 From Korea to Germany, from Alaska to Puerto Rico, all over the world, the men and women of your army are on the alert to defend our nation, you the American people, against aggression. This is The Big Picture. Welcome to The Big Picture. I'm Captain Carl Zimmerman, here to tell you more about your United States Army. Last week on our program, we showed you how the Army Medical Corps protects and saves the lives of our fighting men. Today we want you to meet the clergyman in uniform, the Army Chaplain. The importance of the work of the Army Chaplain is recognized today as never before in American military history. Now, The Big Picture and the Army Chaplain. In the Army, when a soldier complains of his troubles, it is a common expression to say, tell it to the Chaplain. This expression is symbolic of the soldier's practice of looking to the Chaplain as a constant and constructive advisor. Every man who has ever been in service knows that if there is an injustice, the Chaplain can be counted on to take steps to correct it. If the complaint is unjustified, even by only being a sympathetic listener, the Chaplain may still be able to be of some help. In July of last year, the 176th anniversary of the Chaplain's service in the Army was marked in Tokyo by General Matthew Ridgway, accompanied by Mrs. Ridgway, as he unveiled the bronze plaque commemorating the occasion. Listed on the plaque are the names of U.S. Army Chaplains who gave their lives for God and country in the Korean conflict. The importance of the work of the Chaplain is recognized today as never before in our military history. An executive order of the president states that it is the policy of the government to encourage and promote the religious, moral, and recreational welfare and character guidance of persons in the armed forces. The military Chaplain has a long history, as old as the history of military operations in America. There were Chaplains attached to many of the forces engaged in early struggle against the Indians and the French. During the Revolutionary War, it was quite natural for units of the Revolutionary Militia to march off to battle with the town clergyman who became the Chaplain. From those early beginnings have come a clearly defined and supported Chaplain's service, so that today, the Army Chaplain living and working with the troops is one of the greatest morale factors in war. To prepare him for his job, there is special training for the clergyman in uniform at Chaplain School. Here he undergoes basic training to toughen his body and his endurance, just as any other soldier. There are many hours of classroom work and after class study and professional training, and on the last day at Chaplain School, a graduation ceremony. Soldiers describe the Army Chaplain's duties as similar to those performed by clergyman in civilian life, modified by the distinctive conditions attached to the military life. Your Army Chaplain is first and foremost a clergyman in every sense of the word. A moral leader, which the cross or the tablets of the law that he wears at all times as a part of his uniform singles him out to be. You will be at the side of the fallen soldier to offer aid and comfort. Let us pray, Heavenly Father, we pray for thy guidance. Let this people be a humble people. Let us be humble in spirit, but strong in the conviction of the right. Steady fast to endure sacrifice and brave to achieve a victory of liberty and a lasting peace. Amen. Before receiving his Army Commission, he must be endorsed as a duly ordained or qualified clergyman by a recognized ecclesiastical agency. As an officer of your Army, the chaplain has rank without command. He is entitled to all the privileges and advantages of rank, but he may not command troops. Despite his rank, however, he is addressed as chaplain. Not more than most civilian clergyman, he is at once a pastor, organizer, counselor, missionary, and military officer. During World War II, 8,141 chaplains served in the Army and distinguished themselves in all theaters of the war, winning the acceptance and support of all ranks. 2,395 decorations were awarded to World War II Army chaplains. During the past war, Army chaplains have taken a more important place in military life by serving on character guidance councils, welfare fund councils, clemency boards. In this way, they exert moral influence upon military life, which is in keeping with the desires of the American people. As a nation, we are traditionally concerned for our youth. When it becomes necessary for large numbers of our young manhood to enter military service, we'd like them to have a moral environment that will strengthen their character during their period of service. The absence of normal home and hometown restraints for these young people calls for an effective religious program within your army and capable religious advisors who can help make sure that men returning from military service will be as good or better men than when they went in. It has been necessary for the totalitarians to attack and stifle religion because such faith represents the antithesis of everything they teach. Your army wants its soldiers to be morally as well as physically prepared to fight the enemy. That purpose is stated by Secretary of the Army Frank Pace, Jr. I have been Secretary of the Army now for slightly over two years. During that period of time, two things have stood out in my mind as being important to a great army. The first of those two is that the army, considering its responsibilities in terms of discipline, still in a democracy must consider the development and rights of the individual. Towards that end, we have constantly striven in as big an organization as the army to recognize the individual person as an individual. We have done that by recognizing the development of the spiritual and I am happy to say that our chapels have been crowded, that men have shown a greater interest in the moral and the spiritual than at any time in army history. We have tried to raise the educational level of the individual and we have tried always in terms of developing leadership at all levels in the army to place emphasis upon that individual's responsibility as a part of the team. The second factor that is loomed large in my mind in creating a great army is to recognize that we train a man not only as a soldier, but as a citizen. Many of our men are with us for only two years, then they return to civilian life. If the army can make that man better ready to meet the responsibilities of citizenship, then I think they will have created not only a better soldier, but also a man