Fr. Jerry’s Jottings

The Military Chaplains who attended the Conference were:
Captain Jerry Sherbourne, US Army, Georgia (ACA)
Yeoman Jason Dechenne, US Coast Guard, Virginia (ACA)
Major Brian Ray, US Army, Florida National Guard, (ACA)
1st Lt. Aaron Bayles, Ohio Air National Guard (ACA)
Lt. Cmdr. Charles Nalls, US Navy (Ret.), Maryland (ACA)
Colonel Alan Koller, US Army (Ret.), New York
Captain Douglas Gibson, US Army, Georgia (ACA)
Major Joseph Viera, US Army, Maryland (ACA)
Captain Glen Lightfoot, US Army National Guard, NY (EMC)
Lt. William Riley, US Navy (serving with the Marines), NC,
(ACA)

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 It’s been over 2 months since my last post!  Thanks again for those who have written and kept in touch w/ me through this blog.  In order to start posting again, I will begin by reporting on the 1st annual conference for Traditional Anglican military chaplains which we held in May.  In short, it met all our goals and was a huge success.  We were a little disappointed there wasn’t more participation from other “jurisdictions,” but still it was a good start.  The following excerpt, written by Bp. Moyer, is from his parish newsletter.  An EXCELLENT, detailed article was also posted on the Anglican Communion Network website at http://www.acn-us.org/archive/2008/06/chaplains.html.  ___________________________________

The first annual Traditional Anglican Chaplains’ Conference (May 12-16) was very much a success. I was pleased that nine military chaplains were present for our five days at Daylesford Abbey. I serve as the Bishop and Department of Defense Endorser for nine of these men. One Chaplain was from the Episcopal Missionary Church. The week began with a Quiet Day on Monday. Before the official beginning of the Conference on Tuesday, I conditionally ordained Captain Brian Ray, US Army, to the Diaconate and Priesthood. His previous ordinations needed to be regularized with the assurance of apostolic succession. Father Ray has just returned from Iraq.

Our own Dr. Patrick Burke spent two mornings with us as he presented two papers on “Justice” and “Just War.” The Chaplains were impressed with Dr. Burke’s command of his subjects and his depth of scholarship. Father David Ousley was with us for two afternoons leading us to a deeper understanding of the Anglican pastoral tradition and its ingredients. We also were blessed with Dr. Alan Koller, Anglican priest and retired Army Colonel, who spoke to us on the theme of “The Chaplain as Prophet,” and led a session on the need for every chaplain to have a spiritually wise and mature mentor.  We worshipped and ate together, and enjoyed a “night out” at the Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurant.  Rita was able to be “the rose among thorns” for that evening.  We concluded the week with a trip to Valley Forge where US Park Ranger Bill Trescott spoke to us about chaplaincies in the Continental Army.

The Chaplains were impressed with the beauty of our church on Tuesday evening, and the warm reception they received. Father Jerry Sherbourne’s sermon was wonderful on “The Love of God,” and will hopefully appear on our parish website. Joanne Sayen provided a sumptuous reception of food and drink after Mass where the Chaplains introduced themselves and were able to share their ministries with those present. These men work very hard and under difficult situations. They are totally dedicated to God and country, and to the fully orthodox Faith and Order of the Catholic Church in the Anglican tradition. It was moving for me to see them connecting with each other in brotherly support. Some of them had never met each other before this Conference.  All desire to return to Daylesford and Good Shepherd next year for the second annual conference. The Chaplains were so pleased before they left to receive from the Rector’s Warden, John Heidengren, a color group photo taken on the steps outside the Bishop’s Door before the Tuesday evening Mass. (See photo at top)
 

Thanks so much for your prayers for my CPE application and for courage and safety during Airborne school!  I am happy to report that God blessed me on both counts.  I found out during the Airborne school that I was selected for CPE.  I am thrilled.  We don’t know which school I will go to yet, but that’s ok.  It means I will remain here for a 2nd year, then go to school for one year, and then have a 3 year “utilization tour” as a hospital or Combat Support Hospital chaplain - either of which should be excellent assignments for ministry and for my family. 

Thanks again for your prayers anb support! 

There are many good reasons not to jump out of a perfectly good airplane.  Some of them are logical and some aren’t really based on logic :-)  There’s only one reason why I was willing to do it, despite a full complent of both types of reasons running through the core of my being - and that’s because I was able to have faith in the system.   If it was just “here’s a chute, good luck” at “Joe Snuffy’s School of Sudden Death Paratrooping” - and if the injury rate was high, etc., that would have been a very different story.

However, the Army Airborne school puts something like 18,000 students out the doors of those airplanes each year.  The system is almost fool-proof.  The ‘chutes open every time - and if they don’t, you’ve got a good reserve.  The odds against crashing and burning into the ground are astronomical.  It’s a risk, but it’s a calculated risk, minimized to the nth degree.  Statistically, it’s probably safer to jump out of that airplane than it is to ride a motorcycle. I still prefer riding motorcycles, though! 

