Call for papers: US Army Chaplain Corps Journal
US Army Chaplain Corps Journal
Call for Papers – November 2024
Military Chaplains and the Civil-Military Divide
Deadline: May 1, 2024
The so-called civil-military divide has widened in recent years. Fewer and fewer civilians have meaningful experiences with or connections to the military. There is an increasing erosion of trust and understanding between civil society and the armed forces. Military chaplains fully embody identities that are both wholly within the civil sphere and wholly within the military sphere. Chaplains sit at the intersection of religious institutions and the state. As ordained clergy and commissioned officers, they embody the character and demands of both their sending religious institutions and the military. This potentially creates tensions, contradictions, moral dilemmas, and theological problems that exacerbate pre-existing social tensions. The unique positioning of chaplains also creates the opportunity for new possibilities.
We invite papers around three sets of interrelated questions:
How do chaplains from various traditions address these potential tensions, dilemmas, and moral and theological problems? What frameworks are available for conceptualizing this relationship and these issues? How do existing law and policy help, harm, or otherwise bolster or frustrate the work of chaplains at this intersection? Are there potential remedies available for identified problems (policy, doctrine, regulation, etc.)?
Relatedly, how do chaplains differ from other soldiers when it comes to the civil-military divide? What unique challenges exist for chaplains? How might chaplains be positioned to bridge the divide in meaningful ways?
Finally, what is the role of endorsers as chaplains navigate these potential tensions, challenges, or problems? How might the relationship between chaplains and their endorsers be strengthened? How are chaplains unique in the military context given their relationship with their endorsers? How might this unique relationship be brought to bear in new and creative ways amid the challenges identified above?
A diversity of perspectives and broad range of disciplinary approaches is highly encouraged.
Please submit original research or best-practice oriented papers of 3,500 words, with endnotes or book reviews of about 1,000 words to usarmychaplaincorpsjournal@army.mil. Papers received after the deadline will be considered on a rolling basis.
The Journal’s style guide can be found here: https://usachcs.tradoc.army.mil/2021/02/journal- style-guidelines/style-guidelinesforwebsite/. The Journal will host a Virtual Writers Workshop on MS Teams on the writing, editing, and publishing processes practiced by the Journal. The next workshop will be held 29 MAR at 1200 ET. Another workshop will be held on 12 APR at 1200 ET. If you plan to attend, please RSVP NLT one week prior to usarmychaplaincorpsjournal@army.mil.