Army chaplain's comments to soldiers during meeting in Dahlonega bring rebuke, praise

WASHINGTON - A group that promotes religious liberty has come to the defense of an Army chaplain who was reprimanded by his superiors for "using Christian scriptures and solutions" during a suicide training session with a group of soldiers in Dahlonega. <br /> <br /> AccessNorthGa.com first reported, erroneously, that the meeting was with a group of University of North Georgia cadets. UNG spokeswoman Kate Maine says this is not a UNG issue. "This was a training session for active duty military personnel from the nearby (Army) Ranger camp, not UNG personnel or students. Because there is a shortage of classroom and space at the Ranger camp, they sometimes hold training sessions on our campus."<br /> <br /> The Army issued a letter of concern to Capt. Joe Lawhorn after he met with the 5th Ranger Training Battalion Nov. 20 at UNG.<br /> <br /> According to the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty, Col. David Fivecoat, commander of the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade at Fort Benning, ordered Capt. Lawhorn into his office on Thanksgiving Day to hand him a letter the commander had written. The letter warned Lawhorn to be "careful to avoid any perception you are advocating one system of beliefs over another."<br /> <br /> "No chaplain should be threatened for doing exactly what a chaplain is supposed to do," said Chaplain (Col.) Ron Crews, USA Retired, executive director of Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty. "Chaplain Lawhorn's presentation was perfectly legal and protected by the Right of Conscience Clause passed by Congress in the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act."<br /> <br /> Lawhorn is one of the few Army Ranger-qualified chaplains currently serving in the Army. During the session, he shared his personal struggles with depression while he was a Ranger and how he learned to conquer by following the example of the Israel's warrior king, David. At no time, the Alliance says, did he say his was the only way or even the preferred way of dealing with depression, and at no time did he deny the validity of any other method. In fact, according to the group, Lawhorn made that clear during the session and provided the attendees with a list of other resources.<br /> <br /> "Chaplains bare their souls for their soldiers to help them with crises they may be going through. That's what chaplains do," Crews said. "Chaplain Lawhorn should be commended not condemned."<br /> <br /> "I urge you to reconsider your actions and remove this Letter of Concern from his file," wrote Crews to in a Dec. 2 letter to Fivecoat. "Chaplain Lawhorn should not be punished for simply being an excellent chaplain."<br /> <br /> The Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty is an organization of chaplain endorsers, the faith groups that provide chaplains for the U.S. military and other agencies needing chaplains. <br />

http://accesswdun.com/article/2014/12/282877