Diversity of Airman's faiths supported at Base Chapel

  • Published
  • By Mary Lou Gorny
  • Hilltop Times editor
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah --  "We have multiple expressions of faith," said Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Kenneth Crooks, Hill Air Force Base installation chaplain. "We support everyone's constitutional right to worship.

"I hope that we are showing the community that we are working together -- that despite our differences we can work together to our common goal -- supporting the Airmen and supporting everyone's First Amendment rights," he said as he talked about the diverse group of denominations and faiths serving at the chapel.

Hill Air Force Base has seven chaplains (including two Reserve chaplains) and four chaplain assistants. These include one Roman Catholic priest and six Protestant chaplains -- including one Independent Charismatic, one Christian Missionary Alliance, two Anglican/Episcopal priests and two LDS. The chaplain assistants include a Jewish chaplain assistant, one LDS, one Protestant nondenominational and one Wiccan.

Crooks said that during his service in the Air Force at one time he had a chaplain assistant who expressed no religious faith in particular who served solely from the aspect that he believed in caring about people.

"I thought how can a person with no (religious) faith do something that involves a manifestation of faith?" Crooks said. He explained that he discovered it is by disassociating emotions in order to serve people that much is accomplished in the service of others in many professional disciplines, sometimes including that of chaplains. He went on to explain what contributes both to that service and the expression of devotion.

"Faith and brains are a large part of faith," Crooks said.

"People are emotional about their faith and they should be," he added. "We all need faith, and it is important that we all are allowed to express that as we see fit. There is a huge religious diversity in this one chapel."

Two chaplain assistants at Hill AFB assist with religious minorities. They are cross trained to be helpful and tolerant of all religious faiths.

Staff Sgt. Anthony Gray recently joined the base chapel and serves with the Wiccan population. He expressed much excitement at the opportunity to serve at Hill.

"My profession is a chaplain assistant who is trying to provide religious accommodation in a pluralistic environment," Gray said. "I am open to answer questions to all people, but my role as a chaplain assistant is to accommodate all faiths in the military. However if a Wiccan does come to me I am limited to intervention counseling only."

Gray explained that means in an emergency setting he can offer prayers or other assistance but he is not available for marriage counseling and other more involved services.

"Being a Wiccan chaplain assistant allows me to serve my faith and educate others," he said and went on to add, "The Wiccan faith applies the Socratic equation to our religion. Faith plus reason equals happiness.

"I pray that through tolerance and education that the Wiccan community can bring more love and connection with friends and family here at Hill Air Force Base," Gray said.

A Jewish chaplain assistant has been serving for eight months at the base and will be deployed for six months.

"I will be coming back in mid-January," the assistant explained. "I would like to have a more active Jewish community on the base. I believe there are more civilians than I know of -- so if I could find a way to contact all the Jewish personnel on base and let them know what we'd like to do -- I think that might help."

The Jewish chaplain assistant also explained that their role involves basically anything to do with the chapel. "The chapel building itself, the chapel community -- meaning our customers -- counselees who walk in to see the chaplain or call on the phone," the assistant said. "We're supportive of these folks and make sure they get to the right chaplain. If they can't get to a chaplain, then we make sure to put them in contact with the right referral agency."

The assistant explained that sometimes people come in with other needs. "We are senior NCOs," the assistant said. "We can counsel from that perspective just as any NCO would about life matters -- mentoring type stuff -- and not everybody who comes through our doors is in spiritual crisis. Sometimes it could be a financial issue and they just don't know where to go."

The assistant said, "So we help them or we find the agency that can."

The assistant said early experiences at a Jewish Day School, 2nd through 8th grades, and then Catholic high school, freshman through senior year, were a firm foundation to the role of assistant chaplain. "An Air Force chaplain assistant must be tolerant of all religions."

If you need assistance with your worship needs, call (801) 777-2106.