The point is, despite natural fear, it’s a logical thing to do.  This “faith” in the system is based on the evidence and the Airborne school’s history of success.  It’s a reason based, logical, evidence based faith - not a “blind leap of faith” that goes against reason or is illogical.  What’s more, it is a faith that is proved or deepened by experience: now that I’ve gone through the school and have completed my five jumps (including 2 with combat gear, one at night) I am even more confident in the system and would be able to do it again (the whole point of the training) should the need arise.

What a great analogy for the Christian faith.  It’s not a “blind leap” to believe in God or to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ at all (although for some people, that is where they have started).  Instead, it is a decision based on the overwhelming burden of the evidence.  There is no “infallible proof” for God’s existence, or for Jesus’ resurrection - just like there is no infallible proof that I won’t plummet to a sudden death on the drop zone.  But there’s certainly enough evidence to convince an unbiased observer to exercise a “reasonable faith.”  And the Christian faith is, without doubt, a faith that has been rewarded, strengthened and confirmed by the experience of countless believers down through the ages and right up till today.   

“Stand up, hook up, shuffle to the door; jump right out and count to four…”  So goes one of the many running cadences we sing during PT - and I’m getting ready to do just that in another week and a half. 

Last Friday I completed week one of Airborne school - Ground Week.  There are about 500 students and I am the oldest guy in the class.   During “ground week” we learned how to conduct “PLFs” (that would be “parachute landing falls”) and we practiced them over and over again.  It’s enough to make a chaplain sore!  We also jumped out of a a mock airplane door on a 34 foot tower with a parachute pack hooked up to a zip-wire.  That was pretty fun.  And we drilled over and over again on the the “points of performance” necessary to successfully and safely exit a flying aircraft and land on the ground without breaking any necks or bones…  Point 1: safely exit the airplane, check body position and count (one thousand, two thousand, three thousand, four thousand; hopefully you don’t get to 5000 before your chute deploys).  Point 2: gain canopy control and check canopy (for deficiencies like holes, missing panels, more than 5 frayed suspension cords, etc…).  Point 3: Keep a sharp lookout during the entire descent.  Point 4: Prepare to land.  Point 5: Land…

Well, that’s a good review for me as I get ready for week 2: Tower Week.  During tower week we practice gaining control of the parachute and “slipping” (which involves pulling the risers properly so that you don’t crash into another jumper or obstacles and so that you can land at a slower rate of speed).  Of course the culminating exercise of tower week involves being pulled up to the top of the 250 foot tower (originally built in the 1950s or something like that) by your parachute straps and then dropped (the parachute is hooked up to a cone shaped cage which deploys the chute from the first instant of the drop). 

Week 3 is, of course, Jump Week, when you make your 5 qualifying jumps.  Here’s a link to a good short video about the Airborne School at Ft. Benning:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgF6VtcjX-o

I asked you last time I posted to pray for me about the CPE program.  I should be able to post the results soon.  I want to thank you for your prayers but (despite the fact that I don’t like to make constant prayer requests here) I also definitely want to ask you to pray for me about this Airborne thing, too.  Part of me thinks it would be fun to go skydiving, etc.  The other part of me - a very loud part if I let it be - thinks that’s just insane!  “I don’t even like riding in Airplanes, why would I want to jump out of one?  If that is not tempting God, I don’t know what is…”  However, the Airborne School has a great safety record; they train over 18,000 Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines every year; and the odds are vastly in my favor for a safe and successful 5 jumps.

In any case, please pray for strength and courage for me and my classmates, that we will not back out when it comes to jumping out that door; and, pray for skill and safety, that we will follow our training, jump and land properly, and be blessed by God’s overwatching Providence with 5 jumps each and no injuries! 

Thanks so much for your love and support!  God bless you abundantly now and always!

In late March my name will be submitted as one of approximately 115 Chaplain Captains to be considered for (what my best intelligence estimates figure to be) between 12-18 spots in the Army’s CPE program.  This is an excellent program designed to train chaplains in the pastoral counseling necessary in traumatic, emergency response and hospital settings.  Of course it is applicable in other counseling situations as well, but those are the target areas.  It consists of classwork (which may be coordinated w/ a seminary program to earn a DMin) coupled with supervised counseling, and write ups of counseling experiences subjected to group examination and comment.  It usually results in a much greater degree of self-awareness during counseling so that the counselor is able to respond to the needs of the people that he is with (and not be reacting out of his own).  It is generally considered to be an intensive overall experience by those who attend. 

 If I am selected for the program, not only would it be great training for me in my counseling ministry, but it has potential to be very good for our family, too.  I would at least have some idea of what I’m going to do for the next 5 years because it would mean:

1. a year of being left at Ft. Benning until the school starts in the summer of 09; followed by

2. one year of school; followed by

3. three years of a “utilization tour.”  That’s where the Army puts you to work doing what they just trained you to do.  After the completion of CPE, the chaplains are then assigned to an Army Post Hospital (in the US or abroad) or to a Combat Support Hospital. 

The selection is not necessarily based on merit, though there’s an element of that involved.  It could also be based on intangibles such as “this chaplain has just been deployed for 18 months, and he was in Korea before that.  If he wants to go to CPE, let’s send him…” 

 Please join me in prayer about this!  Thank you very much