who is better ready to meet the responsibilities of the America of the day and of the future. That is largely the job of the army chap. The religious life of an army installation is very similar to that of a civilian community. Sabbath and weekday services, Bible classes, Sunday school, organ playing and choir singing are all part of the program. Participation in religious activities in the army is always purely voluntary. Although army chapel buildings are not elaborate, they are neat, well maintained, well located on the post and can quickly be put to use for appropriate religious services for soldiers of each of the three major faiths. Your army has authorized a ratio of one chaplain to every 850 men. However, the actual figures indicate that if more chaplains were available for military service, religious opportunities would be extended and strengthened. In addition to every man to whom he is assigned, there may be on the average at least one dependent of that man to whom the chaplain may render service. Besides conducting religious services, the chaplain administers the sacraments of his faith, officiates at baptisms, weddings, funerals. He visits hospitals. Many a soldier has been cheered by a visit such as this. Oh, I'm sorry, we're fresh out of racing forms this morning. Here, try this for your higher education. Brad, how do you feel? Well. Good. There's no one for you. Thanks. Tim, here's the cash for your ration check-alongs, and your wife's allotment came through. Oh, thanks, chaplain. That really takes a load off my mind. She sends her love, too. Thanks a lot. What'd you run into? Busted my leg in my first parachute jump. I bet you landed stiff-legged. I guess so. I knew better, but I forgot. Well, I was luckier on my first jump. I only sprained both my ankles. Say, did you? Yeah, I forgot my lesson. Landed like a stick, plain dumb. Chaplains offer comfort to all men who have troubles. Those in army prisons, too. As a counselor, the chaplain advises the puzzled, comforts the troubled, and aids the distressed. He deals with broken marriages, empty pocketbooks, homeless families. The only man directly assigned to helping the chaplain in his work is his assistant. The ideal assistant should be a good clerk, be able to play the organ or conduct choir practice, know how to drive and repair an automobile, and be well-equipped to deal with other individuals. In order to meet these requirements, your army has made provision for enlisted personnel to be designated as Qualified Chaplains Assistant. Courses of instruction for these men are given at the Chaplain School. Courses take an active part in an organized character guidance program. In his lectures known as the Chaplain's Hour, which is part of regular training for the soldier, he confines what he has to say to the realm of ethics, responsibility, and morality, and not religion. When large numbers of troops leave American shores for overseas assignment, you may be sure that at least one chaplain accompanies them. It is difficult for the civilian to realize the very great extent to which most present-day chaplains have become an integral part of the military life. This is illustrated by the wearing of the uniform, which not only identifies the chaplain as a member of the team, but also indicates that he is committed to the same hardships and sacrifices as his comrades. In battle, the chaplain is a soldier unarmed, and yet not unarmed. For what better weapon can a man carry into combat than courage and faith? Overseas, the place of worship is entirely dependent upon what is available. It may be a bright new chapel at Incheon, Korea, or deeper into the combat zone, a war-scarred church, inspiring nevertheless to those men who come to pray. Close to the front, it may be a tent, just like other army tents except for the sign. For some men in special situations, there isn't even that much. And so the chaplain, following his responsibility for providing spiritual guidance to soldiers who need it most, comes to them. The soldiers who have seen battle, no matter of what faith, welcome the chaplain, who at once starts preparations for a service. The altar is strange. It comes out of a suitcase and is set up on the hood of a jeep. The church, too, is different, a field marked by shell craters. Instead of an organ for musical accompaniment, there is the sound of artillery fire all through the service, coming from just over the top of the hill. When a chaplain stands before his congregation, he is not only a man of the cloth, but a soldier himself among soldiers, a man who knows the sights and sounds of combat, and the importance of a sudden fire mission. The whole setting is unique, and yet in essence, it may not be so very different from a service back home. The same divine truths, the old familiar hymns, the prayers of an ancient church. Only this pastor and his flock are all in uniform. Because he alone of all army officers lacks military authority to enforce his orders, the chaplain cannot compel men to attend religious services. He cannot make them come to him for personal counseling. And if they do, he cannot insist that they take his advice. A capable chaplain, however, has much to offer his unit. Taking full advantage of his opportunities, there is practically no limit to the good he can accomplish. He is not only a spiritual advisor, but also a friend to the fighting man. In exchange of greetings around a campfire, the feeling of comradeship, sharing a few moments of front line relaxation, all these strengthen the bond between the chaplain and his men. Something of his own spiritual serenity is transferred to the men by the chaplain as he drops by to pay a social call on a group of street fighting infantrymen who've just taken a town or passing out cigarettes, magazines, and a hearty smile to the weary members of an artillery gun crew. His visit is most welcome in the forward area, where the men of a tank team are about to start out on a hazardous patrol mission. As a missionary, the chaplain comes into contact daily with hundreds of young men, some of whom have never been in a house of worship, many of whom do not belong to a church or synagogue. He has an opportunity to counsel these men, to bring them into the church if they so desire. To tie them to an organized religion which can be a source of strength to them for the rest of their lives. Serving with troops overseas, the chaplain has another important responsibility. Just as the American serving in foreign lands is a personal ambassador, so also is his chaplain by virtue of the uniform he wears and the insignia upon it, a