Senior Army Leaders Feel Muzzled About Faith

By Chad Groening, OneNewsNow

Lt. Colonel Tom Wheatley is division chaplain for the Army’s 25th Infantry Division, which is headquartered at the historic Schofield Barracks in Hawaii. The 20-year veteran says the current political climate has made it difficult for commanders, who are responsible for the spiritual needs of their soldiers.

“It appears that commanders feel they don’t have the right to speak out about their faith — which, for many commanders, is important…because [Army leaders] want to…model the fact that they believe faith is an important part of who they are as a leader as a soldier,” Wheatley contends.

The chaplain says the spiritual welfare of soldiers is especially important during a time of war. “Many of those soldiers are going to have a faith. Their belief in God is maybe what gets them through the very tough times when they’re deployed, facing life-and-death situations,” he continues. “So if you’re a commander and you believe that your faith will help carry you through those times, then certainly you want to model that for your soldiers,” notes Wheatley.

The 25th Infantry Division has been deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan.

(Source: OneNewsNow.com)

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