Army Chaplain allows dusty troops to take bath if they are baptized.

If it's purely symbolic can't you baptise someone with a cup of water instead of 500 gallons? Should the military even be endorsing religion like this?

 

It's a <b>baptismal</b> pool for God's Sake (literally). Are we now saying that US soldiers are dying of baths-denied as well as lack of drinking water and enemy fire...

Yes, the military should be providing this because "there are no atheists in foxholes." Enough of the men and women want it.

 

I no more said anything about drinking water in this thread than I did that people were dying of filth. But if there's a bath available and it's being denied to people because they won't undergo a religious ritual which might be deeply offensive to their faith (or yes, lack of it), that is despicable. And un-Christian. And I repeat, Jesus would be repulsed.

 

How do you know that? And if even if they did I thought the milatry wasn't a democracy.

Are you saying there are no atheists in the military? Or if there are some they are somehow less brave than those with religion.

 

I've seen all the old WWII movies on television. I'm saying that the preponderance of US soldiers are Christian and, so, the military provides for battlefield support. Catholicism requires/prefers Last Rights for the dying.

Atheists don't need anything of this sort, so what's the gripe?

 

Weren't both Jesus and John the Baptist Jews. Didn't Jesus allow himself to be baptised? I didn't realize Jews were against Baptism.

 

The response was a general one not aimed at you alone. If taking such a bath would be deeply offensive to someone, it's propbably not hard to pass it up.

You find a guy despicable for practicing his faith, i.e. baptizing individuals? I'm glad you're such an expert on Jesus.

"Repulsed." "Despicable." This little folly hardly seems worth such harsh language and harsh judgement.

 

If they want to take a bath, then they can talk to the unit's rabbi or imam and see if they can hook them up. Or they can complain to their CO, who is the one who has the authority to tell the chaplain to give them his water.

You, well... you can just write your fu*king congressman if you don't like it.

 

You're basing your belief that most soldiers are Christian on the movies?

what do last rites have to do with baptism?

My gripe is that the military shouldn't be proselytzing it's own troops in exchange for baths, raisins, fruit roll ups and juice boxes.

And if we're gonna go blow up the water sources of the people we are trying to "liberate", then we should be providing them with water instead of wasting it on stupid stuff like this.

 

No I'm not basing my belief in that. I was just having a little fun. These chaplains have been around since The Civil War, I would imagine. You act like they are news to you....

Last rights have nothing to do with Baptism that I know of. I was just buttressing the argument that there are good reasons for having clergy in wartime.

The guy is just doing his calling. I wasn't aware that he got the last of the water.

I've missed the news about us blowing up water resources. Last I heard we were bending over backward to protect the Iraqi infrastructure. Did we set fire to the Tigris too?

 

Chaplains are fine as long as they are not there trying to recruit new people into their religion and they are not given power over supplies like this.

Basra faces water supply crisis

"The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said electricity cables powering the Wafa al-Quaid water station had been destroyed.

It claimed the station, which supplies two million people, was under coalition control"

 

Why would we be making our job harder? We are obviouslly making the effort that The Regime never made to get water to the people. Why would we be "shooting ourselves in the foot?"

 

I guess the red cross is just a bunch of hippie liars.

regardless of how the water plant was damaged, intentionally or accidentally, it's up to us to remedy the situation.

500 gallons might not solve the problem entirely, but it's not just a drop in the bucket to those without any.

 

I never hinted at any such thing. Is denying this 500 gallons of water the only thing we are (not) doing about it?

Are these two places geographically close? Could <b>that</b> water really get to Basra or is this one of those sending-your-uneaten-vegetables-to-China things?

 

It's a little folly compared to the Crusades I guess, but it's similar in principle. Bottom line: if there's a water shortage, water shouldn't be horded by a missionary to the exclusion of the troops getting a decent bath. Let him convert people when he gets home or let him continue to do it there in some way which doesn't deprive non-Baptists of basic services.

Oh, and to answer your earlier question, Jews aren't offended by baptisms anymore than you might be offended by someone praying to Allah. They just don't want to be baptised. Just like, I would guess you wouldn't want to pray to Allah in order to take a bath.

 

Damn no edit. Anyway, you get the picture.

 

I'm sure the people of Najaf or wherever this little day spa is located could use the water as well.

 

I meant that I was not aware Jews were opposed to being baptized, since a Jew (John) was baptising people, and another Jew (Jesus) allowed himself to be baptised. I could see a complaint about being baptised in the name of Christ, but I thought a baptism in the name of God/Yahweh/Jehovah/Allah/whathaveyou would be kosher (pardon the pun).

 

This preacher is Southern Baptist. I doubt he would be so vague!

 

Who's gonna go first? I wouldn't want to go second and I doubt I would want to go at all after that. By "go" I mean "take a bath." Hope that water is not warm....