We miss him.
Posted on 03/09/2012 7:01:42 AM PST by marshmallow
Moscow, March 6, Interfax - Priests of the Russian Airborne Forces will make parachute jumps during their practical training at the Ryazan Higher Airborne School, the Airborne Forces official representative Irina Kruglova told Interfax on Tuesday.
Several of ten priests in the training camp are experienced parachuters. For example, Archpriest Savva (Shcherbina) jumped more than 560 times, while Archpriest Mikhail Vasiliev has made parachute jumps since 2001 when he started church service among troopers.
Kruglova also said that priests among paratroopers live the life of those military units they work in: they participate in training, go to the districts of local military actions together with paratroopers, share hardships and difficulties of military life.
According to social and psychological characteristics of conscripts of autumn 2011, the number of young paratroopers who consider themselves believers has 10 per cent increased and equals to 90 per cent of their total number.
Where is your faith now, pops?
Sky Pilots
Jump For Jesus
Clerical presence in the armed forces may be news in post-Soviet Russia, but our late archbishop Hannan was doing all this with the 82nd Airborne almost 70 years ago. Of course nowadays the shoe’s on the other foot: while Russia is officially promoting Christianity, it’s under government attack in the USA.
And state athiesm and homosexuality has become the official policy of our military. Sad,,,
Adding to Otto Sporrer's story, he was originally from Germany and preached, from the pulpit in the 1940-41 timeframe, against America going to war with Germany
Upon closely reading the citation, there’s more to the story than that presented. Scuttlebutt has it that Chaplain Sporrer, seeing that there was no significant leadership in the Chosin Reservoir chaos, removed his chaplain insignia, took command, and led a successful retreat ... thereby saving many marines their lives.
Oh, man...c’mon people, this is a great opportunity for some funny photos!
We miss him.
Everybody drops.
I have mixed feelings, Marsh...especially if the assigned Priests participate in firearms training (now, admittedly, the article does not say that they do, it says simply that they jump).
I was having a conversation recently with one of my Priests who was saying he hoped a parishioner would teach his young sun to shoot and hunt, as he himself cannot own a gun or any weaponry. In his words, “The Priest is supposed to be an instrument of the Grace of God, not the Wrath of God - this is why the Byzantines were APPALLED when the Crusaders’ Priests showed up bearing swords.”
his young SON, not sun.
I made sure that the Army Chaplin performing my marriage ceremony, was Airborne.
You wrote:
“this is why the Byzantines were APPALLED when the Crusaders’ Priests showed up bearing swords.”
The Byzantines spent much of their existence APPALLED at something or other. Kind of reminds me of how Muslims are constantly HUMILIATED. Western clergymen were repeatedly forbidden to carry weapons. They did so anyway. If they did, and Byzantine clergy didn’t, that might only mean the western glerics were more honest about their intentions. Eastern clergy then (and sometimes now) brawl at the drop of a hat. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7718587.stm
Then again, maybe they're going to drop a single airborne priest into those situations and say it's sort of like the Texas Rangers idea of one riot, one Ranger.
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