Chapel Service - Camp Stanton, Republic of Korea -

This is me, Fr. Jonathan Landon, speaking the Call to Worship at Camp Stanton, the smaller of the two U.S. Army camps under my pastoral care.  The installation houses about 300 soldiers.  The chapel will hold only about 50. Maybe 60 could fit, if they really like each other and don't mind sitting close together, that is.

Although the chapel has been recently renovated, it is in an old Quonset hut, and is very small.  In the front is the chapel, and behind the sanctuary, through the door you see behind me, is the "lobby" and office.  There is really no fellowship area to speak of.  We have coffee and cookies in the small open space behind the pews in the nave.  The congregation is quite small.  In this picture you can pretty much see everyone except two little children, the pianist and two other adults (one of whom is wielding the camera).  This shot also gives you a pretty good feel for how small the building is.

Below and to the left, you see us passing the peace, greeting each other in the name of Christ.  Since this is a Collective Protestant service, we do this toward the beginning of the service, as in the Protestant tradition instead of as we would in a Charismatic Episcopal Church service (after the sermon and the prayers).  We're a friendly group. After all we get to know each other pretty well since we're so small.

Captain Joey O'Dell  (on the right) is a helicopter pilot and is also the commander of D Troop, 4th Squadron, 7th Cavalry.  D Troop is an aviation troop, meaning it is made up of pilots and aviation support personnel.  Joey is a devoted Christian who usually leads our praise and worship music time, after the passing of the peace.

... So praise and worship music is time for me to get a short break.  I step down from the pulpit to the join the congregation.

By the way -- for those who find that haircut startling on a priest --  I'd suggest to you that ANY minister ought to be willing to adjust his appearance (within reasonable limits of modesty and dignity, of course) to be able to relate to the people under his care.  In a combat arms unit like mine, extremely short hair is the usual expectation.  A man who keeps his hair the longest he can within Army regulations tends to send the message that he has not really entered into the spirit of the unit -- he's not really part of the team.  Then it can take longer and be harder to build trust and rapport with the soldiers under your care.

In a support unit, on the other hand, longer hair wouldn't create that kind of problem, as long as you keep it within regulations.

We usually have two Scripture readings as part of the Order of worship.  I read the Gospel reading and the congregation reads the Psalm responsively.  That is, I read a line or verse and the congregation responds with the next line or verse).

I normally use the readings from the Lectionary in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer.  The lectionary is a 3-year cycle of readings for weekly worship services that guide a church through the major themes of Scripture by suggesting 4 readings for each Sunday; an Old Testament reading, a Psalm, an New Testament reading (from   Acts or any book later in the New Testament) and a Gospel reading (the New Testament books of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John).

If I'm going to preach on a Scripture other than the Gospel or Psalm, I read it as the introduction to my sermon, so that week we get three readings.

And then, of course, in the sermon, I preach on how to understand and apply the Scriptures to the situations we face day to day, improve our personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ, and learn to better obey the commands of God.

For those who are purists about vestments, I will admit that I don't wear the "proper" vestments for my services at Camp Garry Owen and Camp Stanton.  Essentially, this service of prayer and preaching is a variant on the Daily Office service.  When communion is not part of such a service, the proper vestments would be a cassock and surplice, with a tippet.

However, Army chaplains, ministering to a broad variety of people from a wide range of traditions, learn to adjust their style in non-essential matters, in order to relate to the congregation.  At the same time, we are taught never to compromise the essential beliefs and practices of our own faith group.

My current congregations are used to Protestant chaplains who preach in a 3-piece suit and tie.  So I think I've struck a happy medium  by wearing a suit and clerical collar with a tippet.

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