War museum buys medals of WWI chaplain

From Canada-

The Canadian War Museum has bought the medals of Canon Frederick G. Scott, a First World War chaplain and poet, for $28,000.

Jeffrey Hoare Auctions Inc., an auction house that specializes in military memorabilia, sold a set of 10 medals belonging to the war hero last Friday in St. Catharines, Ont.

Among the medals are the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George and the Distinguished Service Order.

Lt.-Col. Scott was senior chaplain with the 1st Canadian Infantry Division, but he could not be kept safely in the rear while men were in the trenches. Instead he insisted on being in the thick of the action at Ypres, the Somme, Vimy Ridge and the Battle of Arras.

The Anglican priest was mentioned four times in dispatches, according to the Ottawa-based war museum. He was wounded in 1918 and sent to England to recover. He died in 1944 at age 83.


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http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/story/2010/07/19/canon-scott-poet.html#ixzz0uDzIZKoF

Chaplains needed in National Guard

From Topeka-

Finding enough chaplains to minister to troops has become a difficult task.

The Kansas Air National Guard has two of its six chaplain positions unfilled, while the Kansas Army National Guard is faring worse, with nine of 15 slots vacant.

Officials with the Kansas Army National Guard describe the high vacancy rate as typical of other units across the country.

They said efforts to address the shortage, including a $10,000 sign-on bonus, $4,500 in tuition assistance and extending the age limit for new enlistees, had done little to help so far.

The approaching retirement of many chaplains promises to compound the problem in the future.

The job of a military chaplain is to ensure that the spiritual needs of troops are met — a task that involves leading religious services and Bible studies and providing individual counseling.

But a host of reasons are making recruitment a challenge, including the danger of serving in war-torn areas and the reluctance of churches to stick with pastors who are deployed for several months at a time.

The Rev. Don Davidson, rector of St. David’s Episcopal Church in Topeka and the head of the Kansas National Guard’s chaplain program, said the shortage had resulted in chaplains facing repeated deployments.

“There is a definite need, but it comes at a price,” said Davidson, who doesn’t face deployment in his current position but has been deployed in the past.

“Not every church, not every clergyperson, wants to do that.”

More here-

http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/1474557.html

God but no cigarettes at Gatwick

From The London Guardian-

Nobody goes to Gatwick Airport looking for spiritual nourishment. And they certainly wouldn't expect to find God inside of Gatwick's grim institutional walls. But the Airport Chapel is a surprising oasis of peace and calm.

The chapel is a comfortable room, reserved for prayer and reflection, though many use it as a place to read, check email, or simply escape the horror that is Gatwick.

There are Christian services three days a week, with Roman Catholic, Anglican, and the Free Church chaplains attending to the spiritual needs of travellers and airport workers.

The first service on Sunday was the Free Church. Lt. Colonel Stephen Pallant of the Salvation Army was chaplain. He prepared the room by putting out a simple wooden cross and then, to my horror, he placed the book "Anglican Hymns Old and New" on each chair. Surely, we wouldn't be singing? I was the only one there! He then put some music on the stereo and my discomfort grew. But when Lt. Colonel Steve saw that no one else would be coming, he pulled up a chair for a chat instead. Saved!

"Sometimes I get a big crowd, and others there is nobody. I can't take it personally." I asked about his largest group and he said he once had 20 people whose flight had been delayed. Flight delays are good business for the Airport Chapel.

The chapel is hidden and services are found by prior knowledge, divine intervention, or through the announcements. Lt. Colonel Steve explained that announcements should be made both 30 minutes and 15 minutes before each service. The problem, he complained, lies with the announcer, who sometimes forgets or speaks in a garbled accent. "The system is fraught with problems."

More here-

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2009/aug/24/religion-christianity