Saint Martin's Cloak

Fort Leavenworth is an historic post on the Missouri River near the head of the old Oregon and Santa Fe wagon trails. In the mid 1800's, river boats would bring wagons laden with supplies and passengers and deposit them on the river banks below the old fort. The wagons quickly carved out a permanent impression in the steep grade that leads up the hill from the river landing. Soon, every wagon that disembarked took the same, well-worn trail to the top of the bluffs, deepening the ruts and making it even harder to choose another path. Even today, over a century later, you can walk out behind Fort Leavenworth's Memorial Chapel, look down toward the river, and see the U-shaped gully created by generations of wagon drivers who took the road most traveled. We often act a lot like those ancient wagon drivers. If I sit in the same place in chapel twice, that's now "my spot." I'll sit there every Sunday. Sometimes I only have to repeat an act twice to make it a habit. ...

Endow the king with your justice, O God, the royal son with your righteousness. May he judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice. May the mountains bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness. May he defend the afflicted among the people and save the children of the needy; may he crush the oppressor. Psalm 72:1-4 We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. Preamble to the United States Constitution The Ideal King Psalm 72 is a royal or messianic psalm. It describes the ideal king who establishes justice, defends the people from internal and external threats, and creates the conditions for prosperity. It is, in fact, a prayer to God that God might...

In Glittering Misery , Patricia Stallard describes the life of military families in the American west of the 1860s. Shortly after the Civil War, Major General William T. Sherman was appointed commander of the Military Division of the Missouri, a command that encompassed all territory west of the Mississippi River. In 1866 Sherman spoke to a group of Army wives in St. Louis encouraging them to move west to join their husbands at Army installations scattered throughout the Great Plains. He promised that life at the frontier outposts would be "healthful and pleasant." For the most part, it was neither. <!-- wp:more --> <!--more--> <!-- /wp:more --> Traveling from the civilized east to any of the small forts in the west was arduous and dangerous. Life on the frontier was difficult for everyone, and no less so for military families. Living accommodations on many posts was abysmal. Stallard tells the story of one senior officer's wife who arrived at he...

The United States Army was born on June 14, 1775. On many installations, the Army observes its birthday with a formal dinner ceremony and dance. Tonight, I'll put on my dress blues and join my brothers and sisters in arms in remembering those who came before. Eternal God, On this anniversary of the founding of our nation’s army, our thoughts turn to the men and women who have worn our nation’s uniform during these past 235 years. Their sacrifices and devotion to duty paved the way for freedom, justice and peace for our nation - and for so many others. As we enjoy the blessings of food and fellowship around these tables tonight, may the example of those who came before us inspire us all to a deeper commitment to the ideals for which they gave so much. Guide and protect our brothers and sisters in arms who even tonight are deployed throughout the world, laying their lives on the line for the sake of others – and comfort the loved ones of those who are absent from our table this yea...

For a community Baccalaureate held at a prayer breakfast for seniors graduating from an overseas Department of Defense Dependent School (DODDS). Our God, We ask to know the blessing of your presence here this morning as we mark this important milestone in the life journey of these young men and women. We give you thanks for this food we share together, for the friendships that have sustained our spirits, for caring teachers and mentors who have nurtured our minds and shaped our character and for ideas that have captured our imagination. We thank you Lord for the growth - physical, mental, moral and social - that has taken place in these young men and women over the past 18 or so years. You've helped them become who they are; now help them grow into the men and women they can become. Be with them and strengthen them for whatever the future holds. Lead them in the paths that are best for them. Watch over them and protect them as they begin to establish their independence. And be...

Pictured is the memorial tablet one sees as one enters Soldier Memorial Chapel on Camp Walker in Daegu (or Taegu), Korea. It may look like just another memorial plaque, but here on this land U.S. forces made a real difference for the 50 million people now living in the Republic of Korea (ROK). If someone asks if the use or threat of armed force ever does any good, one need look no further than the Korean peninsula. After the U.S. liberated Korea from a half-century of Japanese occupation at the end of World War II, the Soviet Union made a land-grab to gobble up as much territory as it could in the Pacific. Soviet forces entered the northern half of Korea and effectively divided the nation at the 38th parallel. Stalin trained and equipped the army of his hand-picked dictator - Kim Il Sung - to dominate the region. Unsurprisingly, in June 1950 the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) invaded the unprepared and virtually unarmed republic to its south. Were it not for the combine...

You can say a lot of things about a soldier without cutting him too deeply. Tell him that he's stupid or ugly or uncouth or foul-smelling, and you might not even get an argument. Tell him that he lacks honor, and you are sure to get a passionate response. Honor is at the heart of soldiering. It is one of the seven Army Values that every soldier starts to learn from the first day of Basic Training. Every officer (even the ROTC version) is shaped by the West Point motto: duty - honor - country. For soldiers, there is no higher accolade than "honor" and there is no word more damning that "dishonor." <!--more-->The highest award that a soldier can receive is the "Medal of Honor." Conversely, the worst way of leaving the Army is by way of a "Dishonorable Discharge." This description is not coincidental. A discharge for incompetence is merely administrative; a discharge for dishonorable acts is punitive. A "Dishonorable Discharge"...