I agree with this, Atheists need Chaplains also.

It would be nice to have such people to talk to with 100% confidentiality, something that your Mental Health professionals at the on-base clinic do NOT provide.

Go talk to a shrink

I was a Chaplain's Assistant, and I absolutely agree. It's great that the military has psychiatric social workers, but they aren't imbedded in the battalions the way chaplains are. There are many chaplains who were respectful of others' faith (including humanistic and atheistic beliefs), but the judgment is often there. I would consider myself a secular humanist at this point. I'm not an atheist, per se, but would not feel comfortable seeking counsel from a religious person. I remember my mother was hospitalized while I was deployed and I was told I "need to trust in Jesus." I wasn't trying to go home at all, I just needed a little support, which apparently could not be provided through a Christian lense.

I agree, Atheist all need a Phycologist. ;-) And just for the record, everything you tell a chaplain is not 100% confidential.

People view oing to mental health as a sign of weakness. From what I've heard it also takes a long time to get an appointment. If someone is having a crisis now they don't want to be preached at, but they need to get help immediately. Sometimes waiting a week or more is too long and we may have lost that person or had them take a different route that leads them to poor decisions that effect their career in a negative way.

I have been very fortunate to have what you have wished for, very few have ever tried to PUSH onto me when I merely wished to talk. I hope you find one sooner than later to change your opinion.

It's a relief to know they are out there.

That's where Chaplains are wrong. They are there to listen and encourage. Love on the troops just as they are.

Bingo. No one else on the base can grant you 100% confidentiality.

Lt Col (Join to see) Too many people don't appreciate this. I was never suicidal, but experienced a lot of death in my personal life and then downrange. It was so nice just to be able to talk to somebody who has experienced a lot of the same and have it all be between the 2 of us. I still consider the chaplain a very close friend and never hesitate just to pop in and say hi occasionally. The chaplain corps is an amazing asset to the armed services.

Seems like you are the one judging in this instance, too. The issue, if you have not read it, is that chaplains are at the unit level, while counselors are not. Chaplains offer confidentiality for their discussions, but mental health counselors do not. There is a double standard in this, where a person is able to go to a religious counselor (chaplain) and discuss issues that are affecting them, while a person desiring a secular counselor opts for a mental health counselor, which is documented in their medical record. The private conversation, with the chaplain, is not able to be used for any security clearance issues, however the mental health records can be used against the person opting for that route.

SSG Daron Williams,
Chaplains adhere to the military standards. The military understand that their are many religious followings out there. Their religious views are not constructed in their counseling sessions. The only time faith is discussed is when that person brings it up. Chaplains have to marry same sex. There have been a few chaplains I've bumped into who use profanity like nobody's business.
The mental health counselor and chaplain's adhere to the same policy. Only if you intend to harm yourself or others do they have to report it.
Again, it is an OXYMORON to want an atheists chaplain.

PO3 Damien De Franco,
While you wrote a lot...you said very little.
"Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister, such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, imam or lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, school, police department, university, or private chapel."

I humbly apologize but I don't really know how to respond or even understood what you were saying.

Again, you're going around in circles. I agree, tradition isn't always right. I was just giving you traditional insight on what a Chaplain is.
Who are you or me to say what helps & hurts others? Hitler thought his simple idea of getting rid of what he didn't agree with was right & wouldn't hurt anyone.
FACT: when you go see a Chaplain it doesn't go into your medical records unless you plan to harm yourself or others. When you go see a counselor it does, however, goes into your medical record. A Chaplain has to refer you to a counselor when/if you need more than social services.
FACT: Chaplain aren't there to baptize you or make you into a religious fanatic. In fact, a chaplain has to perform same sex marriages. I have witnessed Chaplin cursed like nobody's business. Doesn't religious beliefs prohibit those things? My point is Chaplains are there to help EVERYONE regardless of gender, race, nationality, & etc...
I don't know where you've been but chaplains are optional choices.
What if we did get rid of chaplains & replaced them with counselors? Tell me what's the difference between going to a counselor who believes in God & a chaplain who's diverse in all religious/nonreligious aspects?
Come on, we're so busy being hypocrites that we lose sight of the most important thing in this world...RESPECT!!! Let's get back to respecting whatever people want & don't want to believe.
Getting rid of something just because a group doesn't agree with it doesn't solve the problem. Sooner than later you'll have few with that group who disagree & it goes on & on. Again, who are you kidding. You will NEVER get a group of individuals equally happy...NEVER!!!
I say respect & embrace one another's opinions/beliefs. Our beliefs/faith comes from our personal journey we've traveled in life.
Now if we could only get rid of those have no respect for other's beliefs/faith/ideology/thought/&whatever else...

I don't think they do. That was what I posted.

Because Chaplains and social workers/psychologists approach the problem in different ways. Psychologists and other clinical folks come from a medical background and are trained to find a "problem", diagnose it, and then prescribe treatment. That is the model they come from. Chaplains come more from the mentor/confidant background where they simply allow you someone to talk to without having to "diagnose" the problem.

And I will point out, for probably the third or fourth time in this thread, that any facility on the base that provides mental health support does not offer you 100% confidentiality. The chaplain does.

Major Williams is right on point. Also, the Chaplain is imbedded with the rest of the troops in a way that counselors are not. When I was in Afghanistan, the chaplain and I would regularly fly out on supply choppers in order to provide semi-regular religious services and, more importantly (in my opinion), counseling and guidance to the guys who were out at the firebases for months at a time with terrible internet and no phone service. There were more than a couple people who would have likely been grateful for a humanistic approach to whatever was ailing them. I wonder if the Unitarian Universalists are represented in the chaplains' corps? That would probably do the trick...

That is your belief, but who are you praying to if it is a higher power how can you call yourself an atheist, but are you actually meditating insteading of praying,

Compliments Major. Whether you believe in a divine being, a divine order,the Flying spaghetti monster, or are just exercising the senses you don't normally use to look at the world around you in all it's glory, it gives you a patience and tolerance that make you a rock to those around you. Rather humbling.

SSG Hill, Please describe having religion "forced" upon you? Do you mean every time you made contact with a Chaplain he or she tried to convert you or was it because all the "God" talk? I am merely curious.

Chaplains do much more than simply provide worship/religious services. I'm an atheist and have found them to be more understanding and easier to talk to than many of my fellow soldiers, some of whom try to force their beliefs and ideology on me.

Well said SSG

CH (CPT) (Join to see) , thank you sir. Fancy seeing you on RallyPoint.