but also have many people in their charge who have no religious background. “Many men and women we deal with have never darkened the door of a church, a mosque or a synagogue,” she said.

Nevertheless, Kibben said, chaplains are called to “care for each soul in our command and our service.” She said chaplains have a unique opportunity to provide a listening ear to military personnel in need. “We have access to every space, every place and every office where people serve, and can come alongside them.”

Chaplains are expected to provide spiritual nurture for people of all ranks, including senior leadership, she said. In addition to serving as a “moral compass” for senior officers, she said, chaplains often are the only people in whom they can confide when they feel lonely or afraid.

Kibben told commissioners that when young people leave their congregations to serve in the military, they can count on chaplains to help with their spiritual needs. She encouraged those present to suggest military chaplaincy as a vocational option for people who believe they are called to ministry.

“If there is any dissonance there, forgive me, but think about it very deeply,” she said. “Christ calls us to serve with the people who need it most.”

 Pat Cole, Communications Specialist, Mission Engagement & Support, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Today’s Focus:  Chaplains

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Jieun Kim Han, PMA
Cheri Harper, PW

Let us pray:

Loving Father, we thank you for the courageous and faithful. As we serve, let us all walk humbly with you as we follow the example given to us by Jesus Christ. Amen.

Daily Readings

• Morning Psalms 46 or 47; 147:1-11
• First Reading Isaiah 63:1-5
• Second Reading Revelation 2:18-29
• Gospel Reading John 5:1-15
• Evening Psalms 27; 93 or 114