Chaplains provide ‘listening ears,’ ‘tender hearts’
U.S. Navy Chaplains John Lea (left) and Scott Shafer
escort United Methodist Bishop Robert Hoshibata on a tour of the U.S.S.
Blue Ridge docked in Tokyo.
UMNS photos by Kathy L. Gilbert. |
Fifth in a series
By Kathy L. Gilbert*
Oct. 28, 2008 | TOKYO (UMNS)
The Rev. John Lea is a senior officer in the U.S. Navy and a chaplain
through The United Methodist Church. Now stationed in Tokyo, he wakes
up every day, wraps himself in John Wesley’s mantle and places tomorrow
in the Lord’s care.
Chaplains care for the hearts and souls of the soldiers while other
military commanders oversee their physical and mental preparation.
"My job is to load the wagon, not worry about the horse," said Lea, a
clergy member from the church’s Greater New Jersey Annual (regional)
Conference.
Before coming on active duty in 1986, Lea was pastor of a small church in Porter Republic, N.J.
"I’m a captain by rank. I’m a chaplain by calling and ordination," he
said. "Right now I am the Naval Forces Japan Force chaplain on Rear
Adm. James D. Kelly’s staff. I’m responsible for chaplains across Japan, Singapore, Korea and Diego Garcia."
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A U.S. Navy seaman guides Hoshibata and his wife, Greta, through the ship's
interior during an August tour.
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Lea said chaplains fulfill three key roles in the life of the military.
They serve as symbols of God; they provide listening ears for personal
struggles; and they offer hands of comfort on matters of the heart.
"As representatives of God we have a profound ability to remind
people of the divine, of the otherness of God, of the Spirit," he said.
"I think that we provide an ear for people who oftentimes have nowhere
else to go and no one they think they can trust with some pretty deep
personal struggles.
"We have that tender heart that is different than what they find in
the military from the line officers. And the line officers have a huge
responsibility for the nation, for the defense of the country. Our job
is different in that we’re looking to the spirit."
Lea said chaplains remind their flock that "God loves you. I love
you. And I’m here to represent that profound truth to you in ways that
are different than other officers."
The Rev. Scott Shafer also serves as a Navy chaplain in Tokyo. A
clergy member of the Arkansas Annual (regional) Conference, Shafer was
serving Good Faith United Methodist Church in Pine Bluff before coming
on active duty. He now shares responsibilities with five other
Protestant chaplains and one Catholic for the Chapel of Hope at Command
Fleet Activities Yokosuka, a U.S. Navy base in Japan.
"I no longer minister to as many blue-haired ladies as I minister to
blue-shirted young men and women," he said. "As a United Methodist, I am
considered a liturgical Protestant. ... That basically means I baptize
babies and have communion a lot.
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Shafer and Lea say The United Methodist Church is well-suited to provide
military chaplains.
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"I spend much more time on ministry than I was ever able to spend in the
parish, but have less time for sermon preparation than ever before," he
said. "I won't even go into how much PT (physical training) I have to
do every day to stay in shape."
Shafer, who is white, was first assigned to the chapel's gospel
praise congregation, which is predominantly African American and
Pentecostal and includes whites and Asians.
"If I was in the states in my annual conference, I doubt that a
bishop in his right mind would have appointed me to head that
congregation. But here I was able to lead that congregation. … When I
started attendance was around 120; when I left it was around 250. So it
was a wonderful experience that I don’t think I would have had in the
parish."
Both Shafer and Lea agree The United Methodist Church is well-suited
to provide pastors as military chaplains. The denomination currently has
139 active-duty chaplains and 200 more in the reserves and the National
Guard.
"I see our Social Principles enacted every day in the Navy," Shafer
said of the church’s statements of belief. "There are no excuses. There
are people of different ages, nations, cultures and races all working
together toward common goals."
*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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