representative of the American religious tradition to every citizen of a foreign land with whom he comes in contact. Then the chaplain turns from his work with the living to conduct memorial services for those men who have paid the supreme sacrifice to the cause of peace. The final blessings are invoked for all, for American heroes, for South Koreans, whose infant republic was invaded and who fought and died to save it from the aggressors, for those who knelt before the blessed sacrament, for those of all faiths who live by the Sermon on the Mount, for those who upheld the teachings of the Torah and worship before the Star of David. There is hope for the world as long as there are men who will bear arms for the right to pray together, for the right to observe Passover, for the right to celebrate Mass. There is hope for the world as long as there are men such as these who will go wherever the soldier goes to lead him in prayer. Today we're telling you about our Army chaplains. We have one of them with us now. Chaplain Edward R. Martin, First Army Chaplain, Governor's Island, New York. Chaplain, to what do you attribute the new recognition paid the Army chaplain? I attribute it to the work of the older chaplains and also to the chaplaincy of World War II. World War II? Yes, the greater number of chaplains that, the great increase in number of chaplains that worked with the men in the World War II gave them an opportunity to go with the men to the front lines and in the trenches, to counsel and help them. The greater work has been shown, showed its results in World War II. Well, how does this work, chaplain? Well, after World War II, in 1947, due to the work of our older chaplains and to the chaplains hour that had been established, we started the new program of character guidance. Character guidance? Would you tell us about that? It's a long program you're asking for a lot, but I'll cut it down to this. The nucleus of the program is to teach the young soldier that he is a moral being, that he has specific responsibilities, not only to himself but to others. The initial work in the program is the chaplain's work, and because of that, we are now training officers. We have a specific part, not only in the basic training, but also throughout the whole life of the soldier while he is in service. Well, how about the results of this program? Results have been marvelous. Wherever the program is in force, your AWL rate is practically nil, and our stock aids are practically empty. So you see the good work is done. This program is not only the chaplain. The chaplain is the beginning, but it takes in every officer, and every man in the army is an integral part. It takes years for the completion of the program, from his natural rights, natural laws, which finally butt out in the beautiful product of a good first-class citizen soldier. Well, now, is this soldier coming to the chaplain when he's in trouble, father? They certainly come to them, even as army chaplain where I have nothing to do with troops. We find them every day. We come with their troubles, and if they come with their troubles, then we can help them. It's where the soldier fails to go to the chaplain for counsel, that his real trouble begins. Well, I know that there are many mothers and fathers of soldiers watching this program today of men and women in the army. Certainly you have a message for them. Yes, to you mothers and fathers, there is a message to you. The thing is that in the army, you need have no fear, and I'm talking of 27 years of experience without losing a day in that army. We have every protection, moral, physical, for your children. Give us your children and leave them in our hands, and we will turn them back to you as good, if not better, than when they came to us. In what way, father, can the mothers and fathers help the soldier's morale? Yes, there's a... First thing is on visits. Too often visits are made the day after the man is inducted into the army. I ask you parents, give the army a little chance to clothe and bed and induct the man in the army, say about four weeks at least, then come and visit him, and you'll find a happy, contented young man. There's another thing, too. When they go on to foreign service or to a station away from home, be careful of the letters you write. Letters can do more harm than anything else. Send them cheerful letters, if perhaps they should have trouble, and this is a point that parents ought to realize. When you have difficulties in the family, no matter what they are, and you feel that the son should be called home, see your nearest Red Cross chapter. They've done marvelous work. They are actually just the same as a chaplain to your son, their chaplains to you. There's more that they can do to help you than anything else. Remember that, your local Red Cross chapter before you write that troublesome letter to your son. Father, I know that that's excellent advice for the mothers and fathers watching our big picture program. I know, too, that you saw some action in World War II, and you'd like to talk about this chaplain in Korea, wouldn't you? Am I proud of them? They're doing a wonderful job. They're there with your sons, right in the front lines. Yesterday, another chaplain just gave his life to be with your men. They've suffered wounds. They're there willingly. And if I could only show you some of the letters, and I know this, I'd have made it just a program of the letters that I've received and that we are receiving from men in Korea, the wonderful help and courage that chaplains have given to your men, to your sons, they're wonderful. We need a lot more of those chaplains. Yes, Father, we do need more chaplains, don't we? We certainly are in need of more chaplains due to the fact that most of them that are in now in service have served in World War II and in Korea. To you, younger clergymen in civil life, we appeal to you, if you are under 38 years of age, to render a service to God in your country by coming into the service. Channels can be received from the Chief of Chaplains, Washington, 25 D.C. It is the greatest challenge, greater than that of your own ministry at home, to serve the men in the Army on the battlefield. Thank you. Thank you, Father Martin. I think all of us have a much better understanding of the work the Army chaplain is doing for our soldiers, no matter where he is stationed. We'd like you to be with us next week for another big picture program when we'll talk about the women in the Army, the wax, the nurses and the medical specialists. This is Captain Carl Zimmerman inviting you to be with us then.