Divisive Issues Surrounding Religion in the Military To Be Explored

The increasingly contentious role of religion in the armed forces will be explored in a conference being presented Friday-Saturday, Nov. 13-14 by the Yale Divinity School (YDS) and Yale Law School.

“Faith and Arms in a Democratic Society: A Working Conference on Religion in the Military” will bring together religious and military leaders from across the country to address thorny issues that challenge chaplains, commanders and policymakers who are charged with providing spiritual and religious support to intentionally pluralistic communities.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held at YDS, 409 Prospect St., on Friday and at the Law School, 127 Wall St., on Saturday.

The conference organizers are Kristen Leslie, associate professor of pastoral care and counseling at YDS, and Eugene Fidell, senior research scholar in law and the Florence Rogatz Lecturer in Law at the Law School. Several years ago Leslie was instrumental in raising questions about Christian proselytizing at the U.S. Air Force Academy, based on her observations during visits there. Fidell is among the most prominent attorneys in the country on issues relating to religion in the military.

Chaplains, commanders and policy makers face a “challenging” environment, fueled in significant measure by the growth of the Evangelical community within the armed forces — a phenomenon that has raised issues related to the First Amendment right of religious practice, note Leslie and Fidell. “Other issues relate to the pastoral needs of faith groups such as Islam, Sikhism, Wicca and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“The result has been to turn what should be a source of spiritual support and a constructive component of national defense personnel policy into a series of challenges and, at times, divisive litigation,” they write. “The program will explore these issues in a setting that facilitates mutual understanding and respect.”

The conference will begin Friday night with a keynote address by Anne C. Loveland, faculty emerita from Louisiana State University, who will discuss “Military Chaplains in Cultural Transition, 1946 to the Present.” On Saturday, there will be a series of three panel discussions: “The State and the Church: Constitutional Issues”; “Pastor to Some, Chaplains to All: Pastoral Implications for Chaplains”; and “The Path Ahead for Chaplaincy: Issues for the Future.” Jeff Sharlet, visiting research scholar with the Center for Religion and Media at New York University, will deliver a lunchtime lecture on “When Democracy Is Not Enough.”

Registration for the conference opens at YDS at 5 p.m. on Friday, with the keynote address scheduled to begin at 7:15 p.m. On Saturday, registration begins at the Law School at 8:30 a.m., followed by the panel presentations, a luncheon address and closing remarks at 3:45 p.m.

For more information, visit www.law.yale.edu/news/faithandarmsconference.htm.