Opinion ID: 186251
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The History and Organization of Navy Chaplains

Text: In November 1775, the Continental Congress adopted the first regulations to govern the fledgling Continental Navy. 3 See Rules for the Regulation of the Navy of the United Colonies of North America (Nov. 28, 1775), reprinted in relevant part in 1 Clifford M. Drury, The History of the Chaplain Corps, United States Navy 3 (Bureau of Naval Personnel 1984). Although those regulations did not expressly create a chaplain position, Article 2 provided that ‘‘[t]he Commanders of the ships of the thirteen United Colonies, are to take care that divine service be performed twice a day on board, and a sermon preached on Sundays, unless bad weather or other extraordinary accidents prevent.’’ Id. These duties often fell to the captain himself or a designee: only two chaplains were known to have served in the Continental Navy during the Revolutionary War, and the Navy limited the number of chaplains on active duty to nine until 1842 and to 24 from then until 1914. Drury, supra, at 5, 62. Early chaplains were responsible for educating midshipmen and sailors in addition to their religious duties. The Navy placed great emphasis on the chaplains’ role as teacher, selecting them ‘‘more for their teaching ability than for their experience or training as ministers.’’ Id. at 18. Indeed, the first ‘‘naval academy’’ was established 200 years ago at the Washington Navy Yard by Chaplain Robert Thompson, who taught midshipmen mathematics and navigation. Id. at 18– 20. The success of that academy led to the establishment of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland in 1845. From those beginnings, the Navy Chaplain Corps has grown with the service to over 800 strong. It is the responsibility of Navy chaplains to ‘‘provide for the free exercise of religion for all members of the [Navy and Marine Corps], their dependents, and other authorized persons.’’ Directive No. 1304.19, Appointment of Chaplains for the Military Services ¶ 3 (Dep’t of Def. Sept. 18, 1993) (Directive). The Navy chaplain’s mission is to accommodate the religious needs of sailors and Marines by providing religious services, counseling, and support. See Marine Corps Warfighting Publication 6-12, Religious Ministry Support in the United States Marine Corps 1-4, 1-5 (Dec. 12, 2001). In addition to this religious ministry, Navy chaplains also provide ethics instruc- 4 tion and critical incident debriefings, and advise commanders on religious, moral, and ethical issues. Id. at 1-5. A Navy chaplain’s role within the service is ‘‘unique,’’ involving simultaneous service as clergy or a ‘‘professional representative[ ]’’ of a particular religious denomination and as a commissioned naval officer. OPNAVINST 1730.1, Chaplains Manual 1-2–1-3 (Dep’t of the Navy Oct. 3, 1973). A chaplain must satisfy not only the normal physical and educational requirements to become a commissioned officer, but also must have a graduate level theology degree or equivalent and an ecclesiastical endorsement — official notice from a faith group endorsing agency that a candidate ‘‘is professionally qualified to represent that faith group within the military Chaplaincy.’’ Chaplain Candidate Program Officer Handbook Glossary; see Directive ¶¶ 5.1–5.2. Ecclesiastical endorsement must be maintained throughout a chaplain’s career; withdrawal of ecclesiastical endorsement at any point in a chaplain’s career could result in separation from the Navy. Directive ¶ 5.1.4. The Navy categorizes chaplains into four general religious categories or ‘‘faith groups’’ according to similarities in religious denominations: Roman Catholic, Liturgical Protestant, Non-Liturgical Protestant, and Special Worship. Liturgical Protestant primarily includes those protestant denominations that trace their origins to the Protestant Reformation and whose religious services are characterized by a set liturgy or order of worship, including the Lutheran, Episcopal, Methodist, and Presbyterian denominations. CFGC Second Am. Compl. ¶ 12(a) (CFGC Compl.). Non-Liturgical Protestant refers to protestant denominations ‘‘without a formal liturgy or order in their worship service’’ whose clergy do not wear religious dress during services, comprising the Baptist, Evangelical, Pentecostal, Bible, and Charismatic churches. Id. ¶ 12(b). The Special Worship category includes the Christian Orthodox, Jewish, Muslim, and Mormon faiths. Appellants’ Br. at 5.