Evening star., 1952-09-28
The Week in Religion
By Religious News Service

gallantry have been bestowed on
chaplains serving with the armed
forces in Korea, the Defense De-
partment has disclosed. This num-
ber is said to be unusually high,
perhaps a record for the Chap
lains Corps.
The department listed % Army
chaplains as killed. wounded or
missing in more than two years
Iof combat in Korea. Six are
known to have been killed in &C
ton, three Protestant chaplains
and three Roman Catholic.
Chaplains in Korea have made
their mark in more than military
gallantry. In addition to helping
maintain high morale among the
troops. they have done a great
deal of relief work among the
Koreans, particularly orphaned
children.
More ChaplainS Needed.
A movement has been under
way on the part of both the chap
laincy services and the churches
to increase the number of chap
lains, to give them the best pos
Sible training and to assure that
they will be potent factor in the
moral and religious training of
|servicemen.
The goal of this movement on
the church side was expressed re-
Gently by Chaplain Lt. COLI
Aryeh Lev, religious activities di-
rector of the National Jewish
Welfare Board.
He told the annual convention
of the Military Chaplains' Asso-
citation that churches of the vari-
Gus denominations and faiths
should accept the chaplaincy "on
the same terms as they do home
and foreign missions"
Chaplain Lev said that the de-
nominations, in assessing the total
needs of clergy manpower for the
churches, plan for definite per-
centage of clergymen to go into
the armed forces.
The Jewish religious bodies of
the Nation now have a system of
drafting rabbis for the chaplaincy
service. Church groups are pay
ing more attention than ever be-
fore to recruiting chaplains.
Groups Are Cooperating.
In some cases groups of de-
nominations are uniting to meet
chaplaincy needs. The three ma
Jor Presbyterian bodies, for ex-
ample, are in process of setting
up a Washington Office for the
Joint administration Of their
chaplaincy work.
Rear Admiral Stanton w. Sails
bury. retiring chief of Navy chap
lains. is expected to head the re-
cruiting of chaplains for the three
cooperating bodies. the Presby-
terian Church in the United States
OF America. Presbyterian Church
in the United States (Southern) =,
and United Presbyterian Church.
One of the final actions of the
Episcopal General Convention in
Boston late last week was to urge
that all ordained clergymen and
theological students who are COM
missioner or enlisted personnel in
the armed forces seek duty In
the Chaplains Corps"
The armed forces chaplaincy
services, meanwhile, are taking
special steps to insure an increas-
ing supply of chaplains.
The Navy disclosed this week
that it will conduct an active
recruiting campaign for chaplainS.
AS one phase of this campaign it
is offering probationary appoint
ments as ensigns in the Naval
Reserve to theological students of
all faiths who are in attendance
this fall at accredited seminaries.
Earlier, the Navy announced
that clergymen between the ages
of "a and 80 who are now eligible
to initial appointment to the
Chaplalns' Reserve Corps will be
appointed in the rank of lieuten-
ant, senior grade. Ordinarily, the
entering grade for chaplains with
no previous experience in the serv-
Ice 1s1leutenant, junior grade.
Air Force Plans. Set,
Plans were recently announced
by the Air Force to develop it's
own chaplains through the Air
Force Reserve Officers Training
Corps Program.
The new system will 60 into
effect this fall and the first chap
lains trained under it are ex-
pected to enter active service in
1855. The program aims as pro-
ducing $50 to 200 religious officers
a year to relieve a critical short
age Of chaplains. Heretofore, the
Air Force has depended upon vol
untary enlistment of chaplains.
The Army has moved to speed
the recruiting Of chaplains by
having applications for appoint-